Spotlight on Canadians’ use of financial advice

Introduction

Talking about money can be powerful. Accessing trustworthy, timely financial advice can help Canadians make better-informed decisions about money.

Conversations about money happen in various contexts and take different forms. For example, people may need advice on a specific money-related topic, such as budgeting, or saving for retirement or a child’s education. People may look for advice online, reach out to a financial advisor, or talk with friends and family.

Data gathered through the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada’s 2024 Canadian Financial Capability Survey (CFCS) provides an in-depth picture of where Canadians are turning for different kinds of financial advice.

In February and March 2024, the CFCS gathered insights from nearly 8,000 Canadians across the country to better understand how confident they feel about spotting financial opportunities, knowing where to turn for help, making informed choices, and taking action to improve their financial well-being.

The survey findings related to financial advice provide a reliable overview of where Canadians are turning for different types of financial advice, as well as who is more likely to seek advice.

About three quarters (76%) of Canadians reported getting advice about their finances through one or more sources. However, nearly two-thirds (65%) of Canadians hadn’t sought financial advice in the 12 months before the survey. People less likely to use financial advice included:

• Canadians with a disability or living with a household member who has a disability (68%)
• those in a household with an annual income of less than $60,000 (71%)
• those whose maximum level of education was high school or lower (72%) 

Where do Canadians get their financial advice?

Canadians turn to a variety of sources when looking for advice on money-related topics. Overall, survey respondents were most likely to seek advice from friends or family members (37%) or from trusted organizations like banks, investment companies or insurance providers (33%). Other common sources of financial advice were professional financial advisors or planners (25%) and online sources other than social media (20%), while 11% of respondents cited print media, radio or television as sources of financial advice.

Nearly 1 out of 10 people (9%) said they got financial advice from social media, but this was more common among younger Canadians aged 18 to 34. Compared to other age groups, younger Canadians were twice as likely to turn to social media (18%), and even more likely to turn to family or friends for advice (57%). This demographic was least likely to consult professional advisors—20% compared to 26% of those aged 35 to 54, and 27% of those aged 55 or older.   

Only 4% of those surveyed reported seeking advice from social associations or community organizations, followed by credit counselling agencies at 3%.

Some Canadians (14%) said they either could not find advice from a trusted source or answered “none of the above” when asked to choose from a list of sources of advice. 

Paid financial advice

Of the approximately 1 out of 3 Canadians who had sought advice on financial matters in the 12 months before the survey, about one-quarter (26%) paid for it. The 3 types of advice most likely to be paid for were:

• general financial planning on savings and investments (63%)
• tax planning (50%)
• retirement planning (35%)

 Respondents who were more likely to pay for financial advice included:

• those with an education beyond high school level (27%)
• men (28%)
• those in a household with annual income of more than $60,000 (30%)
• people aged 55 years or older (32%)

Free financial advice

Almost three-quarters (72%) of those who sought financial advice chose a free option. The 3 most common types of free financial advice were:

• general financial planning for savings and investments (62%)
• retirement planning (31%)
• insurance (27%)

Respondents who were more likely to access free financial advice were included:

• those whose education level was high school or lower (76%)
• women (74%)
• those in a household with an annual income of less than $60,000 (76%)
• people aged 18–34 (81%)

Conclusion

While Canada’s population is among the most financially literate globally according to the OECD^{Footnote 1} , opportunities remain to build financial confidence and resilience. Barriers to accessing, understanding and using pertinent financial information can negatively impact financial inclusion for populations experiencing financial vulnerability.

People need access to reliable, unbiased and affordable sources of financial advice to help them make informed decisions. The 2024 CFCS reveals that Canadians differ in how they seek financial advice, which sources they trust, and whether they’re willing or able to pay for help making financial decisions. These findings underline the need for financial literacy approaches tailored to reflect Canada’s diversity. Access to financial help must be inclusive, and the help offered must address the diverse needs of individuals across varying income levels, life stages and backgrounds.

There is trustworthy and affordable financial advice available for all goals and budgets, including free advice for those who are struggling with debt or experiencing financial vulnerability. However, there are also emerging risks associated with new sources of advice, including generative AI (how individuals may use it to seek advice and how it may be used within the financial services sector^{Footnote 2}  to provide consumers with advice), the popularity of social media “finfluencers,”^{Footnote 3}  and increasingly sophisticated forms of financial fraud^{Footnote 4} . Through behavioural insights and longitudinal data, FCAC’s research helps uncover gaps in consumer knowledge and market practices, guiding interventions that strengthen financial resilience and literacy.