Skip to main content

Extended Hours Trading

In short

Pre-market and after-hours trading sessions — lower liquidity, wider spreads

Extended hours lets you trade before and after the regular session. But there are far fewer buyers and sellers, so prices can swing wildly. Limit orders only — market orders are typically not allowed in extended hours.

Extended hours trading (4:00–9:30 AM and 4:00–8:00 PM ET) offers flexibility but comes with risks: thin liquidity, wider bid-ask spreads, and larger price gaps. Only limit orders are accepted. News-driven moves in extended hours may reverse during regular hours.

Related concepts

  • Market Hours — US stock markets are open Monday–Friday, 9:30 AM – 4:00 PM ET. There's also pre-market (4 AM – 9:30 AM) and after-hours (4 PM – 8 PM) trading, but with much less volume and wider spreads.
  • Bid-Ask Spread — The bid is what buyers will pay; the ask is what sellers want. If the bid is $99.95 and the ask is $100.05, the spread is $0.10. Every time you trade, you pay this spread as a hidden transaction cost.
  • Limit Order — A limit order says 'buy this stock, but only if the price drops to $50 or less.' You control the price but risk not getting filled if the stock never hits your target.
  • Slippage — You see a stock at $50 and hit buy. By the time your order fills, it's $50.08. That $0.08 is slippage — the price moved between when you decided to buy and when the order actually filled.