A financial advisor provides financial advice or guidance to customers for compensation. Financial advisors (sometimes spelled as advisers) can provide many different services, such as investment management, tax planning,and estate planning , and estate planning. Increasingly, financial advisors are acting as a "one-stop-shop" by providing everything from portfolio management to insurance products. 

A financial advisor is a professional who provides expertise for clients' decisions around money matters, personal finances, and investments. 

Registered advisors must pass one or more exams and be properly licensed in order to carry out business with clients. 

Financial advisor's pay can be based on a fee, commission, profit-percentage structure, or a combination thereof.