Zerodha Complete Review: A to Z Explanation

When it comes to Indian finance, a name stands out for its unconventional approach and meteoric rise – Zerodha! You must have heard this word a lot in the last few years. The first discount broker in India changed the landscape of trading and investing by letting not just the rich and powerful but everyone participates in the stock market. With over 1+ crore customers and over 65 lakh active clients as of November 2023, Zerodha has not only disrupted the traditional brokerage model but has also made investing easy, affordable, and even fun!
In this comprehensive Zerodha review, we will delve deep into the broker's features, pricing structure, customer support, and overall user experience, giving you valuable insights into why it remains a top choice for traders and investors.
Whether you are a seasoned investor or just starting, this review will give you a better insight into Zerodha's features and help you make an informed decision. 

Table of Contents

- How Zerodha came to be
- Features of Zerodha
- Zerodha's Charges
- Trading Platforms by Zerodha
- Kite by Zerodha
- Zerodha Varsity
- Coin by Zerodha
- Zerodha Demat account opening

How Zerodha came to be

The origin of Zerodha is a fascinating story of how the two brothers- Nithin and Nikhil Kamath, turned their frustration with traditional brokerages into a revolution that democratised trading for millions.

The seeds were sown in Nithin's own experience as a trader. Tired of high brokerage fees and opaque practices, he envisioned a platform that was:

✅Affordable: Challenging the exorbitant fees, Zerodha introduced a flat ₹20 per trade, a fraction of what traditional brokers charge.
✅Tech-driven: They built their own user-friendly trading platform, focusing on accessibility and transparency.
✅Customer-centric: Zerodha prioritised education and support, fostering a community of informed investors.

Zerodha's journey is unique among startups, as it began without external funding. The founders used their personal savings and early profits to bootstrap the operation, which is a testament to their belief in their vision.

Over the course of a decade, Zerodha grew from a scrappy startup with just 1,163 active clients in 2011-12 to the largest retail stockbroker in India with 65,98,363 clients in 2023, managing over 15% of retail trading volumes. You can check their market share below!

Features of Zerodha

Zerodha boasts a range of features across its platforms, catering to both beginners and seasoned traders. Here's a breakdown of some key offerings:

1. Trading Platforms

• Zerodha Kite: An ultra-fast trading platform that provides you with real-time market data streaming, advanced and customisable charts, an intuitive and polished user interface, and a host of other features that help you make informed trading decisions.
• Zerodha Console: The central dashboard for your Zerodha account with in-depth reporting and analytics on your trades and investments. It gives you an in-depth and complete history breakdown of your stocks by the trade from the day of acquisition.
• Zerodha Coin: It allows you to invest in mutual funds and government bonds with no commission charges.
• Zerodha Varsity: It is a free and comprehensive online educational platform covering various aspects of the stock market and finances broken down into bite-sized cards to help you learn on the go.

2. Product Basket: It provides a wide range of investment and trading opportunities to cater to your diverse needs. With Zerodha, you can invest in and trade a variety of segments, including Initial Public Offerings (IPOs), stocks, futures and options, currency, commodities, mutual funds, bonds and fixed income.

3. Flat Fee Structure: Zerodha charges a flat ₹20 per trade for intraday, F&O, currency, and commodity trades, irrespective of trade value. Equity delivery and mutual funds are commission-free.

Zerodha Charges 2023

Zerodha Account Opening Charges

Type of account	Charges
Online account	₹200
Offline account	₹500
NRI Account (offline)	₹500
Partnership, LLP, HUF, or Corporate accounts (offline only)	₹500

Zerodha Account Maintenance Charge (AMC)

Type of account	Annual Charges
Individual, HUF, and partnership firms	₹300 + 18% GST
NRI	₹500 + 18% GST
Corporates	₹1,000 + 18% GST

Zerodha Brokerage Charges

Segment	Charges
Equity Delivery	₹0
Equity Intraday	0.03% or ₹20/executed order, whichever is lower
Futures	0.03% or ₹20/executed order, whichever is lower
Options	Flat ₹20 per executed order
Currency Futures	0.03% or ₹20/executed order, whichever is lower
Currency Options	₹20/executed order
Commodity Futures	0.03% or ₹20/executed order, whichever is lower
Commodity Options	₹20/executed order

Other Charges

Call and Trade	₹50 per order
Pledging	₹30 + GST per pledge request
NRI Brokerage	₹100 per order for futures and options
Payment Gateway Charges	₹9 + GST (Not levied on transfers done via UPI)

Trading Platforms by Zerodha

1. Kite by Zerodha

Kite is Zerodha's primary trading platform and is recognised for its user-friendly interface, quick performance, and inventive features. It is designed to cater to the needs of both novice and seasoned traders and provides a comprehensive set of tools to handle investments and trades across several domains of the Indian stock market.

