Trust & Will 2026 Financial Advisor Report

Most Americans now expect their financial advisor to help with estate planning, and most who have an advisor would leave one who does not. In Trust & Will's 2026 Financial Advisor Report, 61% of Americans say advisors should offer estate planning as part of their services, and 68% of advised clients say they would consider switching to another advisor that offers it. Among advised Gen Z and Millennial clients, that figure is roughly 8 in 10. For an industry that long treated estate planning as someone else's job, the message is direct: it is now a core part of what clients expect to receive.

This report is the third installment in Trust & Will's annual Financial Advisor Report series. The 2024 edition surveyed financial advisors themselves and found that 1 in 4 lacked their own estate plan. The 2025 edition was one of the largest studies ever conducted on the intersection of estate planning and financial advising, surveying 10,000 Americans across age, gender, income, race, political affiliation, and geography. It found that 70% of Americans believed advisors should offer estate planning in some form and that 40% of advised clients would switch advisors to get it. The 2026 edition surveys 1,500 U.S. adults to measure what has changed in the year since, and why. Where comparable data exists, we compare results to the 2025 Financial Advisor Report to surface year-over-year trends.

Two forces stand out this year. First, the consumers driving advisor adoption have flipped: Gen Z and Millennials are now more likely than Baby Boomers to have a financial advisor, and they are also the groups most insistent that advisors handle estate planning. Second, a year of elevated financial anxiety has turned estate planning from a someday task into a present concern, with half of Americans saying economic conditions have made them more motivated to get their affairs in order. The result is a market where demand is rising and the relationship is ready, but most clients still have not acted.

Key Findings

• 61% of Americans say financial advisors should offer estate planning as part of their services. In 2025, 37% called estate planning "essential" to a complete financial plan and another 34% called it a nice-to-have. In 2026, a clear majority gives an unqualified yes.

• 68% of advised clients would consider switching to another advisor that offers estate planning services. 39.7% are "very likely" to consider it and another 28% are "somewhat likely."

• Advisor adoption is up and skewing younger. 31.2% of Americans now have a financial advisor, up from 26.9% in 2025. Gen Z adoption jumped from 28.2% to 41.7% and Millennial adoption from 28.5% to 38.5%, while Baby Boomer adoption fell from 31.1% to 24.3%.

• Economic anxiety is now an estate planning driver. 54% of Americans say their financial anxiety increased over the past 12 months, and 49.7% say economic conditions made them more motivated to get their estate planning in order.

• The advisor now edges the attorney as the preferred estate planning channel. 27.4% would prefer to create or update an estate plan with a financial advisor versus 24.3% with an estate planning attorney. 18.9% want both involved.

• 68.2% believe advisors have a responsibility to flag an outdated or incomplete estate plan. 44.7% say it should be part of the job without being asked.

• 47.8% of Americans feel unprepared for the Great Wealth Transfer.

Who Has a Financial Advisor in 2026

In 2025, having a financial advisor looked like a later-in-life milestone. Baby Boomers (31.1%) and the Silent Generation led adoption, while Gen Z (28.2%) and Millennials (28.5%) trailed.

In a single year, that picture flipped. Overall advisor adoption rose from 26.9% to 31.2%, and the growth came almost entirely from the younger cohorts. Gen Z adoption jumped 13.5 percentage points to 41.7%. Millennial adoption rose 10 points to 38.5%. Gen X inched up to 23.1%. Baby Boomer adoption, meanwhile, declined from 31.1% to 24.3%.

Younger Americans are now meaningfully more likely than their parents to have a financial advisor. That matters for the rest of this report, because the generations driving adoption are also the generations with the highest expectations that advisors will handle estate planning.

The gender gap in advisor access

Men are significantly more likely than women to have a financial advisor (39% vs. 26.8%), a 12-point gap. That gap shows up again across estate planning documents. Men are more likely to hold every major document, including trusts (30.9% vs. 15%) and wills (31.6% vs. 24.3%), while women are more likely to have no documents at all (47.4% vs. 33.1%). The same group with less access to professional financial guidance also has fewer protections in place.

What documents Americans actually have

Among all respondents, 42.3% report having none of the five core estate planning documents the survey tracked, and another 10.4% are not sure what they have, which is itself a quiet warning sign. A will remains the most common document (27%), followed by a trust (20.6%), a Medical Power of Attorney or advance directive (19.1%), a Financial Power of Attorney (15.7%), and a HIPAA authorization (10%).

