Top 10 Discount brokers in India

The Best Online Discount Brokers in India

Today discuses about Discount brokers in India. Discount Broker only provides trading facilities to its clients. As you can see, from the name, they offer the cheapest brokerage services at a discount.

The stock market is an integral part of a country’s economy and plays an essential role in the growth of its industries and commerce.

This is the reason why a country’s government, industry and the centralized banks keep a close eye on the activities taking place in the stock market.

Investing in the stock market is simple but not at all easy, and this is where stockbrokers come in the picture; more so a discount stockbroker. Discount stockbrokers have recently entered this competitive market.

With the advent of digitization throughout the world, they have now become part and parcel of share market. As the internet has made everything handy to us, the stock market, as well as the brokerage, is no exception to that.

Being an investor, now you do not have to follow those wearing steps to contact a broker and then start investing in the market.

Discount stock brokers have made this road a lot smoother by providing remote services to the investors. Now, you can get in touch with a discount stockbroker and start your journey in the stock market in no time.

In this article, we will understand what a discount stock broker is, what their functions are, and who the top 10 discount stockbrokers in India are.

We will also look at the differences between a full-service broker and a discount stockbroker.

Discount brokers in India — Top 10 Discount Broker in India

What is a Stock Broker?

Now, the first thing you may ask is what a broker is? Well, a broker is an individual or a firm that acts as agents for their customers, charge a commission for executing the entire buy and sell orders that are submitted by those customers.

Not only that, but a stockbroker also provides its clients with market intelligence, investment plans, and research studies as well. They can also cross-sell other investment plans and products like mutual funds, bonds, insurances, and more.

In India, there are mainly two types of brokers –

Full-time (full Service) Stockbrokers and
Discount Stockbrokers.

The primary difference between the two is in their charges.

Discount brokers offer much fewer services to their customers in comparison to full-time brokers. Moreover, nowadays, most of the firms that started as discount stockbrokers have incorporated other services into their domain that used to be partial to full-service brokers.

In the past, not everyone could hire a broker. However, with the advent of technology and online brokerage, investors can now trade at lower costs and have triggered an explosion of discount stockbrokers, especially in India.

Full-Service Brokers vs Discount Stockbrokers

Full Service/Traditional Brokers

Stockbrokers, who provide their clients with execution operations as well as market intelligence, research, and investment plans, are generally called Full-Service Brokers.

They charge a commission on each trade. Other than the stock market, they also provide clients with investing options like mutual funds, FDs, bonds, insurances, and many others.

The commission rate depends on the profit that an investor makes from a particular investment. In order to pay commission to the brokers, investors have often faced the loss of hundreds and thousands of rupees from their profit.

Discount Stockbrokers/ Budget Brokers

Discount stockbrokers only provide trading facilities to their clients. As you can see, from the name, they offer brokerage services at a discount. Their commission rates are lower than traditional brokers as they do not charge per the investment profit; they have a fixed amount.

Benefits of Discount Stockbrokers

Let us look at some of the benefits we can gain from working with discount stockbrokers:

Savings on Brokerage:-

Many cost-effective brokerage plans
Savings of up to 60% on commissions paid
Transparency is maintained in case of commission structures from the beginning
Flexible payment schemes with reasonable pricing

No Charge for Software:-

The various trading terminals are also free to use.
Most of the discount stockbroker firms offer free of cost usage of their mobile and desktop-based trading platforms;

Reliable Partnership:-

The top firms have become so only by assuring their partners of their reliability both in words and action;
The top firms are all registered with the stock exchanges like the BSE, NSE and MCX and are regulated by SEBI;
Regular audits are performed to evaluate and assess their performance;
Full guarantee of safety for your money and shares are there.

Exclusive Customer Support:-

In spite of charging their clients with minimum rates, most of the top discount stockbrokers have excellent customer support services;
Most of the customer support packages entail Online Trading support, Chat and Email support;
Round-the-clock customer support for clients from any and every time zones.

Full Transparency:-

No hidden charges;
No AMC for trading accounts;
Complete transparency regarding commission and payment structures from the beginning;
Free mobile apps and trading platform for their clients;
Simple brokerage calculations to ease your doubts.

