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ETF usage among RIAs has entered a more mature phase, according to the 2026 RIA ETF Trends Report from AdvizorPro. While the average number of new ETF additions per firm rose between the fourth quarter of 2024 and the fourth quarter of 2025, turnover in the funds RIAs used was lower than the year prior. RIAs have also shifted their focus from risk management when selecting new funds to a more balanced mix of ETFs that incorporate growth, thematic and macro strategies.
Over the course of last year, RIAs tracked by AdvizorPro raised their average ETF count to 88.3—representing a 13.7% increase from the year prior. A large majority of RIAs (71.4%) increased their ETF holdings, while roughly a fifth (20.5%) slashed the number of ETFs in their portfolios. Another 8.1% kept their ETF holdings at year-end 2024 levels.
AdvizorPro found a slowing turnover rate among ETFs held in RIAs’ portfolios at 36.3% compared to about half of all ETFs turning over in 2024. The overall trend last year was clearly toward adding new ETFs, with 41.9% of funds added to RIA portfolios vs. 18.1% of existing funds being dropped.
However, Michael Magnan, founder and CEO of AdvizorPro, noted that, in his view, a more mature ETF market will likely lead to a slowdown in new ETF adoption. “I don’t see any signs that it is going to take a turn for the negative, but I do think that as the market matures, we are going to start seeing a bit of a slowdown in net new adoption, and it’s going to get more competitive for ETF managers to position themselves as the best option within a given sleeve,” Magnan said.
While the list of top ETF issuers remains largely the same, including State Street Global Advisors, iShares, Vanguard and Invesco, the top four lost some market share over 2025, while other mainstays, such as Schwab, registered almost no growth. For example, iShares experienced a 7.7% decline in the number of RIA firms holding its ETFs—more than any other issuer included in AdvizorPro’s top list. State Street saw a 6.4% drop. The number of RIAs holding Schwab ETFs rose by just 0.1%.
At the same time, Dimensional experienced 6.7% growth in RIAs holding its ETFs, with JPMorgan Chase coming in a distant second at 2.0% and VanEck third at 0.9%. According to AdvizorPro researchers, the data suggest that “adoption momentum in the RIA channel is increasingly tied to product specialization rather than brand size alone.”
