Calconomics
Investment Fee / MER Drag Calculator
A 2% management expense ratio sounds small — but compounded over decades it can cost you hundreds of thousands. Enter your balance, contributions, and fee to see the real lifetime cost of your fund's MER, then rebalance into lower-cost holdings.
What fees cost you
$288,317
Ending balance (with fees)
$742,043
Ending balance (no fees)
$1,030,360
How it's calculated We grow your balance + contributions at the gross return, and again at the return minus the MER.
The gap between the two ending balances is what the fee quietly cost you.
Even a 1% difference compounds into a large sum over 20–30 years. Our methodology & 2026 data sources →
Frequently asked questions What's a typical MER? Many Canadian mutual funds charge 1.5–2.5%, while index ETFs often charge under 0.25%. The difference compounds dramatically over time.
Does a small fee really matter? Yes — because fees come out every year on your whole balance, a 1–2% MER can cost six figures over a few decades. This calculator shows your number.
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