Top 5 Financial Planning Software Tools Used by Financial Advisors (2024)

(Investopedia) -It's hard to imagine the days of financial planning and portfolio management without technology. Independent advisers, registered representatives, and accountants have come to rely on sophisticated financial software designed to help them devise appropriate investment and retirement plans for clients.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

  • Financial advisors often use an array of software solutions including customer relationship management tools, portfolio management tools, trading/rebalancing solutions, and investment analytics.
  • One very common software program used by financial advisors is financial planning tools that aggregate financial strategies into one solution.
  • The most commonly used financial planning solution in 2021 was MoneyGuidePro.
  • eMoney had two of the five top used financial planning tools last year with its simpler Plus edition or more robust Pro edition.
  • Right Capital and Orion are also competing and popular financial planning tools.

Software for Financial Advisors

Financial software programs typically provide a wide arrange of useful information and capabilities. The most in-demand software products include:

  • Customer relationship managementsoftware organizes client information and streamlines process flows and communication techniques.
  • Financial planningsoftware provides cash flow analysis, long-term planning, and tax strategy plans.
  • Portfolio managementsoftware provides comprehensive reporting tools for greater awareness and management of your client's entire asset holdings.
  • Trading/rebalancingsoftware automates and coordinates portfolio transactions.
  • Investment analyticssoftware provides all-encompassing data and historical information regarding securities and other investments.
  • Risk tolerancesoftware identifies, navigates, and quantifies hidden and known portfolio risks.
  • Document managementsoftware simplifies document transmission, signature retrieval, or document storage.

Most Popular Type of Software

In a 2021 survey, 26% of financial advisors stated financial planning software programs were the most important technology tool for their business.

Though many companies may use several of the software groups above, some are very specific to financial advisors. Customer relationship management, risk tolerance, and document management solutions are common across industries.

In this article, we'll look at the top five financial planning software programs used by financial advisors. The top five financial planning software programs used by professional financial advisers based on market share include MoneyGuidePro, eMoney Pro, RightCapital, Orion Financial Planning, and eMoney Plus.

1. MoneyGuidePro

With 36.82% of the industry's market share by user in 2021, MoneyGuideProis the most popular financial advisor software program in terms of market share. Launched in 2020, MoneyGuidePro is considered one of the most comprehensive programs.

Part of MoneyGuidePro’s success is attributed to its visually engaging, user-friendly presentation. The main portal is designed to fully engage the client, including Play Zone where the client can input different choices and options to see potential effects. The advisor retains ultimate control of the program including what parts of the program the client is allowed to see.

Owned by Envestnet, the MoneyGuide suite of products has three levels:

  • MoneyGuideOnesimplifies financial planning for advisors new to software for just starting out their planning practice.
  • MoneyGuideProprovides more sophisticated solutions including custom report templates, estate planning, net worth statements, and risk management tools.
  • MoneyGuideEliteoffers the high level of services including dynamic income modeling, tax planning quantification, and annuity strategy modeling.

2. eMoneyPro

eMoney offers a very in-depth program and is known for its detailed cash flow analysis module. The market share for eMoney Pro came in at 29.7% for 2021, up from 18.7% in 2020.1

One of eMoney's strengths is its financial feed that provides real-time data, alerts, and news, helping advisers stay on top of important client and market situations. Another noteworthy feature is the eMoney client portal (emX) which allows clients to access a printout of their finances at any time.

eMoney boasts the title of the top ranked financial software solution in regards to customer satisfaction.

The eMoney product line also has various standalone solutions and APIs to aid financial advisors at various levels of service.

3. RightCapital

RightCapital came in third place for 2021 with 9.71% of the market share. Founded in 2015, it's a relatively new software especially compared to the other software leaders. RightCapital competes very well with the leaders—MoneyGuidePro and eMoney Pro—when it comes to newer, smaller advisors.

