HDFC Securities is a full-service broker that offers retail and institutional broking services with a higher brokerage fee. You can also avail the benefit of other value-added products including Loan products, Insurance, NPS, Investment Advisory, and Portfolio management services.
Whereas Zerodha is a discount broker that allows you to trade or invest in stocks only. Zerodha offers discounted brokerage fees because Zerodha does not provide you with stock investment tips, research, or Robo advisory services.
Let’s compare Zerodha vs HDFC Securities on some common features like brokerage fees, AMC, trading platforms, and customer support.
Zerodha vs HDFC Securities Comparison Table
| Particulars | Zerodha | HDFC Securities |
| Broker Type | Discount Broker | Full-Service Broker |
| Year of Incorporation | 2010 | 2000 |
| Exchange Membership | NSE, BSE, MCX and NCDEX | BSE, NSE |
| Trade-in | Stocks/Equity, F&O, Commodities, Currency, Mutual Funds, IPOs, Bonds & Govt-Securities | Stocks/Equity, Currency F&O, Commodity, Mutual Funds, Forex, Banking, SIP, IPOs, ETFs- Gold and Index, Insurance, NCD / Bonds |
| Account opening charges | Rs 200+ Rs 100 for Commodity (optional) | Free |
| Demat AMC Fees | Rs. 300 | Free for the first year Rs. 750 (from 2nd Year onwards) |
| Intraday Margin | Upto 5X on intraday | Margin required 30% – 60% (depending on the scrip) of the order value. |
| Brokerage Charges | Zerodha Plan | HDFC Securities (Standard plan) |
| Equity Delivery | 0 (Free) | 0.50% or min Rs.25 |
| Equity Intraday | 0.03% or Rs. 20 per executed order whichever is lower | 0.05% or min Rs.25 |
| Equity Futures | 0.03% or Rs. 20 per executed order whichever is lower | 0.025% or min Rs.25 |
| Equity Options | Rs. 20 per executed order | Higher of 1% of the premium amount or Rs.100 per lot |
| Currency Futures | 0.03% or Rs. 20 per executed order whichever is lower | Rs 23 per contract |
| Currency Options | 0.03% or Rs. 20 per executed order whichever is lower | Rs 20 per contract |
| Commodity Futures | 0.03% or Rs. 20 per executed order whichever is lower | 0.020% or minimum Rs.20 per order |
| Commodity Options | 0.03% or Rs. 20 per executed order whichever is lower | Rs.100 per lot |
| Call & Trade Charges | Rs. 50 per order | Free |
HDFC Securities Vs Zerodha – Broker Comparison
Zerodha offers zero brokerage on equity delivery and for intraday is 0.03% or Rs. 20 per executed order whichever is lower. On the other hand, HDFC Securities offers standard and value plans with different brokerage charges to its customers.
#1. HDFC Securities (Standard Brokerage Plan) Vs Zerodha (Flat Brokerage Plan)
| Segment | Zerodha(Flat Brokerage Plan) | HDFC Securities(Standard Brokerage Plan) |
| Equity Delivery | 0 (Free) | 0.50% (for both buy and sell orders) OR minimum of Rs. 25, ORMaximum of 2.5% on transaction value (both buy and sell) |
| Equity Intraday | 0.03% or Rs. 20 per executed order whichever is lower | 0.05% (for both buy and sell orders) ORa minimum of Rs. 25, ORMaximum of 2.5% on transaction value (both buy and sell) |
| Equity Futures | 0.03% or Rs. 20 per executed order whichever is lower | 0.025% OR a minimum of Rs. 25, ORMaximum of 2.5% on transaction value (both buy and sell) |
| Equity Options | Rs. 20 per executed order | Higher of 1% of the premium amount or Rs.100 per lot (Both Buy & Sell) |
| Currency Futures | 0.03% or Rs. 20 per executed order whichever is lower | Rs. 12 per contract on each side |
| Currency Options | 0.03% or Rs. 20 per executed order whichever is lower | Rs. 10 per contract on each side |
| Commodity Futures | 0.03% or Rs. 20 per executed order whichever is lower | 0.020% or minimum Rs. 20 per order |
| Commodity Options | 0.03% or Rs. 20 per executed order whichever is lower | Rs.100 per lot |
| Call & Trade Charges | Rs. 50 per order | Free |
You can also go through our in-depth article on HDFC Securities Review to know the pros and cons of HDFC Securities in a detailed manner.
#2. HDFC Securities Value Plans
HDFC Securities Value plans to charge as low as 0.10% equity delivery and Rs 20 per order for derivatives trading. Value plans are only applicable to resident customers.
