Zerodha Product Types Explained

Published on Monday, June 21, 2021 by Chittorgarh.com Team | Modified on Wednesday, June 3, 2026

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When placing a trade on Zerodha’s Kite platform, you must select a product type to indicate whether your trade is for intraday, delivery, or overnight positions. The product type determines how your trade is handled and what margin or leverage you receive. Here is the Zerodha product list


1. CNC (Cash and Carry) – For Delivery Trading

CNC (Cash and Carry) is Zerodha's product type for equity delivery trades. It is used when you intend to buy shares and hold them beyond the trading day, making it suitable for long-term investors.

Key Features:

  • Available only for equity delivery trades.
  • Shares purchased under CNC are credited to your demat account.
  • No intraday leverage is provided; the full trade value must be paid upfront.
  • BTST (Buy Today, Sell Tomorrow) is allowed using T1 holdings.
  • Positions are not auto squared off and can be held for as long as required.
  • Cover Orders (CO) are not available under CNC.

Charges:

  • ₹0 brokerage on equity delivery trades.
  • If a CNC position is bought and sold on the same day, it is treated as an intraday trade and brokerage of ₹20 or 0.03% per executed order (whichever is lower) applies.

Example:
If you buy 100 shares of a company using CNC and hold them beyond the trading day, the shares will be credited to your demat account, and no brokerage will be charged on the transaction.


2. MIS (Margin Intraday Square-Off) – For Intraday Trading

MIS (Margin Intraday Square-Off) is Zerodha's product type for intraday trading. It is designed for traders who intend to open and close positions within the same trading day.

Key Features:

  • Available for intraday trading in Equity, F&O, Currency Futures, and Commodity Futures.
  • Positions must be squared off on the same trading day.
  • Open MIS positions are automatically squared off by Zerodha if not closed before the prescribed cut-off time.
  • Intraday margin benefits may be available depending on the segment and prevailing market conditions.
  • Zerodha may reduce or remove intraday leverage during periods of high market volatility.

Margin Requirements

Segment Margin Requirement
Equity   20% of trade value (up to 5x leverage, subject to stock-specific margins)
Index F&O   100% of NRML Margin (SPAN + Exposure)
Stock F&O   100% of NRML Margin (SPAN + Exposure)
Currency Futures   100% of NRML Margin (SPAN + Exposure)
Commodity Futures   100% of NRML Margin (SPAN + Exposure)

Auto Square-Off Timings

Segment Auto Square-Off Time
Equity/Cash  3:25 PM
Equity & Index Derivatives (F&O)  3:26 PM
Commodities  10 minutes before market close

Important

  • Zerodha charges ₹50 + 18% GST per order for positions that are auto squared off by its risk management system.
  • No fresh MIS or Cover Orders (CO) can be placed after the auto square-off time.
  • Auto square-off timings and leverage may be changed by Zerodha based on market conditions.

Charges

Brokerage is ₹20 or 0.03% per executed order, whichever is lower.

Example

Suppose you buy shares worth ₹1,00,000 using MIS and square off the position before the market closes. The trade is treated as an intraday transaction.

If you fail to close the position before the cut-off time, Zerodha may auto square off the position and charge an auto square-off fee.


3. NRML (Normal) – For Overnight Trades in F&O & Currency

NRML is used to take overnight or positional trades in the Futures & Options and Currency segments.

Key Features:

  • No auto-square-off; positions remain open until you close them or they expire.
  • No leverage is offered.
  • Ideal for holding F&O positions overnight.

Charges:

Same as applicable F&O or Currency segment charges.


Summary Table

Product Code Segment Leverage Auto Square-Off Use Case
CNC Equity (Delivery) No No Long-term investing
MIS Equity, F&O, Commodity Yes Yes Intraday trading
NRML F&O, Currency No No Overnight positions

Conclusion

Selecting the right Zerodha product types ensures better trade management and cost efficiency. The Zerodha product CNC is perfect for investors looking to hold stocks long-term without leverage or additional charges. For active intraday traders, MIS offers leverage with auto square-off, while NRML supports overnight positions in F&O. Use each product wisely based on your trading goals.


