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About this tool
Quantify the commission drag between direct and regular mutual fund plans from the expense ratio gap, for a lumpsum or a monthly SIP.
A regular mutual fund plan pays distributor commission out of its total expense ratio, and this calculator converts that expense ratio gap into rupees you can see. It compounds the same investment twice — once at the gross return minus the direct plan TER and once minus the regular plan TER — then separates the commission actually paid from the compounding lost on it. Direct plans have been mandatory in every scheme since SEBI circular CIR/IMD/DF/21/2012 took effect on 1 January 2013.
Open Direct vs Regular Plan Cost Calculator on AltFTool — it loads instantly in your browser.
Enter the values you already know.
Fine-tune the options to match your scenario.
Read the result and use it in your planning or reporting.
See both the money that went to the distributor and the growth that money would have produced.
Handles a one-time investment or a monthly instalment with the same expense-ratio logic.
A table of both balances side by side shows how slowly the gap opens and how wide it gets late on.
For an actively managed equity fund the gap is usually 0.7 to 1.2 percentage points of TER a year — for example 0.6% direct against 1.75% regular. On index funds the absolute gap is smaller but often a bigger share of the expected return.
Every AMC publishes the TER of the direct and regular plan of each scheme on its website and in the scheme information document, and it is also shown on the AMFI website. The figure is updated whenever the AMC changes it, with at least three days' notice.
Yes. A switch is treated as a redemption of the regular plan and a fresh purchase of the direct plan, so capital gains tax and any applicable exit load apply on the units redeemed. Equity schemes typically charge exit load only within one year, but the tax position depends on your holding period and gains — check with a tax professional.
It always has the lower expense ratio, since SEBI requires the direct plan TER to be below the regular plan TER. Whether it is better for you depends on whether you would make good scheme choices without a distributor or adviser; the fee saved is worth little if it leads to worse decisions.
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