Brokerage fee (courtage)
Courtage is the fee your online broker charges every time you buy or sell shares and exchange-traded funds. It is not the same as the fund fee: courtage is paid per trade, the fund fee runs continuously.
How it is charged
Courtage is either a small percentage of the trade value or a fixed minimum, whichever is larger. The rate depends on your courtage class with the broker; frequent traders often pay a lower percentage. Small trades where the minimum kicks in are therefore expensive in percentage terms.
Why it matters
A few kronor of courtage sounds negligible, but it eats returns for anyone who trades often and in small lots. If you buy small amounts regularly, a fund with no courtage, or fewer and larger trades, is usually cheaper. For a buy-and-hold investor the courtage is a one-off cost that quickly shrinks relative to the holding.
Where it shows up
- Fund fee comparison
- Rebalancing
Courtage and the fund fee are charged differently but are both costs that lower your return. Trade rarely, in larger lots, and compare brokers’ courtage classes before you choose.