The most striking generational result: Gen Z reports the highest trust ownership of any generation at 33.1%, and the lowest no-document rate at 32.2%. Gen X is once again the least protected generation in the dataset, with 50% holding no documents at all. That pattern matches the Gen X preparedness gap Trust & Will documented in the Sandwich Gap analysis, which found that the generation carrying the most financial responsibility for others is the least protected itself.

A note on year-over-year comparison: The 2025 survey's document question did not offer an "I am not sure" option and grouped power-of-attorney documents differently, so the change in the no-document rate (55.1% in 2025 to 42.3% in 2026) should be read directionally, not as a precise improvement. The clearest comparable signals are that will ownership softened (30.8% to 27%) while trust ownership rose sharply (11.3% to 20.6%), consistent with the broader shift toward more comprehensive planning documented in the 2026 Estate Planning Report.

Estate Planning Is Now an Expected Advisor Service

When asked directly whether financial advisors should offer estate planning as part of their services, 61.3% of Americans say yes. Only 17.5% say no, and 21.2% are not sure.

The 2025 survey asked the question with a softer scale. 37.1% said estate planning was "essential for a complete financial plan," 33.8% called it a "nice-to-have," 10.2% said it was separate from financial planning, and 18.9% were unsure. The question design changed between years, so the comparison is directional. But the direction is clear. A year ago, the largest single group treated estate planning as optional rather than essential. Today, a clear majority gives an unqualified yes, and outright rejection remains a small minority view.

Support is strongest among the generations now driving advisor adoption: 66.5% of Gen Z and 65.5% of Millennials say advisors should offer estate planning, compared to 54.1% of Baby Boomers. Even among Boomers, only 12.6% say no.

What role should the advisor play?

The expected role is practical. The top responsibilities Americans assign to advisors:

• Help with specific tasks like beneficiary designations or tax strategies: 40.2%

• Provide education on estate planning basics: 35.3%

• Offer access to a full suite of estate planning services, including document drafting: 34.7%

• Proactively remind me when I should review or update my estate plan: 33.4%

• Collaborate with estate planning attorneys to implement my plan: 28.2%

• Refer me to an online estate planning service to complete documents on my own: 23.6%

The rank order is nearly identical to 2025, when "help with specific tasks" also led (40.8%) and "proactive reminders" also drew exactly 33.4%. That consistency suggests these expectations are stable rather than a passing mood. (The 2025 version of this question was asked only of respondents already favorable to advisor-led estate planning, and the 2026 survey added the online-referral option, so totals are not directly comparable.)

The accountability expectation

The clearest signal of how far expectations have shifted involves accountability. 44.7% of Americans believe it should simply be part of a financial advisor's job to tell them if their estate plan is outdated or incomplete, without being asked. Another 23.5% say advisors should flag it if asked. Combined, 68.2% assign advisors some responsibility for estate plan upkeep. Only 10.5% say that responsibility belongs solely to an estate planning attorney.

--> More than two-thirds of Americans believe a financial advisor has a responsibility to tell them if their estate plan is outdated or incomplete.

The Switching Risk and the Acquisition Opportunity

For advisors, the most commercially important finding in this report involves keeping clients.

Among the 468 respondents who currently have a financial advisor, 39.7% say they would be "very likely" to consider switching to another advisor that offers estate planning services, and another 28% are "somewhat likely." Combined, 67.7% (more than two in three advised clients) are open to switching to another advisor over this single service offering. Only 13.6% are unlikely to consider it.

This figure has held strong since 2025. Last year, when the question was asked as a simple yes-or-no, 40% of advised clients said they would switch advisors for estate planning services. In 2026, the share who are "very likely" to consider switching is 39.7%, essentially unchanged. What is new is the additional 28% who now say they are "somewhat likely," a group the older yes-or-no question could not capture. The core switching risk has not faded, and the population of persuadable clients around it has grown.

The generational pattern is dramatic:

• Gen Z (advised): 80.2% at least somewhat likely to consider switching

• Millennials (advised): 79.3%

• Gen X (advised): 68.7%

• Baby Boomers (advised): 25.9%, with 44.4% unlikely

--> Among advised Millennials and Gen Z, roughly 8 in 10 would consider switching to an advisor who offers estate planning.

