"There should be a website where we can compare them like mutual funds." Here it is. Two funds, side by side, year-by-year in 3D — watch how a small expense-ratio difference quietly eats a fortune.
Each year: value = (value + 12 × SIP) × (1 + gross − expense). The expense ratio is deducted from returns every single year, so it compounds against you exactly the way returns compound for you.
A 1.3-point fee gap on identical 11% gross returns over 20 years typically destroys 12–18% of your final corpus. The fee is charged on your whole balance, not on your gains — even in losing years.
When comparing funds like a pro, look at: expense ratio, rolling 5-year returns (not point-to-point), standard deviation, Sharpe ratio, and tracking error for index funds. Star ratings are a rear-view mirror.
SPIVA data has shown that over 15-year windows, roughly 85–90% of active large-cap funds underperform their benchmark after fees. The bar you should beat isn't zero — it's the cheap index fund next to it.