Investment fee drag calculator
Enter your portfolio size and average expense ratio to estimate how fund costs can compound over a long investment horizon.
Illustrative active mutual fund cost
Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF
Expense ratios are modeled as annual asset-based costs deducted from returns. Advisor presets are illustrative blended estimates; named ETF presets use stated fund expense ratios. Contributions are added at year-end.
Estimated fee drag over 30 years
What makes up the drag
$512,339Want to check the actual funds you hold? Tablewealth keeps accounts, holdings, and net worth in one place.
Track holdingsPortfolio value over time
$3,013,014 lower-fee valueYear-by-year fee drag
Selected years from the projection| Year | Current fee value | Lower-fee value | Cumulative drag | Lost compounding |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $277,494 | $279,420 | $1,926 | $0 |
| 5 | $405,597 | $419,077 | $13,480 | $1,604 |
| 10 | $615,768 | $655,861 | $40,092 | $9,585 |
| 15 | $899,655 | $987,464 | $87,810 | $29,563 |
| 20 | $1,283,111 | $1,451,858 | $168,747 | $70,480 |
| 25 | $1,801,061 | $2,102,218 | $301,158 | $146,311 |
| 30 | $2,500,675 | $3,013,014 | $512,339 | $278,590 |
See disclosures below before using these estimates.
Disclosures
How to read fee drag
The calculator models annual gross returns, then deducts each expense ratio from assets before adding the annual contribution. Expense ratios and advisory-fee presets are estimates or published examples gathered from public sources and may be incomplete, outdated, rounded, or otherwise inaccurate. Actual fees vary by provider, account size, portfolio, waiver, program, and fund share class.
This is a simplified educational estimate. It does not model taxes, trading costs, loads, advisory fees, tracking error, changing contributions, sequence of returns, or whether a lower-cost fund is appropriate for your goals. Returns and fee savings are not guaranteed. All trademarks, ticker symbols, logos, and brand names are the property of their respective owners and are used for identification only; no endorsement or affiliation is implied. This calculator is for informational purposes only and is not financial, investment, tax, accounting, or legal advice.