If you are searching for a demat account that can serve your needs, we have prepared a comprehensive list of the best demat accounts in India.
This article lists the top 10 demat accounts and a detailed analysis to help you make an informed decision.
These demat accounts provide you with many benefits; you can easily open the account online in an easy process.
Real-time updated charts with numerous technical indicators and multiple platforms are benefits they all offer.
On top of that, they follow all regulatory rules and regulations and have top-notch security standards.
To benefit from trading and investment, the first step should be objectively judging the pros and cons of various demat accounts and choosing one that suits your need.
To help you in this endeavor, we have provided all the details you might require.
Best Demat Account in India – List of Top Demat Accounts of 2024
In this section, we have provided the top demat account, and the ranking has been decided on various factors.
The best demat account has an ample number of customers, which in itself attests to their reliability.
Another major factor that affects the ranking is the pricing offer that the customer gets; that is why we have mentioned such offers separately in the following table.
Tools that help customers, both experienced and beginners, conduct their analysis and execute the trades also affect the overall ranking.
Each criterion should be considered independently to decide when finalising your demat account. Thus, we also have considered multiple factors to determine the ranking.
The following sections will discuss these parameters and each demat account in detail.
Compare the Top 10 Demat Accounts in India
| Demat Account | Active Demats | Offers | Advanced Tools |
| Angel One | 43 Lakh | Lifetime Free Delivery Trading | ARQ Prime, Smart API, Angel One Trade |
| Upstox | 39 Lakh | Zero Commission on Mutual Funds | Tradingview, Candle Patterns, APIs |
| Zerodha | 66 Lakh | Free Delivery & Direct MF Investment | Sensibull, Golden Pi, Coin, Streak |
| 5Paisa | 11 Lakh | Lowest Brokerage @ Rs.10 per Order | Algo Trading, Robo Advisory |
| ICICI Direct | 27 Lakh | Rs.20/Trade for Intraday & F&O | i-Track, Payoff Analyzer, Money App |
| Motilal Oswal | 9 Lakh | Free Rs.1000 Digital Gold | Technical Indicators, Trade Signals, Strategy Maker |
| Groww | 52 Lakh | Free MF Investment, Flat Rs.20/Trade | Online E-KYC, Dark & Light mode |
| Kotak Securities | 10.5 Lakh | Free Intraday Trading | Smart Search, Smart Alerts, Biometric Login |
| HDFC Securities | 12 Lakh | F&O @ Rs.20 per Trade | 3-in-1 account, Portfolio, Custom Watchlist |
| Sharekhan | 7.5 Lakh | Free 1st Year AMC | Sharekhan NEO, TradeTiger, Mini |
In this section, we will compare demat accounts in India. We have already provided you with a table mentioning various demat accounts, their rank, and various factors that determined their rank in brief.
But now we will discuss each rank in more detail so that you can understand their features and why they were ranked in such a manner.
The individual needs of investors and traders are sometimes unique; thus, knowing the features of all demat accounts will help the reader.
For example, brokerage charges might not be the primary concern for some investors who do not do trading and only buy and sell in the long term with a high-profit margin.
On the other side, scalp traders trade with very small margins and thus are greatly affected by high brokerage charges.
Therefore knowing about all these demat accounts in detail will help you make your decision better.
Angel One – Best Demat Account in India
Angel One has the top rank in our list of best demat accounts. Many factors contribute to this rank; let’s have a look at these factors:
- ARQ Prime: It is an investment engine provided by Angel One. It provides customers with rule-based automated investment advice. It scans the entire market to provide you with possible winners for investment.
- Brokerage: It offers one of the most beneficial brokerage charges. The charges for intraday and F&O trades are one of the lowest. On top of that, the charges for equity delivery are zero.
- Smart Money: It is the learning module offered to everyone by Angel One. Even if you don’t have a Demat account with them, you can use this platform to learn about investment on this platform. They have different modules focused on different levels of investors ranging from beginner to advanced.
- US Equity: Angel One provides its customers with the facility of investing in US stocks and ETFs via US-based firm Vested.
- Portfolio Health Score: You can check the health score of your portfolio; the score is measured based on risk and return generation parameters. It is an outstanding feature for beginners.
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Upstox – Top Demat Account in India
Nexton our list of top 10 demat accounts is Upstox. Upstox is one of the newcomers in this market segment but has gained popularity due to its unique features.
- They provide an easy selection process for investment. You can easily find investment opportunities using their smart list and smart screener.
