If I roll my TSP into an IRA, do I give up its low expense ratios?

By Kaz · Published 6 October 2026 · How this site checks figures

Summary

Only if the funds you buy in the IRA cost more, and some don't. The Thrift Savings Plan's total expense ratios for 2025 ran from 0.034% for the G Fund to 0.051% for the S Fund, which on $300,000 in the C Fund at 0.035% is $105 a year. An IRA index fund at 0.03% would cost $90; a fund at 0.50% would cost $1,500. What an IRA can't give you at any price is the G Fund, which holds Treasury securities "specially issued to the TSP."

What the TSP charges

TSP fund	Total expense ratio, 2025	Per $1,000 invested
G Fund	0.034%	$0.34
F Fund	0.035%	$0.35
C Fund	0.035%	$0.35
I Fund	0.048%	$0.48
S Fund	0.051%	$0.51
L Funds (L Income to L 2075)	0.035% to 0.041%	$0.35 to $0.41

Figures from tsp.gov's expenses page, checked October 6, 2026. The TSP's expense ratio combines its net administrative expenses (after forfeitures are subtracted) with investment expenses. Its own comparison sheet, dated June 2026, puts the average net administrative expense at "$0.34" per $1,000 and other annual charges not included in that figure at "$0.04."

As of October 6, 2026, the plan lists separate fees for three things only: loans ($50 for a general-purpose loan, $100 for a residential one), court orders, and the mutual fund window. The window costs a "$37 annual administrative fee," a "$95 annual maintenance fee" and a "$28.75 per-trade fee," on top of each fund's own expenses, and it can hold no more than 25% of your TSP savings.

The same $300,000 in an IRA

Example: $300,000 kept for 25 years at a 6% annual return before fund costs, with no further deposits. The IRA expense ratios are round numbers for the arithmetic, not quotes for particular funds.

Where the money sits	Cost in year one	Balance after 25 years	Compared with the C Fund
IRA index fund at 0.03%	$90	$1,278,482	$1,507 more
TSP C Fund at 0.035%	$105	$1,276,975	—
TSP L 2050 at 0.041%	$123	$1,275,168	$1,806 less
IRA fund at 0.10%	$300	$1,257,536	$19,439 less
IRA robo account, 0.25% fee plus 0.05% funds	$900	$1,199,488	$77,487 less
IRA fund at 0.50%	$1,500	$1,144,018	$132,957 less

Calculated October 6, 2026, by subtracting each expense ratio from the return every year. Between the C Fund and an IRA index fund at 0.03%, the gap after 25 years is $1,507 on a balance of about $1.28 million. Once the IRA uses funds at 0.10% or adds a 0.25% advisory fee, the same example loses $19,439 to $77,487 against the C Fund over 25 years. The robo-advisor IRA fees and what a financial advisor charges to handle a rollover give those charges in dollars.

What you give up that isn't a fee

Before moving TSP money out

Do you hold, or want to hold, the G Fund?

Yes → It stays behind; its Treasury securities are specially issued to the TSP

No → The expense ratio comparison above is the main cost question

Will you need some of the money before 59½?

Yes → Read the age-55 rule first; that exception applies to plan withdrawals, not IRA ones

No → No early-withdrawal difference between the two

Is the IRA fee, in dollars, higher than the TSP's?

Yes → Rolling everything means paying that difference every year the money stays there

Not yet known → Ask the IRA provider for the weighted expense ratio and any advisory fee at your balance

A checklist, not a recommendation. A partial withdrawal can move some money and leave the rest in the TSP.

Source: tsp.gov; IRS exceptions to the 10% additional tax

The G Fund's "payment of principal and interest is guaranteed by the U.S. government," and its rate is set by the Treasury from the average yield of about 202 Treasury securities. If your plan is to hold some of it for safety, nothing in an IRA does quite the same thing. On early withdrawals, the page on leaving a job at 55 explains why the IRS treats plan and IRA withdrawals differently.

Moving only part of it

You don't have to choose all or nothing. The TSP lets separated participants stay in the plan, take a partial distribution of a specified amount (at least $1,000), or set up installments, and the money can come from traditional balances, Roth balances, or both pro rata. You can also still move money in: the TSP's fact sheet for people leaving federal service says, "You can still move money into your TSP account from other eligible retirement plans." Old 401(k) or rollover IRA sets out the same choice for a private-sector plan, and the fee calculator compares the TSP's expense ratio with an IRA's on your own balance.

Sources

Written by Kaz, an independent publisher.
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