One can invest in mutual funds through two ways – direct and regular. In regular plans, the investors buy the units in the scheme through a distributor or an agent. Such schemes involve distribution fees and other such charges which are paid to the intermediaries. As a result, the expense ratio for regular plans is higher as compared to direct plans.

However, in regular plans, one benefits from the professional experience of the distributors along with services such as tracking portfolio, rebalancing, etc.