Brokerage Calculator (India)

What Are Trading Charges?

Every time you buy or sell on the Indian stock market, multiple charges are deducted from your trade. These are not just brokerage — there are regulatory fees, taxes, and exchange charges that add up. Understanding these costs is essential because they directly impact your net profit and loss.

Many new traders focus only on brokerage and are surprised when their "profitable" trade turns into a loss after all charges are deducted. This calculator shows you the complete picture — including STT, exchange transaction charges, SEBI fees, IPFT, stamp duty, DP charges, and GST — before you enter a trade.

Breakdown of All Charges

Brokerage — the fee your broker charges for executing your trade. Most discount brokers charge &rupee;20 per order or zero for delivery trades. This is typically the smallest component. You can enter your broker's exact fee in the calculator.
STT (Securities Transaction Tax) — a government tax on every stock market transaction. Rates differ by segment: 0.1% both sides for equity delivery/ETF, 0.025% sell-side for intraday, 0.05% sell-side for futures (hiked from 0.02% in April 2026), and 0.15% on options premium sell-side (hiked from 0.1% in April 2026). STT is often the largest charge component.
CTT (Commodity Transaction Tax) — similar to STT but for commodity trades. Charged at 0.01% on the sell side for non-agricultural commodities.
Transaction Charges — fees charged by the exchange (NSE/BSE/MCX) for using their platform. Very small per trade but adds up on high volumes. NSE charges 0.00297% for equity, 0.0019% for futures, 0.035% for options, and MCX charges 0.0026% for commodities.
GST (Goods & Services Tax) — 18% charged on brokerage + transaction charges + SEBI fees + IPFT. It is a tax on the services, not on your trade value. GST is not charged on STT, stamp duty, or DP charges.
SEBI Charges — &rupee;10 per crore of turnover (0.0001%). Negligible on small trades but visible on large ones.
IPFT (Investor Protection Fund Trust) — &rupee;10 per crore of turnover (0.0001%). Charged by exchanges for investor protection. Same rate as SEBI charges.
Stamp Duty — charged on the buy side only. Rates vary by segment: 0.015% for delivery/ETF, 0.003% for intraday and options, 0.002% for futures and commodity.
DP Charges (Depository Participant) — charged only when you sell shares from your demat account (equity delivery and ETF sells). Approximately &rupee;15.93 per ISIN (CDSL fee &rupee;3.50 + broker handling fee). This is a flat fee regardless of quantity sold.

April 2026 STT Changes — Impact on Traders

The Indian government hiked STT rates effective April 2026, significantly impacting futures and options traders:

Futures STT: increased from 0.02% to 0.05% on the sell side — a 2.5x increase.
Options STT: increased from 0.1% to 0.15% on the sell-side premium — a 1.5x increase.

These changes have a direct impact on breakeven calculations. For example, a Nifty 50 futures trade that previously needed approximately 6 points to break even now requires around 13 points — more than double. For options traders, the higher STT makes scalping tighter premiums significantly harder, as the cost-per-trade has increased substantially.

The April 2026 STT hike means that every F&O trader needs to recalculate their breakeven points. Strategies that were marginally profitable before may now be unprofitable after charges. Use this calculator with your actual brokerage to see the updated numbers before placing trades.

Example — Equity Intraday Trade

Buy Price: &rupee;250 | Sell Price: &rupee;260 | Quantity: 100 shares | Brokerage: &rupee;20/order

Buy Turnover: &rupee;25,000 | Sell Turnover: &rupee;26,000 | Total Turnover: &rupee;51,000

Gross Profit: (&rupee;260 − &rupee;250) × 100 = &rupee;1,000

Brokerage: &rupee;20 (buy) + &rupee;20 (sell) = &rupee;40.00

STT: &rupee;26,000 × 0.025% = &rupee;6.50 (sell side only)

Exchange Transaction: &rupee;51,000 × 0.00297% = &rupee;1.51

SEBI Charges: &rupee;51,000 × 0.0001% = &rupee;0.05

IPFT: &rupee;51,000 × 0.0001% = &rupee;0.05

GST: 18% of (&rupee;40.00 + &rupee;1.51 + &rupee;0.05 + &rupee;0.05) = &rupee;7.49

Stamp Duty: &rupee;25,000 × 0.003% = &rupee;0.75

Total Charges: approximately &rupee;56.35

Net Profit: &rupee;1,000 − &rupee;56.35 = &rupee;943.65

In this case, charges eat ~5.6% of your gross profit. On tighter trades (&rupee;2–3 per share), charges can consume 20–30% or more of your profit.

