If a fund’s assets are small, for example, its expense ratio might be relatively high, because the fund has a restricted asset base from which to meet its expenses. When looking at funds and costs, it is important to compare funds that own similar types of investments.
http://www.investopedia.com/articles/personal-finance/092613/pay-attention-your-funds-expense-ratio.asp
A mutual fund's expense ratio tells you the percentage of a fund's assets that are dedicated to running the fund. When researching mutual funds, you're likely to encounter two different numbers: gross expense ratio and net expense ratio.
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A measure of an investment fund's costs of operation as a percentage of its total assets. It is calculated by dividing the fund's total costs by its total assets. As the total costs include things like management fees and commissions, the total expense ratio is important to determining the actual return on a fund.
http://financial-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Expense+ratio
By contrast, a mutual fund with low expenses will have an easier time delivering you solid returns. So you want to make sure you choose a fund with an expense ratio - the annual cost of owning the fund, divided by your investment - that's reasonable. What's reasonable? It depends on the kind of fund.
http://money.cnn.com/retirement/guide/investing_mutualfunds.moneymag/index14.htm
Expense ratio. An expense ratio is the percentage of a mutual fund's or variable annuity's total assets deducted to cover operating and management expenses. Those expenses include employee salaries, custodial and transfer fees, distribution, marketing, and other costs of offering the fund or contract.
http://financial-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Expense+ratio
The expense ratio, which is calculated annually and disclosed in the fund’s prospectus and shareholder reports, directly reduces the fund’s returns to its shareholders, and, therefore, the value of your investment.
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An expense ratio is expressed as a percentage of the fund's total assets, so if a particular mutual fund has $100 million under management and an expense ratio of 1%, the expenses of running the fund cost $1 million in the most recent fiscal year. A mutual fund's expense ratio includes three basic types of expenses:
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expense ratio. The percentage of premium used to pay all the costs of acquiring, writing, and servicing insurance and reinsurance. There are two methodologies to measure the expense ratio; a trade basis, which is expense divided by written premium and on a statutory basis when the expense is divided by earned premium. Most typically, the ratio is calculated using written premium.
https://www.irmi.com/online/insurance-glossary/terms/e/expense-ratio.aspx
Expressed as a percentage of a fund’s average net assets, the expense ratio can include various operational costs such as administrative, compliance, distribution, management, marketing, shareholder services, record-keeping fees and other costs.
http://www.investopedia.com/articles/personal-finance/092613/pay-attention-your-funds-expense-ratio.asp
For mutual funds that invest in large U.S. companies, look for an expense ratio of no more than 1%. And for funds that invest in small or international companies, which typically require more research, look for an expense ratio of no more than 1.25%. NEXT: Which is better, a load fund or a no-load fund?
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what is expense ratio
An expense ratio is the percentage of a mutual fund's or variable annuity's total assets deducted to cover operating and management expenses.