Financial Planner
Financial planners help people work out what their money is for, then build a plan covering super, investments, insurance and retirement.
- Median salary
- $134,300
4.4%vs last year, before tax
- People employed
- 24,000
1.3%vs last year
- Projected growth
- +12.7%
to 2035
- AI exposure*
- Low
- automation risk
- Average hours
- 44/wk
+4h vs all jobs
- Shortage status
- Not in shortage
national
Most financial planners work in an advice practice, a bank, an industry super fund or their own business, meeting clients in person and spending the time between meetings on the modelling and paperwork behind each recommendation. The role is often confused with mortgage or insurance broking, which deals with a single product, while a planner looks at a client's whole financial position. Personal advice is given under an Australian Financial Services Licence, so a planner either holds their own or works as an authorised representative of the licensee that holds it.
How much do financial planners earn?
The median full-time salary for a financial planner is $134,300 per annum, before tax, up $28,400 since 2018.
Pay depends heavily on the model you work under: a salaried adviser in a bank or an industry super fund earns a fixed package, while a planner with their own client book is paid from fees charged on the funds they look after, so income grows with the size of that book. Experience, client numbers and the fee structure of the licensee you work under move the figure more than location does. Most practices now charge a flat advice fee rather than commission, which shapes both what you earn and how you explain your charges to clients.
What does a financial planner do day to day?
The list below is what fills most weeks; the exact mix shifts with seniority and whatever stage the current work is at.
- Sitting with a client to work out what they want their money to do, from a first home to an earlier retirement
- Building a statement of advice in planning software such as Xplan or Midwinter, with the reason for every recommendation written out
- Explaining super, insurance and investment trade-offs in language that does not need a glossary
- Reviewing a client's strategy when their job, health or family changes, and adjusting the plan around it
- Keeping files, disclosure records and continuing education up to date, because a recommendation can be examined years after it was made
What skills do financial planners need?
Employers look for investment and financial advice, regulatory compliance, financial analysis and modelling, backed by Xplan fluency and strong client relationships and advisory.
Specialist skills
- Investment and financial advice
- Regulatory compliance
- Financial analysis and modelling
Software and tools
- Xplan
- Midwinter
- Excel
General skills
- Client relationships and advisory
- Written communication
- Stakeholder management
Is the job growing?
About 24,000 people work as financial planners in Australia, and employment is projected to grow 12.7% over the decade to 2035. That's healthy, above-average growth, and the role should stay in solid demand.
How do you become a financial planner?
Here's the path most financial planners take, step by step.
- 1Complete an approved qualification
New advisers need a bachelor's degree or higher in an approved field, usually financial planning, commerce or economics. If you already hold a degree in another discipline, a graduate diploma in financial planning is the shorter route, and plenty of planners hold a postgraduate qualification on top of their first degree.
- 2Pass the financial adviser exam
The exam is administered through ASIC and tests how you apply advice rules to client situations rather than recalling them. It is usually sat around the end of your studies, and you need to have passed it before you can be registered.
- 3Work through the professional year
Registration requires a supervised professional year of at least 1,500 hours of client-facing work over 12 months or more, in a paid role inside an advice practice. You cannot give personal advice on your own until it is finished, which is why most new planners start in graduate or support positions.
- 4Register and keep your knowledge current
Your licensee registers you on ASIC's Financial Advisers Register once the qualification, exam and professional year are complete. After that you owe 40 hours of continuing professional development a year, covering technical, compliance and client care topics.
- 5Consider starting in a support role
Paraplanning or client service work in an advice practice is a common entry point while you study. It counts towards your supervised hours, teaches you the planning software from the inside, and gives you a view of the job before you commit to the full pathway.
Ready to apply as a financial planner?
Whether you're working toward becoming a financial planner or already are one and want a hand with the next step (sharpening your resume for ATS screening, tightening your cover letter, or knowing what you'll actually be asked at interview), here are examples grounded in this specific role, not generic templates.
What jobs can a financial planner move to?
Moving into Stockbroker typically comes with the biggest pay rise, worth $3,600 a year more on average.
| Move to | Typical pay change | Overlap | Retraining |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stockbroker Financial planners bring investment knowledge and client advisory skills, and the move into stockbroking needs only a short course. | +$3,600 | 47% | short course |
| Investment Banker Financial planners bring client advisory and financial analysis skills, but moving into investment banking requires a new qualification.Known move | +$0 | 25% | requalify |
| Finance Broker Financial planners bring client advisory and financial product knowledge, and the move into finance broking needs minimal retraining.Known move | −$300 | 64% | minimal |
| Mortgage Broker Financial planners bring lending and property finance knowledge, and the move into mortgage broking needs only a short course.Known move | −$300 | 60% | short course |
| Accountant Financial planners bring client advisory and financial analysis skills, though moving into accountancy requires a recognised accounting qualification.Known move | −$30,100 | 13% | requalify |
Moves are chosen from Jobs and Skills Australia's Data on Occupation Mobility, which follows income tax records between 2011-12 and 2020-21, together with entry requirements and skill overlap. A known move is one people were seen making in that data. Pay change compares median full-time pay for the two roles.
Who works as a financial planner?
The typical financial planner is 43 years old; 67% are men, 84% work full-time, and full-timers average 44 hours a week.
