Kite widget on Android
The Kite Android home-screen widget renders a configurable strip of live marketwatch quotes directly on the Android home screen. It is a glanceable read-only view, not an order-placement surface. iOS has a similar but more limited iOS widget; this article covers the Android implementation.
What the widget shows
- Scrip row: Up to 4-6 rows visible per widget instance, depending on size.
- LTP: Live last-traded price.
- Change: Day’s change in absolute and percentage.
- Last refresh time: Timestamp of the last data pull.
Widget sizes available
| Size | Rows visible | Best placement |
|---|---|---|
| 1x2 | 1-2 | Corner of home screen |
| 2x2 | 2-3 | Standard widget slot |
| 4x2 | 3-4 | Full-width strip |
| 4x4 | 5-6 | Dedicated widget screen |
Some launchers (Nova, Samsung One UI) allow resizing within the size grid.
Adding the widget
- Long-press an empty area of the Android home screen.
- Tap Widgets.
- Scroll to Kite by Zerodha.
- Drag the desired size to the home screen.
- Configuration screen opens: pick a watchlist tab and the scrips to show.
Configuration
The widget pulls scrips from one of your existing Kite marketwatch tabs. To change which scrips appear:
- Long-press the widget.
- Tap Configure (or Reconfigure on some launchers).
- Pick a different watchlist tab from the dropdown.
Currently, the widget is bound to a watchlist tab, not to an ad-hoc scrip selection. If you want a custom subset, create a dedicated watchlist tab for the widget.
Refresh frequency
The Kite widget refreshes its LTP feed every 10-15 seconds during market hours. Outside market hours, the widget shows the previous day’s close until the next market open.
The refresh is a deliberate trade-off: shorter intervals would drain battery; longer intervals would defeat the purpose. Some Android battery optimisation profiles can throttle the widget further. To prevent this:
- Settings > Apps > Kite.
- Battery > Unrestricted.
Limitations vs the full app
| Feature | Widget | Full app |
|---|---|---|
| LTP / change | Yes | Yes |
| Order placement | No | Yes |
| Market depth | No | Yes |
| Charts | No | Yes |
| Alerts | No (but they fire in the app) | Yes |
| Login required | Background session | Active session |
The widget shares the Kite app’s login state. If you are logged out of the app, the widget shows a “Please log in” placeholder.
iOS
iOS does not currently have a feature-parity Kite widget. The iOS Today view shows a limited summary; for full functionality, open the Kite app. Apple’s WidgetKit framework places stricter limits on refresh frequency than Android, which is partly why iOS widgets across financial apps are typically less dynamic.
Security note
The widget displays LTP and change on the home screen without unlocking the device (depending on Android lock-screen settings). If you do not want your watchlist visible on the lock screen, configure Android to hide widgets when locked.
See also
- How to update the Kite app for new marketwatch features
- How to use the marketwatch on Kite
- How to add scrips to the Kite marketwatch
- How to create multiple marketwatch in Kite
- How to rename a watchlist on the Kite app
- How to save marketwatch settings
- How to pin a stock or index to the top of the marketwatch
- Redesigned marketwatch on Kite web
- Briefcase symbol on Kite
- Day’s change in absolute and percentage
- LTP difference marketwatch vs chart
- Market depth view on Kite
- Kite Alerts
- Kite (Zerodha)
- Kite web
- Kite mobile app
- Zerodha
- How to add F&O contracts to the marketwatch
- How to add Nifty / BankNifty options to the marketwatch
- How to add indices to the Kite marketwatch
- How to add MCX F&O to the marketwatch
- How to add BSE F&O contracts to the marketwatch
- Kite Holdings tab explained
- Kite Positions tab explained
- Sticky order window on Kite
External references
References
- Zerodha Support, Kite Android widget, support.zerodha.com.
- Zerodha Support, Kite mobile app release notes, support.zerodha.com.