Estate planning is now expected when choosing an advisor

Switching risk is matched by an opportunity to win new clients. Among all Americans, 62.5% say that if they were choosing a new financial advisor today, it would be important that the advisor offers or facilitates estate planning services (30.5% very important, 32% somewhat important). Only 11.2% say it would be unimportant.

When offered the hypothetical choice of where to build an estate plan, Americans now narrowly prefer the advisor channel: 27.4% would prefer to create or update their estate plan with a financial advisor, 24.3% with an estate planning attorney, and 18.9% would want both involved. Another 29.3% are not sure, a large and reachable group that has not yet found an entry point. Among Gen Z, the advisor preference rises to 37.2%, versus 15.6% of Boomers.

Most clients would say yes if their advisor offered to help

The survey also asked what would happen if their financial advisor proactively offered to help them create or update an estate plan as part of their services: 63.9% of all Americans say they would be likely to accept the offer (30.6% very likely, 33.3% somewhat likely). Only 10% would be unlikely to. In other words, nearly two in three Americans say they would take their advisor up on the offer if it were made. Acceptance is highest among Gen Z (74%) and Millennials (69.4%) and remains a majority even among Boomers (53.7%).

--> Nearly two in three Americans say they would accept an estate planning offer if their advisor made one. The demand exists. In many practices, the offer does not.

Economic Anxiety Is Driving Urgency

The 2026 survey landed after a year of elevated cost-of-living pressure, market volatility, and policy uncertainty, and the data shows that environment is making estate planning feel urgent.

More than half of Americans (54%) say their financial anxiety has increased over the past 12 months: 25.7% significantly and 28.3% somewhat. Just 9.8% say it has decreased. Anxiety skews young: 59.9% of both Gen Z and Millennials report increased anxiety, compared to 43.2% of Baby Boomers.

This is consistent with what Trust & Will's broader research has tracked. The 2026 Estate Planning Report, fielded in January 2026, found that 45% of Americans were more concerned about their financial future than a year earlier, down slightly from 49% in the 2025 Estate Planning Report, but with the share feeling less worried collapsing from 19% to 8%. This Financial Advisor survey, fielded five months later in June 2026, finds the worried share higher at 54%, suggesting that financial anxiety did not ease over the first half of the year. (The two surveys word the question differently, so the figures are directional rather than a single continuous series.)

What’s new in 2026 is that the anxiety is converting into estate planning motivation. Nearly half of all Americans (49.7%) say economic conditions over the past year made them more motivated to get their estate planning in order: 21.8% much more motivated and 27.9% somewhat more. Only 11.2% feel less motivated. Here too the younger generations lead, with 61.2% of Gen Z and 59% of Millennials reporting increased motivation, versus 36% of Boomers. This is a meaningful shift from past Trust & Will research, where elevated anxiety did not reliably translate into action. In 2026, for the first time, a near-majority say the economy itself is pushing them toward estate planning.

What Americans are worried about

The concerns behind the anxiety are concrete and household-level:

• Rising cost of living: 49.9%

• Inflation: 38.7%

• Affording healthcare or long-term care costs: 24.5%

• Running out of money in retirement: 19.5%

• Job security or income instability: 17.8%

• Being unable to pass wealth to my family efficiently: 12.5%

• Market volatility: 11.1%

• Changes to tax laws or tax rates: 11%

• Investment losses: 10.2%

One in eight Americans (12.5%) now names inefficient wealth transfer as a top-of-mind financial concern, rising to 23.6% of Gen Z. The wealth transfer is not an abstraction to the generation expecting to receive it.

What actually triggered estate planning thoughts in 2026

When asked what made them think more seriously about estate planning in the past 12 months, Americans cite a mix of personal and economic triggers. Personal health events lead (a health diagnosis or medical event, 15.5%; the death or serious illness of someone close, 13.7%). But the next tier is dominated by the economy and the news cycle: job loss or income uncertainty (13.5%), domestic political uncertainty (12.5%), market volatility (11.1%), and tax or policy concerns (10.7%).

The generational pattern is distinct. For Gen Z, job loss or income uncertainty is the single biggest trigger (23.1%). For Baby Boomers, it is approaching retirement (19.8%) and personal health events (19.2%), while job loss barely registers (4.2%).

Proactive Advisors Move Clients to Act

For clients who do have an advisor, the relationship is already a primary estate planning channel, and the data shows that advisors who raise the topic measurably move clients to act.

