Zerodha Vs ICICI Direct: A Detailed Comparison | Brokerage Charges, Demat Account

ICICI Direct

In India, ICICIdirect is a large retail stock dealer. It is a subsidiary of the ICICI Group. Over 50 million people use its internet trading and investing services. Equity, commodity, and currency trading are all available on the BSE, NSE, and MCX.

Mutual funds and initial public offerings (IPOs) are also available, as are term deposits, bonds, NCDs, wealth products, house loans, and loans against assets.

The most popular service offered by ICICIdirect is its 3-in-1 account, which combines an ICICI Bank Account, an ICICI Trading Account, and an ICICI Demat Account. The three-in-one account makes trading easier.

Zerodha

Zerodha is India's largest brokerage. It is the largest and most popular broker, offering online flat-fee discount brokerage services for investing in equities, currencies, commodities, IPOs, and direct mutual funds.

Zerodha does not charge brokerage for stock delivery transactions or direct mutual funds. Every intraday and F&O transaction is charged a fixed fee of Rs 20 or 0.03 percent (whichever is less).

The most you can pay in brokerage with Zerodha for any transaction is Rs 20 for an order (of any size, amount, or segment). You can earn more rewards through zerodha , you can check our article on Zerodha Referral Code.

Zerodha Vs ICICI Direct

There are actually a lot of options available when it comes to opening a trading account. Some of the most significant are ICICI DIrect and HDFC Securities. In addition, individual brokers such as Zerodha and Upstox have also emerged in recent times. 

So before analysing the difference between the two giants i.e. Zerodha and ICICI Direct let us understand what the basics of depositories are.

1. DEMAT & depositories
   
   There are two depositories in India: NSDL and CDSL. These are the two institutions that are in charge of tracking various financial assets such as stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. These depositories are recorded, which is known as "dematerialized" (DEMAT).
   
   You cannot, however, have direct access to these depositories; you must go through an intermediary known as a "Depository Participant" (DP).
   
   Essentially, they are companies that engage with depositories on your account and ensure that whenever you are going to buy or sell any shares, they must be registered with the depository.
   
   Zerodha utilised the services of IL & FS in the past. Also it was registered under the two depositories; NSDL and CDSL. Zerodha, on the other hand, is now a Depository Participant (DP) with CDSL and no longer requires the services of an intermediary such as IL & FS.
   
2. Account Opening Procedures
   
   Both ICICI Direct and Zerodha offer online as well as opening an account in offline mode. To open an online account, you must have an Aadhar Card, make sure it is linked to the registered mobile number, as e-KYC is only possible with Aadhar.
   
   For opening an account in offline mode, you must download forms and submit them to the broker; in the case of opening an account in offline mode, both brokers supply a home collection of paperwork.
   
   Unlike ICICI Direct, which lets NRIs open accounts online, Zerodha only allows NRIs to create accounts offline.
   
3. Data Visualisation and Charting
   
   Following trades, charting is the most often used function. ICICI Direct has basic charting options; just add stocks to your watchlist and you will be able to visualize it. The charting engine used is the same like Cosaic/ChartIQ, as Zerodha Kite, however they have several differences.
   
   TradeRacer, a computerised, downloaded trading platform that is resource-intensive but has its individual charting, is also available from ICICI Direct.
   
   Zerodha is yet to offer any online trading solutions to its retail customers. (Corporate clients have a feature that is known as Nest.)
   
   Zerodha offers charting engines, TradingView and ChartIQ. You can select any of them based on the specific traits that appeal to you. You cannot, however, run both ChartIQ and TradingView charts at the same time.
   
4. Customer Service and Dependability
   
   ICICI Direct, as a full-service broker, has always provided superior service to Zerodha. Even today, it is easier to contact Zerodha's customer service than it is to contact Zerodha itself. On the other hand, Zerodha has a reasonably efficient ticket response process.
   
   In terms of dependability, social media reports show that Zerodha's trading site is down more frequently than ICICI Direct, although this might be owing to the more busy, tech-savvy audience that Zerodha caters to.
   
   If you are an investor, these difficulties should not affect you because they last anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours, but if you are an active trader, you should obviously plan for such situations and have the required backups.