- It is very easy to access company information; you can get technical and fundamental information about companies you want to invest in.
- Upstox also makes it easier for their customer to invest in mutual funds and ETFs, as they can do that from the same app they use for trading or investing in equity.
- They are currently offering customers demat accounts with zero annual maintenance fees.
- For futures and options traders, they offer an easy-to-use trading strategy builder and readymade strategies that are very easy to implement.
Zerodha – Top 10 Demat Account in India
Continuing our list of demat accounts in India, let us now discuss the third-ranked and probably the most popular, Zerodha.
There are substantial reasons why Zerodha has become so popular, and these are the same ones that have earned it the third rank.
- Zerodha is one the most cost-effective demat for customers in India. Not only are they offering one of the lowest brokerages, but they also offer free equity delivery trade.
- Zerodha is also among the most innovative companies in this sector; the number of technological solutions they have introduced for Indian customers is astonishing.
- Coin: Through this platform of Zerodha, you can easily transact in mutual funds and invest in any manner that suits your needs.
- Varsity: Zerodha Varsity is an educational initiative for people new to investment, mainly to equity. It is free of cost and can be accessed by anyone.
- Streak: Through Streak, Zerodha offers an algo trading platform that is very easy to use and requires no programming knowledge.
5Paisa – Best Demat Account
Next in line in our list of best demat accounts in India is 5Paisa. Let us have a look at its main features in a detailed manner so that you can have a clear idea about them.
- They offer multiple pricing packages for their customers, and the brokerage can go as low as Rs. 10 per order, with zero brokerage on equity delivery.
- They offer a dedicated platform for derivative trading that provides you with all the required trading tools.
- They provide advisory services to customers across multiple segments like equity, currency, commodity, etc.
- You can also start SIPs in stocks through their platform, giving customers enormous options for their investment needs.
- Trading room: It is a social network provided by 5Paisa for traders, where you can follow the top investors, discuss your trading strategies, etc.
ICICI Direct – Top Demat Account
ICICI Direct ranks fifth in our list of top demat accounts in India. We shall now take a look at their features in detail.
- The company behind ICICI Direct is ICICI Bank, one of India’s biggest private sector banks with years of experience and a physical presence in almost all Indian cities.
- You get robust and extensive research on the Indian market, which helps investors make informed decisions and fully use opportunities.
- You get a 3-in-1 account, which means you get demat, trading, and bank account in one go—taking care of the vast need of your finance.
- One can invest in equity of multiple countries through ICICI Direct. They are among very few Indian brokers offering equity investments in various countries.
- You get a personal relationship manager with an ICICI Direct account.
Motilal Oswal – Top 10 Demat Accounts
Among the top 10 demat accounts in India, the next rank is Motilal Oswal. It provides many unique features to its customer.
Let’s discuss some of these so that you can figure out if it matches your requirements.
- They provide financing for buying an IPO; investors can apply for an IPO through a margin funding facility.
- Motilal Oswal has won awards for the strategies and research they provide to customers. The research-based recommendations they provide customers can be customised per your investment style.
- You get dedicated support, which you can call anytime for trade or investment-related queries.
- They offer an algo-based portfolio restructuring tool to the customers. You can get personalised recommendations for your portfolio based on your risk profile.
- They provide education modules for beginner, intermediate, and advanced-level investors in Hindi, English, and Tamil.
Groww – Best Demat Account in India
The seventh rank in the list of best demat accounts in India is Groww. Groww started as a mutual fund platform and now offers its customer a free demat account in India.
- Groww offers the option of investing in US stocks to its customers. You can also buy partial stocks through Groww.
- Groww provides its users with an accessible paperless KYC facility for opening an account. The entire process is online and very easy.
- They offer zero account opening charges, and the annual account maintenance charges are also zero currently.
- They offer an all-in-one platform for mobile devices as well as desktops. You can transact in multiple segments from the same platform.
- Groww provides the option of investing in digital gold to its users.
Kotak Securities – Best Demat Account for beginners
Kotak Securities ranks eighth in our list of best demat accounts. They offer many different pricing plans, which include a plan with zero maintenance charges.
Making it one of the best Demat accounts for free.
- They offer multiple types of price plans for their customers. These plans are unique as two are based on the customer’s age, one for customers below 30 and one for those above 30.
- Their brokerage plan is also very unique. While many offer zero brokerage on delivery trades, they are offering zero brokerage on intraday trades.
