Mariner Review 2026: Pros, Cons and How It Compares

• Why trust NerdWallet's reviews: Read our methodology

  Over 60 investment account providers reviewed and rated by our expert Nerds.

  More than 50 years of combined experience writing about finance and investing.

  Hands-on testing of the account funding process, provider websites and trading platforms.

  Dozens of objective ratings rubrics and strict guidelines to maintain editorial integrity.

  How do we review financial advisors?

  All NerdWallet reviews and lists of the best investing products are created by our editorial team of full-time writers and editors, independent of any business relationships. In this case, our investing team's comprehensive review process evaluates and ranks financial advisors and companies that provide financial planning services online. Our aim is to provide an independent, balanced assessment of providers to help arm you with information to make sound, informed judgments on which ones will best meet your needs. We adhere to strict guidelines for editorial integrity.

  We collect data directly from providers through detailed questionnaires, conduct interviews and review federal filings. This research fuels our proprietary assessment process that scores each provider’s performance across 16 factors. The final output produces star ratings from poor (one star) to excellent (five stars).

  For more details about the categories considered when rating brokers and our process, read our full methodology.

• In our review of Mariner

  • Where Mariner shines
  • Where Mariner falls short
  • Who should choose Mariner?
  • Mariner at a glance
  • What to know about Mariner's fees
  • Mariner's advisor access
  • Mariner's financial planning services
  • Other key Mariner features
  • Good to know about Mariner
  • Is Mariner right for you?

  Show MoreHide

Where Mariner shines

Advisory team approach: Mariner's clients have unlimited access to an advisory team that includes an advisor, investment specialist and planning support staff. Advisors work with in-house tax professionals to find potential tax efficiencies.

Offices in 42 states: With a presence across most of the United States, as well as Puerto Rico, Mariner's clients can build in-person relationships with their advisory team.

Where Mariner falls short

Who should choose Mariner?

People with complex planning needs: Mariner's clients work with an advisory team whose members have varied expertise. That chance to work with specialists should yield more personalized advice, especially on complex planning topics. If you can take advantage of that expertise, you’ll get a lot of value out of working with the firm.

People who want to meet an advisor in-person: Mariner has offices across 42 states, making it possible to build a relationship with your advisor in-person. But if that’s not a priority for you, you could find lower rates with a firm that primarily serves clients virtually.

Mariner at a glance

Reviewed in: Dec. 2025

Period considered: Oct. - Dec. 2025

What to know about Mariner's fees

Mariner charges an annual fee that’s calculated as a percentage of the client’s assets under management. It’s a tiered fee schedule, meaning different rates apply to different segments of a client’s assets. This is a common structure you’ll find at wealth management firms.

At Mariner, standard fees are:

• 1.25% on the first $1 million.

• 1% on assets of $1 million to $5 million.

• 0.80% on assets of $5 million to $10 million.

• 0.60% on assets above $10 million.

There is also a minimum quarterly fee of $1,875 ($7,500 a year). Under a fee schedule like this, clients with the most assets pay the lowest fees. For example, if you had $2 million in investable assets, you’d pay $12,500 annually in AUM fees for the first $1 million. Then you’d pay $10,000 annually on the second $1 million. In total, you’d pay $22,500 in annual management fees. That’s an effective rate of about 1.13%.

On the other hand, assets below a certain threshold could pay a higher effective rate due to the minimum quarterly fee of $1,875. That comes to an annual rate of $7,500, which is what you’d owe under Mariner’s 1.25% AUM fee if you had $600,000 in investable assets. If your balance is below that, you’d be paying a higher effective rate for Mariner’s services. For example, on a $400,000 asset balance, your AUM fee under the quarterly minimum would effectively be 1.875% per year, which is quite high.

The firm notes that fees may vary by client, depending on the services each needs, as well as other considerations. Mariner clients who want only financial planning and consulting services (without investment management) have the option to pay a flat fee, an hourly rate or a lower AUM fee.

» MORE: Understand the impact of fees using our financial advisor fee calculator.

Mariner's advisor access

Mariner clients have unlimited access to a team that could include an advisor, investment specialist and planning support staff. It uses this approach to give clients access to a range of expertise. Members of the advisory team hold a variety of credentials and could include:

• Certified financial planners, or CFPs, who have demonstrated knowledge and experience with a broad range of financial planning topics.

• Chartered financial analysts, or CFAs, who generally have expertise in investment analysis and portfolio management.

• Certified public accountants, or CPAs, who are licensed tax professionals.

• Licensed attorneys.

The advisory team conducts regular strategy and portfolio reviews. It holds to a fiduciary standard, which means any advice or recommendations are made in the client’s best interest.

