Best app for trading in India: Kite by Zerodha, Angel Broking, 5Paisa, IIFL Markets app, Upstock pro

Date : 16/12/2021
Read: 5 mins

The article lists the features offered by the top five mobile trading apps in India.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) authorised the use of mobile phone-enabled investing in stocks in January 2013, but it is only in recent years that mobile trading gained popularity.

After the SEBI order, all that investors needed was an internet connection on their smartphones to access the trading terminal of a broker. Also called mobile trading apps, these terminals became popular during the lockdown when people, forced to stay indoors, started using them to invest from home.

The market has now been flooded with these mobile trading apps, raising a big question: Which ones among these are the best? The list below attempts to shortlist the top five.

1. Kite

On top of the heap is Kite, the mobile trading app from Zerodha, India’s largest brokerage firm by active client base. The top features of Kite, available for both iOS and Android platforms, are:

Chart with over 100 indicators;
Enables quick buy and sell;
Offers easy user interface;
Offers funds overview;
Has universal instrument search;
Offers real-time market analysis;
Has integrated console and trading widgets;
Offers multiple exits on trade options;
Kite charges Rs 200 for online account opening and Rs 300 every year AMC for a Demat account which needs to be paid in advance every quarter;
Equity Delivery Brokerage: Rs 0 (i.e. free)
Intraday charges zerodha: Rs 20 or 0.03% per executed order whichever is lower
No mutual fund investment option;
Ratings on Google Play Store: 4.2 stars (out of 5)

2. Angel Broking Mobile App

Second on the list is the Angel Broking App, which boasts of one of the best user interfaces among mobile trading apps in India. This feature makes buying and selling of stocks much easier. The app’s other major features are:

Tracks derivatives position;
Livestreams stock quotes, charts, and market information;
Has over 40 technical chart indicators;
Checks Demat account holdings;
Enables real-time online fund transfer to over 40 banks;
Facilitates easy investments in mutual funds;
Flat rate brokerage plan 'Angel iTrade PRIME' offers to trade in all segments (Intraday, F&O, Currencies & Commodities) at fixed Rs 20 per trade except Equity Delivery;
Equity Delivery is free for all users;
Rate applicable across exchanges and segments;
Free app downloads for Apple iPhone and Google Android smartphones, but not offered for Windows phones.
Ratings on Google Play Store: 4 stars (out of 5)

3. IIFL Markets App

The eponymous trading app from stockbroking firm IIFL Markets similarly boasts of features that pitch it among the best mobile trading apps in India, available for Android and iOS smartphones. Let us check out those features:

Offers customised watchlists of stocks across exchanges;
Has investment options for BSE, NSE, NCDEX, and MCX;
Access to live prices across Commodity, Equity, and Currency segments;
Recommends stocks across sectors;
Only app offering free research on over 500 BSE/NSE listed companies;
Facilitates in-app trading calls with a time period, stop-loss, and target prices;
Cannot invest in mutual funds using this app, though IIFL offers another app, the “IIFL MF App” for this;
Offered free to all IIFL Securities customers;
Zero Demat AMC for the first year;
Discount brokerage plan, iServe offers brokerage-free equity delivery;
Flat Rs 20 per trade for intra-day and F&O trade in equity, currency, and commodity at BSE, NSE, and MCX
Ratings on Google Play Store: 4.3 stars (out of 5)

4. Upstox PRO

Another of India’s leading stockbrokers, Upstox, previously known as RKSV Securities, owns the popular mobile trading app Upstox PRO, available for Android and iOS devices. Also offered in a web version, Upstox PRO offers the following features:

Universal search tool to locate all types of stocks;
Has charts of various intervals, types, and drawing styles;
Applies over a hundred technical indicators in real-time;
Offers the Trade from Charts (TFC) feature;
Gives a large number of price alerts for instant updates;
Account opening charges: Rs 249;
Free Demat AMC;
Flat Rs 20 for equity delivery, intra-day and F&O trades;
Free brokerage for mutual funds;
Ratings on Google Play Store: 4.2 stars (out of 5)

5. 5Paisa Mobile Trading App

Fifth on the list is the mobile trading app from one of India’s fastest growing discount brokers, 5Paisa. Available for both iOS and Android mobile platforms, this app offers most of the features an investor needs: