Adviser salaries stagnant, with 1 state going backwards

The firm’s Salary Guide 2025 assessed the salary ranges for advisers in NSW, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia. Data was unavailable for the remaining states and territories.

It discovered that financial advisers’ salaries in NSW fell from a range of $160,000–$220,000 in 2024 to $120,000–$200,000 in 2025.

This is a considerable turnaround from the 37 per cent increase that advisers in the state saw from 2023 to 2024, taking the lower end of the range for 2025 back in line with where it sat two years ago.

Financial planners in Victoria saw a slight increase on the lower end of the range from $120,000–$180,000 in 2024 to $130,000–$180,000 in 2025.

Queensland’s advisers saw a minor increase on the higher end of the range from $130,000–$150,000 last year to $130,000–$165,000 this year.

Meanwhile, financial planners’ pay in South Australia remained unchanged from the previous year at $95,000–$150,000.

Source: Robert Walters

Looking at the broader financial services sector, the salary guide stated: “Survey data reveals a strong hiring outlook for 2025, with many businesses in Australia and New Zealand planning to expand their teams.

“However, competition for specialised talent remains high. To secure top professionals, employers are increasingly offering competitive salaries and flexible working arrangements.”

Professionals in the industry place significant value on having a competitive salary and benefits package, opportunities for career advancement and promotion, alongside work-life balance and flexible working arrangements.

Across all Australian markets, 71 per cent of businesses plan to implement salary increases in 2025 and 49 per cent of employers intend to offer bonuses this year.

Research from the Financial Advice Association Australia (FAAA) last year detailed the main avenues for successful advice recruitment.

Surveying its membership, the FAAA said that rather than recruitment services or vacancy adverts, there are five channels that members are using successfully for new hires.

These are:

• Existing networks.
• Word of mouth.
• Profession-specific online forums.
• FAAA careers board.
• Education providers.