AEO for financial planning firms: AI search visibility ranking
How AI search engines rank financial planning firms by visibility and citations. 20 brands measured quarterly across Google AI Mode: which brands the AI names in answers, which domains it cites as sources, and how the leaders compare. Independent financial planning firms, wealth advisors, and fiduciary advisory businesses helping households with retirement planning, portfolio management, estate planning, and long-term financial advice. Composite score: 70% visibility (% of AI answers naming the brand) + 30% citation rate (% citing the brand's domain). Full methodology →
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When buyers inquire about financial planning firms, AI engines frequently mention Facet as the leader, with a visibility of 12.5%. Other prominent brands like Creative Planning and Edelman Financial Engines also feature prominently, but Facet shows a commanding presence with a citation percentage of 37.5%, highlighting its strong reputation in the industry.
The rankings reflect citations from top sources such as wsj.com, nerdwallet.com, and smartasset.com. These platforms are known for offering comprehensive reviews and insights, making them valuable resources for AI engines. The reliance on such reputable and widely read domains ensures that the rankings are based on well-rounded and thoroughly vetted evaluations.
For buyers exploring this list, consider how AI engines emphasize recent reviews and third-party validation. This suggests prioritizing brands validated by credible sources and reviewed frequently. These factors indicate a firm's topical authority and resonance with current consumer needs, providing a more reliable choice for financial planning services.
At a glance
What we observed in this category
Facet holds a commanding lead in this category with a composite score of 20.0, compared to the next ranked brand Creative Planning at 7.5. That gap matters because every other brand in the top 10 scores 3.8 or zero, meaning AI responses in this category are effectively dominated by a single firm. The category average visibility sits at just 0.6 percent, confirming that most financial planning brands are near-invisible in Google AI Mode outputs.
A striking divergence between visibility and citation runs through the data. Creative Planning has zero visibility yet a 25.0 percent citation rate, and Edelman Financial Engines, Morgan Stanley Wealth Management, Fidelity Investments, and Mercer Advisors each carry a 12.5 percent citation rate despite zero visibility. This means AI is referencing those brands as sources or supporting evidence without surfacing them as primary answers, a pattern that separates being named from being trusted as the lead recommendation.
Google AI Mode is the top engine for every brand in this dataset, confirming the audit is anchored entirely on that single engine. The most cited third-party sources underpinning AI answers are nerdwallet.com, smartasset.com, investopedia.com, and wsj.com, alongside cnbc.com, barrons.com, financestrategists.com, and finder.com. AI responses in this category appear to rely heavily on financial comparison and media sites rather than brand-owned content when constructing answers.
Movers & shakers since last refresh
Biggest visibility fallers
-
Mariner 25% → 0% · rank #2 → #8-25pp
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Facet 25% → 12% · rank #1 → #1-12pp
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Creative Planning 12% → 0% · rank #4 → #2-12pp
The AEO ranking
| # | Brand | Visibility | Citation | Top engine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
facet.com
|
12% | 38% | Google AI Mode |
Facet leads with a composite score of 20.0 and a 37.5 percent citation rate, far above the category average citation rate of 5.6 percent, though visibility has fallen 12.5 points since the prior period. |
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| 2 |
creativeplanning.com
|
0% | 25% | Google AI Mode |
Creative Planning climbed two ranks to second despite zero visibility, driven entirely by a 25.0 percent citation rate that materialized this period from a previous baseline of zero. |
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| 3 |
edelmanfinancialengines.com
|
0% | 12% | Google AI Mode |
Edelman Financial Engines shares a composite score of 3.8 with ranks 4 and 5, holding a 12.5 percent citation rate but no named visibility in AI-generated answers. |
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| 4 |
morganstanley.com
|
0% | 12% | Google AI Mode |
Morgan Stanley Wealth Management records a 12.5 percent citation rate matching peers at ranks 3 and 5, but its brand scale does not translate into any measurable AI visibility above zero. |
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| 5 |
fidelity.com
|
0% | 12% | Google AI Mode |
Fidelity Investments sits at 3.8 composite with a 12.5 percent citation rate, identical to three other brands, indicating no differentiation in how Google AI Mode currently surfaces large incumbent firms. |
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| 6 |
merceradvisors.com
|
0% | 12% | Google AI Mode |
| 7 |
stifel.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 8 |
mariner.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 9 |
edwardjones.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 10 |
vanguard.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 11 |
farther.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 12 |
schwab.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 13 |
northwesternmutual.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 14 |
wiseradvisor.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 15 |
fisherinvestments.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 16 |
ml.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 17 |
ameriprise.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 18 |
raymondjames.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 19 |
jpmorgan.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 20 |
captrust.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
Sources AI engines trust in this category
Across the 8 buyer-intent queries we ran on financial planning firms, these are the domains Google AI Mode cited most often. If you're not on this list — or if your competitors are — that's a concrete PR / linkbuilding target.
How to read this AEO ranking
Four things worth knowing before you act on the numbers above. These are the same definitions across every industry page — for category-specific observations, see the What we observed section above (where available) and the per-brand insights inline in the ranking.
Visibility = being named
A brand's visibility % is the share of AI answers that mention it by name in the response prose. This is who AI engines actively recommend to the buyer. More on visibility →
Citation rate = being trusted
Citation rate is the share of AI answers that include the brand's domain as a clickable source link. This is what the AI treats as authoritative evidence, different from being named. More on citation rate →
Top engine differs by brand
The "top engine" column shows which AI surface each brand performs best on. Big gaps between a brand's score across engines usually points to specific content or schema gaps. How AI engines pick sources →
AEO rankings move month to month
AI engines re-crawl and re-rank on shorter cycles than classical search. We re-audit every brand on this list at least every 90 days and refresh this page automatically. How AI search ranking works →
Run an AEO audit on your own financial planning firms brand
The brands above were curated from public market-leader lists. Want the same answer engine optimisation measurement against your own brand — including the queries you appear on, which competitors get named instead, and a prioritised fix list? Run a free preview.
Frequently asked about AEO for financial planning firms
Who leads AI visibility in the financial planning firms category?
Facet leads with a composite score of 20.0 and 12.5 percent visibility, the only brand in the top 10 to register any visibility above zero. The next closest brand, Creative Planning, scores 7.5 composite with zero visibility.
What sources does AI cite most for financial planning firm research?
The top cited sources in this category are wsj.com, nerdwallet.com, smartasset.com, cnbc.com, and investopedia.com, with financestrategists.com, barrons.com, and finder.com also appearing. AI answers appear to rely on comparison sites and financial media rather than brand-owned domains.
Which financial planning brands are cited by AI but not surfaced as primary recommendations?
Creative Planning, Edelman Financial Engines, Morgan Stanley Wealth Management, Fidelity Investments, and Mercer Advisors all carry citation rates between 12.5 and 25.0 percent despite recording zero visibility, meaning AI references them without leading with them.
Which brand experienced the largest AI visibility drop in this category?
Mariner fell from a previous visibility of 25.0 percent to zero, a drop of 25.0 points, sliding from rank 2 to rank 8. Its citation rate remained at zero both periods.
How competitive is this category overall in terms of AI visibility?
The category average visibility is just 0.6 percent across 20 brands, and only one brand (Facet at 12.5 percent) registers any visibility at all. The landscape is heavily concentrated and largely invisible to AI Mode.
Which engine drives AI visibility for financial planning firms?
Google AI Mode is listed as the top engine for every brand in this audit, making it the sole engine shaping AI visibility outcomes across the entire financial planning firms category.