Onboarding ranked
Account-opening friction index
Nobody scores how painful signup is — so we did. Every tracked broker ranked by e-KYC smoothness, support when it stalls, and opening cost, from records we already publish.
Pricing last verified 22 Sept 2026 against official sources.
#1 smoothest
Groww
92/100
- Onboarding 4.9/5 — among the smoothest we tested
#2 smoothest
Angel One
87/100
#3 smoothest
Kotak Securities
87/100
31 of 31 brokers · click a column header to sort
| Support channels | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1GrowwSmoothest | 92/100 | 4.9 | 4.0 | ₹0 | — | Help center + in-app chat + email (support@groww.in) + phone 9108800000 |
| 2Angel OneSmoothest | 87/100 | 4.3 | 4.1 | ₹0 | — | — |
| 3Kotak SecuritiesSmoothest | 87/100 | 4.4 | 4.0 | ₹0 | — | In-app support + dealers |
4 Share.MarketSmoothest | 87/100 | 4.5 | 3.8 | ₹0 | — | Email helpdesk |
5 DhanSmoothest | 86/100 | 4.4 | 3.8 | ₹0 | — | — |
6 UpstoxSmoothest | 85/100 | 4.4 | 3.7 | ₹0 | — | — |
7 HDFC SkySmoothest | 85/100 | 4.2 | 4.0 | ₹0 | — | App + phone support |
8 SharekhanSmoothest | 85/100 | 4.1 | 4.2 | ₹0 | — | Free Dial-N-Trade + branches |
9 ZerodhaSmoothest | 84/100 | 4.2 | 3.9 | ₹0 | — | Ticket + call-and-trade |
10 NuvamaSmoothest | 84/100 | 4.0 | 4.2 | ₹0 | — | Helpdesk + dedicated advisor (Elite) |
11 Motilal OswalSmoothest | 84/100 | 4.0 | 4.2 | ₹0 | — | Phone + email + branches + RM |
12 SahiSmoothest | 84/100 | 4.4 | 3.6 | ₹0 | — | Phone + email (Mon–Sat) |
13 SBI SecuritiesSmoothest | 84/100 | 3.9 | 4.3 | ₹0 | — | 160+ branches + community |
14 FyersSmoothest | 83/100 | 4.2 | 3.7 | ₹0 | — | — |
| 15HDFC SecuritiesSmoothest | 83/100 | 4.0 | 4.0 | ₹0 | — | Bank + broker network |
16 BlinkXSmoothest | 83/100 | 4.2 | 3.7 | ₹0 | — | — |
17 GeojitSmoothest | 83/100 | 3.9 | 4.1 | ₹0 | — | Phone + branches |
18 Bajaj BrokingSmoothest | 83/100 | 4.0 | 4.0 | ₹0 | — | Toll-free + email + RM (HNI) |
19 m.StockSmoothest | 82/100 | 4.2 | 3.6 | ₹0 | — | Zero-fee call-and-trade |
20 ICICI DirectSmoothest | 82/100 | 3.8 | 4.2 | ₹0 | — | Call & Trade + branches |
21 Anand RathiSmoothest | 82/100 | 3.8 | 4.1 | ₹0 | — | Expert + customer team |
22 AxisDirectSmoothest | 82/100 | 3.8 | 4.1 | ₹0 | — | Helpdesk + 44 branches |
23 TradeSmartSmoothest | 82/100 | 4.0 | 3.8 | ₹0 | — | Phone + email support |
24 Yes SecuritiesSmoothest | 82/100 | 3.9 | 4.0 | ₹0 | — | Customer service + RM + branches |
25 Alice BlueLow friction | 81/100 | 4.0 | 3.7 | ₹0 | — | — |
26 SAMCOLow friction | 81/100 | 4.0 | 3.7 | ₹0 | — | — |
27 Arihant CapitalLow friction | 81/100 | 3.8 | 4.0 | ₹0 | — | 820+ offices + advisor/RM |
28 Aditya Birla MoneyLow friction | 81/100 | 3.8 | 4.0 | ₹0 | — | Toll-free + Call-N-Trade + WhatsApp |
29 5paisaLow friction | 80/100 | 4.0 | 3.5 | ₹0 | — | — |
30 Indiabulls SecuritiesLow friction | 80/100 | 4.0 | 3.5 | ₹0 | — | — |
31 Jainam BrokingLow friction | 79/100 | 3.7 | 3.9 | ₹0 | — | Phone + email |
Score = editorial base (onboarding ×50 + support ×35 + opening cost ×15) blended with approved user reports once a broker has 3+ — see how it's built. † means the opening fee isn't verified yet.
How it's built
Same data, honest arithmetic — audit every input on the broker review page.
50%
Ease of opening
Editorial onboarding sub-score (0–5): the e-KYC walkthrough — friction points, document asks, activation delay.
35%
Support when it stalls
Editorial support sub-score (0–5): chat + email timed as an ordinary customer. Matters most mid-signup.
15%
Opening cost
Verified account-opening fee: free scores full, paid decays to zero at ₹1,000; unconfirmed scores low with a † flag.
≤35%
Your reports
Median e-KYC time + doc count + support from approved user reports. Kicks in at 3 reports; editorial always carries ≥65%.
User reports are median-aggregated and human-moderated: one bad day can't tank a broker, and the editorial base always carries at least 65% of the weight. Brokers with fewer than 3 approved reports show a pure editorial score with an n/3 progress count.
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Friction index FAQs
What is the account-opening friction index?
A 0–100 score (higher = smoother) for how painful it is to open a broking account: editorial ease-of-opening ×50, support responsiveness ×35, and opening fee ×15. It answers the question nobody else scores — not who is cheapest to trade with, but who is easiest to start with.
Where do the inputs come from?
The base is published editorial records: the onboarding and support category sub-scores each broker already carries (set by walking the e-KYC flow and timing support as an ordinary customer), plus the verified account-opening fee row. On top sits crowdsourced signal — your reported e-KYC time, document count and support wait blend into the base once a broker has 3+ approved reports, capped so editorial always carries at least 65% of the weight.
Does a low-friction broker mean a good broker?
No — easy to open and good to trade with are different questions. A broker can score Smoothest here and still charge high brokerage. Use this index to pick your shortlist for signup ease, then check fees on the brokerage matrix and the full review before funding.
How often is the index updated?
Scores recompute automatically whenever an underlying editorial record changes — a re-verified fee, a re-tested onboarding flow, or a support re-score propagates within minutes. Every figure carries its verification status on the broker review page.