Heard a lot about Zerodha but want to first find out someone else’s hands on experience with the features of the broker’s trading applications before opening your trading account with the company? Go through the pros and cons of Zerodha I’ve shared below to get the answer.
Zerodha pros
Great UI: Zerodha has one of the best user interfaces among the brokers I’ve used to date. The reason why I like the UI is that the Kite application of Zerodha doesn’t employ heavy pictures, videos, or animations that affects the loading time of the pages. Its Kite mobile and desktop application features a lot of text and white spaces. Browsers load text only pages quicker than the website pages having text and images. There are no complex HTML elements apart from a box that pops up when the users click on the buy or sell button.
Order placement speed: As soon as you click on the sell/buy button after moving the mouse cursor on a watchlist scrip, you will see a sleek popup. In this box, there a few textfields and options i.e. you can enter the lot size, select the order type, set stop loss/target price in percentage format, etc. This box also flaunts button to buy/sell the chosen scrip or cancel the order. Buy/sell orders you place with the Kite app are sent to the respective exchanges within seconds without any delay.
Multiple chart options: Zerodha is the one of the two brokers I’m aware of that lets users change the chart provider. ICICI Direct is another broker that supports two charting platforms – TradingView and ChartIQ. To change the chart type in Zerodha, click on the profile name and choose the menu “My profile”. Now, Zerodha will open the profile page. Scroll down. Now, you will find a settings section with option to change the chart type. You can choose these two chart types – ChartIQ & TradingView.
Kill switch option: One of the easiest ways to lose money is “overtrading”. Zerodha charges Rupees 20 per order. If you execute 198 orders, you will have to pay Rs 3960 brokerage and the GST on the brokerage. To make sure you don’t lose money by executing orders unnecessarily (due to greed) and to not give away the profit you’ve earned to the stock market, Zerodha provides a feature called Kill Switch. When the Kill Switch toggle option is active for a particular segment, you won’t be able to place orders in that segment for 24 hours.
GTT: GTT is a user defined risk management feature of Zerodha. It is a great alternative to stop loss orders which users create to prevent loss in the stock market or send an order to the exchange when the price of the scrip equals to the user defined price. While creating a GTT, you must specify the trigger price, quantity, and the limit price. You must also choose the triger type and transaction type.
Pin feature: Zerodha allows users to track the price movement of a particular scrip with the help of a feature called “Pins”. When you create a pin, the broker will replace Nifty or Sensex appearing on the menu bar with the scrip you’ve chosen. Zerodha Kite supports two pins. If you choose Pin 1, Nifty on the menu bar will be replaced by the scrip else Sensex will be replaced with the selected scrip.
Zerodha cons
Brokerage: There are many online brokers that charge or offer lower/0 brokerage plans. For instance, Kotak Securities and Mstock offer zero brokerage plans. ICICI Direct sells the prime 4999 Rs subscription pack which reduces the brokerage to Rs 10 per lot. 5Paisa offers a paid subscription plan which reduces brokerage to Rs 10 irrespective of the number of lots you buy or sell.
Slow withdrawals: Some brokers will transfer the funds to your account on the same day you withdraw the same from your trading account if you place the withdrawal request within the timeframe specified by them. For example, Nuvama, formerly known as Edelweiss, will transfer money to your bank account if you request fund withdrawal before 3.30 PM. Kotak Securites processes withdrawal request made prior 4:00 PM on the same day before 9.30 PM.
Closing words: Zerodha is a great choice when it comes to brokers. Although it charges brokerage in the era where there are companies that charge 0 fees for buying and selling scrips, you can open your demat account with them.
