A market order is the simplest trade there is: buy or sell right now at the best available price. You get speed and a near-certain fill — but you give up control over the exact price.
A market order tells your broker to buy or sell a stock immediately at the best price currently available. It is the default, fastest way to trade. Because it accepts whatever price the market offers, a market order is almost always filled right away.
The opposite of a market order is a limit order, which guarantees your price but not the fill. A market order flips that: it guarantees the fill but not the exact price. You'll generally pay around the ask when buying and receive around the bid when selling — the bid-ask spread is a built-in cost.
In fast-moving or thinly traded stocks, the price can change between the moment you click and the moment the order fills. The difference is called slippage, and a market order has no protection against it. On a volatile stock with a wide spread, slippage can cost more than you expect.
Market orders are ideal for large, liquid stocks with tight spreads, or any time getting the trade done now matters more than squeezing the last cent. If price precision matters — a thin stock, a volatile open — reach for a limit order instead.
Feel the speed: market orders are how you scalp fast. Practice instant in-and-out trading risk-free in the day trading simulator.
Not advice: educational content only. For authoritative basics see the SEC at investor.gov.
Related: what is a limit order, bid-ask spread, and market volatility.
A market order is an instruction to buy or sell a stock immediately at the best available price. It fills fast and almost always executes, but you don't control the exact price.
A market order guarantees the fill but not the price; a limit order guarantees the price but not the fill. Market orders favor speed, limit orders favor price control.
Slippage is the difference between the price you expected and the price you actually got, which happens when the market moves between your click and the fill — a risk on fast or thin stocks.
Use a market order on large, liquid stocks with tight spreads, or whenever getting the trade done immediately matters more than the exact price.