A market, or "at best" order is an order to buy or sell a quantity of securities at the best price currently available in the market.
Not specifying a maximum or minimum price may seem risky, but most trading systems have safeguards to protect investors against unreasonable or unexpected prices.
- Investors can find out what the current market price is before placing an order.
- Some trading systems will only trade market orders within certain limits relative to either existing limit orders or the last traded price.
Market orders are the order type most often used by private investors in the UK. They almost always have a chance to confirm the price before the order executes. Depending on the security and circumstances these orders may match against another order, or a market maker's quote.