Intro and winners
Find below the strengths of the best discount brokers in India, updated for 2024:
- Interactive Brokers is the best discount broker in India in 2024. - Extremely low fees. Wide range of products. Many great research tools.
- Alpaca Trading - Great API trading service. Free stock & ETF trading. Fantastic charting tools.
- Firstrade - Free stock, ETF, fund and options trading. Solid research tools. Quality educational tools.
- tastytrade - Low trading fees. Great educational materials. Good research tools.
- Zerodha - Low fees. Great trading platforms. Solid research.
- MEXEM - Low stock and ETF fees. Wide range of products. Many great research tools.
- TradeZero - Commission-free stock and ETF trading above a certain volume. Quick and easy account opening. Excellent education and customer support.
- Zacks Trade - Low fees. Extensive stock and ETF selection. Great customer service.
- ChoiceTrade - Commission-free stock and ETF trades. Fast and easy account opening. User-friendly mobile trading platform.
- CapTrader - Low stock and ETF fees. Wide range of products. Many great research tools. Pays interest on uninvested cash.
Overview of the best discount brokers
While many brokers with low fees offer an excellent service, the ones in our toplist go the extra mile.
| Broker | Fees class | Minimum deposit |
|---|---|---|
| Interactive Brokers | Low | $0 |
| Alpaca Trading | Low | $0 |
| Firstrade | Low | $0 |
| tastytrade | Low | $0 |
| Zerodha | Low | $0 |
| MEXEM | Average | $0 |
| TradeZero | Low | $250 |
| Zacks Trade | Low | $0 |
| ChoiceTrade | Low | $100 |
| CapTrader | Average | $2,000 |
Popularity of the best discount brokers in India
Interested in what others think? Here's how many people chose these brokers at BrokerChooser in the last 6 months.
Fees at the top 10 discount brokers for Indian citizens in 2024
What makes a good discount broker? Well, did we mention low fees? This includes commissions, financing rates, and, let's not forget, non-trading fees like inactivity or withdrawal fees. The tables below give you a good summary.
| Broker | US stock | UK stock fee |
|---|---|---|
| Interactive Brokers | $1.0 | $3.8 |
| Alpaca Trading | $0.0 | - |
| Firstrade | $0.0 | - |
| tastytrade | $0.0 | - |
| Zerodha | - | - |
| MEXEM | $1.0 | $3.1 |
| TradeZero | $0.0 | - |
| Zacks Trade | $1.0 | $15.0 |
| ChoiceTrade | $0.0 | - |
| CapTrader | $2.0 | $10.0 |
| Broker | Account fee | Inactivity fee |
|---|---|---|
| Interactive Brokers | ||
| Alpaca Trading | ||
| Firstrade | ||
| tastytrade | ||
| Zerodha | ||
| MEXEM | ||
| TradeZero | ||
| Zacks Trade | ||
| ChoiceTrade | ||
| CapTrader |
Product selection at the best discount brokers for Indian citizens in 2024
Besides low trading fees and non-trading fees, a good discount brokerage firm should also offer access to a lot of markets and products, because providing low fees in more than one asset class is not an easy job. All brokers in our list offer real stocks, but we also looked into whether you can trade currencies, options or mutual funds.
| Broker | Stocks | ETFs |
|---|---|---|
| Interactive Brokers | ||
| Alpaca Trading | ||
| Firstrade | ||
| tastytrade | ||
| Zerodha | ||
| MEXEM | ||
| TradeZero | ||
| Zacks Trade | ||
| ChoiceTrade | ||
| CapTrader |
And now, let's see the best discount brokers in detail one by one, starting with the winner, Interactive Brokers.
