Ramsey SmartVestor
Ramsey SmartVestor

Earning a degree doesn’t have to equal debt. Explore tax-advantaged college savings plans with a SmartVestor Pro.


Ramsey Solutions is a paid, non-client promoter of SmartVestor Pros. Learn more.

How to Save for College Without the Stress

Image of a swash

Create a College Savings Plan

A SmartVestor Pro can help you understand your options, like 529 plans and ESAs (Education Savings Accounts), and craft a strategy for your goals.

Navigate the Rules

Timing, eligible costs, taxes—it can be overwhelming. SmartVestor Pros know the ins and outs and can help you set up a plan with confidence.

Avoid Student Loans

Scholarships and financial aid may not completely cover college costs. Thankfully, going into debt isn't the only option for bridging the gap.

Find Your Pros
So What is Smartvestor?

SmartVestor is a free service that connects you with financial advisors and investment professionals in your area that are a part of our program. Simply submit the form below and you'll be matched with up to five SmartVestor Pros right away. After you interview them, you can choose who you want to work with and take charge of your goals.

You’ll choose from SmartVestor Pros who:

  • Treat you like a teammate. They teach and guide but don't intimidate. They know it's your money and keep you in charge.
  • Know our values. They understand Dave Ramsey's 7 Baby Steps and agree to our Code of Conduct.
  • Are experienced. They have at least two years of full-time experience as a registered investing professional.
  • Are coachable. They participate in ongoing coaching to help maintain high standards of customer service.
Find Your Pros
What Smartvestor Pros do

These financial advisors and other investing pros can help you with all of these needs and more.

College Savings Plans, Investment Advice, Financial Planning Retirement Plans, Portfolio Diversity, Estate Planning Financial Planning, Retirement Plans College Savings Plans, Investment Advice Estate Planning, Portfolio Diversity

Be sure to discuss your needs and goals with a SmartVestor Pro—and ask questions—before you hire one. The services that one pro offers can be different from another. You should also know that the SmartVestor program itself doesn’t provide investing services or monitor the services that pros provide.

Common Questions (and Answers)

If you choose to work with a SmartVestor Pro, there will be some type of payment for serving you as there would be with any other professional. This payment arrangement is directly between you and the SmartVestor Pro. They’re happy to answer any questions you have.

Once you fill out the form, we’ll match you with up to five different SmartVestor Pros who serve your area. Then, you’ll have two options to connect. You can:

  • Schedule an appointment with as many pros as you like right from your results page
  • Wait for your pros to give you a call so you can set up an appointment

Either way, be sure to check your email after you submit your form! We’ll send you a free pro interview guide with questions you can use to interview your pros.

From there, you’ll pick your pro and enter into an agreement with them.

After you submit the form, we’ll send you a list of questions you can ask during your first interview. In general, you’ll want to see if you’re on the same page about your financial situation and how you want to invest. You’ll also want to ask how they get paid and how often they communicate with their clients. Above all, if something doesn’t feel right, keep looking.

As a general guideline, we suggest you start investing in college savings plans after you:

  1. Are out of debt (other than your mortgage)
  2. Have saved 3–6 months of expenses in an emergency fund
  3. Are investing 15% of your income in retirement

And it doesn’t matter how young your children or grandchildren are—even if they’re not born yet—go ahead and get started. A SmartVestor Pro can guide you through every step.

To join the SmartVestor program, investment professionals must:

• Work for an investment-advisor or broker-dealer firm that is not affiliated with Ramsey
• Have at least two years of experience as a registered investment professional
• Understand Dave Ramsey’s 7 Baby Steps and agree to our Code of Conduct
• Participate in ongoing coaching with us to help maintain our high standards of customer service

SmartVestor Pros are financial advisors, but many also have their own specialties. You may come across investment advisors, financial planners, wealth managers and more.

You can often tell an advisor’s specialty based on their credentials. For example:

  • CFP (Certified Financial Planner)
  • RR (registered representative)
  • IAR (investment advisor representative)
  • RIA (registered investment advisor)

A bunch of our pros are financial advisors, but heads up—that’s not the same thing as a financial aid advisor. If you’re looking for someone to help you invest in a college savings plan, a financial advisor is what you’re looking for. But if help navigating FAFSA and scholarships is really what you’re seeking, that’s financial aid advising. Expert advice is worth its weight in gold, but you can also get free number-crunching tools like our college savings calculator—a great way to start getting an idea how much money you’ll need to cover the full cost of college

Unless otherwise indicated, Ramsey Solutions is a paid, non-client promoter of Pros. Ramsey Solutions is not affiliated with any SmartVestor Pros participating in the SmartVestor program (“Pros”). Each Pro has entered into an agreement with Ramsey Solutions under which the Pro pays Ramsey Solutions fees to advertise the Pro’s services and receive client referrals from interested consumers who are located in the Pro’s coverage area. The receipt of such fees creates a conflict of interest because it creates a financial incentive for Ramsey Solutions to refer you only to those Pros participating in the SmartVestor program.


