Trading made simple: How to trade stocks and ETFs

An order provides direction on how you want your trade executed.

Different order types can affect the time and price at which you might buy or sell. Which order type to choose will generally be determined by your investing strategy and goals for the trade. When entering your trade, you will be prompted to specify the type of order you would like to make.

A market order is the quickest way to place a trade by executing at the next available price when the market is opened. Market orders put priority on execution, but do not guarantee price.

A limit order sets the maximum price at which you’re willing to buy or the minimum price at which you’re willing to sell. Limit orders target price, but do not guarantee execution.

Time in force (also known as order duration) is how long you'd like an order to stay open before it is executed or it expires. These are several types of time-in-force orders: day orders, fill or kill (FOK), immediate or cancel (IOC), and good 'til canceled (GTC).

A day order is an order that cancels the trade if it is not executed by the close of the trading day.

A good 'til canceled order is a time-in-force limitation that can be placed on a stock or ETF order and defaults to an order expiration date of 180 calendar days from the order entry date at 4:00 p.m. ET. You may select your own order expiration date and/or time, up to 180 calendar days from the order entry date. If all or part of your order is not executed by the date and/or time you've selected for expiration, any open portions of your order will be canceled.

After a trade is placed you will generally own the stock, exchange-traded fund, or option in 1 or 2 business days, depending on the security traded. If selling a security, you will also receive your money within 1 or 2 business days.

The settlement date is when your trade is completed and the money for the trade is actually debited or credited to your account.

On the settlement date securities that you bought, or any cash that you got if you sold securities, is all yours and will appear in your account for you to hold onto or initiate a new trade.

Settlement dates vary depending on the investment. Stock and ETF trades settle 2 business days after the trade date, also described as T+2. Options settle 1 business day after the trade date, T+1. For example, if you place an order to buy a call option that is executed on Tuesday, you will see your account debited to pay for the transaction or credited from the proceeds of a sell on Wednesday.

The trade settlement date is important because it is the date when you actually own the stock or exchange-traded fund you've bought, or if you've sold a security, it's the date when you can expect to access the cash from the sale.

To help avoid trading violations, it's important to understand and pay attention to settlement dates so you aren't attempting to use unavailable funds to cover a purchase. Of specific concern are day trading violations where you attempt to buy and sell in the same day, before a trade is settled.

Learn more about avoiding cash account trading violations and margin requirements for day traders.

Yes, orders in the premarket session can be entered and executed between 7:00 a.m. and 9:28 a.m. ET, and orders in the after-hours session can be entered and executed between 4:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. ET. However, your order may be executed in whole or in part, or you may not receive as favorable a price as when the market is open because of the lack of liquidity in extended hours-trading.