| Interactive Brokers snapshot | |
|---|---|
| Recommended for | Traders looking for broad market access and a professional trading environment |
| Trading fee class | Low |
| Fractional share dealing | Yes |
| OTC share dealing | Yes |
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
| Inactivity fee | No |
| Easiness of account opening | 3.1 stars |
| Read review | For a detailed analysis of Interactive Brokers services, check out our review for 2024 |
| Alpaca Trading snapshot | |
|---|---|
| Recommended for | Traders interested in algorithmic stock trading |
| Trading fee class | Low |
| Fractional share dealing | Yes |
| OTC share dealing | No |
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
| Inactivity fee | No |
| Easiness of account opening | 5.0 stars |
| Read review | For a detailed analysis of Alpaca Trading services, check out our review for 2024 |
| Firstrade snapshot | |
|---|---|
| Recommended for | Beginners and investors looking for zero-commission trading, focusing on the US market |
| Trading fee class | Low |
| Fractional share dealing | Yes |
| OTC share dealing | Yes |
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
| Inactivity fee | No |
| Easiness of account opening | 4.4 stars |
| Read review | For a detailed analysis of Firstrade services, check out our review for 2024 |
| tastytrade snapshot | |
|---|---|
| Recommended for | Options and futures traders focusing on US markets |
| Trading fee class | Low |
| Fractional share dealing | Yes |
| OTC share dealing | No |
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
| Inactivity fee | No |
| Easiness of account opening | 5.0 stars |
| Read review | For a detailed analysis of tastytrade services, check out our review for 2024 |
| Zerodha snapshot | |
|---|---|
| Recommended for | Traders and investors (including beginners) focusing on the Indian market and looking for low fees |
| Trading fee class | Low |
| Fractional share dealing | No |
| OTC share dealing | No |
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
| Inactivity fee | No |
| Easiness of account opening | 1.3 stars |
| Read review | For a detailed analysis of Zerodha services, check out our review for 2024 |
| MEXEM snapshot | |
|---|---|
| Recommended for | Investors and traders looking for low fees and sophisticated trading platforms |
| Trading fee class | Average |
| Fractional share dealing | Yes |
| OTC share dealing | Yes |
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
| Inactivity fee | No |
| Easiness of account opening | 5.0 stars |
| Read review | For a detailed analysis of MEXEM services, check out our review for 2024 |
| TradeZero snapshot | |
|---|---|
| Recommended for | Investors and traders interested in commission-free trading and a focus on US stocks and options |
| Trading fee class | Low |
| Fractional share dealing | No |
| OTC share dealing | Yes |
| Minimum deposit | $250 |
| Inactivity fee | No |
| Easiness of account opening | 5.0 stars |
| Read review | For a detailed analysis of TradeZero services, check out our review for 2024 |
| Zacks Trade snapshot | |
|---|---|
| Recommended for | Traders and investors looking for comprehensive research tools, a wide product selection and low fees |
| Trading fee class | Low |
| Fractional share dealing | Yes |
| OTC share dealing | Yes |
| Minimum deposit | $0 |
| Inactivity fee | Yes |
| Easiness of account opening | 2.5 stars |
| Read review | For a detailed analysis of Zacks Trade services, check out our review for 2024 |
| ChoiceTrade snapshot | |
|---|---|
| Recommended for | Stock and options traders looking for low trading fees and focusing on the US market |
| Trading fee class | Low |
| Fractional share dealing | No |
| OTC share dealing | Yes |
| Minimum deposit | $100 |
| Inactivity fee | Yes |
| Easiness of account opening | 4.4 stars |
| Read review | For a detailed analysis of ChoiceTrade services, check out our review for 2024 |
| CapTrader snapshot | |
|---|---|
| Recommended for | Investors and traders looking for low fees and sophisticated trading platforms |
| Trading fee class | Average |
| Fractional share dealing | Yes |
| OTC share dealing | Yes |
| Minimum deposit | $2,000 |
| Inactivity fee | Yes |
| Easiness of account opening | 1.3 stars |
| Read review | For a detailed analysis of CapTrader services, check out our review for 2024 |
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How did we come up with this list of best discount brokers in 2024 for citizens in India?
A great broker with low fees is the backbone of many trading strategies.
- So we checked trading fees, with a special focus on stock and ETF fees,
- We scrutinized non-trading fees (e.g. inactivity fees and withdrawal fees),
- We took measure of their investment product selection,
- We opened an account and tested their services with our own money.
Save hours of research!
Our expert team has done all the work for you, and reviewed brokers based on BrokerChooser's unique methodology.
FAQ
What is a discount broker?
A discount stock broker is a brokerage company that executes your buy and sell orders at a low trading fee. Discount brokers can afford to charge lower fees because, unlike full-service brokers, they usually don't provide extra services such as research, personal investment advice, tax planning or robo-advisory.
The difference between full-service brokers and discount brokers has blurred somewhat in recent years. Discount brokers started to offer extra services as well, like research; while full-service brokers started to lower their fees. The traditional brokerage and wealth management industry is under fee pressure from increasingly cost-effective online broker companies.
Many US brokers have slashed their fees to zero and now promote commission-free trading, following in the footsteps of brokers such as Robinhood. Drawbacks for some of these commission-free brokers include the limited number of assets you can trade (for example, mutual funds are less likely to be offered), so some investors and traders still prefer traditional discount brokers, where order execution also tends to be better compared with zero-commission brokers.
How did BrokerChooser pick the best discount brokers?
We tested brokers based on more than 600 criteria, using real accounts and real money. When we selected the best discount brokers, the primary selection criteria were fees. Importantly, we only included brokers where you can trade real stocks. This means that we excluded brokers where stocks were only offered through CFDs.
We calculated the rankings based on trading fees for all asset classes, such as stock fees; as well as fees not directly related to trading, such as withdrawal fees. We also assigned a higher score to brokers that offer a wide range of asset classes, because providing low fees in more than one asset class is not an easy job and definitely a big plus for investors.
Lastly, we incorporated additional criteria to measure the overall quality of the broker: if the account opening process, customer service and other aspects of the broker are high quality, they all boosted the overall score.
Are these brokers reliable?
These brokers are all considered reliable. They are regulated by at least one top-tier financial authority. We at BrokerChooser distinguish between mid-tier and top-tier regulators, based on various factors with the most important being the investor protection amount.
Still unsure? Check out our broker finder tool and find the best broker for you, or learn more about how to invest your money.
Everything you find on BrokerChooser is based on reliable data and unbiased information. We combine our 10+ years finance experience with readers feedback. Read more about our methodology.