How to Use This Calculator

Select the segment — Equity Delivery (CNC), Equity Intraday (MIS), Futures, Options, Commodity, or ETF. Charges vary significantly between segments.
Enter your brokerage — the calculator defaults to &rupee;0 for equity delivery and &rupee;20 for all other segments. Change this to match your broker's actual fee.
For Futures and Options — enter number of lots and lot size. The quantity is auto-calculated. For options, enter the premium prices (not the underlying stock price).
Enter buy and sell prices — enter the prices at which you bought (or plan to buy) and sold (or plan to sell).
Choose the exchange — NSE or BSE. This is for display reference; charges are calculated using NSE rates.
Click Calculate — see total charges, net P&L, points to breakeven, and a full itemised breakdown.

Why Knowing Your Charges Matters

Breakeven awareness — the calculator shows the exact number of points (per share/unit) needed to cover all charges. If your target move is close to or below this number, the trade may not be worth taking.
Scalping viability — if you scalp for &rupee;1–2 per share, charges can make the trade unprofitable. Know your charges-per-unit before choosing a strategy. After the April 2026 STT hike, this is even more critical for F&O scalpers.
Segment comparison — equity delivery has zero brokerage but higher STT (both sides). Options have low brokerage but high STT and transaction charges. Commodity has CTT instead of STT. Understanding these trade-offs helps you choose where to trade.
DP charges for delivery — if you hold shares and sell from demat, DP charges (&rupee;15.93 per ISIN) apply regardless of quantity. Selling 1 share or 1,000 shares incurs the same DP fee. This makes very small delivery sells proportionally expensive.
Accurate journaling — your P&L in a trading journal should always be net of charges. Gross P&L gives a misleading picture of your performance.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is STT so high on options? — STT on options is 0.15% (from April 2026) of the sell-side premium × quantity. On large option trades, this can be thousands of rupees. This is why many options traders close positions before expiry rather than letting them expire ITM (in-the-money), where STT is even higher.
Do charges apply per order or per trade? — Brokerage and DP charges are per executed order/ISIN. All other charges (STT, transaction charges, GST, SEBI, IPFT, stamp duty) are calculated on turnover (price × quantity).
Why is delivery brokerage zero? — Most discount brokers offer zero brokerage on equity delivery and ETF trades to attract long-term investors. They make revenue from other segments and subscription fees. You can change the brokerage input if your broker charges for delivery.
What are DP charges? — Depository Participant charges are a flat fee deducted when you sell shares from your demat account. They apply only to equity delivery and ETF sells. The fee is approximately &rupee;15.93 per ISIN (stock) sold, regardless of the number of shares.
Does this calculator work for commodity trades? — Yes. Select the "Commodity" tab for MCX commodity trades. Commodity trades have CTT (Commodity Transaction Tax) instead of STT, and MCX exchange transaction charges apply.
What about ETF trades? — ETF trades follow the same charge structure as equity delivery (including STT on both sides, DP charges on sell, and same stamp duty rates). Select the "ETF" tab to calculate.
Are these charges exact? — These are indicative based on published rates as of April 2026. Actual charges may vary slightly due to rounding, exchange updates, state-specific stamp duty rates, or broker-specific DP charges. Always verify with your broker's contract note.

Trading charges are a cost of doing business in the market. You cannot avoid them, but you can be aware of them. Before every trade, know your breakeven points, know how much charges will eat into your profit, and factor this into your risk-reward calculation. With the April 2026 STT hike, this awareness is more important than ever for F&O traders. The best traders treat charges as part of the trading plan — not as an afterthought.