# Bid-Ask Spread

> The gap between the highest price buyers will pay and the lowest price sellers will accept.

Canonical URL: https://fudfomo.co/glossary/bid-ask-spread
Source: What The Block! Dictionary v1.0 (last updated 2026-04-25), browsable at https://wtb.fudfomo.co.

## Definition

The bid-ask spread is the difference between the best buy price (bid) and the best sell price (ask) on an order book. A tight spread points to a liquid market where it is cheap to trade.

A wide spread means you will pay more to cross from one side to the other. Market makers earn part of their profit from this spread, in exchange for keeping liquidity available on both sides.

## Related terms

- [Order Book](https://fudfomo.co/glossary/order-book): A live list of buy and sell orders at different prices on an exchange.
- [Market Maker](https://fudfomo.co/glossary/market-maker): A participant who quotes both buy and sell prices, providing liquidity in exchange for a small spread.
- [Liquidity Pool](https://fudfomo.co/glossary/liquidity-pool): A shared pot of two tokens that lets people trade between them on a decentralised exchange.
- [Slippage](https://fudfomo.co/glossary/slippage): The gap between the price you expected when you placed a trade and the price you actually got.

## See the full catalogue

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