Disclosed Quantity Meaning and Worked Example

Disclosed quantity (DQ) is the part of an order shown publicly in market depth. The total order can be larger. After the displayed portion trades, another portion is released under the order’s conditions. DQ changes visibility; it does not reduce your requested quantity, make an order anonymous to the exchange or guarantee full execution. Availability and minimums depend on the exchange, segment and broker.

Total, disclosed and traded quantity are different

• Total quantity: everything you asked to buy or sell.
• Disclosed quantity: the amount you choose to display at a time.
• Executed quantity: the amount that has actually traded.
• Remaining quantity: the part of the original request still unfilled.

Your own order screen can show the full request while public market depth shows a smaller amount from it. Other orders at the same price may be added into the same displayed price level, so you cannot identify your order simply by looking for that exact total.

NSE describes DQ as a quantity condition and says another portion is released after the displayed amount trades. The exchange can set minimum disclosure criteria. This condition is separate from the order’s price and validity settings.

Should you leave disclosed quantity at 0?

On most broker order tickets the disclosed quantity box is optional. Leaving it blank or at 0 means you are not using the condition, so the whole order is open to the market. For an ordinary retail order of a few shares or one or two lots, that is normal and nothing is wrong with it.

The field matters only when your order is large compared with what is usually shown at that price. If you are not sure why you would hide part of an order, leave the field empty. Some brokers show 0 as the default, others leave it blank. Check your own ticket, because the display differs from broker to broker.

Worked example: a visible slice of a larger order

Assume a fictional cash-equity buy order for 1,250 shares at a limit of ₹240 per share, with DQ 250 shares. The disclosed amount is 20% of the order. These quantities and price are examples, not an instruction to buy any security.

The rows reconcile the remaining quantity. After 350 shares have traded, 900 remain: 150 still displayed from the current portion and 750 not yet displayed. A partially traded portion does not mean another full disclosed portion has already been completed.

If the entire example order trades at ₹240, its purchase value is ₹300,000 before charges. The initial visible portion represents only ₹60,000. Funding and exposure depend on the full order and actual trading conditions, rather than only the amount publicly shown.

Fixing the error: disclosed quantity is greater than original quantity

Zerodha's help lists this rejection as error 16324. It happens when the disclosed quantity you typed is higher than the total quantity of the order. The disclosed part is a slice of the order, so it can never be bigger than the whole.

Example (made up): you place an equity order for 400 shares and type a disclosed quantity of 500 by mistake. The order is rejected. Change the disclosed quantity to a number between the broker's minimum and 400 and send it again. For equity, with the 10% minimum shown below, 10% of 400 is 40 shares, so a disclosed quantity from 40 up to 400 passes this particular check. As seen earlier on this page, equal to the full quantity means no partial disclosure.

• Check that the disclosed box did not pick up the price or a lot count by mistake.
• Check that you did not change the total quantity after typing the disclosed amount.
• Use a disclosed quantity at or above your broker's minimum percentage.
• Zerodha's help also says the field is not allowed in the pre-open session (9:00 am to 9:07 am) and such orders are rejected.

Minimum disclosure is segment-specific

As checked 16 October 2026, Zerodha’s published help gives these minimums for its supported disclosed-quantity orders. Treat this as attributed broker guidance, then confirm the current order ticket and exchange conditions.

For the fictional 1,250-share equity order, 10% is 125 shares. Its chosen DQ 250 is above that cited minimum. This arithmetic does not establish that the same amount is valid for a commodity or lot-based contract.

FYERS says disclosure cannot exceed total quantity and must follow applicable exchange requirements. Where a contract trades in lots, the entered amount must respect the valid lot multiple. A fractional arithmetic result is not automatically a permitted order quantity.

Can you use DQ in F&O or with market orders?

It depends on the broker and the segment. In the table above, Zerodha says disclosed quantity is not supported for NSE and BSE F&O and points to its Iceberg facility instead. Other brokers can differ, so the order ticket is the final word.