Among advised respondents, 81.5% say their financial advisor has brought up estate planning at least once: 49.4% multiple times and 32.1% once. Only 12.4% say their advisor has never raised it. The generational split is revealing: 90.8% of advised Millennials say their advisor has raised estate planning, versus 59.2% of advised Boomers, 28.4% of whom say their advisor has never brought it up.

Those conversations have consequences. 56% of advised clients say a financial advisor has made them feel more urgency around creating or updating their estate plan (24.6% much more, 31.4% somewhat more). Almost no one (3.2%) reports feeling less urgency. Among Millennials, the urgency effect reaches 70.7%; among Boomers, just 18.5%.

Advisors also operate with unusual access to personal information. 58.8% of advised clients share more than the financial basics: 46.8% share family dynamics that might impact finances, and 12% share "the whole story, even some skeletons in our closet." That openness is the raw material of good estate planning, though it has cooled slightly since 2025, when 18.2% shared everything.

When the advisor stays silent

Among Americans with no estate planning documents, 4.1% say the main reason is that their financial advisor never brought it up, and 3% assumed their advisor would handle it. These numbers are small in the overall barrier ranking, but they describe clients who were waiting for a professional cue that never came.

The larger barriers remain familiar from a decade of estate planning research: 25.7% do not think they have enough assets to need a plan, 17.8% find it too expensive, 15% do not know where to start, and 14.8% keep putting it off. Another 24.1% can name no reason in particular, which points to simple inertia and waiting for a prompt.

--> The "not enough assets" belief remains the single most common barrier, and it remains a misconception. A will names guardians. A Medical Power of Attorney names your medical voice. A Financial Power of Attorney protects your accounts in an emergency. None of those protections require wealth to matter.

Related: What is the Average Cost of a Will and Trust?

The Preparedness Gap and the Great Wealth Transfer

An estimated $84 to $124 trillion is expected to transfer from older generations to younger ones over the coming decades. Asked how prepared they feel for that transfer, whether passing wealth on, receiving it, or both, Americans split almost evenly: 25.1% are very prepared with a plan in place, 27.1% have started thinking but taken no formal steps, 20.1% know they should address it but have not, and 27.7% are not prepared at all or were not aware of it.

That means 47.8% of Americans feel unprepared for the largest wealth transfer in history, and nearly three in four (74.9%) have taken no formal steps.

The generational detail sharpens the story. Millennials (31.2% very prepared) and Gen Z (29.3%), the generations expecting to receive, report the highest preparedness. Gen X, sitting in the middle of the transfer and often both inheriting from parents and planning for children, is the least prepared generation: 58.9% are not very or not at all prepared. Boomers, the generation doing most of the passing, are not far behind, with 54.3% unprepared or unaware.

The regret Americans already anticipate

Among those with no estate planning documents, half (49.7%) believe they will regret it if an unexpected event occurs before they create one: 19.8% say "I know I will regret it" and 29.9% say "probably, but I still have not done it." That second answer may be the most honest sentence in the entire survey. A third of unprotected Americans are not unaware and not unconvinced. They are simply stuck between intention and action.

--> Half of unprotected Americans already expect to regret not having an estate plan.

Related: What Happens if You Die Without a Will?

(Directional note: among Gen Z respondents without documents, 44.9% chose "probably, but I still have not done it," the highest of any generation, though this cell, at n=78, falls just below our 80-respondent reporting threshold and should be interpreted with caution.)

AI and the Advisor

Four in ten Americans (40.7%) say they would be comfortable using an AI-powered tool or platform to help create or update their estate planning documents: 20.4% very comfortable and 20.3% somewhat. Another 28.2% are neutral or unsure, and 31.1% are uncomfortable.

The generational gap is the widest in the entire survey. 57.1% of Gen Z and 52.3% of Millennials are comfortable with AI-assisted estate planning, compared to 16.8% of Baby Boomers, 44.7% of whom are "very uncomfortable." There is also a substantial gender divide: 49.8% of men are comfortable versus 35.7% of women.

