Gallup Poll Finds Americans Are Using AI for Financial Advice but Trust Remains Low
A new Gallup survey, conducted in partnership with Edward Jones, has uncovered a striking paradox in the way Americans manage their money: they are increasingly using artificial intelligence for financial guidance, but they remain deeply skeptical of its advice.
The poll, which surveyed 5,075 U.S. adults, found that approximately one in five Americans who sought financial advice in the past year turned to AI tools. However, trust in these AI-generated recommendations remains extraordinarily low. Only 27% of respondents said they had "a great deal" or "some" confidence in AI's financial expertise. Most notably, just 3% of Americans expressed a "great deal" of trust in AI for managing their money.
This trust gap is even more pronounced when compared to traditional sources of financial advice. The survey found that 79% of Americans have confidence in professional financial advisors, making them the most trusted source.
Even finance professors (64%) and family members (62%) ranked significantly higher than AI in terms of trustworthiness. The only group that inspired less confidence than AI was social media influencers, a finding that underscores the deep-seated wariness many still hold toward algorithmic financial guidance.
"AI seems to be nudging people in the right direction. It's not perfect, but it's better than the way many people make decisions, such as talking to friends and family or doing simple internet searches." – Tim de Silva, Assistant Professor of Finance at Stanford Graduate School of Business
The data reveals a significant generational divide in AI adoption. Younger generations are far more likely to experiment with AI for financial advice, with about a quarter of Gen Z and millennial adults who sought guidance turning to AI, compared to just 7% of baby boomers.
However, even among these younger users, the trust gap persists, suggesting that while AI is becoming a familiar tool, it has yet to earn the credibility of a human expert.
Experts like Taha Choukhmane of MIT's Sloan School of Management recommend using AI as a starting point for research rather than a final decision-maker. "I would encourage people to use AI to explain and define," he advised, suggesting that AI is best suited for demystifying complex financial concepts and empowering users to make more informed decisions when combined with other trusted sources.
