The ask is what the sellers say:to buy right now, that's what you pay.
The lowest price at which a seller is willing to sell a currency pair.
Also known as the offer price. The ask is always higher than the bid.
In plain words
The ask is the price at which you can buy. Every quote shows two prices: the lower one, the bid, is what you receive if you sell, and the higher one, the ask, is what you pay if you buy. The ask is also called the offer.
See it move
Spread: the distance between Ask and Bid
Why it matters
A buy order is opened at the ask, and a sell position is closed by buying at the ask. The distance between the ask and the bid, called the spread, is a cost paid on every trade that is opened and closed.
Worked example
An example only. The figures are round and invented for the arithmetic: they are not market prices.
In an invented example a pair is quoted at 1.1000 bid and 1.1002 ask, and a trader buys one standard lot.
- 1The buy is filled at the ask1.1002
- 2Sold back at once, it would be filled at the bid1.1000
- 31.1002 − 1.1000 = 0.0002 = 2 pips; 2 × 10 = 20 US dollars
The position starts 20 US dollars behind, which is the cost of the spread.
A common mistake
Many charts draw the bid price only. A buy order is filled at the ask, which sits above the line on such a chart, so a buy can be filled at a price the chart never appears to reach.
Check yourself
Educational information, not investment advice or a recommendation to trade.