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How many people work at an independent RIA?

As of October 2, 2026, the median independent wealth management RIA has 2 employees, and the middle half of firms have between 1 and 4 (22,791 firms, from Form ADV). The median firm has 1 advisory employee. By size, the median number of employees is lowest at firms managing under $100 million (1) and highest at firms managing $10 billion and up (205).

By AUM size band

Employees

AUM size bandMedianMiddle 50%Firms with a valueFirms in group
All sizes21 to 422,79122,914
Under $100 million11 to 211,30711,373
$100 million to $250 million32 to 53,4463,447
$250 million to $500 million64 to 82,0252,025
$500 million to $1 billion96 to 131,3071,307
$1 billion to $5 billion1812 to 301,0891,089
$5 billion to $10 billion6337 to 97128128
$10 billion and up205124 to 432109109
No AUM reported11 to 23,3803,436

By state

The 10 states with the most firms reporting, by main office, all sizes. States with fewer than 30 firms reporting are not shown.

StateMedianMiddle 50%Firms with a value
California11 to 33,206
Texas21 to 41,797
Florida21 to 41,703
New York21 to 41,322
Pennsylvania21 to 5898
Ohio21 to 4834
Illinois21 to 4823
Massachusetts21 to 4772
Colorado21 to 4747
New Jersey21 to 4686

Advisory employees

AUM size bandMedianMiddle 50%Firms with a valueFirms in group
All sizes11 to 322,70522,914
Under $100 million11 to 111,28311,373
$100 million to $250 million22 to 33,4413,447
$250 million to $500 million43 to 52,0222,025
$500 million to $1 billion64 to 81,3051,307
$1 billion to $5 billion117 to 181,0881,089
$5 billion to $10 billion3219 to 56128128
$10 billion and up9946 to 217109109
No AUM reported11 to 13,3293,436

What these figures count

Who is counted
Independent wealth management RIAs, SEC-registered and state-registered: firms whose individual and high net worth clients hold at least half of their AUM and that offer financial planning or portfolio management for individuals. Broker-dealers, banks and their advisory arms, asset managers, private fund managers and pension consultants are not counted. 22,914 firms are in the data; 22,791 report what this page needs.
When
Form ADV data as of the date above. Each firm's figures are as it last reported them, mostly as of its fiscal year end, which is usually December 31 of the previous year.
Middle 50%
The middle 50% runs from the 25th to the 75th percentile: a quarter of firms are below it, half are inside it and a quarter are above it. The median is the firm in the middle.
Small groups
A group with fewer than 30 firms reporting is not shown, and nothing is estimated for it.

Definitions

Employees (count)
A firm's employees, full time and part time, not counting clerical workers (Form ADV Item 5.A). One value per firm; firms reporting at least one.
Advisory employees (count)
A firm's employees who perform investment advisory functions, including research (Form ADV Item 5.B(1)). One value per firm; firms reporting at least one.

Compiled October 21, 2026 from SEC Form ADV data as of October 2, 2026 and state data as of October 20, 2026. Sources: SEC registered adviser data (ia100226.zip) and IAPD compilation reports. How the directory is built.

Method

For each firm the measure is worked out from its own Form ADV answers; a size band shows the median of those firm values and the middle 50% around it, so a few very large or very small firms do not pull the figure. Size bands are the AUM bands used in the industry data (Item 5.F(2)(c)).

Affiliated advisers can report the same assets on their own Form ADV, so totals here may double count across firms, as the SEC's own totals do. Full methodology.

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