Clients can connect with their advisory team in-person (Mariner has offices in 42 states, plus Puerto Rico) or via phone, video or secure message.

Mariner's financial planning services

Mariner uses a comprehensive approach to planning that’s designed to integrate investment management with the planning goals. Services may include wealth and investment planning, retirement planning, tax, estate, insurance, and trust planning. During the planning process, advisors analyze clients’ cash flow, risk and goals.

For estate planning specifically, Mariner will review existing estate planning documents, including who is appointed to serve in key roles such as trustees and executors. The company will create visuals to clearly show how assets will transition to beneficiaries and heirs, and make recommendations for potential changes or planning shifts that can improve an existing plan or better align it with the client’s intentions. They will also forecast the projected growth of the estate to understand whether taxes may be a concern and provide suggestions for how to minimize those taxes through strategies like trusts and gifting. And advisors will review beneficiaries, ensure that trusts are funded properly and help implement charitable planning strategies. If desired, Mariner advisors can also facilitate family meetings to communicate intentions and prepare future generations for their inheritance, a helpful service as it can jumpstart conversations many families put off.

If estate planning documents need to be drafted or updated, Mariner partners with estate attorneys that are not affiliated with Mariner. There is an extra fee for this service, typically tiered as a flat fee depending on the complexity of work required.

Other key Mariner features

Portfolio construction

Mariner designs investment portfolios around each client’s goals, time horizon, and risk tolerance. Each is designed to be diversified, tax-efficient and oriented toward long-term growth. Portfolios may be constructed using individual securities, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), mutual funds, separately managed accounts and/or limited partnerships when appropriate.

Accounts supported

Mariner supports a variety of accounts used by individuals, families, trusts and businesses. Those include:

• Individual, joint, and family accounts.

• Retirement accounts (IRA, Roth IRA, 401(k) rollovers).

• Trust, charitable and business accounts.

Clients can hold assets at multiple third-party custodians, including Fidelity, Schwab and Pershing.

Tax strategy

Mariner integrates tax strategy with overall financial planning and investment management. Advisory teams work with in-house tax professionals to find potential tax efficiencies and use strategies that may include tax-loss harvesting and asset location. Examples of tax planning services that would be covered under Mariner’s standard AUM fee include comprehensive suggestions for how to minimize taxes, both in the current and future years, and multi-year tax planning analyses and projections to assess the long-term impact of changes. Mariner advisors will also review prior year tax returns and create illustrations to help clients understand their marginal tax brackets and how their income is taxed.

Mariner advisors also coordinate with CPAs and other tax professionals, including a national team of CPAs internally who will provide tax return preparation for individuals or corporations. As with other financial advisors, tax preparation and filing does carry an additional fee depending on level of complexity.

Good to know about Mariner

Account minimums may apply

Mariner doesn’t have a firm-wide rule on how big your account needs to be to work with one of its advisory teams. But some investment strategies or custodial platforms may require a minimum balance. And its minimum quarterly fee means that clients with assets below $600,000 would be paying higher effective rates than those with assets at or above that level.

If you’re unsure whether you have enough assets to get the investment management or advisory services you’re looking for, be sure to ask about potential minimum requirements during your initial consultation, if you schedule one.

Commission or referral arrangements

Advisory fees are the primary way that Mariner makes money — which is what you want in a financial advisor — but its Form ADV discloses other compensation arrangements that create potential conflicts of interest. We’ve flagged a few examples below, and it’s a good idea to ask directly about these kinds of arrangements when you speak with an advisor at Mariner.

• Mariner receives referral fees when clients make deposits into certain cash management programs, earning a percentage on the value of the account balance.

• Some of Mariner’s advisors are licensed to sell insurance, and would receive commissions on the sale of any insurance products. 

• Some advisors may also be registered with Mariner’s affiliated broker-dealer, MSEC, and receive commissions when clients purchase certain investment products through that firm.

Is Mariner right for you?

Mariner could be a good fit if you need comprehensive planning services or you value meeting your advisor in-person and one of the firm’s offices is located near you. Its relatively low top AUM rate of 1.25% makes it a more affordable option compared to other wealth management firms reviewed by NerdWallet, as long as your asset level is high enough so you aren’t subject to the firm’s minimum quarterly fee.

The AUM fee covers all aspects of Mariner’s wealth management services, giving you wealth and investment planning, retirement planning, tax, estate, insurance and trust planning. If you have significant assets and complex financial planning needs, having an advisory team that takes a holistic approach to your finances could be valuable.

It’s also worth considering that those fees are going toward supporting dozens of offices around the country. If you don’t care about meeting your wealth advisor in-person, you could find lower rates with a firm that primarily serves clients virtually.