June 12, 2026: Intraday trading means buying and selling the same stock within a single trading day, closing every position before the 3:30 PM bell so you never hold overnight. intraday trading for beginners India is fast profit and leverage. 

Author: Aditya Pareek | EQMint 

The reality, according to SEBI’s own data, is that 7 out of 10 individual intraday traders in the equity cash segment lost money in FY23, and in the far riskier F&O segment, over 91% of individual traders lost money in FY25. 

So before any beginner starts, the honest fact is this: the odds are stacked hard against you, and most people who try this lose.

This piece won’t sell you a course or a strategy. It lays out what intraday trading actually is, what the regulator’s numbers show and what a beginner should weigh before risking a rupee.

Read it as the case the hype channels never make.

What is intraday trading for beginners India?

In intraday trading, you open and close a position the same day. Buy a stock at 10 AM, sell it by 2 PM, square off before the market closes. You never take delivery of the shares into your demat account.

The draw is twofold. Brokers offer leverage, so you can control a larger position than your cash alone would allow, which magnifies both gains and losses. And you aim to profit from small price moves within the day rather than waiting months for a stock to appreciate.

That’s also where the danger sits. Leverage cuts both ways, and small moves can wipe out a leveraged position fast. Intraday is closer to a high-skill, high-speed profession than to investing.

What SEBI’s data actually shows

Here are the regulator’s own findings, not opinion. SEBI studies the real trading records of millions of investors, so this is the most reliable picture available.

SEBI finding	The number
Intraday equity traders who lost money (FY23)	Over 70%
Average intraday loss per trader (FY23)	About 5,371
Young intraday traders (under 30) who lost	76%, higher than average
F&O individual traders who lost money (FY25)	Over 91%
Total F&O net losses (FY25)	About 1.05 lakh crore

Two patterns stand out. First, loss-makers traded more often than profit-makers, which means activity did not equal skill. Second, on top of their trading losses, intraday loss-makers spent an additional 57% of those losses on brokerage and transaction costs. The costs alone are a heavy drag.

The youth figure is the one that should give a beginner pause. Younger traders, the exact group most targeted by trading influencers, lost at a higher rate than the overall pool.

Why most intraday traders lose

The losses aren’t bad luck. They come from structural reasons that stack against the retail beginner.

Costs eat you alive. Every trade pays brokerage, STT, exchange fees, stamp duty and GST. Trade often, as intraday demands, and these compound into a wall you must clear before you even break even.

Leverage amplifies mistakes. The leverage that promises bigger gains delivers bigger losses just as easily. A small adverse move on a leveraged position can erase your capital in minutes.

You’re competing with machines. A large share of profits in these segments goes to proprietary firms and foreign investors running algorithms. SEBI found the bulk of F&O profits accrued to a small set of algorithmic and institutional players. A beginner with a phone app is on the other side of those trades.

Emotion beats discipline. Fear and greed drive overtrading, revenge trading after a loss and abandoning stop-losses. The data showing loss-makers trade more captures exactly this.

If you still want to try, the honest rules

Some people will try regardless. If that’s you, treat it as a high-risk skill to learn slowly, not a shortcut to wealth. These rules won’t guarantee profit, nothing can, but they reduce the odds of a quick blow-up.

Risk only money you can fully afford to lose, never borrowed funds, emergency savings or money meant for goals. Start tiny, with amounts where the lesson costs little. Use a strict stop-loss on every single trade and respect it without exception. Cap your daily loss and walk away when you hit it. Keep a trading journal so you measure yourself against real results, not memory. And budget months to years of learning before expecting consistency, if it comes at all.

The honest framing. Intraday is a profession that a small minority do well, not a side hustle that reliably pays. Approach it as you would any skill with a 70% failure rate, with caution and humility.

A better path for most beginners

Take a clear position to close, because the data earns it. For the overwhelming majority of people, long-term investing beats intraday trading, and it isn’t close.

Buying quality companies or index funds and holding for years sidesteps every structural disadvantage above. No leverage to wipe you out, far lower costs because you trade rarely, no contest against algorithms on a millisecond timeframe and time working for you through compounding rather than against you through fees.

The market rewards patience far more reliably than speed. A beginner who puts the same energy into understanding businesses and holding them, that they’d spend chasing intraday moves, ends up in a structurally better position. That’s not caution for its own sake. It’s what the numbers point to.

FAQ

What is intraday trading?

Buying and selling the same stock within a single trading day, closing all positions before the market shuts at 3:30 PM so nothing is held overnight. It often uses leverage to magnify positions.

Do most intraday traders make money?

No. SEBI data shows over 70% of individual intraday traders in the equity cash segment lost money in FY23, and over 91% of individual F&O traders lost money in FY25.

How much do intraday traders lose on average?

SEBI found the average intraday loss was about 5,371 in FY23. On top of that, loss-makers spent an additional 57% of their losses on trading costs.

Is intraday trading good for beginners?

For most beginners, no. The odds are heavily against retail traders due to costs, leverage and competition from algorithmic players. Long-term investing suits beginners far better.

Why do most intraday traders lose money?

High trading costs, leverage that amplifies losses, competition against institutional algorithms and emotional decisions like overtrading and revenge trading all work against the retail beginner.

How much money do I need for intraday trading?

Only risk money you can fully afford to lose, never borrowed funds or savings meant for goals. Beginners should start with very small amounts where mistakes cost little.

Is intraday trading better than long-term investing?

For most people, no. Long-term investing avoids leverage risk, keeps costs low and lets compounding work in your favour, which the data shows is a structurally stronger path than intraday trading.

What is a stop-loss in intraday trading?

An order that automatically closes your position if the price moves against you by a set amount, capping your loss on a trade. Using one on every trade is a basic discipline for anyone attempting intraday.

EQMint is not a SEBI registered investment adviser. This article is for informational purposes only and is not investment advice. Intraday trading and derivatives carry a high risk of loss, as SEBI data shows, so consult a SEBI-registered financial adviser before trading.

For more such information visit EQMint

Join our Whatsapp channel for timely updates: Whatsapp