Why choose Discount Stockbrokers over Traditional Brokers?

Discount stockbrokers bring various advantages and benefits to their clients over full-service stockbrokers.

Low Cost

Discount stockbrokers charge much lower commission rates than traditional brokers. Thus, helping their clients to convert any trade into profit with low BEP.

Online Trading Platforms

Nowadays, almost everything is done with the help of the internet, so why not stockbroking? As discount stockbrokers mostly operate online, so their best option to manage clients is the internet.

Besides, clients do not need to travel physically to their offices to make a contract. They can visit the website of the brokerage firm and communicate with salespersons online.

Transparency

Discount stockbrokers always provide 100% transparency to their clients in every aspect of the trade. Brokerage Calculator, Margin Calculator, Charge Sheet, etc. are all shared and maintained with the client (of course, separately with each client).

Paperless Account Opening

You no longer need to fill up tons of paperwork to open an account. All you need to do is provide your brokerage firm with your Aadhar Number, and they will do the rest. Maybe sometimes you have to fill up a short form on the internet.

Client Education

Even though best discount brokers do not provide the clients with investment consultation, they do lend their hands in this amenity in an interesting way. They provide their clients with online tutorials so that they can educate themselves on the facts where they are not clear about the stock market and its methods.

Sometimes even the recent trends are also included in these tutorials. Clients can understand what ventures they are diving into, the associated risks, expectations from the market, and so on.

Top Discount Brokers in India

Online discount stock brokers in India have become one of the most valuable assets of the stock market of the country as well as in the global stock market. This is all due to an increased influx of internet in the country.

We saw that best discount brokers offer a platform for trading and no advisory services. However, nowadays those who started as discount stockbrokers provide the services of Full-Service brokers as well.

There are various low-cost discount stockbrokers in the Indian market. This makes it hard to choose the best from the rest. Few parameters can guide the investors in making the best choices, namely price per trade and other related costs, customer services, investment plans, etc.

1. Zerodha Stock Broker

Established in 2010, this firm started as discount stockbrokers and is now one of the best discount brokers in India
Based in Bangalore, India;
Free delivery trades for a maximum brokerage of Rs. 20 per trade;
Provides various trading services in Equity, Commodities, Currency, Mutual Funds, Demat Account and more;
Multiple updated trading platforms like Zerodha Kite etc.;
One of the best broker for beginners;
Provides trading education initiatives to their clients.

2. Upstox (RKSV) Stock Broker

Established in 2009 as a discount stockbroker firm, now they have tons of services to choose from;
They are a Mumbai based firm with maximum charges of RS. 20 per trade;
The owners have over three years of experience in the US in proprietary trading funds;
Services provided include Equity, Commodities, Options, Demat Account, etc.;
They provide their clientele with various value-for-money subscription plans;
One of the best brokers for beginners.

3. 5Paisa Stock Broker

Established in 2016 in the month of March;
They charge a maximum of Rs. 10 per trade;
Various trading platforms are integrated for more than just stock broking, mutual funds, FDs, insurances and more can be achieved;
They provide paperless trading & Demat accounts for their clients;
5Paisa is also one of the best discount brokers for beginners.

4. Astha Trade Stock Broker

Established in 2003;
Based in Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh;
They started as discount stockbrokers, however with experience in the field they have grown into Full-service brokers now;
A maximum brokerage rate of Rs. 10 per trade is charged;
Provide full services brokerages on Equity, Commodities, MF, Insurance, SIP and many more;
Being a full-service broker, however, they do not offer 3-in-1 accounts like other full-service brokers;
With affordable brokerage rates and charges along with high exposure in Equity Trading, they are one of the best in the country.

5. Master Trust Stock Broker

Established in 1994;
Based in Mumbai;
Started as discount stockbrokers, but now they offer many other services;
The maximum brokerage rate is about Rs. 10 per trade;
They provide many services like Equity Trading, Commodities Trading, Demat, MF, Insurance and many more;
Some of their unique features include smart and secured online fund transfers and round the clock active customer support.

