Questions To Ask a Financial Advisor

The Questions To Ask a Financial Advisor

There are eight questions to ask a financial advisor, and each one appears on Form CRS or in Investor.gov's guidance about it. The wording below comes from the Form CRS of one firm registered as both a broker-dealer and an investment adviser, retrieved on November 9, 2026. Under each question is what a clear answer should cover.

1. "Given my financial situation, should I choose an investment advisory service? Should I choose a brokerage service? Should I choose both types of services? Why or why not?" The Investor.gov Form CRS page says brokers and advisers can both advise on buying a stock or an index fund and on whether to sell or hold it later. A clear answer explains which type of service, or which combination, fits your goals, preferences and needs.
2. "How will you choose investments to recommend to me?" The Investor.gov investment advisers page says an adviser typically gives ongoing advice and monitors how your investments perform and how they line up with your overall objectives. A clear answer says what the person looks at when picking an investment and how they review it afterward.
3. "What is your relevant experience, including your licenses, education and other qualifications? What do these qualifications mean?" Investor.gov warns that initials after a name do not make one person more qualified than another, and that some initials mean the person can only sell certain products. A clear answer names each credential and says what it lets the person sell or do for you.
4. "Help me understand how these fees and costs might affect my investments. If I give you $10,000 to invest, how much will go to fees and costs, and how much will be invested for me?" The Form CRS notes that fees and costs reduce what you make on your investments over time, and that you pay them whether you make or lose money.
5. "What are your legal obligations to me when providing recommendations as my broker-dealer or when acting as my investment adviser?" Investor.gov says investment advisers are required to act in your best interest and not put their interest ahead of yours. A clear answer states the duty for each role the person could play with your account, and our guide on what a fiduciary is explains the adviser side of that duty.
6. "How else does your firm make money, and what conflicts of interest do you have?" Follow it with the form's own prompt: "How might your conflicts of interest affect me, and how will you address them?" Investor.gov says the way advisers make money creates some conflicts with your interests, and those conflicts can affect the advice you get. A clear answer names each conflict and what the firm does about it.
7. "How do your financial professionals make money?" The firm whose form is quoted here says it pays its financial professionals in different ways, including commissions and advisory fees, and that higher commissions, costs or fees could lead to higher pay for the professional. That is one firm's disclosure, so ask the person in front of you to describe their own pay.
8. "As a financial professional, do you have any disciplinary history? For what type of conduct?" Investor.gov says a Form CRS has to state whether the firm and its financial professionals have reportable legal or disciplinary history. A clear answer matches what the form says and explains the conduct behind any entry.

Ask for the answers in writing where you can. Then compare the written answers with the firm's Form CRS after the meeting.

Public Record Checks on Registration and History

The answers about registration and disciplinary history can be checked against public records before you hire anyone. Investor.gov calls registration with the SEC or a state securities regulator the most important question to settle first. Its Working with an Investment Professional page offers a free and simple search that shows whether an investment professional is licensed and registered.

You can also run a name through adviserinfo.sec.gov and through BrokerCheck from the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). If the person lists the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) credential, look the name up on the CFP Board's verification page. Investor.gov also points to a FINRA list showing that some credentials are easy to obtain and others are hard-earned.

Next, set the person's spoken answers beside the firm's Form CRS. Investor.gov says every relationship summary covers the firm's services, fees and costs, conflicts of interest, required standard of conduct, and legal or disciplinary history, using similar headings and order of topics.

If a spoken fee or conflict answer does not match the form, ask which one is correct and get the reply in writing. Our guide on how to choose a financial advisor covers the wider comparison between firms once each candidate has answered the same eight questions.

Red Flags and What To Do

Three situations are reasons to look at other candidates. The first rests on Investor.gov's warning. The other two are our judgment, built on what Form CRS must contain.

• The person is not registered with the SEC or a state securities regulator. Investor.gov says it is "really risky to invest with someone who isn't licensed," so move on to another candidate.
• The firm will not give you a Form CRS. Registered broker-dealers and registered investment advisers are required to give one to retail investors, so ask once in writing and keep looking if it still does not arrive.
• The record shows legal or disciplinary history the person cannot explain. Investor.gov lists that history, and the type of conduct behind it, among the things to weigh before selecting an adviser. We would treat an entry the person cannot explain as a reason to choose someone else.

A clean record does not settle the other questions on the list. Keep the fee, duty and conflict answers in your comparison even for a candidate with no history.

Questions To Ask a Financial Advisor in Special Situations

If you want more than investment recommendations, add questions about planning services and about which accounts and products the person can offer. Investor.gov says advisers may also give advice about market trends or asset allocation, or offer financial planning services. It also tells you to weigh the services and products you need against what the adviser can provide and any limits on it.

• Do you offer financial planning services, or advice on asset allocation?
• Which services and products can you provide, and what can you not provide?
• Can your firm offer both advisory and brokerage accounts? Investor.gov notes that many firms are registered as both a broker and an adviser and offer both types of account.
• How much will I pay for services, and how much for each transaction?

For retirement savings, use the same eight questions and add which retirement account types the person handles. Retirement account rules and contribution limits are outside these questions.

Who These Questions Are Not For and What Would Change the List

These questions fit someone choosing an ongoing relationship with an adviser or broker. Investor.gov says advisers typically provide ongoing advice, and that the adviser's fee is typically based on the value of all the assets in your account, with other fees and costs possible on top. If you need only a one-time answer to a single money question, read our guide on whether a financial advisor is worth it before you sit through a full interview.

Two things would change this list. If the SEC changes the conversation starters printed on Form CRS, we would rebuild the list from the new form. If a candidate fails the registration question, you can skip the rest of the list for that person, because Investor.gov treats registration as the first test.

Our Takeaway

Ask every candidate the same eight questions listed above, then compare their written answers with the firm's own Form CRS and their public record. Look elsewhere if the person is not registered or cannot explain a disciplinary record.

The same list works whether the person is an investment adviser, a broker or part of a firm that is both. Copy these questions to ask a financial advisor, send them before the first meeting, and check the person's registration with the free search on Investor.gov.

Frequently asked questions