What fund fees really cost you over 30 years

A 1% yearly fee sounds harmless. Over 30 years, it can quietly eat a third of what you would otherwise have kept.

🔎 Use a real ETF’s numbers (optional)

Starting amount € Added each month € Number of years Expected annual return %

Try:Rough historical ranges — your assumption, not a prediction or advice.

Adjust for inflation % (2% is a common example — shows the result in today’s money)

Projected value—

You put in—

Growth—

At year — · — — you’d have put in —, growth added —. Drag across the chart (or use ← → keys) to read any year.

Money you added Growth

See the key milestones (every 5 years)

Year	Put in	Growth	Balance

Amount invested € Number of years Expected annual return % ETF yearly fee (TER) %

Try:Rough historical ranges — your assumption, not a prediction or advice.

The fee costs you about—

Value with 0% fee—

Value with this fee—

What you keep Lost to fees — and the gap grows every year

How this works: an educational scenario, not a forecast. We compound monthly and add your monthly amount each month. “Expected annual return” is your own assumption — pick a cautious one; real markets are bumpy and can fall. “Adjust for inflation” simply restates the result in today’s spending power. The fee figure includes the yearly fund fee (TER) and the growth those fees would otherwise have earned. The fund comparison repeats each fund’s last-12-months return every year — a rough illustration only, which real funds never do. Not advice.

Finance Hamster provides educational information about ETFs and investing. It is not investment, tax, or legal advice, and not a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Markets carry risk; do your own research or consult a licensed adviser.

👉 Change the numbers above — it’s your money, your assumptions.

How a small % becomes thousands

Put in €10,000 for 30 years at a 6% assumed return. A fund charging 0.20% a year leaves you with noticeably more than one charging 1.0% — often several thousand euros more, on this single lump sum alone. Slide the fee in the tool above from 0.1% to 1.0% and watch the red 'lost to fees' bar grow.

The fee is the — the fund's yearly running cost, taken automatically whether the fund goes up or down.

Why the gap grows every single year

A fee is not a one-off. Each year it is skimmed off your whole balance — including all the growth from previous years. So the euro amount the fee takes gets bigger as your pot gets bigger, and the money it removes never gets the chance to compound for you. That is why a 0.8% difference looks trivial in year one and enormous by year 30.

What counts as cheap?

For a broad, plain index ETF (think a whole-world or S&P 500 tracker), a of about 0.05% to 0.25% a year is normal and cheap. Niche, actively managed or thematic funds often charge 0.5%-1.5%+. A higher fee is not automatically 'bad' — but it is a real, guaranteed cost you pay every year regardless of performance, so it deserves a reason.

Common questions

Is a higher fee ever worth it?

It can be, but the burden of proof is on the fund: you are paying a guaranteed yearly cost for a hoped-for benefit. For plain index exposure, cheaper has historically been hard to beat. This is education, not advice.

Does the TER include everything?

The TER covers the fund's main ongoing charges, but not things like broker trading fees or bid-offer spreads. It is the best single number to compare two similar funds, not a complete cost of ownership.