No commissions, no ads, no advice. This Cerity Partners profile draws only on public records, each linked so you can confirm it yourself.
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Check the SEC adviser record. Open the SEC's IAPD record for Cerity Partners (CRD #151559) and confirm its registration.
Read the filings. Review the Form ADV / Form CRS and any disclosure section linked from the IAPD page.
Confirm the entity. Match CRD #151559 / Cerity Partners so you're reading the right firm.
The short answer: is Cerity Partners a fiduciary?
Yes. Cerity Partners is a fiduciary when it acts as your investment adviser, and with $161.7 billion in client assets it is among the larger SEC-registered investment advisers. Publicly, it files with the SEC as Cerity Partners (CRD #151559). As of its latest Form ADV (filed July 13, 2026), the firm reported $161.7 billion in regulatory assets under management (a firm-reported figure). Its Form ADV (Item 5.E) lists how it is paid: a percentage of assets under management, hourly charges, fixed fees, and performance-based fees. You don't have to take this on trust. The filings are public, and checking them is quick.
Its Form ADV also reports that a related person is a broker-dealer (Item 7.A), and brokerage accounts fall under Regulation Best Interest instead. Ask which capacity covers each of your accounts. The firm must tell you.
What "fiduciary" means: a fiduciary is legally bound to place a client's interests above its own. (More on fiduciary duty)
Cerity Partners at a glance
✅ Verified from public filings, last checked October 5, 2026. Cerity Partners (SEC CRD #151559) is a fiduciary when acting as your adviser, on an advisory-fee basis, with $161.7 billion in regulatory assets under management. Every figure below links to its primary source.
What | Cerity Partners | Source |
|---|---|---|
SEC CRD | #151559 | |
Registration | Investment adviser, with a related person that is a broker-dealer (Form ADV Item 7.A) | |
Registered since | October 22, 2009 (SEC) | |
Fiduciary? | Yes, when acting as your adviser | |
Fee model | Advisory fees (no commissions reported in Item 5.E) | Form ADV Item 5.E |
How it's paid | A percentage of assets under management, hourly charges, fixed fees, and performance-based fees | Form ADV Item 5.E |
Regulatory Assets Under Management | $161.7 billion (Form ADV filed July 13, 2026) | |
Client accounts | 26,230 (25,495 discretionary) | |
Employees | 1,529 (1,102 in advisory roles) | |
Ownership | Parent-owned | |
Disclosures | Form ADV answers No to firm-level disciplinary questions | |
HQ | New York, NY |
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Cerity Partners fees: what you'll pay
What Cerity Partners costs you tracks how Cerity Partners earns, and the fee structure makes it plain. The firm charges advisory fees: its Form ADV (Item 5.E) reports no commissions for its advisory services. Its filing also reports broker-dealer, insurance or other sales activity by the firm or a related company, business that can be paid by commissions. Ask how each part of the relationship is paid. The details are in its Form ADV Part 2A.
Advisory fees are what clients pay the adviser directly. Commissions earned through a related broker-dealer or insurance business are a separate source of pay.
Who owns Cerity Partners, and what conflicts does it disclose?
Cerity Partners' ownership is spelled out in the public record. Cerity Partners is owned by Cerity Partners Equity Holding LLC, as listed in Schedule A of its Form ADV. (Form ADV Schedule A)
Its Form ADV Part 2A describes the firm's conflicts of interest, including how it and its advisers are paid.
Cerity Partners SEC record: disclosures
To check Cerity Partners' regulatory record, start with the firm's own filings. On its Form ADV, Cerity Partners answers No to the firm-level disciplinary-history questions. You can confirm that on the public record. Individual advisers can have their own records, so look them up on IAPD and BrokerCheck too. If there are Cerity Partners disclosures to read, the public record is where they are, and where they should be read.
On the record, it has been registered with the SEC since October 22, 2009, makes notice filings in 53 jurisdictions, and reports 1,529 employees, 1,102 of them in investment advisory roles. "Is Cerity Partners legit?" comes up a lot. Its registration, CRD and filings are public and verifiable. That confirms it's a real, regulated adviser. The part worth your time is what you're paying and earning.
Reading Cerity Partners reviews against the public record
Star ratings and client comments describe what working with a firm felt like. They usually don't show what the firm reports to regulators. Before you weigh Cerity Partners reviews, check three things this profile takes from the public record. First, how the firm is paid: it reports advisory fees and no commissions, but it has a broker-dealer or insurance connection. Second, who owns it and what conflicts it discloses. Third, whether its Form ADV reports any disciplinary history. Read reviews alongside the record, not instead of it.
How to verify Cerity Partners yourself
Verifying this directly takes three steps:
SEC adviser record (IAPD): https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/151559.
Form ADV / CRS: linked from the IAPD page.
Confirm the entity: match Cerity Partners (CRD #151559) so you're reading the right firm.
What Cerity Partners does and who it serves
On its Form ADV, Cerity Partners reports providing financial planning, portfolio management for individuals and small businesses, portfolio management (pooled vehicles), portfolio management for businesses and institutions, pension consulting, selection of other advisers, and educational seminars.
