Top Retirement Plan Advisors & Consultants

Compare retirement plan advisors and consultants, including 3(21) and 3(38) fiduciaries, by AUM, services, and state to find the right fit for your plan.

Browse 638 providers in this category.

Provider ranking

  11. Heffernan Financial Services

    Plan Advisor

    Walnut Creek, CA

    Credentials: CFP® - Certified Financial Planner • CFA® - Chartered Financial Analyst

    Stats: $1.0B under management

    Company: Est. 1995 • 3 employees

    View Profile

Retirement plan advisors help plan sponsors choose investments, benchmark fees, coordinate vendors, and document a prudent fiduciary process. The best retirement plan consultants also understand how your plan design, participant profile, and service model fit together, whether you sponsor a 401(k) plan, a 403(b), or another employer-sponsored retirement program. This page highlights firms that advise retirement plans and lets you compare them by AUM, services, and geography so you can build a stronger shortlist faster.

What retirement plan advisors and consultants actually do

A strong retirement plan advisor is more than an investment picker. The right partner helps with investment committee support, fiduciary documentation, provider searches, participant education, fee reviews, and coordination with recordkeepers, TPAs, auditors, and ERISA counsel. Many retirement plan consultants also guide sponsors through vendor transitions, lineup changes, and committee governance so the plan is easier to run and easier to defend.

If you are evaluating alternatives to your current advisor, it helps to compare service depth as well as brand recognition. Some firms focus on hands-on committee support and participant outcomes. Others emphasize large-scale reporting, vendor access, or specialized fiduciary services. In practice, the right fit depends on your plan size, internal resources, and how much discretion you want to delegate.

Understand the 3(21) vs. 3(38) fiduciary difference

Many searches for retirement plan advisors eventually come down to fiduciary structure. A 3(21) investment advisor shares fiduciary responsibility and makes recommendations, but the plan sponsor keeps final decision-making authority. A 3(38) investment manager takes discretionary control over investment selection and monitoring, which can reduce sponsor workload and shift more investment liability away from the employer.

That distinction matters because two retirement plan consultants can look similar on paper while offering very different levels of fiduciary support. When you compare firms, confirm whether they act as 3(21), 3(38), or both, how they document monitoring decisions, and what their review cadence looks like for your committee. For a deeper explainer on when each fiduciary model makes sense, see our guide to 3(38) vs. 3(21) fiduciary services.

How to compare retirement plan advisors

Start with the issues that affect outcomes the most: experience advising plans like yours, fiduciary role, depth of participant services, and the operational ecosystem around the advisor. For example, if your provider stack is due for a refresh, it can be useful to compare advisor recommendations alongside the broader market for 401(k) recordkeepers and 401(k) providers. If cost is a concern, review practical guidance on 401(k) advisor fees before your finalist conversations.

  • Plan-size fit: Look for firms that regularly advise plans in your asset and participant range.
  • Fiduciary structure: Match the advisor's 3(21) or 3(38) role to the level of discretion you want to retain.
  • Service breadth: Check for committee support, investment monitoring, participant education, fee benchmarking, and vendor-search help.
  • Geographic coverage: Use the state filters and state pages if local relationships or on-site support matter to your committee.

It is also worth reviewing advisor specialization. Some retirement plan advisors focus heavily on startup and small-business plans, while others are built for large committees with more complex governance needs. If your search is specifically for a defined-contribution plan, the narrower 401(k) advisor directory can be a useful companion to this broader hub.

Build a stronger shortlist

The goal is not just to find a recognizable name. It is to find a retirement plan consultant whose fiduciary model, service team, and operating style fit your committee. As you compare firms here, note which advisors align with your plan size, whether they provide the right level of fiduciary support, and how clearly they explain their process. Then use that shortlist to run a more focused search, including practical next steps from our guide on how to hire a retirement plan advisor.

Use this directory to compare retirement plan advisors and consultants side by side, then move into profile-level review for the firms that best match your plan's needs.