Limit vs. market order: what's the difference

When you buy or sell crypto on an exchange, you're usually choosing between two basic order types: a market order and a limit order. The difference between them determines exactly what price your trade fills at, and how quickly.

Market Orders

A market order executes immediately at the best price currently available in the order book. The main advantage is guaranteed, fast execution; the main downside is you don't control the exact fill price, especially on low-liquidity pairs, where the price can noticeably slip from what you expected as the order fills across multiple levels of the book.

Limit Orders

A limit order only executes at the price you specify or better — meaning you fully control the price you're willing to buy or sell at. The trade-off for that control is no guarantee of execution: if the asset's price never reaches your level, the order simply stays unfilled, partially or entirely.

When to Use Each

• A market order makes sense when execution speed matters more than an exact price — for example, closing a position quickly during a sharp market move
• A limit order makes sense when you have a specific target price and are willing to wait for it, rather than overpaying for immediate execution

What This Means in Practice

On volatile or low-liquidity pairs, the difference between the two order types becomes especially visible: a market order risks filling at an unexpectedly unfavorable price — an effect called slippage — while a limit order is protected from that risk but may fill later than expected, or not at all.