Market orders have no price limit, so there is little reason to hide a market order's size, and your ticket may not allow the field for them. If you want to control the price as well as the visible quantity, a limit order is the usual combination. Read the market versus limit orders guide and the limit order entry for that trade-off.

For derivatives, large orders are also constrained by the exchange's freeze quantity. That is a separate rule that splits or rejects very large orders. It is not the same as disclosed quantity.

Where the field appears in documented broker flows

Zerodha’s help says to click More in the order window and enter Disclosed qty. FYERS’s App and Web help places it under Advanced, after entering the required product, order type and total quantity. These are documented routes as checked, rather than a claim that every broker uses the same screen.

Confirm support for the exact segment, product, order type and session. A hidden or disabled field is a reason to check the provider’s conditions. Changing a market order to a limit without understanding the price-control effect is not a universal fix.

The market-versus-limit guide explains that trade-off. DQ controls how much quantity is displayed, while a price condition controls what prices the order can accept.

Why a DQ order can remain partly unfilled

The undisplayed balance does not create additional opposite-side buyers or sellers. If suitable orders are unavailable, some of your request can remain pending. Check the actual executed and remaining quantities rather than assuming that every automatic release will finish.

NSE’s general matching rules prioritise price and then time at the same price. Do not infer a special execution advantage merely from choosing DQ. To find where each newly displayed portion sits in the queue, check the exact exchange rules and broker’s order process.

For the difference between waiting interest and completed transactions, see the order-book explanation. A displayed quantity is a current view of available orders, not a reservation of liquidity for your next trade.

Does DQ change your brokerage?

Disclosed quantity is a condition on a single order. Your order can still trade in several pieces, and the contract note normally shows each execution. How a broker charges for those pieces is set by its own tariff page, so read it for your account. Check whether your broker charges per order or per execution. As noted below, Zerodha's separate Iceberg facility treats each executed leg as an order for brokerage, so it differs from plain DQ.

The statutory charges such as securities transaction tax (STT) and exchange fees are applied on the traded value, so they add up to the same total whether the order trades in one piece or ten. See securities transaction tax for how that tax works.

Who actually benefits from DQ

DQ is mainly for traders sending an order that is big relative to what is usually visible at a price, for example a large block in a thinly traded stock. Showing the whole size can attract other traders who change their behaviour when they see it. Showing a slice may reduce that signal, although it cannot guarantee any better price.

A typical retail trader buying a few lots or a small number of shares in a liquid stock does not need it. Showing the full order costs nothing extra, and a smaller visible quantity can make the order harder to follow. See iceberg order and order book for related ideas.

Disclosed quantity versus a broker Iceberg

A DQ condition belongs to an order sent to the exchange. Zerodha’s Iceberg facility instead divides a request into separate orders called legs and sends later legs after earlier ones complete. The broker’s documentation treats each executed leg as a separate order for brokerage.

That distinction matters when comparing costs and tracking outstanding instructions. The name iceberg can also be used more generally for partially displayed orders, so read the provider’s actual workflow. Do not assume two similarly named features have identical segment support or charges.

DQ does not turn the order’s remaining quantity into a separate portfolio position. Actual executions create the position. Keep the broker’s execution list when reconciling price, quantity and charges, especially if only part of the original request traded.

A short check before submitting

• Read the total requested quantity and the disclosed amount separately.
• Check the applicable minimum and any valid quantity multiple.
• Confirm the price and validity conditions alongside DQ.
• Check current funds or margin using the full request.
• After execution, reconcile completed and remaining quantities.
• If changing or cancelling, check the confirmed result rather than assuming the request succeeded.

Disclosed-quantity questions

Sources

• NSE: disclosed quantity and order conditions (checked 16 October 2026).
• Zerodha: supported segments and minimums; rejection conditions (opened 16 October 2026).
• FYERS: entry steps and valid quantities (opened 16 October 2026).
• Zerodha: separate Iceberg legs (opened 16 October 2026).