Chartered Wealth Manager® (CWM®) Vs. Certified Financial Planner®(CFP®)

Written by Sonal Sharma - Wed, 05 Mar 2025

To understand the Difference between Chartered Wealth Manager (CWM) and Certified Financial Planner (CFP) we need to first understand the Difference between Financial Planning and Wealth Management.

These two terms Financial Planning and Wealth Management are very confusing and most people generally consider them as synonyms. But actually they are not synonyms.

Wealth Management shall mean something wider than financial planning. Wealth management would include not only financial assets but any kind of wealth the advisor is hired for its maintenance, preservation and growing. From our point of view, domestic and international tax Law, corporate Law and Family Law should be considered as a part of the Wealth Management knowledge.

So Wealth Management is more comprehensive, more detailed and better rewarded by Clients. Moreover Wealth Management is an established profession with most Banks in India and Globally also having thriving Wealth Management Divisions.

Now let us compare the Chartered Wealth Manager (CWM^®) and the Certified Financial Planner ^® (CFP^®) Designation Programs.

COMPARISON BETWEEN CHARTERED WEALTH MANAGER (CWM) & CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER (CFP)
PARAMETERS	CHARTERED WEALTH MANAGER	CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER	Remarks
Website	www.aafm-india.co.in	www.fpsbindia.org
Certificate Issuing Body	American Academy of Financial Management, USA	Financial Planning Standard Board India	Both are Global Boards based out of USA
Affiliation Body	The CHARTERED WEALTH MANAGERTM (CWM) is offered by American Academy of Financial Management, US. The AAFM Board of Standards TM was founded in 1996, is a nonprofit organization, an independent Board of Standards and Accreditation Council for professionals with presence in 150+ countries having its offices in 17 Countries offering exclusive certifications to candidates who meet the highest standards.	The CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNERCM (CFP) is offered by FPSB Ltd which was founded in 2004. Financial Planning Standards Board Ltd. (FPSB) is a nonprofit association, having a global presence operating in 24 countries including India.	AAFM is a 18 Year Old Body, FPSB is a 10 Year Old Body
ACCREDITATION	The CHARTERED WEALTH MANAGERTM (CWM) has been accredited by NISM under Regulation 7 (2) of Securities Exchange Board of India (Investment Advisers) Regulations, 2013. CWM was the First Course Accredited under the SEBI Investment Adviser Regulations 2013	Recently Accredited	CWM was the First Certification to be Accredited. As of today both are accredited
No of Certificants	50,000+ CWM and 3,00,00 certificants for all certifications taken together	1,50,000 Approx.	Both are quite popular Globally
Global Certification in True Sense	The CHARTERED WEALTH MANAGERTM certification is awarded directly by the parent body AAFM, US which makes the CWM certification truly global and is accepted globally without any territorial limitation. The candidates do not have to undergo any additional certification / examination if he / she want to pursue their career in any other jurisdiction.	The CFP certification is awarded by the Indian Chapter i.e. FPSB India which restricts the certification to be global in true sense and is recognized in India only. The candidates will have to undergo additional certification / examination, if he / she want to pursue their career in any other country.	CWM Certification comes directly from AAFM USA while CFP Certification is issued by FPSB India. The CWM Certification is globally acceptable but to use CFP Outside India Students need to give extra exams called "Cross Border Exams"
Global Presence	The CWM certification is offered internationally across the globe in 175+ Countries with classroom training in 17 countries. Currently, CWM is offered in United States, India, Brazil, Latin America, South America, EU, Europe, United Kingdom, Middle East, South Arabia, South Africa, West Indies, etc.	The CFP certification is offered in 24 countries including India	AAFM has Exam Centers and CWM Certificants in 175 Countries, CFP is offered in 24 Countries
Output from Certification	CHARTERED WEALTH MANAGERTM (CWMTM) is unique and the Premier Certification in Wealth Management certification Globally. CWM certification is professional qualification for aspiring candidates who want to establish their career in Wealth Management and the professional who want to upgrade and enhance their skill set as per the mandatory requirement posted by the regulator and the industry	CFP is a professional qualification for aspiring & experienced Financial Planners. CFP Certification covers all aspects of an individual’s personal finance needs like insurance, retirement, tax & estate, investment etc.	Wealth Management is an established profession with most of the Banks already having Wealth Management Divisions. Financial Planning is a relatively new concept.
Courseware for the Certification	The Courseware for the CWM certification is provided by AAFM India approved from AAFM, US. The benefit of courseware provided by the Board will helps in the standardization amongst the industry and maintaining the education standards and quality. The courseware covers Global plus Indian content.	The Courseware for CFP certification is not provided by the FPSB India. The Education Providers themselves have to develop the content for the certification which creates discord amongst industry from the perspective of standardization and standard setting. Further, the students are not clear about the nature of questions asked in the exam. The courseware covers Indian content only.	Standardized Courseware for CWM is developed by the AAFM Board itself.
