NextWealth has published our Fee Benchmarking Report, Diagnosing fair value against client expectations. This annual report provides benchmark figures for adviser fees, key industry charging trends, and historical data. A key focus is identifying areas of the client journey that drive value for the end consumer.

The financial advice market is under increasing scrutiny, with regulatory change, consumer expectations, and competitive pressures reshaping how firms set and justify their fees. Financial advisers strike a delicate balance, ensuring profitability while demonstrating clear value to clients. At the same time, shifting charging models and a laser-like focus on value from the regulator are driving fundamental changes in pricing strategies.

Understanding where your firm stands in this evolving landscape is crucial. This report provides comprehensive analysis of adviser fees from the perspective of both financial advisers and their clients. It provides firms with the insights needed to align pricing with client expectations, to remain competitive, and to sustain long-term growth.

Based on robust industry and survey data, the report can be used to support value for money assessments for the regulator, clients and boards.

The report is made up of two sections, reflecting the views of financial advisers and their clients:

1. How advisers charge: trends, models, and benchmarks

2. What clients value: perceptions, expectations, and satisfaction

By highlighting emerging trends and value drivers, this study serves as a valuable resource for financial advice and wealth management firms looking to refine their pricing strategies while enhancing client outcomes.

Methodology

• The report draws on a comprehensive three-year dataset, including fee insights from a combined sample of over 500 financial advisers for 2024 and 2025 and a digital survey of 200 financial advisers conducted between 13 and 20 February 2025.

• Historic comparisons are drawn from NextWealth’s Financial Advice Business Benchmarks report, with survey data based on over 900 responses from financial advice professionals on fees between 2022-2024.

• Detailed fee data from 15 national advice firms collected in February 2025.

• Additional historic comparison data from NextWealth’s Financial Advice Business Benchmark database.

• The report also covers the client point of view, based on a digital survey of 200 advised clients with a minimum of £100,000 in investible assets who have paid for financial advice within the last 12 months.

If you’d like to download a sample, please fill in the form.