The more useful finding for advisors is how Americans frame AI's role. Asked which statement best describes their view:

• AI is fine for simpler documents, but I would want an attorney for complex situations: 24.5%

• I prefer to work exclusively with human professionals for anything this important: 22.9%

• AI makes estate planning more accessible and affordable. I am in favor.: 14.2%

• I would use an AI-powered platform that also offers attorney review for added confidence: 11.8%

• I have not thought much about it: 26.6%

Read together, just over half of Americans (50.5%) are open to AI in some form, but that openness is overwhelmingly conditional on human professional oversight for anything complex or high-stakes. Americans are welcoming AI as a way to make planning more accessible, not as a replacement for professional judgment. For advisors, that points to a clear approach: pair efficient, technology-enabled document creation with visible human expertise.

Regional Snapshot

Regional differences in 2026 are modest but directionally consistent with prior research. The Southwest has the highest no-document rate (46.4%) yet also the highest share calling an estate plan "very important" (45.6%), an awareness-action gap in miniature. The West leads in trust ownership (26.5%), echoing the West's trust-forward pattern in both the 2025 data (19.2%) and the annual 2026 Estate Planning Report. Top-of-mind financial concerns are nearly uniform across regions, with rising cost of living ranked first everywhere (48% to 51.5%).

What This Means for Consumers and Families

The most practical takeaway from this data is that the entry points into estate planning are multiplying.

If you have a financial advisor, use the relationship. More than 80% of advised Americans say their advisor has raised estate planning at least once. If yours has not, this data gives you permission to raise it yourself, because 68% of Americans believe checking on your estate plan should be part of an advisor's job. Ask directly: is my plan current, are my beneficiary designations aligned with my documents, and who should be involved in completing what is missing?

If economic anxiety has you worried, channel it into the one plan you fully control. Half of Americans say the past year's economy made them more motivated to get their planning in order. Markets, prices, and policy are outside your control. Naming guardians, decision-makers, and beneficiaries is not. The Estate Planning Checklist is a great starting point.

Do not let "not enough assets" stop you. It remains the most common barrier (25.7%), and it remains a misconception. Estate planning protects your people and your medical wishes, not just property.

If you are expecting an inheritance, prepare before it arrives. Nearly half of Americans feel unprepared for the wealth transfer, and the preparation gap is largest in the generations in its path. Receiving wealth without a plan of your own simply moves the problem one generation down. Related: Inheritance 101: How Inheritance Works

If you already expect to regret not having an estate plan, treat that as your signal to start. Half of unprotected Americans (those without an estate plan) say they will probably or certainly regret not having a plan if the unexpected happens first. The distance between that feeling and a finished plan is shorter, cheaper, and faster than most people assume.

What This Means for Professionals

For financial advisors, wealth managers, and the firms that support them, the 2026 data sends a clear message: estate planning has become a service clients expect, and the cost of not offering it is rising.

Estate planning is now a retention issue, not just a differentiator. With 67.7% of advised clients open to switching to another advisor that offers estate planning services, including roughly 80% of advised Gen Z and Millennial clients, the absence of an estate planning offering is an open door for competitors. The 39.7% who are "very likely" to consider switching nearly matches the 40% who said outright in 2025 that they would switch, so this risk has not eased. Advisors who treat estate planning as out of scope are taking a position only 17.5% of Americans agree with.

Your future client base expects estate planning. The shift in advisor adoption, with Gen Z at 41.7% and Millennials at 38.5%, both now ahead of Boomers, means the fastest-growing client segments are also the ones most likely to expect estate planning. Two-thirds of them say advisors should offer it, nearly three-quarters say they would accept the offer if an advisor made one, and they prefer the advisor channel over the attorney channel by double digits.

Proactivity works. 81.5% of advised clients have had estate planning raised by their advisor, and 56% felt more urgency as a result, with effectively no downside (3.2% felt less urgency). Yet 28.4% of advised Boomers say their advisor has never raised it, the largest silence in the data. Adding a standing estate-plan review item to every annual meeting is the lowest-cost step this report supports.

Lead with the economy, because clients already are. Half of Americans say economic conditions made them more motivated to get estate planning in order, and the trigger list is led by topics already on your meeting agenda: income uncertainty, market volatility, tax and policy changes, and retirement timing. Estate planning belongs inside the financial review conversation, not beside it.

Focus on Gen X. Gen X is at once the least prepared generation for the transfer (58.9% unprepared), the least protected (50% with no documents), and the least advised (23.1%). That is not three separate problems. It is one underserved market, and it is the same group Trust & Will's Sandwich Gap Report identifies as carrying the most financial responsibility for others while holding the fewest protections.