- A loan against securities is offered to the customer through Kotak Bank, the parent company.
- Kotak securities also provide the facility of investing in the US equity market to its customer. You can even buy fractional stocks. The onboarding for this facility is also paperless and effortless.
- They also offer Private Client Group, which is their high-end offering for high net worth individuals. It comes with a personal account manager and other top-of-the-class services.
HDFC Securities – Best Demat Account Online
The next position in our list of best demat accounts online is HDFC securities. It is backed by another one of the top private-sector banks in India. Let’s discuss some of its unique features.
- They offer a unique feature of Voice-Enabled Investing. Their voice-enabled virtual trading assistance ‘Arya’ can execute voice commands very efficiently. You can use google home and Alexa-powered devices for this.
- They offer readymade stock baskets through small cases. These are based on particular themes and sectors.
- They offer many investment instruments, including mutual funds, stocks, commodities, currency, bonds, debenture, NCD, NPS, etc.
- They also offer their customers the facility of investing in stock through SIP.
- They also offer a buy now, pay later facility for stocks. You can pay the amount up to 275 days.
Sharekhan – Top 10 Demat Accounts in India
Sharekhan has the tenth spot in our list of top demat accounts online. They are a well-established broker in India and have multiple years of experience. Let’s discuss their features.
- Sharekhan is a full brokerage service, but they also provide a discount brokerage account through Espresso. Thus the customer can have the benefit of both from a single company.
- Sharekhan offers Trade Tiger, their proprietary trading platform, filled with all the tools and features required by a beginner and an advanced trader.
- Mini: This is the light version of their trading platform and is very useful for people with a slow internet connection.
- Pattern Finder: It analyses various market segments, and based on technical analysis, it predicts chart patterns. You get the notification via SMS and email.
- They have an extensive network of physical branches in most cities of India. You also benefit from a large equity and mutual fund advisor network.
Now let us discuss some of the top parameters and the demat accounts which perform well in those parameters.
Best Demat Account for Fast Account Opening
The account opening process is a very crucial aspect in determining the rank of a demat account. Top demat accounts should have an effortless and smooth operation of opening accounts.
Now a day, most customers prefer an online method of opening an account. An easy and online account opening process certainly should be the first concern.
This also instils confidence in the customers as to the technological soundness of the platform.
The demat accounts which perform very well in this category are Angel One, Zerodha, Kotak Securities, Upstox, and Groww.
A quick and hassle-free account opening process also benefits the company by increasing customer retention.
Top Demat Account with Low Brokerage
Brokerage and charges are very important in determining the ranking of the top 10 demat accounts.
The brokerage becomes even more important for short-term traders, especially those working on small profit margins.
Competitive brokerage rates and other charges can also result in cost savings for traders who make multiple trades regularly.
Even for long-term traders who work on large profit margins, the effect of high brokerage and other charges can pile up in the long term.
Then there is the concern of hidden costs, which must be more clearly mentioned; any Demat account with high hidden charges is not a good choice.
The demat accounts that perform well on this parameter are, Zerodha, Angel One, 5Paisa, Groww, and Upstox.
Best Demat Account for Beginners
A beginner-friendly demat account should have some basic features to make trading and investing for beginners easy and simple; this factor plays a huge role in determining the best demat account.
The trading platform should have simple navigation, and the user interface should be easy to understand.
The trade execution should be manageable for the user; the priority should be the quick and simple placement of order and trade execution.
There should also be educational resources and demos of the trading platform to teach the basics of investing and trading and provide tools to learn how to use the platform.
The best-performing demat account for this parameter is Kotak Securities, Angel One, Upstox, Zerodha, and 5Paisa.
Top Demat Account for Traders
Apart from beginners, we also need to consider the requirements of traders and investors for determining the rank of the best Demat account in India.
First, let us look at the features which make a demat account suitable for traders.
Traders usually make trades for the short term and make quick buy and sell; thus, easy and quick execution of trades is the most critical aspect.
Options to access the trading platform from multiple devices are also a prime requirement for traders, as they might need to place an order from their mobile devices.
Margin and leverage facilities with easy access, low fees, and interest are also necessary. Lastly, ease of transferring funds from and to the demat account is essential.
The Demat account that stands out under this parameter is Motilal Oswal, Angel One, ICICI Direct, Kotak Securities, and Zerodha.
Top 10 Demat Account for Investors
Just like the traders, we will now examine an investor’s requirements to determine the top 10 demat accounts in India.