There are two types of value plans –
- Value Plan with a validity of 360 days – This plan is auto-renewed at the end of the tenure.
| Subscription Charges and Brokerage Charges | ||||||||
| Plans | 199 | 299 | 999 | 1999 | 2999 | 3999 | 4999 | 5999 |
| Equity Delivery | 0.32% | 0.27% | 0.22% | 0.18% | 0.15% | 0.15% | 0.10% | 0.10% |
| Equity Intraday | 0.032% | 0.027% | 0.022% | 0.018% | 0.015% | 0.015% | 0.010% | 0.010% |
| Options (per order) | Rs 20 | Rs 20 | Rs 20 | Rs 20 | Rs 20 | Rs 20 | Rs 20 | Rs 20 |
| Futures (per order) | Rs 20 | Rs 20 | Rs 20 | Rs 20 | Rs 20 | Rs 20 | Rs 20 | Rs 20 |
| Zero Brokerage on ETF | No | No | No | No | No | Yes | No | Yes |
- Brokerage Value Plan – Lifetime Validity
| Value Plan Name | Value 30 | Value 25 | Value 20 | Value 15 |
| Value Plan Charges | 10000/- | 25000/- | 50000/- | 1,00,000/- |
| Free Equity Delivery Volume | 40,00,000/- | 150,00,000/- | 4,00,00,000/- | 12,00,00,000/- |
| Free Equity Delivery Volume Validity | 360 days | 360 days | 360 days | 360 days |
| Equity Intraday | 0.030% | 0.025% | 0.020% | 0.015% |
| Equity Delivery | 0.30% | 0.25% | 0.20% | 0.15% |
| Options (per order) | Rs 20 | Rs 20 | Rs 20 | Rs 20 |
| Futures (per order) | Rs 20 | Rs 20 | Rs 20 | Rs 20 |
You can also read our comprehensive Zerodha Review article to understand the pros and cons of the Zerodha Demat account.
Winner – Zerodha
HDFC Securities Vs Zerodha Account Opening Charges & AMC Comparison
#1. Account Opening Charges
HDFC Securities offers a free Demat & trading account whereas Zerodha charges Rs. 200 for account opening. You need to pay Rs. 100 more to open a commodity trading account with Zerodha. Commodity trading is optional in Zerodha.
| HDFC Securities | Zerodha | |
| Account Opening Charges | Zero (Free) | Rs 200 (equity only) Rs 300 (with commodity account) |
Winner – HDFC Securities
#2. Account Annual Maintenance Charges (AMC)
Zerodha charges Rs 300 for demat account AMC charges, on the other hand, HDFC Securities charges Rs 750 from the 2nd year onwards.
| AMC Fee | Zerodha | HDFC Securities |
| Trading AMC Fee | Zero | Zero |
| Demat AMC Fee | Rs. 300 | Free for the first year Rs. 750 (from 2nd Year onwards) |
Winner – Zerodha, as you have to pay more AMC for HDFC Securities.
Zerodha Vs HDFC Securities Margin
As per SEBI regulations on peak margins from 1st September 2021, Zerodha offers up to 20% of the trade value (5x leverage) for intraday trading. On the other hand, HDFC Securities is not transparent in disclosing the margin details.
You can find out the exact HDFC Securities margins for a particular intraday trade from the “Know Your Margin” screen after login into the trading platform.
| Segment | Zerodha | Information on the HDFC Securities website |
| Equity Delivery | 100% of trade value (1x leverage) | Information not available |
| Equity Intraday | 20% of trade value (5X leverage) | Margin required 30% – 60% (depending on the scrip) of the order value. |
| F&O (Equity, Currency & Commodities) | 100% of NRML margin (Span + Exposure) (1x leverage) | Margins in the derivatives segment vary from contract to contract and are decided by the exchange daily. |
You can also look at our list of best demat and trading accounts in India to know other options in the market as well.
Zerodha Vs HDFC Securities Trading Platforms
Zerodha offers various trading platforms to its customers.
- Kite – Web-based trading platform for investing in stocks
- Kite Mobile – Trading mobile app for Android/iOS
- Coin or Coin app – invest in mutual funds or bonds
- Console – Back-office platform
- Sentinel – Live market price alerts tool
Zerodha doesn’t provide IPO investment through mobile apps.
HDFC Securities provides various trading platforms to its customers.
- HDFC Securities Trade (mPowered) – Web-based Trading Platform
- HDFC Securities Mobile App – A mobile trading app for iOS and Android
- ProTerminal – A desktop-based trading platform with & stock analysis with Ajax-based technology, access at a subscription fee of Rs 1999 for 1 year.
- ProTerminal Mobile App – Mobile-based trading app, can access the ProTerminal platform by paying the subscription fee of Rs 1999 for 1 year.
- BLINK – Desktop trading platform for high-speed trading in the equity and F&O segments, need to pay a subscription fee of Rs 2999 for 6 months and Rs 3999 for 1 year.
- Voice Enabled Investing, Arya – Invest through simple voice commands over Google Assistant, Google Home and Amazon Alexa-powered devices.
- HDFC Money (Digify) – Invest in mutual funds platform
HDFC Securities Vs Zerodha Customer Support
HDFC Securities is a full-service broker offering high-quality customer service, whereas Zerodha is a discount broker providing a better customer support system as compared to all other discount brokers in India.
| HDFC Securities Customer Care | Zerodha Customer Care | |
| Account opening number | 022 3901 9400 | 080 4719 2020 080 7117 5337 |
| Account opening email | [email protected] | |
| Trading issues | Ph: 022-3045 3600Email – [email protected] | 080 4718 1888080 4718 1999 |
Zerodha Vs HDFC Securities: Which one is better?
Zerodha is the best option for retail investors with low fees and easy-to-use trading platforms.
HDFC Securities is a perfect fit for those who are looking for a broker to provide more personalized support in their stock investments and don’t mind paying high brokerage in return.
