(Article by Linda Stern, Newsweek Magazine, June 20, 2005)

Mutual funds are slugging it out for customers. Fidelity Investments just lowered expenses on its bond funds to 0.45 percent, after Vanguard Group, American Funds and dozens of others dropped fees to keep investors interested. Here's how to make sure you benefit from the fight.

• Comparison-shop at the site run by the Mutual Fund Education Alliance, mfea.com, which lists low-cost funds. Consult the fund-fee calculator at the Securities and Exchange Commission's Web site, sec.gov/investor/tools/mfcc/get-started.htm.
• If you buy funds through a discount broker, don't assume that no-transaction-fee, no-load funds are the cheapest. Most charge marketing fees of about 0.25 percent a year, called 12(b)1 fees, that compensate the broker. Over the long term, you might pay out more that way than you would by paying a one-time commission on a fund.
• Consider an e-trade account. That firm rebates half of the 12(b)1 fees to investors.
• Keep shopping. Some of the recent price cuts have been temporary, and other funds may join in battle. Review your funds at least once a year to make sure they are still rewarding you more than they're charging you.