Advisors usually compare lead sources by their headline price. That hides the real difference, which is what you pay for. SmartAsset charges per lead. Zoe charges a share of each client’s fees for as long as they stay. Wellspent charges a flat membership. The clearest way to compare them is on one client.
The client and the assumptions
- The client: $1 million under management at 1% a year, so $10,000 in fees. 1% is the median first-tier asset fee for fee-only firms that publish one (860 firms, Wellspent fee report).
- Held flat for ten years, to keep the math readable. Growth makes Zoe’s share larger and doesn’t change the other two.
- SmartAsset: about $250 per lead for $1 million-plus prospects (Financial Planning, August 2023). Close rates of about 5% for email leads and about 20% for phone connections (Kitces, March 2024).
- Zoe: 15% to 35% of advisory fees for the life of an asset-management relationship (Zoe’s disclosure, March 2025).
- Wellspent: $890 a year, billed yearly ($89 a month if you pay monthly).
The three costs
| SmartAsset | Zoe Financial | Wellspent | |
|---|---|---|---|
| How you pay | Per lead | Share of the client’s fees | Flat membership |
| Year one, this client | $3,000 to $6,000 in leads ($150 to $300 a lead, 1 in 20 close) | $1,500 (15%) to $3,500 (35%) | $890 |
| Years two to ten | $0 more for this client | $1,500 to $3,500 every year | $890 a year |
| Ten-year total | $3,000 to $6,000 | $15,000 to $35,000 | $8,900, covering every client the membership brings, or none |
| Exclusive? | No, shared with about 3 advisors | Introduced by Zoe’s team | Yes, the prospect chose you |
| If you change firms | Nothing owed | Buyout after 10+ years at 3x the average of the prior 3 years’ payments | Nothing owed |
What the table means
SmartAsset is cheapest per client when you close well and the client stays. The lead cost is paid once. But it’s paid for every lead, including the ones that never answer, and the leads are shared, so your close rate depends on speed.
Zoe costs nothing until it works, then costs the most. For a client who stays ten years, the share adds up to $15,000 to $35,000. The trade is real: no cash outlay up front, and no cost for introductions that don’t sign.
Wellspent costs the same whether you get one client or several. That’s the strength and the risk. One client at $10,000 a year covers the membership more than ten times over. A year with no introductions still costs $890. Wellspent can’t promise a number of introductions.
What changes the answer
- Your close rate. At the 1 in 20 close Kitces reported for email leads, SmartAsset is $3,000 to $6,000 per client, depending on the lead price. Phone Live Connections close more often, but SmartAsset doesn’t publish their price.
- How long clients stay. The longer they stay, the more Zoe costs and the cheaper the other two look.
- Your fee model. On a $4,500 a year planning client, Zoe takes a share for five years at an unstated rate, SmartAsset’s lead cost is unchanged, and Wellspent is still $890.
- Cash today vs cost later. If you can’t spend before revenue arrives, Zoe’s model is the only one of the three that needs no cash up front.
Running the numbers for your own firm
- Pick a typical new client. Use their fee in year one, not your best client’s.
- Estimate how long they’ll stay. Use your own retention, not an industry figure.
- SmartAsset: divide the per-lead price you’re quoted by your close rate. At $250 and 1 in 10, that’s $2,500 per client.
- Zoe: multiply the client’s yearly fee by the share you’re offered, then by the years they’ll stay. Add any join fee.
- Wellspent: $890 a year, divided by the clients it brings you that year.
- Compare against the fee. The median ongoing planning fee among fee-only firms that publish prices is $4,500 a year; the median asset fee is 1%.
The model that wins usually depends on step 2. Short relationships favor the share; long ones favor paying once or paying flat.
Beyond price
- Who decides the match. The SEC found that about 46% of Zoe hires in 2023 and 2024 were advisers suggested by a salesperson rather than the algorithm’s first matches (IA-7019, September 2026). On Wellspent, lists and matches rank on fit to the question, with no paid boosts (methodology).
- Who you’re listed next to. SmartAsset accepts broker-dealer advisors. Zoe accepts fiduciary RIAs. Wellspent lists fee-only advisors only, checked against SEC data.
- What else comes with it. Wellspent includes a monthly AI visibility report and quarterly press placement with partners such as Forbes, CNBC and Kiplinger.
Bottom line
On one long-term $1 million client, Zoe’s share is the most expensive model, SmartAsset is cheapest if you close well, and Wellspent’s flat $890 a year covers every client it brings. Pick by the risk you’d rather carry: paying for leads that don’t close, paying a share forever, or paying a fixed fee in a quiet year. The detailed comparisons are in Wellspent vs SmartAsset and Wellspent vs Zoe Financial.