What Is Bid and Ask?
Bid and ask(also known as "bid and offer") is a two-way price quotation representing the highest price a buyer will pay for a security and the lowest price a seller will take for it. The difference between bid and ask prices, or the spread, is a key indicator of the liquidity of the asset. In general, the smaller the spread, the better the liquidity.
The bid price—the price a buyer is willing to pay—is the first price in the pair. The ask price—or the price a seller is willing to accept—is the second.
Key Takeaways
- The bid price refers to the highest price a buyer will pay for a security.
- The ask price refers to the lowest price a seller will accept for a security.
- The difference between these two prices is known as the spread; the smaller the spread, the greater the liquidity of the given security.
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Understanding Bid and Ask
The average investor contends with the bid and ask spread as an implied cost of trading. Most investors and retail traders are "market takers," meaning that they usually will have to sell on the bid (where someone else is willing to buy) and buy at the offer (where someone else is willing to sell).
For example, if the current price quotation for the stock of ABC Corp. is $10.50 / $10.55, investor X, who is looking to buy ABC at the current market price, would pay $10.55, while investor Y, who wishes to sell ABC shares at the current market price, would receive $10.50.
Who Benefits from the Bid-Ask Spread?
The bid-ask spread works to the advantage of the market maker. Continuing with the above example, a market maker quoting a price of $10.50 / $10.55 for ABC stock indicates a willingness to buy ABC at $10.50 (the bid price) and sell it at $10.55 (the asked price). The spread represents the market maker's profit.
Bid-ask spreads can vary widely, depending on the security and the market. Blue-chip companies that constitute the Dow Jones Industrial Average may have a bid-ask spread of only a few cents, while a small-cap stock that trades less than 10,000 shares a day may have a bid-ask spread of $0.50 or more.
The bid-ask spread can widen dramatically during periods of illiquidity or market turmoil since traders will not be willing to pay a price beyond a certain threshold, and sellers may not be willing to accept prices below a certain level.
What Is the Difference Between a Bid Price and an Ask Price?
Bid prices refer to the highest price that traders are willing to pay for a security. The ask price, on the other hand, refers to the lowest price that the owners of that security are willing to sell it for. If, for example, a stock is trading with an ask price of $20, then a person wishing to buy that stock would need to offer at least $20 to purchase it at current price. The gap between the bid and ask prices is often called the bid-ask spread.
What Does It Mean When the Bid and Ask Are Close Together?
When the bid and ask prices are very close, this typically means that there is ample liquidity in the security. In this scenario, the security is said to have a “narrow” bid-ask spread. This situation can be helpful for investors because it makes it easier to enter or exit their positions, particularly in the case of large positions.
On the other hand, securities with a “wide” bid-ask spread (where the bid and ask prices are far apart) can be time-consuming and expensive to trade.
How Are the Bid and Ask Prices Determined?
Bid and ask prices are set by the market. In particular, they are set by the buying and selling decisions of the people and institutions investing in that security. If demand outstrips supply, then the bid and ask prices will gradually shift upwards.
Conversely, if supply outstrips demand, bid and ask prices will drift downwards. The spread between the bid and ask prices is determined by the overall level of trading activity in the security, with higher activity leading to narrow bid-ask spreads and lower activity creating wide spreads.
The Bottom Line
Most quotes in securities markets are two-sided, meaning they come with both a bid and an ask. The bid is the highest price at which someone is willing to buy the security, the ask or offer is the lowest price at which someone is willing to sell it.
Together, the bid and ask make up the price quote, with the distance between the bid-ask spread is an indicator of a security's liquidity (the tighter the spread, the more liquid). Quotes will often also show the number available at both the current best bid and ask prices. Most retail traders and investors must sell on the bid or buy on the offer, while market makers set the bid and offer prices where they are willing to buy and sell.