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Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, Zerodha allows product conversion for eligible positions, subject to segment-specific rules and timing restrictions.

 

No, NRML is available only for Futures & Options and currency trading. Equity delivery trades must be placed using CNC.

 

For beginners interested in investing, CNC is generally the most suitable product type as it involves delivery-based investing without leverage or auto square-off risks.

 

Yes, Zerodha allows BTST (Buy Today, Sell Tomorrow) transactions using T1 holdings under the CNC product type.

 

Yes, eligible MIS positions in the equity segment can be converted to CNC before the market closes, subject to sufficient funds and exchange rules.

 

Zerodha charges ₹0 brokerage on equity delivery trades under CNC. However, if the position is squared off on the same day, intraday brokerage charges apply.

 

No, MIS positions are meant only for intraday trading and cannot be carried overnight.

 

The product type in Zerodha decides the extent of leverage offered to you for trading.

There are three product types available in Zerodha:

  1. Cash and Carry (CNC)

    CNC product type is used for equity delivery trading (trade to take the delivery of shares in demat account or sale shares from your demat holdings). There is no leverage offered for CNC trades. The CNC trade is offered brokerage-free at Zerodha.

  2. Margin Intraday Square-off (MIS)

    MIS product type is used for intraday trading. Trades get auto-squared if positions are not squared off within stipulated timelines. Decent leverage facility offered.

  3. Normal (NRML)

    NRML product type is used to take overnight position in F&O. There is no leverage offered for NRML product type at Zerodha.

 

A Normal order in Zerodha refers to an order placed using the NRML product code.

The NRML product code is used for overnight trading of Futures & options and Currency. You do not get any leverage for trading using the NRML product code.

 

You can place a sell MIS order in Zerodha even when you do not have stock in your Demat account. However, you need to ensure to square off the position within the stipulated timeline.

If you have placed an MIS buy order first, you need to sell your MIS order in Zerodha within the timelines stated below. If you do not square off your MIS open position within the stated timelines, Zerodha auto squares off the open positions and charges Rs.50 per position squared off.

MIS order in Zerodha timings

Segment

Auto Square-off Timings

Equity

3:20 PM

F&O

3:25 PM

Currency Derivatives

4:45 PM

Commodity

25 minutes before market close

 

NRML in Zerodha stands for NORMAL orders. NRML is a product code used for overnight trading of Futures & options and Currency.

When you use the NRML product type, you do not get any excess leverage for trading. The trades with NRML code do not get auto-squared off unlike, the Intraday orders.

NRML is very similar to CNC. CNC is for delivery-based trading of Equity whereas, NRML is for delivery-based trading of futures and options and currency.

 

No, you cannot short sell using the CNC product code in Zerodha unless you hold the shares in your Demat account.

CNC refers to Cash and Carry used for Equity delivery-based trading. Zerodha does not offer STBT (Sell Today Buy Tomorrow). Thus, if you place a sell order in Zerodha using CNC code without holding the shares in your Demat account, the order gets rejected.

You can short sell using MIS (Margin Intraday square off) product code without holding stock in the Demat account. The MIS code triggers auto square-off by the system if you do not close the intraday position yourself within stipulated timelines. However, when you use the CNC code, the system does not trigger auto-square off and thus you cannot place a sell order first without actually holding the stock.

 

MIS is an abbreviation for Margin Intraday Square off. It is a product type used for trading Intraday orders in Equity, F&O, and Commodity. The MIS orders get squared-off automatically by the system at the end of the day if the investors do not square off the positions by the stipulated time. Zerodha charges an additional Rs 50 per executed order over and above the brokerage (Rs 20 or 0.03% whichever is lower) for intra-day positions squared-off by the system.

