California Financial Planner Salary

California is the most populous state in the United States and its third largest by area. It is home to some of the most valuable companies on the planet and is at the forefront of the technology and culture industries of the world. As a Californian, your state is home to natural wonders like Mount Shasta and the Redwood National Park, the craggy shores of the northern coast and the gorgeous beaches in San Diego.

This economic and cultural titan is also home to the highest number of certified financial planners in the country. There are 9,574 CFPs in California, according to the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) Board. That is 10.8% of the total number of certified financial planners in the country. In order to be certified by the CFP Board, a financial advisor must first become a fiduciary, who is legally bound to act based on their clients’ best interests, as opposed to acting in self-interest, namely for commissions, or the sale of financial products and services.

Consequently, aspiring financial planners have two career paths before them – one is fee-based advisory and the other is commission-based advisory. Fee-based advisors make their living through a pre-stated fee for their services rendered to their clients. This fee usually consists of a flat retainer, and/or an hourly rate for investment advice and other services.

Meanwhile, a commission-based advisor makes a living by earning commission when they sell their financial products or services to their clients. While fee-based advisor require certification for their practice, commission-based advisors do not.

If you are interested in how salaries for financial advisors, stockbrokers and insurance agents vary across different regions of California, you have come to the right place. We have compiled data on the salaries of financial advisors, stockbrokers and insurance agents in California, across its various metropolitan and non-metropolitan regions. This data has been acquired from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and is visible below.

Financial Advisor Salary in California

Below, we have data collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2019 on the financial advisors in California’s metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas.

The hourly mean salary is highest in the San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande area at $171,370. The San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward area comes in second at $157,720. The median salary also is highest in the San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande area where it is $165,240.

Note that annual wages are calculated by multiplying the corresponding hourly wage by 2,080 hours. Also note that that self-employed workers were not counted in this data.

The San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande area may also have the highest annual wages in the 75th and 90th percentiles, but this data is unavailable. Data for the San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward area is also unavailable and is most probably higher than or comparable to the San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande.

Area Name
Employment
Annual mean wage
Bakersfield
100
87870
Fresno
230
80920
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim
11090
94420
Modesto
-
139610
Napa
-
114100
North Coast Region of California nonmetropolitan area
100
79860
North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area
50
53820
Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura
550
97230
Redding
-
91390
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario
960
100530
Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade
1090
110480
Salinas
100
98810
San Diego-Carlsbad
1860
133290
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward
7100
157720
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara
1320
111950
San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande
110
171370
Santa Cruz-Watsonville
60
80670
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara
280
154180
Santa Rosa
230
99220
Stockton-Lodi
80
94820
Vallejo-Fairfield
40
58430
Visalia-Porterville
50
94090

Stockbroker Salary in California

The Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim area contains 22,900 stockbrokers, the most in the state. The San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward is second with 10,660 stockbrokers working there, less than half as many. The annual mean salary is highest in the San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward area at $101,770. Bakersfield and Santa Rosa both have annual salaries of more than $80K.

Area Name
Employment
Annual mean wage
Bakersfield
550
80930
Fresno
730
74050
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim
22900
75210
Modesto
510
61000
Napa
250
62610
North Coast Region of California nonmetropolitan area
200
61040
North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area
120
70090
Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura
1310
76070
Redding
160
55120
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario
3100
59170
Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade
3110
74440
Salinas
480
70450
San Diego-Carlsbad
6140
73810
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward
10660
101770
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara
3120
78870
San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande
360
61310
Santa Cruz-Watsonville
280
57780
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara
600
61490
Santa Rosa
520
80660
Stockton-Lodi
390
52190
Vallejo-Fairfield
250
64880
Visalia-Porterville
280
66070

Life/Annuity Producer Salary in California

The Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim area is home to 15,670 life/annuity producers in California, the highest in the state. San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward is at a distant second with 5,800 professionals.

The annual mean salary is highest in the San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward area at $109,960, followed by Sacramento-Roseville-Arden-Arcade, where the annual mean wage is $91,690 for a life/annuity producer. Annual median wage is also highest in San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward.

Although the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim area is home to the highest number of life/annuity producers in California, they are somewhere in the middle on all metrics. Earners in the 90th percentile make $106,790 annually, while those in the same bracket in Santa Rosa and San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara make almost twice this much. Data on the 90th percentile in SF is unavailable for comparison.

Area Name
Employment
Annual mean wage
Bakersfield
600
48050
Fresno
1140
70560
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim
15670
62750
Modesto
470
68530
Napa
110
71280
North Coast Region of California nonmetropolitan area
240
71340
North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area
120
52820
Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura
780
77140
Redding
120
59950
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario
2740
60540
Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade
3470
91690
Salinas
300
62440
San Diego-Carlsbad
4100
79350
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward
5800
109960
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara
1610
89670
San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande
290
54080
Santa Cruz-Watsonville
130
56700
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara
470
74670
Santa Rosa
650
86140
Stockton-Lodi
480
65520
Vallejo-Fairfield
300
67470
Visalia-Porterville
220
79130

 

(Salary and job growth data reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics in May 2019 for personal financial advisors; securities, commodities and financial services sales agents; and insurance sales agents. Figures represent national data, not school-specific information. Conditions in your area may vary. Information accessed February 2021.)