6. Alice Blue Online

Established in 2006 in Chennai, now based out of Bangalore;
Over 1000 business partners both national and international;
Provides various services other than discount stock brokerage like Equity and Commodities Trading, Currency Trading, Insurance, SIP, etc.;
One of the features that make them stand out is their smooth Demat account openings in comparison to most others;
They also have mobile apps available for the 21^st-century traders;
An active customer support service is also available here.

7. Trading Bells ( Swastika Invsetmart )

Established in 2016;
Based out of Mumbai with administrative offices in Indore, M.P.;
Stockbroking division of Swastika Investments;
The maximum brokerage rate is Rs. 20 per trade;
Provides varied services like Equity Commodities and Currency Trading, Derivatives, Intraday Trading, etc.;
They even offer Margin and Loans against shares, and you never know when it can come handy;
Another brilliant feature is their 24*7 Web-Based back-office software, which is rare in the market.

8. Profitmart Stock Broker

Profitmart Securities Pvt. Ltd. Was established in 2010;
From discount stockbrokers to full-service brokers, based in Mumbai;
Their brokerage rates depend upon the amount deposited in the trading account, generally ranging from 1 to 30 paisa per Rs. 100;
Provides a wide range of services from discount broking to Equity Commodities and Currency Trading, Derivatives and much more;
They feature both Mobile and Desktop apps for users, along with round-the-clock customer support and reasonable offers from time to time.

9. TradeSmart Online

Established in 1994, they are one of the oldest discount stockbroker firms in the country;
They are a part of the VNS Finance & Capital Services Ltd, thus holding a big brand name in India;
They have a wide range of trading and investment products and solutions available for their clients to choose from;
Active Client Base: 10,802.

10. Fyers Stock Broker

Established in 2015;
One of the newest players in the market-based in Bangalore;
With their up-to-date technologies, user experience is very good for this full-service brokers;
A maximum brokerage rate of Rs. 20 per trade is charged;
Like every other full-service brokers they offer a wide range of services and products like Equity Commodities and Currency Trading, Derivatives, Demat Account and more;
With their stout tools and robust calculators, you can easily keep track of your shares;
An eye-catching feature of this firm is the Thematic Investment.

Some traits of Discount Stockbrokers in India

Discount stockbrokers have become a top asset for every investor in the share market of today, especially so in India. As we have seen above, discount stockbrokers offer stockbroking solutions with a discount on their charges. This is of course in comparison with Full-service brokers.

Nowadays, with the advent of technology, most of the Discount Stockbroking firms who started as so, have developed into Full-Service brokers. However, they still maintain their namesake, i.e. providing various full-service brokerage solutions to their clients at a lowered rate. This, by far, is their primary and characteristic trait.

Most of the firms offer maximum brokerage rates of Rs. 10 to 20 per trade. Their commission rates generally vary from 0.01% to 0.03% of the amount deposited. Along with this, they also provide their clients with free of cost access to the various online mobile and desktop trading platforms available by the firms.

They maintain round the clock customer support service as well. This is especially helpful to beginners in the share market. With a range of support facilities from online trading support to chat and email support to their client and that too round-the-clock, clients can get help from the support team at any time.

Various offers are available from time to time, depending upon the firm. While some firms provide these lucrative offers more frequently, it might not be regular for the others.

Share Market and How to invest in it?

The stock market has two main functions. Firstly, to provide potential businesses with capital to help them grow their businesses; and secondly, to help investors to share the profits of publicly traded corporations. Let us look at how these two things are done.

Let us say that a company issues one crore shares at an initial rate of Rs. 10 per share. This would provide the company with Rs. 10 crore shares of stock where the fees for investment and other included costs will be deducted. Thus, by offering stocks, they can earn the capital they need and at the same time, avoid incurring any debts and interests on it. Therefore, we can clearly see the importance stock markets play in the growth of a company.

Now let us see how it helps investors. They generally purchase stocks to sell in the future and gain profit from them. Now, they can do that in either of the two ways:

One, they can purchase stocks that pay regular dividends (it is a given amount of money per share that is owned by an individual or a firm).