Using the MIS product code, you get attractive intraday leverage facilities across all products except for buying Options.

Zerodha allows its customers to convert MIS positions to CNC/NRML provided they have sufficient margins and holdings (in case of sell) in their accounts.


Zerodha Kite MIS Order

 

CNC is an abbreviation for Cash and Carry. It is an order type used for delivery-based orders. If you want to buy a stock and want to hold it for more than two days, then you need to use the CNC order type. Zerodha offers brokerage free delivery trading that means all CNC orders are free of brokerage.

It is important to note that CNC is a product code. CNC code does not restrict you from selling the stock the same day if desired. But the sell quantity cannot be more than the buy quantity. There is no penalty if you sell the shares on the same day. However, in such cases, these trades will be treated as Intraday trades, and brokerage applicable for Equity Intraday trades will get applied.

Using CNC product code, you do not get any leverage nor, your position gets auto squared off. You cannot sell using the product code CNC without holding the particular stock in your DEMAT account unless you buy and sell the same day.


Zerodha Kite CNC Order

 

You can put a sell MIS order in Zerodha using any order types like a limit order, market order, or stop-loss order. You can also place a cover order for a sell MIS order.

To place a sell MIS order in Zerodha, you need to select the product type as MIS while placing the order. The trade parameters will vary based on the order type chosen.

 

The intraday trading in Zerodha is restricted on certain stocks due to regulatory or risk management reasons.

The MIS orders on some scrips are blocked in Zerodha on account of the below reasons:

  1. Trade to Trade stocks.
  2. Stocks under Additional Surveillance measures (ASM)
  3. Stocks under Graded Surveillance Measures (GSM)
  4. Highly illiquid stocks
  5. Stocks with lower price bands

Zerodha maintains a consolidated list of stocks that are allowed for MIS on their website under Downloads & Resources.

If you place an order for the scrip that is not on the list, the system pops up an error as 'MIS orders are currently blocked for XXXXX'. You are required to place CNC orders for such stocks.

 

If you choose to place a cover order in Zerodha, you will not see the CNC option in Kite web, as the cover orders are allowed only for intraday trading.

In the Kite mobile app, the CNC option gets blocked while placing cover orders.

 

You can convert MIS positions in F&O and Currency to Normal if you have sufficient margins in your account.

Steps to convert MIS order to Normal in Zerodha

  1. Login to Zerodha Kite.
  2. Go to the positions tab
  3. Click the contract you want to convert.
  4. Click on the three-dotted lines to open the Options menu.
  5. Click on Convert.
  6. Input the quantity.
  7. Click on Convert.

convert MIS order to normal in Zerodha

 

The validity of a CNC order in Zerodha depends on the validity order type chosen while placing the order.

If you have placed a CNC order using Day order, the order remains valid till it gets executed or till the end of the trading day whichever is earlier.

If you have placed a CNC order using an IOC order, the order gets immediately cancelled if not executed. IOC orders are generally used to place the order in bulk quantities.

 

You should use CNC (Cash and Carry) for delivery trading, as it allows you to hold shares in your demat account without any auto square-off.

 

MIS (Margin Intraday Square-Off) is designed for intraday trading. Positions must be closed on the same trading day, failing which they may be auto squared off by Zerodha.

 

CNC is used for delivery-based equity investments, MIS is used for intraday trading, and NRML is used for carrying F&O and currency positions overnight.

 

If an MIS position is not closed before the prescribed cut-off time, Zerodha may automatically square off the position and charge an auto square-off fee.

 

Zerodha charges ₹50 plus 18% GST per order for positions that are auto squared off by its risk management system.

 

No, CNC trades do not offer leverage. Investors must pay the full value of the transaction.

 

Yes, CNC positions can be converted to MIS on the same trading day before the applicable cut-off time, provided the stock is eligible for intraday trading.

 

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