Market, Limit, Stop Orders: A Complete Guide to Order Types

Placing an order isn't just "buy/sell." Choosing the right order type helps you control your fill price, auto-stop losses, and avoid getting wicked out.

1. Market order Fills immediately at the best available price. Pro: guaranteed fill. Con: price not controllable, urgent orders may eat slippage. Use when: you must enter/exit immediately.

2. Limit order Posts at a specified price, fills only when reached. Pro: controlled price, lower (maker) fee. Con: may not fill. Use when: not urgent, want a better price.

3. Stop / Stop-Loss order Triggers automatically when price hits a set level (usually becomes a market sell). Purpose: loss protection — auto-exit below a price to avoid being trapped deep.

4. Take-Profit order Auto-sells at a target price to lock in gains. Paired with stop-loss, forms basic risk management.

5. Stop-Limit order After triggering, posts a limit order instead of market, avoiding extreme slippage. Con: in violent moves it may not fill if price gaps through.

Beginners: master these two first

• Limit orders: the workhorse of daily trading — saves fees and controls price.
• Stop orders: set one on any position. It's the baseline of discipline.

A common trap Don't set stops too close to current price — crypto is volatile, and too-tight stops get "swept" out by normal swings. Set them using the "Liquidation Calculator" and volatility.

For reference only. Not financial advice.

See also Reading the Order Book & Depth: Where Slippage Comes From, Five Iron Rules of Risk Management: Survive to Win, position size calculator