Study Finds CFP-Advised Clients Report Higher Satisfaction and Trust

Comprehensive academic research shows positive impact of certified financial planners on client outcomes.

Published on Feb. 12, 2026

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A comprehensive study by the CFP Board has found that clients of certified financial planners (CFPs) report significantly higher levels of trust, satisfaction, and confidence in reaching their financial goals compared to clients of non-CFP advisors or those without an advisor. The research adds to a growing body of evidence on the value of comprehensive financial planning.

Why it matters

The findings from this study provide quantifiable data to support the value proposition of hiring a CFP professional. As the planning profession continues to evolve beyond just investment management, this research could influence advisors' professional development choices, marketing efforts, and how they communicate the holistic benefits of financial planning to clients.

The details

The study, conducted by respected planning professors and the NORC polling service, surveyed over 4,500 participants with at least $50,000 in annual income and $30,000 in investable assets. Key findings include: 73% of CFP-advised clients reported "strong trust" in their planner, compared to 52% for non-CFP advisors; 66% of CFP clients were "very satisfied" versus 44% for non-CFP; and CFP clients were over 20 percentage points more likely to say their advisor reduces financial anxiety and motivates long-term planning.

  • The study was released in May 2025.
  • The research spanned at least a decade of client outcomes.

The players

J. Michael Collins

A professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison who is the Fetzer Family Chair in Consumer and Personal Finance in the School of Human Ecology and one of the academics leading the study.

Sonya Lutter

The director of financial health and wellness at Texas Tech University School of Financial Planning and one of the academics leading the study.

Matt Regan

The president of Richmond, Virginia-based independent advisor services and registered investment advisory firm Wealthcare.

CFP Board

The organization that commissioned the "first comprehensive academic study to track and report the actual impact of holistic financial planning on clients."

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What they’re saying

“A lot of this has been around for a long long time, but the reality is that we're still moving away from the investment-only guys. There are more of them out there than you may think.”

— Matt Regan, President, Wealthcare (financial-planning.com)

“We're not a pharmaceutical company. We can't go out and find a random sample of people to randomly assign to working with a financial planner or a CFP. I don't even know what the placebo would be. In this case, if you have a good idea for what the control group would be for a study, please let me know.”

— J. Michael Collins, Professor, University of Wisconsin-Madison (financial-planning.com)

“Ideally your [customer relationship management] or other planning software is already capturing elements of wellness, and maybe you identified some of those things that you hadn't previously thought of as holistic financial wellness. But if you're not capturing that data already, perhaps start asking some questions about their feelings towards money, or maybe prior experiences with money or various life events. And then, at some point, maybe introducing them to the full financial wellness assessment could be a really big deal in measuring people's change over time and really highlighting that value of financial planning.”

— Sonya Lutter, Director of Financial Health and Wellness, Texas Tech University (financial-planning.com)

What’s next

The researchers plan to release the full survey questions from the study, which could help advisors better capture data on client financial wellness and quantify the value they provide.

The takeaway

This comprehensive study provides compelling evidence that working with a CFP-certified financial planner leads to significantly higher levels of client trust, satisfaction, and confidence in reaching their financial goals. As the planning profession evolves, this research underscores the value of comprehensive, holistic financial advice.