Use AI as an access layer with your expertise on top. Half of Americans are open to AI-assisted estate planning, but the dominant view is conditional: AI for simple documents, human professionals for anything complex. Platforms that pair technology-enabled document creation with advisor and attorney oversight match what consumers describe wanting. Related: Trust & Will for Advisors.

The accountability bar has been set. 44.7% of Americans say flagging an outdated or incomplete estate plan should be part of an advisor's job without being asked. Meeting that expectation builds trust. Missing it now reads as a service gap.

Key Statistics

• 61% of Americans say financial advisors should offer estate planning as part of their services.

• 68% of advised clients would consider switching to another advisor that offers estate planning services; 40% are "very likely" to.

• 80% of advised Gen Z and 79% of advised Millennial clients would consider switching for estate planning.

• 31% of Americans now have a financial advisor, up from 27% in 2025, with Gen Z adoption rising from 28% to 42%.

• 54% of Americans report increased financial anxiety over the past 12 months.

• 50% say economic conditions made them more motivated to get their estate planning in order.

• 27% would prefer to build an estate plan with a financial advisor vs. 24% with an attorney.

• 68% believe advisors have a responsibility to flag an outdated or incomplete estate plan.

• 48% of Americans feel unprepared for the $84 to $124 trillion wealth transfer.

• 42% of Americans have no estate planning documents, and half of them already anticipate regret.

Frequently Asked Questions

Should financial advisors offer estate planning?

According to Trust & Will's 2026 Financial Advisor Report, 61% of Americans say financial advisors should offer estate planning as part of their services, and only 17.5% say they should not. Consumers most want help with beneficiary designations and tax strategies, estate planning education, and proactive reminders to keep plans current.

Would clients really switch financial advisors over estate planning?

Yes. 68% of advised clients say they would consider switching to another advisor that offers estate planning services, including 40% who are "very likely" to. Among advised Gen Z and Millennial clients, roughly 8 in 10 would consider switching.

How many Americans have a financial advisor in 2026?

31% of U.S. adults have a financial advisor, wealth manager, or financial planner, up from 27% in 2025. Gen Z (42%) and Millennials (39%) now lead adoption, ahead of Gen X (23%) and Baby Boomers (24%).

Can a financial advisor create an estate plan?

Financial advisors generally cannot draft legal documents themselves unless they are also licensed attorneys, but they can guide the process, coordinate with attorneys, help with beneficiary designations and tax strategy, and connect clients to estate planning platforms. In 2026, 27% of Americans say they would prefer to create or update their estate plan through a financial advisor, and 19% want both an advisor and an attorney involved.

Is it a financial advisor's job to review my estate plan?

Most Americans think so. 45% say flagging an outdated or incomplete estate plan should be part of an advisor's job without being asked, and another 24% say advisors should flag it when asked. Only 11% believe that responsibility belongs solely to an estate planning attorney.

How is economic anxiety affecting estate planning?

54% of Americans report increased financial anxiety over the past 12 months, and 50% say economic conditions have made them more motivated to get their estate planning in order. Top triggers include job or income uncertainty (13.5%), political uncertainty (12.5%), and market volatility (11.1%).

What is the Great Wealth Transfer, and are Americans ready for it?

The Great Wealth Transfer refers to the estimated $84 to $124 trillion expected to pass from older generations to younger ones over the coming decades. In 2026, 48% of Americans feel unprepared for it, and only 25% say they have a formal estate or inheritance plan in place. Gen X is the least prepared generation, with 59% feeling not very or not at all prepared.

How many Americans have no estate plan in 2026?

Estimates vary by survey design. In Trust & Will's 2026 Estate Planning Report, a nationally representative survey of 5,000 U.S. adults, 56% of Americans report having no estate planning documents of any kind. In this Financial Advisor survey of 1,500 adults, which used quotas for advisor and estate-plan status and skewed slightly female, 42% report having none of the five core documents, with another 10% unsure. For population-level estimates, the 2026 Estate Planning Report is the better reference.

Why don't people create estate plans?

The most common reason is believing they do not have enough assets to need one (26%), followed by cost (18%), not knowing where to start (15%), and procrastination (15%). Notably, 24% can give no reason in particular, and half of those without a plan already anticipate regretting it.

Are people comfortable using AI for estate planning?

41% of Americans are comfortable using an AI-powered tool to help create or update estate planning documents, with a steep generational gradient: 57% of Gen Z versus 17% of Baby Boomers. The most common overall view is conditional: AI is fine for simpler documents, but people want an attorney involved for complex situations.

