Buy Limit
A buy limit is a pending order to buy at a set price below the current Ask; it fills at that price or better if the Ask falls to it.
A buy limit is a pending order to buy at a set price below the current market price. For all four MetaTrader 5 pending orders side by side, including buy limit vs buy stop and the sell side, see the full lesson Buy Limit vs Buy Stop: Forex Order Types Explained.
MetaTrader 5's help defines it as a trade request to buy at the Ask price that is equal to or less than that specified in the order, placed while the current price is higher. In general terms it is a limit order: the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission's glossary defines a limit order as one where the customer sets a maximum purchase price.
How does a buy limit work?
A buy limit waits below the current Ask and triggers only when the Ask falls to your price, then fills at that price or better. Until then it stays pending, and once it fills you hold an ordinary long position. The steps below show the sequence.
- You choose a price below the current Ask.
- The order waits. If the Ask falls to your price, the order triggers.
- It fills at your price or better, without slippage. If the Ask never reaches your price, it stays pending.
- You now hold a long (buy) position, managed with its own stop-loss and take-profit.
It is the counterpart of the buy stop, which sits above the price. The comparison, and the sell side, are in the buy limit vs buy stop lesson.
Worked example: buy limit on EURUSD
The Bid is 1.0848 and the Ask is 1.0850, a 2-pip spread. You place a buy limit at 1.0820.
| What happens | Ask reaches 1.0820? | Result |
|---|---|---|
| The Bid falls to 1.0819, Ask 1.0821 | No | Not filled |
| The Bid falls to 1.0817, Ask 1.0819 | Yes | Filled at 1.0820 or better |
The first row is why traders turn on the Ask line. MetaTrader 5 charts are drawn from Bid prices, so a candle can touch your level on the chart while the Ask never does. If the order fills at 1.0820 with 0.10 lot (about $1 per pip), every 10 pips the price then rises above your entry is about $10 gained, and every 10 pips it falls below is about $10 lost. A stop-loss closes the position at a level you choose.
What should you check before placing a buy limit?
Before placing a buy limit, check that the Ask can reach your price, that you will have free margin when it triggers, and which expiry it uses. Each of these decides whether the pending order ever becomes a position, and when it leaves the platform if it does not. The details are below.
- The Ask must reach your price. If the market rises without dipping to it, the order stays pending.
- Free margin is checked at trigger time. If there is not enough, MetaTrader 5 rejects the order.
- Set the expiry. GTC stays until you cancel it; Today and Specified remove the order automatically.
How do you place a buy limit in MetaTrader 5?
In MetaTrader 5, open the New Order window (F9), choose the Pending Order type, select Buy Limit and enter the price. The order appears in the Trade tab of the Toolbox until it triggers, expires or is cancelled. Turn on the Ask line in chart properties to see where your order will actually trigger.
The pending orders in MT5 lesson walks through every field of the order window.
What do traders often get wrong about buy limits?
A common mistake is thinking that buying lower with a buy limit means less risk, when the order type only sets the entry price. The money at risk is set by position size and the distance to the stop, so a buy limit with a wide stop and a large lot can risk more than a market order.
Sources
- MetaQuotes, MetaTrader 5 Help: Basic Principles, accessed 19 October 2026: Buy Limit is a request to buy at the Ask equal to or less than the order price, with the current price higher; a triggered pending order that cannot be executed, for example for lack of free margin, is rejected. https://www.metatrader5.com/en/terminal/help/trading/general_concept
- MetaQuotes, MetaTrader 5 Help: Executing Trades, accessed 19 October 2026: limit orders fill at the specified price or better, without slippage, but execution is not guaranteed; expiry options GTC, Today and Specified. https://www.metatrader5.com/en/terminal/help/trading/performing_deals
- MetaQuotes, MetaTrader 5 Help: Chart Settings, accessed 19 October 2026: bars are formed from Bid prices; the Show Ask price line option displays the Ask. https://www.metatrader5.com/en/terminal/help/charts_advanced/charts_settings
- Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), CFTC Glossary, accessed 19 October 2026: a limit order is one in which the customer specifies a minimum sale price or maximum purchase price. https://www.cftc.gov/LearnAndProtect/AdvisoriesAndArticles/CFTCGlossary/index.htm
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