Neither Ramsey Solutions nor its affiliates provide investment advice or recommendations as to the selection or retention of any Pro, nor does Ramsey Solutions evaluate whether any particular Pro is appropriate for you based on your individual circumstances. Ramsey Solutions does not give any warranty or guarantee as to the services of any Pro and makes no claim or promise about the investment performance of any result or success of retaining a Pro. Your use of the SmartVestor program, including the decision to retain the services of a Pro, is at your sole discretion and risk. Any services rendered by a Pro are solely that of the Pro. Contact links may be provided to connect to Pros’ websites. Ramsey Solutions and its affiliates are not responsible for the accuracy or reliability of any information contained on Pros’ websites.

SmartVestor™ is an advertising and referral service for investment professionals operated by The Lampo Group, LLC d/b/a Ramsey Solutions (“Ramsey Solutions”). When you provide your zip code through the SmartVestor site, Ramsey Solutions will introduce you to up to three (3) investment professionals (“Pros”) that cover your geographic area (a “territory”) based on your zip code. Unless otherwise indicated, Ramsey Solutions is a paid, non-client promoter of Pros. Each Pro has entered into an agreement with Ramsey Solutions (“Referral Agreement”) under which the Pro pays Ramsey Solutions a combination of fees, including a one-time training fee of $3,000, a flat monthly membership fee of $400 and a flat monthly territory fee depending on the size of the territory of up to $1,050 to advertise the Pro’s services through SmartVestor and to receive client referrals from interested consumers who are located in the Pro’s coverage area. If a Pro offers his or her services on a national basis (“National Pro”), they pay RS National Per-Impression Fees up to a monthly revenue cap that varies by National Pro. RS introduces National Pros on a rotational basis when there are not enough investment professionals in a local market. 

If a Pro elects to cover a “select” territory, the Pro pays Ramsey Solutions a fee of up to 25% per year of the gross fees you pay to the Pro for services the Pro provides to you and your related persons and entities (“Closed-Client Fee”). The Closed-Client Fee is payable to Ramsey Solutions for as long as you remain a client of your Pro, unless otherwise terminated under the terms of the Referral Agreement. The amount of fees each Pro pays to Ramsey Solutions will vary based on certain factors, including whether the Pros choose to advertise in local or national markets, and if applicable, the Closed-Client Fee will vary based on fees that a Pro earns from its clients. All of the Pros that are available through the SmartVestor program pay fees to participate in the program. None of these fees are passed along to you, however, the receipt of such fees creates a conflict of interest because it provides a financial incentive for Ramsey Solutions to refer you only to those Pros participating in the SmartVestor program. In addition, National Pros that have a higher revenue cap are referred more often relative to other National Pros that have a lower revenue cap. Please refer to the profile for each Pro for important disclosures about the fees they pay to Ramsey Solutions.

It is up to you to interview each Pro and decide whether you want to hire them. If you decide to hire a Pro, you will enter into an agreement directly with that Pro to provide you with investment services. Ramsey Solutions is not affiliated with the Pros and neither Ramsey Solutions nor any of its representatives are authorized to provide investment advice on behalf of a Pro or to act for or bind a Pro. Neither Ramsey Solutions nor its affiliates provide investment advice or recommendations as to the selection or retention of any Pro, nor does Ramsey Solutions evaluate whether any particular Pro is appropriate for you based on your individual circumstances.

No investment advisory agreement with a Pro will become effective until accepted by that Pro. Ramsey Solutions does not give any warranty or guarantee as to the services of any Pro and makes no claim or promise about the investment performance or success of retaining a Pro. Your use of the SmartVestor program, including the decision to retain the services of a Pro, is at your sole discretion and risk. Any services rendered by a Pro are solely that of the Pro. 

Contact links may be provided to connect to Pros’ websites. Ramsey Solutions and its affiliates are not responsible for the accuracy or reliability of any information contained on Pros’ websites. 

Each Pro signed a Code of Conduct under which they have agreed to certain general investment principles, such as eliminating debt and investing for the longer-term, but Ramsey Solutions does not monitor or control the investment advisory services the Pros provide.

By participating in the SmartVestor program, you acknowledge that Ramsey Solutions may obtain from the Pros information about the status of their relationship with you, including whether the Pro has contacted you and/or whether you engaged the Pro and the fees your Pro earns from you and your related persons and entities, and you authorize each Pro to share such information with Ramsey Solutions. Ramsey Solutions uses such information to administer the SmartVestor program and to confirm fee calculations under the Referral Agreement.

Last updated: October 1, 2026