Two, they can buy stocks when their rates are comparatively low and sell those stocks in the future, when their prices rise. For example, they can buy a stock at Rs. 10 and in future, when it reaches a rate of Rs. 15, they can sell it to earn a 50% profit.

Many investors use mutual funds to buy stocks. They buy shares in the mutual funds instead of directly purchasing the stocks. They take advantage of the master expertise or otherwise and take lower risks by adopting this technique.

It is challenging for average investors to invest in the stock market directly. They will always need a professional discount stockbroker to guide them through the happenings of the stock market.

There are various discount stockbrokers in this trade:

Fee-only brokers who charge an annual fee, generally 1 percent of the assets.
Small brokers who just execute orders;
Online brokers who charge a small fee per transaction;
Large banks like Goldman Sachs or other such famous stock market banks.

Though most of the stocks traded on the market are common stocks, some like to buy preferred shares that allow the investors to pay the agreed amount upon dividends at regular intervals.

Conclusion

As we mentioned before, the stock market plays a significant role in a country’s economy and the world as well. In addition, without brokerage, the flow of the stock exchange would have tumbled. Discount stockbrokers act as the intermediaries between this large industry and its investors. A common cannot go directly to the stock market and buy shares. They entirely rely on brokers.

Moreover, when it comes to discount stockbrokers, investors do not even have to move physically because they are mostly always available online. This ensures the clients to contact them anytime, according to their convenience.

Thus, if you are planning to invest in the stock market and enjoy its excellent benefits in a hassle-free manner, then these top 10 discount brokers in India are your go-to solution. Just visit their website and opt for the most convenient service to start with your investment plans.

Demat Account FAQs

What is the best Demat account in India?

There are a number of brokers to choose from. Zerodha, Angel broking, Sharekhan, Motilal Oswal, etc., provides some of the best Demat accounts.

What does SEBI do?

The Securities and Exchange Board of India or SEBI has two main functions:

i. Secure the investor’s interests in the share market &
ii. Restrict illegal practices and frauds in the market.

For any queries, you can visit their official website https://www.sebi.gov.in

What is a discount stock broker?

A discount stockbroker is an individual or a firm, which provides buy and sell services to their clients (securities). However, they do not offer any research findings, planning, or other support services. Nowadays many discount stockbrokers do offer these services as well.

What is the best discount stock brokers for beginners?

By a quick search on the internet, you can find several stockbroking firms that can be the best in this category. However, do your research before choosing one for yourself. Some of the best in the market for beginners are Zerodha, Upstox, 5paisa, Samco, etc.

What are the cheapest stockbrokers in India?

The cheapest stockbrokers have a maximum brokerage charge of Rs. 10 to 20 per trade. Some of these firms are Zerodha, Upstox, Astha Trading, etc.

How do I choose the right share broker in India?

There are two types of stockbrokers or share brokers in the country: Full-Service and Discount Stockbrokers. The former has various services and products to offer than simple buy-and-sell of securities. Whereas the latter is focused on the buy and sell services only at a lowered rate compared to the Full-Service brokers.

How do I start trading in the Indian share market?

The first thing you need is a Demat, and a trading account. You can create them through the brokerage firm of your choice, and the NSDL and CDSL provide these accounts. Now use these two accounts to bid on shares and subsequently buying and selling them for profit. However, it is not that easy. Thus, it would be best if you research everything about share markets before you step into it.

What is a Demat account?

A Demat account holds all your shares and securities in an electronic format. The word Demat stands for a dematerialized account. This account is essential to keep all the stocks that you have bought, dematerialized, or converted from physical to electronic formats. This really makes share trading easy for the users.

What is a Trading Account?

A Trading account is a simple account that every trader in the share market needs to hold all his securities, cash, and other investments. This is a trader’s primary account from where he/she does all their trading operations like payment transactions or deposits. It is almost as crucial as a Demat account. It would help if you had both of them to start trading.

What is the difference between a Demat and a Trading account?

A trading account is a primary account; it is used to place any and every buy-and-sell orders for securities and shares.

A Demat account is the most important account because it contains or holds all the shares bought and sold in the market. It is like a bank for the trader in the field. Whatever shares you buy with the trading account in the market are sent to your Demat account and is held there. Similarly, whatever shares you want to sell with your trading account comes from your Demat account.

