Been trading for a while now but still get mixed up with bid and ask prices sometimes.
I know bid is what buyers want to pay and ask is what sellers want to receive. But when I’m placing trades quickly on mobile, I still pause to think about which one I’m looking at.
Does anyone else find these terms confusing at first? How did you remember the difference when you started out?
Made a rookie mistake early on - jumped into a Gold trade without checking the spread first. Hit buy thinking I got a good price, but got stuck paying the ask at $3 higher per ounce.
That spread cost me $150 right off the bat. Now I always check bid/ask before entering anything.
Also found out spreads get crazy wide during news events. Learned that one the hard way too.
Bid is the price buyers are willing to pay. Ask is the price sellers demand. Retail traders often encounter wider spreads than institutional traders.
Spreads on commodities can hit $5-10 during volatile sessions from my experience.
Think of it like shopping. The ask price is the price tag - what you pay to buy. The bid is what someone offers when you’re selling.
On trading apps, the buy button shows the ask price, sell shows the bid. Pretty straightforward once you get it.
The gap between them is how brokers make money, so tighter spreads are better for us.
To keep it simple, bid is what buyers pay and ask is what sellers want. Remember, when you buy, you’re paying the ask price, and when you sell, you’re getting the bid price. The difference is the spread, which is how brokers earn. It can be a bit confusing at first, but with experience, it becomes second nature. Just take your time and focus on practicing your trades.