RightCapitalgenerally appeals to millennial clients who need help with budgeting and was created to exist in themiddle ground between toolimited and too comprehensive planning tools. It boasts a number of partner integrations with CRM programs, performance reporting solutions, custodian/clearing firms, and analytics software tools. RightCapital also boasts several specific features to its product including:

  • RightIntel, a built-in business intelligence solution.
  • RightPay, an integrated client billing system.
  • Snapshot, personalized plan summaries for clients.

4. Orion Financial Planning

Orion Financial Planning comes in at fourth with 6.3% of the market share for 2021. Orion Financial stands out as a preferred solution for firms with assets under management between $4 million and $5 million where it had almost 10% of the market share in 2021.

Orion Advisor solutions bought Advizr in 2019 and turned it into Orion Financial Planning, seeing impressive growth over the last few years. Since the buyout, Orion was able to grow its assets under management by 50%. From 2020 to 2021, Orion Financial Planning more than quadrupled its market share.

The Orion Advisor tech solutions line includes but is not limited to tax management, financial reporting, client billing solution, security trading, business intelligence, and financial planning.

5. eMoney Plus

Another eMoney offering, eMoney Plus, comes in at fifth with 6.1% of market share in 2021. The software is a step below eMoney Pro, focusing on foundational planning with a more simplified suite of solutions compared to eMoney Pro's more advanced planning features.

eMoney Solutions

eMoney Plus

  • Product Description: Leverage intuitive, streamlined goals-based solutions to build more planning-led relationships and deliver more plans to more clients.

  • Solutions include basic access to eMoney's platform, foundational planning, and advanced analytics.

eMoney Pro

  • Production Description: Harness advanced planning to provide the most comprehensive cash-flow-based capabilities to accommodate clients' most complex planning needs.

  • Solutions include advanced platform access, advanced planning, and advanced analytics.

eMoney Plus sees most of its success withdually-registered advisors. For these users, eMoney Plus held 7.5% of the industry market share (behind only MoneyGuidePro and eMoney Pro).

What Software Do Financial Advisors Use?

There are dozens of financial planning software tools with the most common being MoneyGuidePro. In addition, financial advisors may use customer relationship management tools, portfolio management tools, trading/rebalancing software, or document management solutions.

What Is the Best Financial Planning Software?

Every financial advisor will be best suited for software that meshes well with their client's needs. Some advisors are better suited with more simple, less expensive solutions that can more easily explain client portfolios. Others require heavier analytical capabilities or more robust management tools. In either case, a financial advisor should reflect on their client's needs and back into whether a financial planning software tool is the right level for that need.

What Are Popular Financing Planning Tools?

In 2021, MoneyGuidePro was the most popular financial planning software solution for financial advisors. eMoney also had two of the top five financial planning tools.

The Bottom Line

Whether you're a small firm just starting out or a larger firm looking to upgrade to a complex, highly capable analytic solution, there is a financial planning software tool best suited for your clients. Consider what you need to best address your client's investing needs, and pursue a solution (potentially one of the more popular ones on this list) to better manage your client's assets.

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By J.B. Maverick
Fact checked by Suzanne Kvilhau
April 29, 2022

Top 5 Financial Planning Software Tools Used by Financial Advisors (2024)

FAQs

What is the most used financial planning software? ›

  1. MoneyGuidePro. With 31.52% of the industry's market share by user in 2023, MoneyGuidePro is the most popular financial advisor software program in terms of market share. ...
  2. eMoney Pro. eMoney offers a very in-depth program and is known for its detailed cash flow analysis module. ...
  3. RightCapital. ...
  4. eMoney Plus. ...
  5. Asset-Map.

What software would a financial advisor use? ›

MoneyGuidePro is a client-centered financial planning software used by professional financial advisors. It's focused on alternatives to the standard methods of retirement planning.

