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Investment Fee Break-Even Years Calculator

Years for an extra-fee fund to underperform a low-fee fund.

Compute how many years it takes for the cost drag of a high-fee mutual fund to outweigh its (assumed) higher gross return relative to a low-fee index fund — a back-of-envelope active-vs-passive break-even.

Nadia Almasri By Nadia Almasri
Published Last reviewed 1 min read

Inputs

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yr

Results

Enter values and click Calculate to see results.
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How to use this calculator

  1. Fill in the inputs above using the units you already have.
  2. Values update automatically as you type — no submit button needed.
  3. Hover any result row for the underlying formula and intermediate values.

Formula

FV_high = PV · (1 + g_high − fee_high)^n. Compare to PV · (1 + g_low − fee_low)^n.

In depth

Compute how many years it takes for the cost drag of a high-fee mutual fund to outweigh its (assumed) higher gross return relative to a low-fee index fund — a back-of-envelope active-vs-passive break-even.