How much does a Financial Advisor make in Tennessee?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $89,390 for Financial Advisors in Tennessee as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $48,850 and the 75th-percentile is $167,720.

What is the real (cost-adjusted) Financial Advisor salary in Tennessee?

After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 92.1 for Tennessee), the real-wage equivalent is $97,064 — what the $89,390 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $53,044 to $182,118.

Where does Tennessee rank for Financial Advisor pay?

On nominal BLS wages alone, Tennessee ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.

What are the limits of these Financial Advisor salary numbers?

BLS OES is an employer survey of W-2 wages — it excludes contractor pay, bonuses outside the base wage definition, equity compensation, and tip income. Self-employed practitioners and gig workers are not represented. For occupations with significant non-W-2 income, the BLS figure is a floor, not a complete picture.

When does this data update?

BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.

AUM-fee economics — what does it take to earn the Tennessee BLS median?

The classic 1% AUM fee on a $50M practice yields $500K gross revenue. After overhead (typically 30-50% of revenue: staff, technology, custodial fees, compliance, rent, marketing) the principal advisor in Tennessee nets $250-350K, well above the BLS-reported W-2 median for SOC 13-2052. To match the BLS-reported median for Tennessee as a wirehouse W-2 advisor, the typical book size required is $30-40M AUM at standard grid payouts — achievable in 5-10 years with strong recruiting and referral systems. Below that production threshold, wirehouse advisors are typically counseled out or transition to support roles.

CFP / CFA / ChFC credential premium in Tennessee?

BLS does not split by credential. CFP Board surveys and FA Insight industry studies typically show CFP charterholders earning 15-30% above non-CFP advisors at comparable AUM, concentrated in fee-only RIA channels where the credential is functionally required for client trust. CFA charter is rarer in retail wealth management — most relevant for advisors with high-net-worth or institutional book — but adds incremental premium. ChFC, CIMA, and CPWA fall in similar credential premium bands. In Tennessee, the credential premium is largest at the high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth end of the market and smaller in mass-affluent and bank-channel practices.

Tennessee Financial Advisor Salary: BLS $89K Median, Real $97K (2026)

TL;DR

Financial Advisors in Tennessee earn a BLS median of $89,390, with real take-home of $97,064 after BEA RPP adjustment.
Financial Advisor ranking: #25 on the BLS table, #22 once cost of living is in.
Cost of living below the national index lifts real wage by $7,674 over the nominal — a take-home arbitrage that nominal-ranking tables miss.
Mid-band breakdown: P25 $48,850, P50 $89,390, P75 $167,720. Tail percentiles withheld by BLS — common when tech-sector wages exceed the OES survey cap.

Wage breakdown — Tennessee

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$40,400	$43,868
P25 (lower quartile)	$48,850	$53,044
P50 (median)	$89,390	$97,064
P75 (upper quartile)	$167,720	$182,118
P90 (top tier)
Mean	$143,910	$156,264
Employment	4,350 Financial Advisors in Tennessee

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Tennessee index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	92.1
Goods	94.3
Services	76.4
Rents	77.9

Tennessee sits below the national baseline (RPP 92.1), so nominal pay translates to a higher real wage than the BLS median suggests — particularly visible in rents at 77.9.

After-tax take-home — Tennessee (2024 BLS · 2024 tax year, single filer)

Layer-by-layer take-home math at the BLS median

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Financial Advisor)	$89,390	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$10,913	12.2% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	$0	no state income tax (Hall tax repealed 2021)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$6,838	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$71,639	80.1% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$77,789	÷ (92.1 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

What the Tennessee state-tax burden means for Financial Advisor take-home

Tennessee levies no state income tax on wages, which is worth roughly $4,470 a year for a Financial Advisor at the BLS median compared with the national-average state burden (≈5%). After the favorable cost of living, real take-home is $77,789 — higher than the nominal after-tax figure because RPP is below 100.

Computed from 2026 IRS federal brackets (Rev. Proc. 2025-32), 2026 state DOR brackets, and 2026 FICA rates. Single filer, standard deduction, no other adjustments. See methodology · tax for limitations (married filers, ITM/SALT itemizers, retirement deferrals, HSA, dependent credits, etc.).

National context

Across the United States, BLS reports a national median of $102,140 for Financial Advisors with mean pay of $160,210 and total employment of 270,480. Tennessee sits at #25 on nominal pay and #22 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Tennessee climbs 3 positions — the cost of living is favorable relative to the wage.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a Financial Advisor make in Tennessee?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $89,390 for Financial Advisors in Tennessee as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $48,850 and the 75th-percentile is $167,720.
What is the real (cost-adjusted) Financial Advisor salary in Tennessee?: After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 92.1 for Tennessee), the real-wage equivalent is $97,064 — what the $89,390 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $53,044 to $182,118.
Where does Tennessee rank for Financial Advisor pay?: On nominal BLS wages alone, Tennessee ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.
What are the limits of these Financial Advisor salary numbers?: BLS OES is an employer survey of W-2 wages — it excludes contractor pay, bonuses outside the base wage definition, equity compensation, and tip income. Self-employed practitioners and gig workers are not represented. For occupations with significant non-W-2 income, the BLS figure is a floor, not a complete picture.
When does this data update?: BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.
AUM-fee economics — what does it take to earn the Tennessee BLS median?: The classic 1% AUM fee on a $50M practice yields $500K gross revenue. After overhead (typically 30-50% of revenue: staff, technology, custodial fees, compliance, rent, marketing) the principal advisor in Tennessee nets $250-350K, well above the BLS-reported W-2 median for SOC 13-2052. To match the BLS-reported median for Tennessee as a wirehouse W-2 advisor, the typical book size required is $30-40M AUM at standard grid payouts — achievable in 5-10 years with strong recruiting and referral systems. Below that production threshold, wirehouse advisors are typically counseled out or transition to support roles.
CFP / CFA / ChFC credential premium in Tennessee?: BLS does not split by credential. CFP Board surveys and FA Insight industry studies typically show CFP charterholders earning 15-30% above non-CFP advisors at comparable AUM, concentrated in fee-only RIA channels where the credential is functionally required for client trust. CFA charter is rarer in retail wealth management — most relevant for advisors with high-net-worth or institutional book — but adds incremental premium. ChFC, CIMA, and CPWA fall in similar credential premium bands. In Tennessee, the credential premium is largest at the high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth end of the market and smaller in mass-affluent and bank-channel practices.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 13-2052, 2024 reference period.
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities, 2023 vintage (all-items, goods, services, rents).
Real-wage figures = nominal BLS wage ÷ (state RPP / 100).
See the methodology page for full computation details and limitations.

By Marcus Liang · Founder & Editor · Last synced 2026-05-08.

Cross-comparison: see how Tennessee Financial Advisor pay ranks against the other 254 state × occupation pages on the Real Wage Atlas → — four-way ranking by real wage, after-tax take-home, state-tax savings, and cost-of-living arbitrage.