It reports providing financial planning to about 12,500 clients in its last fiscal year (Form ADV Item 5.H), a count the form keeps separate from the client totals below.
Its Form ADV (Item 5.D) breaks its clients down by type, about 26,230 in all:
Client type | Clients | Assets managed |
|---|---|---|
Individuals | 10,384 | $6.79 billion |
High-net-worth individuals | 14,561 | $107.33 billion |
Investment companies | 1 | $9.8 million |
Pooled investment vehicles | 13 | $6.09 billion |
Pension and profit-sharing plans | 789 | $20.79 billion |
Charities | 253 | $17.53 billion |
State or municipal government entities | 3 | $27.4 million |
Corporations or other businesses | 226 | $3.11 billion |
It reports 26,230 client accounts, 25,495 discretionary (the firm can trade without seeking your approval first) and 735 non-discretionary (Item 5.F). Its main office is in New York, NY.
It reports that it or a related person has custody of certain client assets, which brings extra safeguards such as surprise examinations. The specifics are in its Form ADV.
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The firm checks out in minutes. The real work is seeing everything you hold, together.
Confirming Cerity Partners is registered takes a few minutes. However diligent the advisor, they see a fraction of the picture by default: the old 401(k) at a former employer, a spouse's holdings, fees folded into a fund. This is where Truthifi comes in.
How Truthifi can help
Truthifi links your accounts read-only and shows what you own, how it's allocated, how it's performing and where the risk sits, including single-stock exposure, returns next to a benchmark, a fee breakdown of the fees on each account, by type, and your Truthifi Score. You can share the accounts you choose with your advisor at Cerity Partners.
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Ask AI about your Cerity Partners accounts
Once your accounts are connected read-only, you can ask in plain English:
"What do I own across my Cerity Partners accounts and everything else, and how is it allocated?"
"What am I really paying in fees across all of these accounts?"
Try it with Truthifi: start for free at app.truthifi.com and run a Monitoring Checkup (limits apply).
No commissions, no ads, no advice: Truthifi is not an investment adviser and doesn't give investment, tax or legal advice. Its access to your bank and brokerage accounts is read-only. Start free (limits apply). Monitoring Checkup is free. Link up to 10 connections. Plans and limits are on the pricing page → truthifi.com.
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FAQ
Is Cerity Partners a fiduciary? Yes, when acting as your adviser. Its Form ADV reports a related person that is a broker-dealer, and brokerage accounts fall under Regulation Best Interest instead. Ask which capacity covers each of your accounts.
Is Cerity Partners fee-only? Not necessarily. Its Form ADV (Item 5.E) reports no commissions for advisory services, but the filing also reports broker-dealer, insurance or other sales activity by the firm or a related company, which can be paid differently. Ask how everyone you deal with is paid. The details are in its Form ADV Part 2A.
Who owns Cerity Partners? Cerity Partners is owned by Cerity Partners Equity Holding LLC, as listed in Schedule A of its Form ADV.
Does Cerity Partners have complaints or disclosures? Its Form ADV answers No to the firm-level disciplinary-history questions. Individual advisers can have their own records on IAPD and BrokerCheck.
Is Cerity Partners legit? The firm is registered with the SEC (CRD #151559) and its filings are public on the SEC's IAPD site, which confirms it is a real, regulated firm. Registration doesn't tell you whether it's the right fit or what you'll pay, so read the fee and conflict sections of its Form ADV.
Can AI help me check whether I'm getting good value? Yes. Start free (limits apply): Monitoring Checkup is free and lets you link up to 10 connections. You can also connect an AI assistant you already use (such as Claude). On Monitoring or Monitoring Plus+ you can ask it, in plain English, about the fees on each of your accounts. Truthifi is not an investment adviser and doesn't give investment, tax or legal advice.
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About this profile
Truthifi built this profile from the firm's own SEC filings (Form ADV and, where filed, Form CRS). Every page is reviewed by the Truthifi Team before publishing. The Truthifi advisor fact packs are an ongoing series checking U.S. investment advisers against their public filings, one firm at a time.
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A note on sources. The facts on this page come from publicly available documents, Cerity Partners' SEC filings, each linked inline so you can verify it yourself (SEC data current as of October 5, 2026). This is general information, not financial or legal advice, and Truthifi is not affiliated with Cerity Partners. Regulatory records change, so always confirm against the official sources linked above. Spot something that should be corrected? Email us at support@truthifi.com.
Disclaimer: This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute financial, tax, or legal advice. It should not be construed as a personalized recommendation regarding any investment, financial advisor, or financial product. All calculations use hypothetical scenarios and historical return assumptions; actual results will vary. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Consult a qualified financial professional for guidance specific to your situation. Truthifi is an investment monitoring platform — not a financial advisor, broker-dealer, or tax professional. Truthifi does not manage assets, recommend investments, sell financial products, or provide personalized financial advice. Truthifi earns no revenue from advisor referrals, product commissions, or AUM fees. Statistics and data cited reflect publicly available sources current as of the article’s publication date. Sources are linked throughout.