How to open a Groww account
Documents, online onboarding steps, time to activate, F&O activation, and the common reasons Groww KYC gets rejected — for the Groww demat and trading account.
What you’ll need
Keep these handy before starting — saves backtracking mid-flow.
- PAN card.
- Aadhaar with the mobile number linked (for OTP-based e-KYC).
- Bank cancelled cheque or recent statement showing name, account number and IFSC.
- Passport-size photo (front-facing, clear background).
- Signature on a blank white sheet of paper.
- Income proof (salary slip, ITR, or 6-month bank statement) — needed only if you want to activate F&O.
Groww account opening — step by step
Fully online for resident Indians with Aadhaar. No branch visit, no paperwork courier.
- 1Open groww.in and start the account-opening application.Enter your registered mobile and email — both will receive OTPs through the flow.
- 2Verify PAN, fetch Aadhaar via OTP and confirm your address.Groww pulls your address from the UIDAI Aadhaar record — make sure the Aadhaar address is current.
- 3Add bank details and upload the cancelled cheque or bank statement.Your name on the bank account must match the PAN exactly. Joint accounts and minor accounts have separate flows.
- 4Record the in-person verification (IPV) video and upload your signature.A short selfie video proves you’re a real person. Good lighting and a steady camera prevent retries.
- 5e-Sign the account-opening agreement using Aadhaar OTP.The e-sign is legally equivalent to a physical signature under the IT Act, 2000.
- 6Wait 1–3 working days for Groww and the depository (CDSL or NSDL) to activate the account.You’ll receive client ID, user ID and login credentials via email when it’s ready. After that, log in and start trading.
Activating F&O on Groww
Equity delivery and intraday work the moment your account is live. Futures & options trading needs a separate activation step — SEBI requires brokers to verify that F&O applicants can absorb the leverage. Groww asks for one of the following as income proof: latest salary slip, latest ITR acknowledgement, latest Form 16, six months of bank statements, or a holding statement showing existing investments. Upload via the F&O activation flow in your Groww profile; activation typically completes in 1–2 working days.
Things to watch with Groww
Broker-specific catches worth knowing before you start — the details that trip people up on Groww specifically.
- Demat is CDSL-only; investors needing an NSDL demat account must look elsewhere.
- F&O segment is not active by default and requires separate activation with income proof unless eligible for instant activation.
After your Groww account is open
Once activated, the natural first steps:
- Log in at Groww login and set up biometric / PIN for the app.
- Review the Groww charges so you know what every trade costs end-to-end.
- Use the Groww brokerage calculator to compute the all-in cost on a sample trade.
- Transfer funds from your linked bank via UPI for the fastest settlement.
Frequently asked
What people ask about opening a Groww account.
100% paperless online opening; activation typically within a few hours to a couple of days after KYC verification Aadhaar e-KYC, in-person video verification (IPV) and e-sign are done online; depository activation follows. If KYC verification fails or a document needs re-upload, allow an extra 1–2 days.
For a resident Indian Groww account: PAN card, Aadhaar (for KYC/address), Bank account details (bank statement or cancelled cheque), Photograph/signature, Income proof (only required for F&O/derivatives segment activation). F&O activation also needs income proof — a salary slip, ITR or a 6-month bank statement.
Account opening: Rs 0 (free demat and trading account opening). Demat AMC: Rs 0 (no demat annual maintenance charges). The recurring cost to watch is the demat AMC — see the Groww charges page for the full schedule.
Groww's account is a Standalone trading + demat account (not a bundled 3-in-1 bank account). A 3-in-1 account bundles a bank, trading and demat account so funds move automatically; a standalone account links to an external bank that you fund via UPI / net banking.
Activate F&O in-app via one of three routes: (1) instant activation if holdings exceed Rs 5,000 in stocks/MF; (2) auto-fetch a bank statement via OTP for an account with transactions over Rs 10,000 in the last 6 months; or (3) upload income proof - accepted documents include a bank statement (a transaction of Rs 5,000+ in last 6 months), latest 3 months' salary slips (gross monthly income above Rs 7,500), ITR acknowledgement (gross annual income over Rs 90,000), Form 16 (gross annual income over Rs 1,80,000), or a demat holdings statement above Rs 5,000.
Yes. The entire flow is digital for resident Indians with Aadhaar — you fill the application, capture a quick video for in-person verification, and e-sign the agreement via Aadhaar OTP. No paperwork or branch visit.
Common reasons: name mismatch between PAN and Aadhaar, blurry document photo, IPV video failing to capture face / surroundings clearly, signature mismatch, or Aadhaar mobile not being current. Groww flags the specific reason in the rejection notification; fix and resubmit.
Groww typically offers an NRI demat + trading account separately from the resident product, with heavier documentation (PIS letter, NRE / NRO bank link, passport, OCI / PIO card if applicable). Confirm NRI account availability and onboarding flow on the official Groww site.