Stop-⁠Limit Order

What is a stop-limit order?

A stop-limit order is a conditional order that combines a stop price with a limit price. The stop activates the instruction, and the limit defines the prices available to the resulting order. A sell stop-limit executes at the limit or higher, and a buy stop-limit executes at the limit or lower, so part or all of the order stays unfilled when price moves past the limit.

After activation it works like any limit order, filling at the limit or better as the book allows.

How to set the stop and limit prices

Lowering a sell limit expands the eligible bids. Raising a buy limit expands the eligible offers. Spread, displayed quantities and typical price movement help define that interval.

For example, a buy stop at $50 with a $50.40 limit activates on its qualifying trigger and accepts purchase prices through $50.40. An offer at $51 lies outside the instruction.

For a sell stop at $95 and limit at $94.50, an eligible opening trade at $90 activates the order. With all available bids below $94.50, the limit remains open.

The options profit calculator prices an options position with the stock at the stop and at the limit, so you know what the stop-to-limit range costs the option before the order goes in.

Trigger types, trading hours and duration

Choose the broker’s trigger type, eligible hours and duration when you enter the order. After a trigger, check the completed fills and the quantity still open. Trading halts and corporate actions follow the broker’s handling rules, so read them before you leave a stop working through an event.

Stop-limit order vs stop order

Compare this structure with a stop order, which releases a market order. Read the side-by-side comparison to connect each instruction with its execution behavior. The stop order favors completion, while the stop-limit order favors price control.

Limitations of stop-limit orders

• Leave room in the limit for the gaps the stock makes. A trigger releases the order, and the limit decides whether it fills: in the $95 example, a $90 opening trade triggers the order and every bid sits below the $94.50 limit, so nothing sells.
• Plan for a partial fill. The worked order sells 100 of 300 shares and leaves 200 open.
• Choose the interval by what matters more, the fill or the price. A wider limit raises the chance of a fill but accepts a worse price.
• Brokers set their own trigger rules, eligible hours and duration, and handle halts and corporate actions their own way, so read the broker's rules before the stop has to work.

Bottom line

A stop-limit order trades certainty of execution for price control: the stop decides when the order activates, and the limit sets the worst acceptable price. Set the gap between them from the spread, displayed size and typical movement, and check the remaining quantity after every trigger.