The topmost requirement for an investor is a large bucket of investment instruments.
The Demat account should offer various instruments and assets, like stock, derivatives, mutual funds, bonds, IPOs, etc.
A platform that provides detailed and real-time information is critical. As investors usually do not make quick trades; instead, they make well-researched trades.
Thus, top-notch research and analysis is the prime requirement. Value-added services like portfolio management services, personal finance assistance, etc, are also a good factor.
Zerodha, Angel One, Kotak Securities, Upstox, and Motilal Oswal perform very well under this parameter.
What Is a Demat Account?
A Demat account is an abbreviation; the full form is Dematerialized Account. It is a digital account where various types of investment instruments are kept in a paperless format.
Earlier, all the securities, like stocks, bonds, etc., were paper certificates. Nowadays, these are in digital format, and a demat account is the account they are stored in.
Depository participants operate these, mainly brokerage firms like Angel One, Upstox, Zerodha, etc.
Types Of Demat Account
When it comes to types of demat accounts, there are three types. These are regular demat accounts, repatriable demat accounts, and non-repatriable accounts; let’s discuss these in detail.
- Regular Demat Account: This is the most basic demat account; it stores various instruments in dematerialized form. The withdrawal and deposit can be made only in Indian rupees.
- Repatriable demat account: This account is mainly for NRI investors and traders. It allows the fund to be transferred outside India in foreign currencies. The investor is required to have an NRE bank account; the fund can be transferred to and from the NRE bank account.
- Non-Repatriale demat account: This again is for NRI investors and traders, but the main difference is that the money cannot be transferred outside India. The investor needs a NRO bank account.
How to Open a Demat Account Online?
To process to open a demat account is relatively straightforward.
- Go to the provided link and enter your basic details in the form.
- A company representative will contact you, and they will guide you through the further process.
- You must verify your mobile number and email id by OTP.
- The next step will be to fill up the entire account opening.
- You will then e required to upload documents like PAN card, aadhar card, etc.
- Next, e-sign your form.
- Once verification is complete, the firm will activate your account within 24 hours.
Best Demat Account in India – Conclusion
India has a large number of Demat accounts which investors can choose from.
These provide unique features and offers to the customers, but not all can be considered to fulfill the necessary parameters of being one the best Demat account in India.
The demat accounts we have mentioned are the ones that not only satisfy the basic requirements of features required by the vast number of Indian customers; they also offer some very attractive features.
FAQs on Top 10 Demat Accounts in India
Here is the list of FAQs related to free demat accounts in India:
How to find the Best Demat Account offers in India?
You can check out various online reviews and the features of various demat accounts. It would be best if you were clear about your needs and requirements to make a clear decision.
Which is the Top Demat Account in India?
Multiple factors determine the top demat account in India; as per our ranking, the top demat account is Angel One.
Which is the Best Online Demat Account?
The account opening process can determine the best online demat account, which should be paperless and easy.
The trading and investment process should also be simple and online; the following demat accounts to fulfill these criteria Angel One, Zerodha, Kotak Securities, Upstox, and Groww.
Which Top 5 Demat for Beginners?
A Demat account that has a straightforward account opening process, a user interface that is easy to navigate, have educational resources can be considered good for beginners.
Angel One, Upstox, Zerodha, 5Paisa, and Kotak Securities are top 5 demat for beginers.
Which Top 3 Demat account for traders?
Traders require a Demat account to help them place quick orders and have low brokerage and other charges. The top 3 demat accounts for traders are Motilal Oswal, Angel One, and ICICI Direct.
Which Demat is Best for Investors?
The investor requires a Demat account which facilitates them to conduct reliable research on the stocks they want to invest in.
The top demat accounts for investors are Zerodha, Angel One, Kotak Securities, Upstox, and Motilal Oswal.
Which Demat is best for IPO investment?
The Demat account, which can provide complete real-time and reliable data about the company whose IPO has been released, can be considered the best IPO investment.
Which is the best demat for MF Investment?
Groww can be considered the best Demat account for MF investment. Groww started as a pure mutual fund investment and later introduced the demat and trading services.
Which is the Top 5 Free Demat account?
A free demat account is a demat account that does not charge you any fees for account opening; the top 5 in this category are Zerodha, Upstox, 5Paisa, Groww, and Angel Broking.
Where can you compare demat accounts?
You can find all the relevant details of various demat accounts on our website; apart from this article, we have articles on different demat accounts separately. You can use them to make your decision.