Do financial advisors actually bring up estate planning with clients?

Usually, yes. 82% of advised clients say their advisor has raised estate planning at least once, and 49% say multiple times. Those conversations matter: 56% of advised clients say an advisor has made them feel more urgency about creating or updating their plan.

How do men and women differ on financial advisors and estate planning?

Men are more likely than women to have a financial advisor (39% vs. 27%), to hold a trust (31% vs. 15%), and to be comfortable with AI estate planning tools (50% vs. 36%). Women are more likely to have no estate planning documents (47% vs. 33%) and more likely to be unsure how they would prefer to plan, which signals an access and confidence gap rather than a difference in how much planning matters.

Methodology

This random double-opt-in online survey of 1,500 general-population U.S. adults was commissioned by Trust & Will and conducted by market research company Talker Research, in accordance with the Market Research Society's (MRS) code of conduct. The survey was fielded between June 4 and June 10, 2026.

The sample included minimum quotas of at least 200 respondents who have a financial advisor and 200 who do not, and at least 200 respondents who have an estate plan and 200 who do not, all with internet access. The survey consisted of 20 main questions plus screener questions covering financial advisor status and estate plan document status. Results were analyzed across the following segments: generation (Generation Z: born 1997 to 2008; Millennials: born 1981 to 1996; Generation X: born 1965 to 1980; Baby Boomers: born 1946 to 1964; Silent Generation: born 1927 to 1945), gender (male, female), region (Northeast, Southeast, Southwest, Midwest, West), financial advisor status, and estate plan status.

The margin of error for the total sample of 1,500 is approximately plus or minus 2.5 percentage points at the 95% confidence level. Questions asked only of advised respondents (n=468) carry a margin of error of approximately plus or minus 4.5 percentage points, and questions asked only of respondents with no estate planning documents (n=635) carry a margin of error of approximately plus or minus 3.9 percentage points.

Cell size note: Cells are only reported on for analysis if they have a minimum of 80 respondents. The Silent Generation segment (n=19, with subgroup cells as small as n=3) falls below this threshold and is excluded from demographic analysis throughout this report. The Gen Z no-document subgroup (n=78) falls marginally below the threshold; the single reference to it in this report is flagged as directional. Statistical significance is calculated at the 95% level.

Data quality: All responses were screened for speeding, duplicate submissions, and bot activity by Talker Research prior to delivery.

Limitations: This survey relies on self-reported data and reflects respondents' stated knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors, which may differ from actual documented planning status. The survey was conducted online and requires internet access, which may limit representation of certain populations. The sample design included minimum quotas by advisor status and estate plan status, and the achieved sample skews female. Document-ownership prevalence figures may therefore differ from nationally representative estimates, including those in Trust & Will's 2026 Estate Planning Report, and should be used to compare groups within this survey rather than as population prevalence benchmarks. Responses reflect a point in time and may not account for changes in economic conditions, legal requirements, or individual circumstances after the fielding period.

Year-over-year comparisons: Results are compared where applicable to the Trust & Will 2025 Financial Advisor Report, a survey of 10,000 U.S. adults conducted by Talker Research between January 2 and January 13, 2025. The 2026 survey sample (n=1,500) differs in size, fielding season, and quota design, and several question designs were updated between years. The estate plan importance question moved from a 4-point to a 5-point scale with a neutral option. The document-ownership question added an "I am not sure" option and split power-of-attorney documents differently. The "should advisors offer estate planning" question moved from a 4-option to a 3-option format. The switching question moved from a yes/no/not-applicable format to a 5-point likelihood scale. The advisor-role question was asked of all respondents in 2026 versus only favorable respondents in 2025, with one new response option added. Where question design changed, comparisons are noted with context, and directional interpretation is favored over precise point-to-point comparison. Differences of fewer than 3 percentage points between years should be interpreted with caution.

This survey is directional and intended to provide consumer insights.

This survey was overseen by Talker Research, whose team members are members of the Market Research Society (MRS) and the European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research (ESOMAR).

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial, or tax advice. Estate planning laws vary by state. Please consult a licensed estate planning attorney or qualified financial advisor for guidance specific to your situation.

Trust & Will is an online service providing legal forms and information. We are not a law firm and we do not provide legal advice.