Glossary
Ask price
The lowest price a seller is currently willing to accept for a security; buyers who want to trade immediately pay the ask.
On this page
The ask price, also called the offer, is the lowest price at which anyone is currently offering to sell a security. If you send a market order to buy, you will normally pay the ask. It is half of every stock quote, alongside the bid, and knowing it helps you see what a trade will actually cost before you place it.
How it works
Sellers post limit orders above the current market, and the lowest of these across all US exchanges forms the national best offer, part of the NBBO. The quote also shows an ask size, the number of shares available at that price, often displayed in round lots of 100.
The ask is a moving target. It changes whenever a seller adds, cancels or fills an order, which in an active stock can be many times a second.
Using it well
- A limit order to buy at or below the ask lets you cap what you pay; one placed above the ask will usually fill immediately at the best available offer.
- In thin markets, such as small stocks or extended hours, the ask can sit far above the bid. Paying it means accepting a wide spread.
- A displayed ask is not guaranteed. By the time your order arrives, the offer may have moved, and some orders fill at a better price than the quote, which brokers report as price improvement.