Features

• Easily search 90,000+ stocks and F&O contracts on multiple exchanges with their universal tool
• User-friendly platform with a simple layout and drag-and-drop features for easy navigation
• Customisable keyboard shortcuts to simplify platform interaction
• Level 3 data that gives you deeper insights into market liquidity
• Hundreds of indicators, studies, and tools on a powerful and customisable charting interface
• Good Till Triggered orders (GTT) to enter or exit stock holdings until your price condition is met
• Create, manage, and execute multi-stock baskets and much more

Learn about How to use Zerodha Kite.

2. Zerodha Varsity 

Zerodha Varsity is a free, comprehensive online platform that provides stock market and financial education to individuals. It is easily accessible to everyone and is one of the largest financial education resources available on the web. The platform requires no sign-up, no payment, and has no advertisements.

Features

• Covers a wide range of topics like the basics of investing, different asset classes, and how the market works
• Understand charts, patterns, and indicators to analyse market trends and find potential trading opportunities
• In-depth courses are split into sections with quizzes and assignments
• Visual explanations, live sessions with experts and much more

3. Coin by Zerodha

Coin by Zerodha is a platform that lets you invest in thousands of direct mutual funds, saving you over 1% in fees compared to traditional mutual funds.

Features

• Invest in thousands of direct mutual fund schemes across various categories without paying any commission.
• Access mutual funds from over 40 leading fund houses in India
• With the step-up SIP feature, the SIP amount increases automatically by a set percentage
• SIPs are flexible and can be started, paused, stopped, increased, or decreased as needed
• All your Coin investments are held in Demat form, providing transparency and ease of management
• Track the performance of your investments with detailed analytics and reports

Zerodha provides its clients the ability to use its own trading software and tools, as well as external products developed using the Zerodha platform. These tools can be seamlessly integrated with Zerodha's Kite platform. The trading software and tools offered are-

1. Smallcase
2. Streak
3. SensiBull
4. GoldenPi
5. Ditto

Zerodha Demat account opening

Opening a Zerodha account is a simple and quick process, especially if your mobile number is linked to your Aadhaar. Here's a step-by-step guide:

Step 1: Visit select.finology.in, head to the 'Brokers' tab and click on 'All Stock Brokers'.
Step 2: You will see a list of stock brokers. Head to 'Zerodha' and click on the 'Full-details' button.
Step 3: Click on 'Open Demat Account', and you will be redirected to 'Zerodha'.
Step 4: Follow the on-screen instructions and complete the e-signature process.

The account will be opened within 72 working hours, and an email with the user ID will be sent. If the mobile number is not linked with the Aadhaar, the offline process of opening an account has to be followed.

Zerodha vs Other Online Brokers

Category	Zerodha	Upstox	Groww	Shoonya
Active Clients (November)	65,98,363	22,37,974	70,92,413	81,004
3 in 1 Account	Yes	Yes	No	No
Account Opening Charge	₹200- Equity and Trading ₹100 - Commodity	₹0	₹0	₹0
Account Maintainance Charge	₹300/year + 18% GST	₹0	₹0	₹0
Equity Delivery	₹0	₹20 or 2.5% whichever is lower	₹20 per executed order or 0.05%, whichever is lower	₹0
Equity Intraday	0.03% or ₹20/executed order, whichever is lower	₹20 per executed order or 0.05%, whichever is lower	₹20 per executed order or 0.05%, whichever is lower	₹0
Futures	0.03% or ₹20/executed order, whichever is lower	₹20 per executed order or 0.05%	Flat ₹20 per executed order	₹0
Options	Flat ₹20 per executed order	Flat ₹20 per executed order	Flat ₹20 per executed order	₹0
Commodity	0.03% or ₹20/executed order, whichever is lower	₹20 per executed order or 0.05%	NA	₹0
Currency Futures	0.03% or ₹20/executed order, whichever is lower	₹20 per executed order or 0.05%, whichever is lower	NA	₹0
Currency Options	₹20/executed order	Flat ₹20 per executed order	NA	₹0

Conclusion

In conclusion, Zerodha has revolutionised the Indian trading and investing sector with its customer-centric, tech-driven, and affordable approach. Its competitive pricing structure and user-friendly trading platforms make it an ideal choice for both beginners and seasoned traders. Moreover, its commitment to education and community building has enabled investors to make informed decisions and create wealth. If you are looking for a trustworthy and efficient brokerage firm to invest in, then Zerodha is definitely worth considering. So, go ahead and open your Zerodha account today to start your investing journey!