What is a widely used financial planning tool? ›

Cube is an FP&A platform that provides real-time financial and operational data access. It enables strategic planning, reporting and analysis within a spreadsheet environment, with flexible use cases across functions.

What are the 5 key areas of financial planning? ›

In this blog, we explore the five key components of a financial plan and how they work together.
  • Investments. Investments are a vital part of a well-rounded financial plan. ...
  • Insurance. Protecting your assets—including yourself—is as important as growing your finances. ...
  • Retirement Strategy. ...
  • Trust and Estate Planning. ...
  • Taxes.
Feb 9, 2024

What are the four main 4 types of financial planning? ›

The four main types of financial planning are cash flow planning, tax planning, investment planning, and retirement planning. Each of these types of financial planning has different goals, concerns, and objectives.

How do I choose a financial planning software? ›

How to Choose Financial Planning Software
  1. Determine whether you need goals-based or cash-flow-based software.
  2. Understand your clients' needs.
  3. Consider how your clients prefer to receive their financial plans – for example, in digital or paper form.
  4. Look for intuitive software that's supported across device types.

What is one of the most widely used financial accounting software? ›

Tally ERP 9 software is a popular financial accounting and inventory management system. It is one of the greatest accounting software programs that can be combined with other company applications such as sales, finance, purchasing, payroll, inventory, and so on.

What are the best AI tools for financial advisors? ›

AI Tools for Financial Advisors

Generative AI tools for generating content and ideas include Frase, Jasper, Claude, and Writer. There are also a number of AI tools specific to the financial industry. They include: SigFig aims to help investors design diversified portfolios based on unique needs and goals.

What formulas do financial advisors use? ›

Here are some common formulas professionals in the finance industry use:
  • Compound interest. ...
  • Post-tax return. ...
  • Inflation. ...
  • Liquidity ratio. ...
  • Risk premium. ...
  • Working capital. ...
  • Return on Assets (ROA) ...
  • Marginal cost.
Dec 22, 2022

What is the most common planning tool? ›

The most commonly used tools are: Visioning, Metrics or charts, SWOT analysis, Pestle analysis, Affinity diagrams, Portfolio analysis and Interrelationship digraph. Each has its own importance and a specific way of incorporating it within the planning process.

Who is the most famous financial planner? ›

Most investors today probably recognize Warren Buffett's name as he has long ties to the financial advising industry. His investing style is derived from Benjamin Graham, another famous financial advisor. Other famous media financial advisors include Suze Orman, Jim Cramer, or Dave Ramsey.

What is the best FP&A software for Excel? ›

Datarails is a native Excel platform, and therefore has a very low implementation time and intuitive interface. The advanced drill down capabilities and easy-to-use, real time dashboards provide a high level of data presentation and is why Datarails is the top choice for an FP&A solution.

What are the 3 S's for financial planning? ›

The Three S's
  • Saving. The methods for teaching money lessons have certainly changed. ...
  • Spending. A budget is an important financial tool that can teach children how to manage money responsibly. ...
  • Sharing.
Nov 18, 2022

What are the 4 C's of financial management? ›

As owners of FP&A processes, today's accounting teams must be well-versed in the four C's of financial planning: context, collaboration, continuity, and communication. Today, financial planning and budgeting are more important than ever.

What are the 3 rules of financial planning? ›

Finance experts advise that individual finance planning should be guided by three principles: prioritizing, appraisal and restraint. Understanding these concepts is the key to putting your personal finances on track.

What do managers use for financial planning? ›

Financial managers use financial statements and other information prepared by accountants to make financial decisions. Financial managers focus on cash flows, the inflows and outflows of cash. They plan and monitor the firm's cash flows to ensure that cash is available when needed.

What common tool most often used to control financial resources? ›

The three most important financial controls are: (1) the balance sheet, (2) the income statement (sometimes called a profit and loss statement), and (3) the cash flow statement. Each gives the manager a different perspective on and insight into how well the business is operating toward its goals.

References

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