Check which costs exist beyond the price of the security.
Commissions and management fees are costs that reduce the investor's outcome.
There are transaction costs and ongoing costs. Compare products by the total set of terms, not only past returns. A small percentage charged over years can affect the remaining amount. Tax rates depend on the product and the circumstances and are not uniform.
If a purchase fee of 5 ₪ is charged on a 100 ₪ transaction, that is a 5% cost of the amount even before any price change.
Check which costs exist beyond the price of the security.
A fictional fee of 1 on a transaction of 20 equals 5% of its value. The same fee on 200 equals 0.5%. A small-looking amount should therefore be compared with transaction size and frequency. Separate one-time costs, per-trade costs and annual charges in a table. An asset’s price can rise while the gain after costs is much smaller, especially when many small transactions are made.
Concepts that help you compare
Profit and loss: reading the numbers
Profit or loss is the difference between an investment’s current value and its cost. Before selling, this is an unrealized change in the value of the holding. After selling, the result is realized. Percentage return compares the change to the original cost. To get net results, also account for fees and relevant taxes.
Comparison example: You bought at 100 ₪ and the value is 90 ₪: a value loss of 10 ₪, i.e. 10%. An increase from 90 back to 100 requires about 11.1%.
The quoted (spot) rate is an informational indicator. It is not a promise of the price at which a bank or currency service will execute a transaction. A provider may quote a different rate when selling you currency than when buying it from you. The gap is called the spread, and sometimes there is also a commission. Therefore check how much you actually pay and how much you actually receive, not only the headline “no commission.” Yahoo rates shown on a website are market data, not the Bank of Israel’s quoted rate nor a binding commercial offer.
Comparison example: Example: the provider sells you a dollar at 3.70 ₪ and buys it back at 3.60 ₪. Converting 100 dollars there and back at those rates costs 10 ₪, even without a market move and before any additional commission.