When you tap buy or sell, your mobile app sends the order to your brokerage firm—not necessarily straight to an exchange. The broker reviews it, chooses an execution route, and tries to match it under your order instructions. The result may be a full fill, a partial fill, or no fill. A trade confirmation follows execution; settlement, the transfer of cash and securities, is a separate step. For covered U.S. securities transactions, standard settlement is one business day after the trade date (T+1).
What happens when you place an online stock order?
- You submit the order. In the app, you select the security, whether to buy or sell, the quantity, and any price or time instructions. The order is sent to your brokerage firm.
- The broker reviews it. The firm checks the order against legal, regulatory, compliance, and firm-specific policies. FINRA says these steps are usually automated, but interfaces and review procedures vary among firms. FINRA’s online-order infographic describes this review.
- The broker selects an execution path. The firm may execute the order itself or route it to a market venue or another broker-dealer. The app is not necessarily a direct connection to an exchange.
- The order may fill, partly fill, or remain unfilled. Whether it executes depends on the order’s terms and whether a suitable buyer or seller is available while it is active.
- You receive a confirmation after execution. The confirmation reports the trade. Settlement—the official transfer of securities and cash—happens afterward.
There is no universal execution time for every app order. Prices can move while an order is being routed, and a broker’s advertised speed is not a guarantee of a particular result. The SEC explains the broker-mediated process in Executing an Order.
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How order type affects price and the chance of a fill
The order type tells the broker what matters most to you. It can prioritize execution, set a price boundary, or make an order active only after a trigger. The trade-off is that controlling price can make execution less certain.
| Order type | What it does | Main limitation |
|---|---|---|
| Market | Seeks execution as soon as possible at the best available price. A buy generally meets the available ask; a sell generally meets the available bid. | The execution price is not guaranteed. It can differ from the last-traded price and change before the order executes. |
| Limit | Sets a price boundary: a buy limit can execute only at the limit price or lower; a sell limit only at the limit price or higher. | The order may receive a partial fill or no fill if the market does not reach the limit while the order is active. |
| Stop | Becomes a market order when the specified stop price is reached. | The eventual execution price is not guaranteed to equal the stop price. |
| Stop-limit | When the stop price is reached, activates a limit order at the specified limit price. | The limit constrains the execution price, but the order may not execute. |
A stop price is a trigger, not a guaranteed sale or purchase price. Order names, availability, and handling can differ by brokerage. For details on these and other order instructions, see the SEC’s Understanding Order Types – Investor Bulletin and FINRA’s Order Types.
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Time instructions determine how long an order stays active
Common instructions include a day order, which is active for the trading day, and good-till-canceled (GTC), which remains active according to the broker’s rules until filled or canceled. Market-on-open and market-on-close instructions seek execution around the market’s opening or closing. Availability and exact handling vary by firm, so check the order ticket and your broker’s terms.
Where the broker may send the order
A brokerage firm generally chooses how to execute a customer order. Possible destinations include an exchange, an alternative trading system (ATS), a single-dealer platform, or a wholesaler. A broker may also fill an order internally from its own inventory or route it through another broker-dealer. The specific route for a particular order is not necessarily visible on the order ticket.
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An ATS is not an exchange; it is operated by a broker-dealer and regulated under SEC rules. FINRA describes these venues and where stocks trade in Where Do Stocks Trade?
Best execution and price improvement
Brokers must seek the best execution reasonably available, considering factors such as execution terms, the opportunity for price improvement, and the time tradeoffs among venues. Price improvement—getting a better price than the displayed quote—is possible, not promised. Some brokers receive payment for order flow from market makers for routing orders; some may internalize orders by filling them from their own inventory and potentially earning the spread. These are possible arrangements, not a description of every broker or every order. The SEC discusses routing and these practices in Executing an Order.
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Why an order may be partially filled or not filled
An order executes only when its terms can be matched with an available counterparty. A limit price may be too far from the current market, liquidity may be insufficient for the full quantity, or the market may move before a suitable match appears. If the order expires or is canceled before execution, it will not fill after that point.
Most retail customer stock orders execute without an issue, but no tap guarantees a trade. A partial fill means some—but not all—of the requested quantity executed; the remainder may still be active. Check the order status and remaining quantity in your brokerage account rather than assuming the order is complete.
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What the confirmation means—and when settlement occurs
After execution, the broker sends an electronic confirmation with details such as the security, quantity, price, and any applicable commission or other fees. FINRA’s infographic gives an illustrative example of buying 25 shares at $10 each for a $250 total; it is an example, not a promise about when shares appear in every account or what fees a broker charges.
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Confirmation and settlement are different. The confirmation reports that a trade occurred; settlement is the official transfer of securities to the buyer and cash to the seller. For covered U.S. securities transactions occurring on or after May 28, 2024, the standard cycle is T+1: one business day after the trade date. Covered transactions include stocks, bonds, municipal securities, ETFs, certain mutual funds, and exchange-traded limited partnerships, subject to exceptions. Settlement timing can affect when funds must be available; margin-account terms may also be affected. Check your broker for account-specific details. See the SEC’s New ‘T+1’ Settlement Cycle – What Investors Need To Know.
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If an order looks stuck or a cancellation is uncertain
- Check the order status before submitting another order. The first order may have executed even if the app’s status is not what you expected. Resubmitting can result in buying or selling twice.
- Check whether any quantity has filled. A partially filled order may still have an active remainder.
- Verify cancellation in the account. A cancellation request or electronic receipt does not prove that the original order was not already executed. An order can be canceled only if it has not executed.
- Contact the broker if the status remains unclear. Ask the firm how to confirm execution, remaining quantity, or cancellation. SEC Investor.gov covers these risks in Online Investing.
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