How is Zerodha popular in the trading market?

Founded in 2010, this technology-centered brokerage firm from Bangalore is now, one of the most popular brokerage firms in the country. As of December 2018, the firm has above 8 Lakh active clients. Technology plays a significant role in the share market, and the firm has just used that fact to their profit. With a remarkable technological infrastructure and various lucrative offers and brilliant public relations, they have grown into one of the best in the country within a decade.

How do I open a Demat account?

There are a few steps that you need to follow:

Select the brokerage firm you want to open the account with;
Next, choose the Depository, i.e. NSDL or CDSL;
Fill up the form, submit it with the verification documents as per the requirements of the firm and Depository. You need to provide your photos as well;
Once registered, you will get a copy of the rules and regulations and terms of the agreement made. Go through them thoroughly;
You will have to go through an in-person verification from the DP staff;
Once your application is processed, you will be provided with a Demat account number. You must keep it confidential. Use it to access your account with a password combination;
Now you are a Demat account holder. Some firms charge some fees for registration and maintenance of this account while others do not.

You are all set with your Demat account.

How do I open a Trading account?

Like Demat accounts here also, you need to follow the steps below:

Select the brokerage firm with whom you want to open the account;
Compare brokerage rates to understand the standards and schemes of the firms;
Fill up the form for opening your trading account and submit it along with documents for identification and verification;
Once a person calls on you for verification, your application is processed;
Next, you will receive a copy of the rules and regulations and the terms of the agreement, go through them thoroughly;

Now go on to place your bids after a good amount of research into the market.

What is the difference between Equity and Commodities Trading?

An investor can invest in both Equity and Commodity. However, although both are assets for investments, they have a few differences.

Equity or Stocks are traded at the BSE and/or NSE, i.e. Bombay Stock Exchange and/or National Stock Exchange; whereas Commodities are traded at MCX Multi Exchange OF India Ltd.

Commodity refers to a common form of a product, whereas Equity is an investor’s asset for trading.

Equity is related to the firm’s success, whereas commodity is related to the demand for a product in the market.

What is a 3-in-1 account?

A 3-in-1 account refers to an investor’s Bank account, Trading account, and Demat account. Three separate accounts are incorporated into one single account. This means, to when you open a 3-in-1 account, you open all three simultaneously. The Bank account holds all your money. The Trading account allows you to trade in various adding options in the share market like equity, commodity, or currency. And lastly, the Demat account holds all the shares that you have bought in an electronic format. Only a few firms offer this kind of accounts like Zerodha, Upstox, etc.

What are the charges to open a Demat and Trading Account in Zerodha?

Trading account-opening charges: Rs. 200;
Trading account AMC: NIL;
Demat account-opening charge: Rs. 100;
Demat account AMC: Rs. 300.

How safe is the online trading platform from Zerodha?

With registrations under SEBI, BSE, NSE, MCX, and regular audits from these authorities, Zerodha has one of the safest online trading platforms in India. Although there were some minor bugs in the first-ever versions, subsequent modifications have taken them to a minimum.

How safe is the online trading platform from Upstox?

Upstox has a very reliable and safe online trading platform. They are registered under the big names in the Indian share market, SEBI, BSE, NSE, etc. No faults or security breach has been reported as of yet.

How does a discount stockbroker work?

A discount stockbroker is typically a person or an institution that executes all your buy-and-sell orders on securities in the share market. They charge a discounted commission rate in comparison to the full-service brokers. Generally, they do not provide any additional services like research findings or planning supports. However, with technology, nowadays many discount brokers are turning into full-service brokers but are maintaining their discounted rates.

How many shares should I buy?

This requires market study and insight. You may have sold 20 shares and gained close to 6.5 lakhs. Now you may be wondering how many shares you should buy to play longer in the market.

While it is always good to have assets, but you also need to understand if that investment will bear fruit or not. If not, you have to acknowledge it as a wrong investment and move on. The market price of the share and your current budget plays a vital role in deciding the number of stocks you want to buy.