The states where CFP certification is surging — and why

The number of certified financial planners rose in every state last year, as the ranks of CFP holders climbed by more than 6,500 and topped 100,000 for the first time.

However, the number of planners obtaining the profession's most prominent and respected certification is growing faster in some states — reflecting the nationwide strength of the wealth management industry, shifts in the U.S. population in recent years and the degree of saturation in each area, according to a study last month by financial advisor lead generation and client matchmaking service SmartAsset. West Virginia, North Dakota, Idaho, South Dakota, the District of Columbia and five other states took the top 10 spots in the rankings below.

To be sure, the states with the highest populations, such as California — home to more than 10% of the 103,206 CFPs, the CFP Board's own demographic statistics show — will predictably have the most certificate holders. And the ranks of smaller states with a lower CFP footprint in 2024 can swell at a faster rate. Those on the list below, though, are driving the evolution of geographic expansion strategies for wealth management firms, the movement of many CFPs to states with zero or lower income taxes and the ongoing shift in the industry, experts said.

"I really believe that the CFP designation really carries a lot of weight now," said Mike Byrnes of Byrnes Consulting, a firm that aids advisors in their growth efforts. "The investment side is becoming more and more commoditized, and it's less of a differentiator when they're working with clients and prospects."

The SmartAsset's pairing of the CFP Board's data in 2024 to the beginning of the year with population and household income figures from the census presents some telling, albeit subtle, conclusions about each of the nine states plus the District of Columbia, Jaclyn DeJohn, a CFP who is SmartAsset's director of economic analysis, wrote in the study. On a raw net basis rather than a percentage increase, Texas saw the biggest jump in CFPs in 2024, with 374 new holders pushing the state's total to 7,394. In terms of the ratio of CFPs per capita in each state's population, Colorado has the lowest, at only 1,836 residents for every CFP.

"The number of financial advisors in an area can affect the quality and availability of service that clients may receive due to competition," DeJohn wrote. "Similarly, this competition can influence how long advisors stay in a local industry and how much income they could earn. While working with clients remotely has become more popular since the pandemic, engaging them directly and keeping up with local financial trends and attitudes is still an important component of building long-lasting relationships."

In addition, she pointed out that the share of certificants aged 20 to 49 years old ticked up last year, while the share of CFPs aged 50 to 70 dropped. In fact, the 100,000th CFP to obtain certification last May, Simone Lee of Merrill Wealth Management, is a second-generation planner in her 30s. While the share of women, Black, Asian American, Hispanic and Native American CFPs is much lower than their representation in the U.S. population, the incoming class of 6,541 certificants last year constituted the most diverse group ever and pushed the share aged 49 years or younger to 56%, the Board said earlier this year.     

Overall, the percentage of CFPs from each state tends to line up with the rates of households with annual incomes of $200,000 or more, according to Jim Cahn, who's one of the top dealmakers in the wealth management industry as chair of the Investment Committee and chief strategy officer with Plymouth, Minnesota-based Wealth Enhancement. With a few exceptions in some regions, there isn't much for advisors to read into the data, he said.

"We have or are adding offices in most of these states," Cahn said. "They should focus on great client outcomes and stop worrying about geographic trends. In the United States, the grass is greener everywhere."

To see the 10 states or other jurisdictions where the number of certified financial planners rose the most last year, scroll down the slideshow. For a look at how the geography of CFP holders changed during the pandemic, click here. And follow this link for analysis of a SmartAsset study quantifying the value of financial advisors' services.

Note: All data below comes from the February 2025 SmartAsset study, "Where CFP Certification Is Booming: States Adding the Most Financial Experts – 2025 Study," and its analysis comparing data from the CFP Board in January 2025 to that of March 2024, as well as to the population and household income figures of U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey of 2023.