Curriculum	The curriculum of CWM certification have been designed and developed in consultation with the global academicians and industry experts with a focus on Wealth Management and Financial Advisory Services Industry. In the contemporary dynamic environment of financial sector a Financial Advisor has to be mandatorily equipped with the Comprehensive knowledge and skill set to deliver at the job. The curriculum of CWM is relevant, practical, and exhaustible in nature and also covers Global Financial System, Derivatives, Equity Analysis, PMS, Real Estate Valuation, Loan & Debt Management, Intergenerational Wealth Transfer, International Taxation, Relationship Management, Behavioral Finance, etc. The curriculum covers Global as well as Indian Markets.	The curriculum of CFP Certification has been adopted from its parent body FPSB Ltd. which has been localized. The curriculum is designed to focus on Financial Planning Services Industry which covers Introduction to Financial Planning, Insurance Planning, Retirement Planning, Indian Taxation, Investment Planning and Estate Planning. The CFP certification focuses on Financial Planning Industry which is yet to evolve as a business in India and develop a Fee Based Advisory Model in the current financial advisory services and it may take some more years to establish such fee based advisory model in India.	CWM Curriculum has much more depth and includes all asset classes including Real Estate, Alternative Investments etc. It covers Client Relationship Management and Behavioral Finance.CWM Program allows the Certificant to manage Local Wealth as well as Cross Border Wealth.CFP Curriculum is restricted to Mutual Funds and Insurance as asset classes and does not properly cover Equity, Debt, Real Estate and Alternative Assets
Project Work	There are 2 Project/Assignments which the Student has to complete for acquiring the CWM Certification.	There is no project/assignment Requirement	Project Work in Case of CWM ensures that the Student learns to Create Wealth Plan and is Job ready.
Duration	Candidates take an average of 6 months to complete the entire program	Candidates take an average of 6 months to complete the program	The time duration to cover both the programs is Similar.
Career Avenues	Analyst, Research, KPO, Banking, Brokerage Firms, Mutual Fund Houses, Private Banking, Wealth Management firms, Financial Planning Outfits, Insurance Companies, Corporate Training, Educational Institutions, Independent Financial Advisory	Mutual Fund Houses, Financial Planning Outfits, Insurance Companies, Corporate Training, Educational Institutions, Independent Financial Advisory	As the CWM Program has more in depth and Wider Curriculum it gives many more options to the Certificants than CFP. Wealth Management is a much more established concept that Financial Planning
Pathway to Register	Compulsory Pathway: The eligibility criterion to register for the CWM certification through Compulsory Pathway is that the candidate must have passed minimum 12th Standard but minimum a graduate to hold the certification.	The eligibility criterion to register and hold the CFP certification through Regular Pathway is that the candidate must have passed minimum 12th Standard.	It is necessary to be a Graduate to obtain the CWM Certificant while a 12th Passed Student can obtain the CFP Certificate.
Pathway to Register	Experience Pathway: The eligibility criterion to register for the CWM certification through Experience Pathway is that the candidate must have passed Graduation with 3 years of minimum work experience.	The eligibility criterion to register for the CFP certification through Challenge Status Pathway is that the candidate must hold a professional qualification with 3 years of minimum work experience.	3 years relevant experience is required for Exam Waiver both the Programs
Experience Requirement	Does not have any experience requirement.	Minimum 3 Year financial experience Requirement.	There is no experience requirement to use the CWM Designation once you have fulfilled the Certification Process. There is a requirement of 3 years of relevant work experience to get the CFP Certification and Designation.
Board Fee	Compulsory Pathway - Rs. 10,000/ (Registration)- plus Rs. 6,000/- (Courseware) plus Rs. 4,000/- (Examination) = Rs. 20,000/- OR Experience pathway - Rs. 10,000/- (Registration) plus Rs. 6,000/- (Courseware) + Rs. 2000/- (Examination)= Rs. Rs. 18,000/-. Special Fee structure for Corporate Member of Rs. 11,500/- including Registration Fee and Study Material Fee	Regular Pathway - Rs. 10,000/ (Registration) - plus Rs. 3,000/- (Courseware) plus Rs. 13,000/- (Examination) = Rs. 26,000/- OR Challenge Status pathway - Rs. 20,000/- (Registration) plus Rs. 3,000/- (Courseware) + Rs. 5000/- (Examination)= Rs. 28,000/-. Special Fee structure for Charter Member of Rs. 2,000/- only subject to conditions	CWM on an average is 28% less costly than CFP
Registration Mode	No Direct Student Registration Allowed with the Board, the registration can be done only through Authorized Education Providers	Direct Student Registration is Allowed with the Board, the registration can be done through Authorized Education Providers and Board also
Certification Fee	USD 100	Rs. 5,000/-	Certification directly from USA.
Examination Pattern	In CWM certification there are 2 levels of examinations i.e. Level 1 and Level 2. The examinations are online and are conducted on Monthly basis across India. The duration of Level 1 examination is of 2.00 Hours and Level 2 is 3 Hours and all the questions are MCQ in nature. The Experience Pathway is exempted from Level 1 Examination	In CFP certification there are five examinations. The examinations are conducted only on daily basis across India which loses the control of the Education Provider in the batch formation and conducting of classes. The Exam 1-4 are of 2 Hours each and Exam 5 is of 4 Hours and all the questions are MCQ in nature. The total examination cost for the student is Rs. 13,000/- for all the examinations.	CWM has 2 Exams for Regular Student and 1 exam for experienced Student. CFP has 5 Exams for Regular Student and 1 exam for experience Student.
Training Cost Per Student	Ranging between Rs.30,000 to Rs.40,000 for classroom training and DLP Basic of Rs. 5,000/- is mandatory to be paid by the Candidate to the Education Provider	Ranging between Rs.30,000 to Rs.40,000 for classroom training and DLP Basic of Rs. 10,000 - 15,000/-	Class Room Training is priced approx. same. But Self Study option is cheaper for CWM.