Why do stock charts sometimes show delayed prices?

Most free or default charting feeds in trading apps use delayed data, commonly delayed by around 1 to 5 minutes for equity, sourced through a data vendor rather than a direct real-time exchange feed, which brokers use partly because real-time market data licensing from NSE and BSE carries additional cost that not every plan passes on to the user by default. This delay can create a visible gap between what the chart shows and the actual live traded price seen on the order execution screen, which usually does pull real-time data since that’s essential for accurate order placement. Some brokers offer a real-time or near-real-time charting upgrade, either built into a higher-tier plan or as an add-on, specifically for traders who need live technical analysis rather than delayed price action. You check whether the specific chart you’re using is labeled as real-time or delayed before making short-term trading decisions based purely on what you see on that chart, since a delayed chart during a fast-moving market can be meaningfully out of sync with the actual live price.