- 43
- Median age
- 33%
- Female share
- 84%
- Full-time
- +4h
- vs all-jobs avg
What's it like being a financial planner?
The job runs on a cycle of meetings and the work between them: discovery with a new client, then the modelling and writing that turn it into a plan, then reviews that keep it current. Most of the pressure sits in accuracy and record-keeping, because a recommendation can be examined years after it was made. Planners who enjoy it tend to like the long client relationship and the variety of financial lives they see, more than the markets themselves.
What people like
- Seeing a long plan pay off. Clients you first met in their forties come back at retirement with the mortgage gone and their super where you projected it, and you were part of the decisions along the way.
- Every client situation is different. Two people on the same income can need completely different answers once health, family, a business or an inheritance is on the table, so the technical work rarely repeats.
- Clients trust you with the whole picture. Divorce, a diagnosis, a business sale: a planner often hears the news before the client's own family does, and the advice only works if you handle that carefully.
- You can build something of your own. Many planners end up with equity in a practice or a client book of their own, which turns the role from a job into a business you can sell or hand on.
What people find hard
- The paperwork behind every recommendation. Statements of advice, file notes and disclosure records take real time, and in a busy practice the writing can outweigh the meeting that prompted it.
- The rules keep moving. Education standards, registration and the compliance requirements your licensee imposes all change, so keeping up is part of the job rather than an occasional task.
- The calls when markets fall. Telling a client their balance has dropped is unavoidable, and the conversation is harder when they are close to retirement or have just moved a large sum in.
- Clients are free outside business hours. People want to talk about money after work or before the school run, so evening and early-morning appointments are normal and the week runs long.
Based on our synthesis of professional-body surveys and public accounts of the role, not first-person verified reviews.
Which industries employ financial planners?
Financial and Insurance Services employs the largest share of financial planners, followed by Professional, Scientific and Technical Services.
Top employing industries
- 1Financial and Insurance Services
- 2Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
Ranked by employment share; the source doesn't publish an exact percentage per industry.
| Bachelor degree | 43.2% | |
|---|---|---|
| Postgraduate | 26.4% | |
| Diploma / Advanced Diploma | 18.9% | |
| Year 12 or below | 6.8% | |
| Certificate III/IV | 2.5% |
Will AI replace financial planners?
Advice is a low-exposure job overall, because a recommendation has to be personal and the registered adviser is accountable for it. Software already handles much of the modelling, projections and document assembly, and platforms such as Xplan and Midwinter draft parts of the statement of advice. The client conversation, the judgement about what suits their circumstances and the legal responsibility stay with the planner.
Share of typical working time by exposure level
- Client meetings and discoveryWorking out what a client wants their money to do takes questions, listening for what they leave out and adjusting when they hesitate, which is the part clients come back for.30%low
- Drafting statements of advice and compliance recordsPlatforms assemble much of the standard disclosure and product comparison text, while the reasoning and the file notes that explain why a recommendation was made remain the planner's to write.25%moderate
- Reviews and ongoing client contactAn annual review, a call when markets fall or reworking a plan after a job change all depend on knowing the household's situation, which is why advice businesses still measure their worth by those relationships.25%low
- Research, modelling and projectionsPlanning software now runs the super, investment and insurance projections and stress-tests them in seconds, which shortens the work but leaves the planner choosing which scenarios are worth showing.20%moderate
Common questions about becoming a financial planner
Straight answers to the questions people ask most.
How much do financial planners earn?
Financial planners earn $134,300 per annum, before tax on a full-time basis. That is the middle of the range rather than what any one planner takes home, because pay widens sharply with the size of your client book, your years of experience and the fee model your practice uses.
How do you become a financial planner in Australia?
You need an approved degree or higher, a pass in the financial adviser exam, and a supervised professional year of at least 1,500 hours of client-facing work. Once your licensee registers you on ASIC's Financial Advisers Register you can give personal advice, and from then on you complete 40 hours of continuing professional development each year.
Are financial planners in demand in Australia?
Financial planners are currently not in shortage, and employment is projected to grow 12.7% over the decade to 2035 over the decade to 2035. For someone entering the field, the practical point is that the professional year requirement pushes most new advisers into supervised graduate or support roles first, so those are the positions to look for when you finish studying.
Will AI replace financial planners?
Not in the near term, because personal advice has to be given by a registered adviser who can explain and stand behind the recommendation. Planning platforms such as Xplan and Midwinter already assemble standard disclosure text and run projections automatically, which shortens the drafting. The client conversation, the judgement about what actually suits their circumstances and the legal responsibility stay with the planner.
What can a financial planner move into?
Finance broking is a common move, drawing on client and product knowledge you already have, and it needs minimal retraining for pay that is $300 less. Accountants move the other way into planning, where the pay is $30,100 less but substantial retraining is needed to meet registration requirements. Many planners eventually run their own practice or buy into one, and that is usually where earnings grow.
What is the difference between a financial planner and a financial adviser?
In Australia they describe the same licensed activity, and both must be registered on ASIC's Financial Advisers Register. 'Planner' is the term used by practices that offer ongoing financial planning, while 'adviser' appears in the legislation and in bank and super fund job titles. What matters is the licence the advice is given under, not the title on the business card.
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