No: MassMutual is paid through commissions, sales loads, 12b-1 fees, revenue sharing and the sale of its own insurance and annuities, as well as advisory fees. Its advisors offer investments through MML Investors Services, LLC (MMLIS), which is registered as both a broker-dealer and an investment adviser. Its Form CRS says most of its advisors are MassMutual agents who must meet “minimum sales thresholds of MassMutual annuity and insurance products.” In Portfolio Solutions, one of its managed account programs, the advisory fee can be up to 1.54% a year, plus program costs.
That makes MassMutual a dual registrant tied to a life insurer, not a fee-only firm. Here’s what its own filings say.
How MassMutual is paid
MMLIS (CRD 10409) is a subsidiary of Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company. Its Form CRS, effective October 19, 2026, describes two kinds of service.
Brokerage. When you buy stocks, bonds or ETFs “you will pay us a commission at the time of the transaction.” On mutual funds, 529 plans and unit investment trusts, MMLIS receives “a commission or sales load.” Product issuers pay it ongoing fees such as 12b-1 fees, and on variable annuities and variable life insurance the issuer “generally pays us a commission based on deposits.” MMLIS doesn’t monitor brokerage accounts and has no account minimum.
Advisory accounts and planning. In MMLIS Managed Accounts you pay an advisory fee based on your assets, with minimums that “generally range from $5,000 to $1,000,000.” Financial planning is a separate fee. The Form CRS notes that in most cases the advisory fee “will be higher over time than commissions or fees paid for brokerage services.”
On its Form ADV Part 1, updated in October 2026, MMLIS reports being paid by a percentage of assets, hourly charges and fixed fees for advice, and reports a broker-dealer business alongside it.
The CFP Board’s standards allow “fee-only” only when neither the advisor nor a related party receives sales-related compensation. Commissions, sales loads and insurance sales are sales-related pay, so MassMutual doesn’t meet that test.
What else the filings disclose
Insurance sales thresholds. The Form CRS says most MMLIS advisors are licensed to sell MassMutual variable insurance products and most are MassMutual agents. “To maintain their agent status, financial professionals are required to meet minimum sales thresholds of MassMutual annuity and insurance products.” Those sales also count toward the advisor’s MassMutual health and retirement benefits, and toward rewards and trips.
How advisors are paid. Advisors receive a portion of the commissions and advisory fees you pay, and can adjust both “within approved ranges.” The share they keep depends partly on total client assets, asset growth and new accounts and planning engagements.
Its own products. MMLIS offers products “issued, managed, administered, or distributed by” MassMutual and its affiliates, in brokerage and in managed accounts. The Form CRS calls this a conflict because affiliates are paid when you buy them.
Fund and clearing payments. In advisory accounts, MMLIS receives 12b-1 fees from some funds and says it credits them back to your account. In both kinds of account, product issuers, managers and its clearing firm share revenue with MMLIS, including on cash sweep options. The Form CRS says this revenue sharing isn’t passed to advisors.
Custody markup. The Portfolio Solutions brochure says the 0.06% execution, clearing and custody fee is more than MMLIS pays its clearing firm, and that MMLIS keeps the difference.
Disciplinary history. The Form CRS answers “Yes.” The details are on BrokerCheck.
What MassMutual costs
MMLIS runs several advisory programs with different fee structures. Its Portfolio Solutions brochure, dated October 7, 2026, says some of those other programs have “lower maximum fees which can result in lower client fees.” For Portfolio Solutions, a wrap fee program of model portfolios, the brochure lists one yearly Client Fee made up of:
| Fee part | Rate |
|---|---|
| Advisory fee | Negotiable, up to 1.54% a year |
| Execution, clearing and custody fee | 0.06% a year |
| Strategist fee, depending on the model | 0.05% to 0.47% a year |
The fee is charged monthly in advance on everything in the account, including cash. The fee can include tiered or flat breakpoints, and the brochure notes that advisors have an incentive not to include them. Some advisors use a custom schedule with a lower maximum. Fund expenses are on top. MMLIS doesn’t publish what a typical client pays.
At the published ceiling, before any strategist fee:
- $500,000: up to $7,700 advisory fee plus $300 custody fee, or up to $8,000 a year
- $1 million: up to $15,400 plus $600, or up to $16,000 a year
With the highest strategist fee, those become up to $10,350 and $20,700.
Planning is separate. The Form CRS says planning fees “generally range from $500 to $35,000 per year.” The planning brochure sets a $500 minimum and says fees can go higher with home office approval.
These are ceilings, not quotes, so ask for your schedule in writing. For comparison, fee-only firms that publish a percentage fee charge a median 1% of assets, or $5,000 on $500,000 and $10,000 on $1 million at that rate. Fee-only planners who charge a flat fee for ongoing planning charge a median $4,500 a year (middle half $2,400 to $7,200), and a one-time plan has a median of $2,000. Our guides to what an advisor costs on $500,000 and on $1 million go further.
Who MassMutual may suit
MassMutual may suit someone whose main need is life or disability insurance, such as a young family or a business owner, and who wants that planned alongside investments by one advisor. Its advisors can cover insurance, brokerage, managed accounts and planning, and its planning brochure covers topics such as estate settlement and divorce planning. Someone with a small balance can open a managed account from $5,000 in some programs, and brokerage has no minimum.
Someone who wants advice from a firm paid only by them, or a second opinion on whether a policy or annuity fits, may want to compare a fee-only planner first. A fee-only planner earns nothing from the products they recommend. Our guides to insurance agent vs financial advisor and should you keep an annuity go further, and Northwestern Mutual is a similar case.
How to check it yourself
- Read the Form CRS. It’s linked from MMLIS’s SEC record. See what a Form CRS tells you.
- Ask which role your advisor is in for each recommendation: investment adviser representative, broker or MassMutual agent. The planning brochure says the advisor’s “role changes depending on whether they are providing financial planning services or recommending specific products.”
- Ask what your advisor earns on any policy or annuity, and whether it counts toward a sales threshold.
- Ask for your fee schedule in writing, including the custody fee, strategist fee and fund expenses.
- Look up your advisor on BrokerCheck.
Our guide to telling whether an advisor is fee-only walks through each check, and questions to ask a financial advisor gives you the rest.
Compare similar firms
Other insurance companies we’ve checked against the fee-only definition: Northwestern Mutual, New York Life, Prudential, Thrivent, State Farm, Primerica, Lincoln Financial, Equitable, Principal, Nationwide, Ameriprise. See all 50 firms.