What is TER (Total Expense Ratio)?

TER is the annual fee an ETF charges to cover management, admin, and other operating costs. It's expressed as a percentage of your invested assets and is deducted automatically from the fund's value — you never see a separate charge.

How does TER affect my returns?

TER reduces your effective annual return. If an ETF returns 8% gross and has a 0.20% TER, your net return is approximately 7.80%. Over decades, this small drag compounds significantly.

What is a good TER for an ETF?

For broad market index ETFs (e.g., MSCI World, S&P 500), a TER below 0.20% is considered excellent. Many popular European ETFs from iShares, Vanguard, and Xtrackers are in the 0.07%–0.22% range.

Should I always pick the ETF with the lowest TER?

Not necessarily. TER is important, but also consider tracking difference, fund size, replication method, and domicile. A slightly higher TER fund may track its index more accurately and have better liquidity.

ETF Comparison Calculator

Compare two ETFs side by side and see how even a small TER difference compounds into thousands of euros over time.

Comparison results

Initial investment (€)

Monthly contribution (€)

Investment period (years)

ETF A

ETF A name

TER (%)

Expected return (%)

ETF B

ETF B name

TER (%)

Expected return (%)

Comparison results

Compare two ETFs side by side and see how even a small TER difference compounds into thousands of euros over time.

How the ETF comparison works

ETFs charge a yearly Total Expense Ratio (TER) that silently eats into your returns. Even a 0.2% difference can cost you thousands over a long investment horizon.

Enter your investment details

Set your initial lump sum, monthly contribution, and how many years you plan to invest.

Configure both ETFs

Name each ETF, enter its TER (found on the fund factsheet), and the expected gross annual return before fees.

Compare the impact

See the final value, total TER fees paid, and the difference between both ETFs in a chart and year-by-year table.

Lower TER = more money in your pocket

When two ETFs track the same index, the one with the lower TER will almost always outperform. A 0.15% TER difference on a €500/month plan over 30 years can mean €10,000+ more in your portfolio.

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