Zerodha Pros and Cons : is zerodha better than icici direct

The following are Zerodha's benefits. Before registering an account with Zerodha, you should study the benefits and drawbacks. The advantages and disadvantages of Zerodha will help you decide whether it is suitable for your financial requirements.

Pros:

• Zerodha is one of the most popular brokers in India. As a result, they are the largest stock brokers.
• India's safest, most dependable, most trustworthy broker
• Kite, Console, and Coin are the industry's top trading platforms and tools.
• Free Equity Delivery Exchanges Free equity delivery- When you acquire shares using cash-and-carry, you don't have to pay any
• brokerage fees (CNC). There is no leverage in the delivery transaction. When you purchase shares, they are transferred to your demat account, and when you sell them, they are deducted from your demat account.
• India's cheapest stockbroker: They provide services with a straightforward price structure. They charge 0.03 percent or Rs 20 for each executed order, whichever is lower, regardless of transaction size.The maximum brokerage paid by the consumer for each trade is Rs. 20.
• Refer a friend and earn 10% of their brokerage share with the Zerodha Referral Program.
• Broker with Self-Clearing: Zerodha is a broker with self-clearing. Customers are not charged any clearance fees.

Cons:

• No stock advice, research reports, or recommendations are provided.
• There are no monthly unlimited trading subscriptions available.
• There are presently no lifetime free AMC demat account plans made available to customers.
  

ICICIdirect's Pros and Cons

The following are some of the benefits of ICICIdirect: Before creating an account with ICICIdirect, you should consider the benefits and drawbacks. The pros and drawbacks like is there icici direct refer and earn disadvantages or any other drawbacks  of ICICIdirect might help you decide whether it is appropriate for your investing requirements.

Pros

• Your banking, brokerage, and demat accounts are all combined into the 3-in-1 account. The accounts are all from ICICI and are very well integrated. As a result of this feature, ICICI is the most exciting player in the online trading facility. Physical assistance is not required. This is a genuine online trading environment.

• Unlike other online trading organisations in India, ICICIDirect allows you to handle your own demat and bank accounts through ICICIdirect.com. Money from stock sales is available in an ICICI bank account as soon as ICICIDirect receives it.

• In addition to general insurance, ICICI Lombard offers life insurance. You can invest in IPOs, mutual funds, GOI Bonds, and postal savings plans all from a single website.

• Both the BSE and the NSE allow for trading.

• A lower bandwidth webpage is available for customers with slow internet connections or who trade from mobile devices.

Cons:

• The brokerage fee at ICICIdirect is excessive and non-negotiable. You can save money on brokerage by subscribing to ICICIdirect Prime or prepaid brokerage solutions.

• The standard I-Secure Plan from ICICI has a minimum brokerage price of Rs 35 per trade, which is unreasonably high for traders who conduct small transactions.

• On shares with a market capitalization of up to Rs 10, ICICI charges a set brokerage fee of Rs 0.05 per share. This makes trading penny stocks incredibly difficult.

icici vs zerodha Trading Platforms

icici demat account charges vs zerodha Demat Account Charges

This is an ICICIDirect fixed brokerage plan that is not based on turnover volume and is best suited for inexperienced traders. Details of the Zerodha Brokerage Plan: For stock intraday, F & O, commodity, and currency trading on the NSE, BSE, and MCX, Zerodha charges Rs 20 or.03 percent

Whichever is lesser. In your deal, there are no upfront brokerage or turnover commitments. The maximum brokerage you must pay for each executable order is Rs. 20. There is no commission on equity delivery trading.

Overall Verdict

If any customers want to open an ICICIdirect 3-in-1 account, the procedure is very simple. Their reporting and dependability are benefits when it comes to direct comparison with Zerodha.

However, in terms of usability, graphing, and most importantly cost-benefit analysis, Zerodha scores higher. In the long term, from a retail investor to a trader, everyone’s net savings on everything from brokerage to mutual fund transaction charges will be much more with Zerodha.

After analysing these two options, all the investors would prefer Zerodha over ICICI Direct. I hope you liked our article on Zerodha Vs Icici Direct, if you have any comments or suggestions do share them in the comments below.