To trade after hours, you place a limit order through your brokerage account during the extended-hours session, which runs from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Most major online brokers offer this feature, but you typically need to select an extended-hours option when placing your order rather than using the default settings.
When Extended-Hours Trading Happens
The regular U.S. stock market session runs from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. Trading outside that window falls into two categories: the pre-market session in the morning and the after-hours session in the evening.
After-hours trading generally runs from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. ET on exchanges like NYSE Arca, NYSE American, and NYSE National. Pre-market trading can start as early as 4:00 a.m. ET on some platforms, though many retail brokers open their pre-market window at 7:00 a.m. ET. The exact hours depend on your broker. Schwab, for example, allows pre-market orders from 7:00 a.m. to 9:25 a.m. ET and after-hours orders from 4:05 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. ET.
How to Place an After-Hours Trade
The process is nearly identical to placing a regular trade, with two key differences: you must use a limit order, and you must select extended-hours timing. Here’s what that looks like in practice:
- Open your trade ticket. Navigate to the trading screen in your brokerage app or website and enter the stock symbol you want to buy or sell.
- Set the order type to “limit.” You’ll specify the maximum price you’re willing to pay (for a buy) or the minimum you’ll accept (for a sell). Market orders, which execute at whatever the current price is, are not allowed during extended hours.
- Choose extended-hours timing. Instead of selecting “Day” (which limits execution to regular hours), look for an option labeled something like “Extended-hours p.m.,” “After hours,” or “Day + Extended hours.” The exact label varies by broker.
- Review and submit. Double-check your limit price and quantity, then place the order.
Some brokers also offer a “Day + Extended hours” or “Good Til Canceled + Extended hours” option. These keep your order active during the regular session first, and if it doesn’t fill by 4:00 p.m., it carries over into the after-hours window automatically.
Why Only Limit Orders Are Allowed
A limit order lets you set the exact price you’re willing to trade at. If the stock moves away from your price, the order simply won’t execute. The SEC notes that brokers require limit orders during after-hours sessions specifically to protect investors from unexpectedly bad prices.
This matters because after-hours trading uses electronic communication networks (ECNs) rather than the full infrastructure of a major exchange floor. ECNs are computerized systems that automatically match buy and sell orders. They work well, but with fewer participants in the market, prices can jump around more than usual. A market order could fill at a price far from what you expected. A limit order puts a ceiling (or floor) on what you’ll pay.
Risks Worth Understanding
After-hours trading comes with real trade-offs compared to the regular session. The biggest is lower liquidity, meaning fewer people are buying and selling at any given moment. Some stocks may barely trade at all during extended hours. That creates several downstream effects you should be aware of before placing an order.
Wider bid-ask spreads are the most immediate consequence. The bid-ask spread is the gap between the highest price a buyer is offering and the lowest price a seller will accept. During regular hours on a popular stock, that gap might be a penny or two. After hours, it can widen to several cents or more, which means you’re giving up more on each trade. If you’re buying 100 shares and the spread is 10 cents wider than usual, that’s $10 in extra cost before the stock moves at all.
Price volatility also increases. With fewer trades happening, a single large order or a piece of breaking news can move a stock’s price more dramatically than it would during the day. Earnings reports, for instance, are often released right after the market closes, and the initial after-hours price reaction can swing sharply before settling. Your limit order protects you from the worst outcomes, but it also means your order might not fill if the price moves away from your limit quickly.
Enabling Extended Hours at Your Broker
Not all brokerage accounts have after-hours trading turned on by default. Some brokers require you to acknowledge an extended-hours trading agreement before they’ll let you place orders outside regular hours. This is typically a one-time step buried in your account settings. Look for something labeled “extended hours,” “after-hours trading,” or “trading permissions” in your account preferences. You may need to read and accept a disclosure about the risks involved.
Most major online brokers offer extended-hours trading at no additional commission beyond what you’d pay during regular hours. The stocks available, however, may be limited. Thinly traded small-cap stocks or those listed on smaller exchanges might not have enough after-hours activity to make trading practical.
When After-Hours Trading Makes Sense
The most common reason retail investors trade after hours is to react to news that drops outside regular market hours. Earnings announcements, economic data releases, and major corporate events frequently happen before 9:30 a.m. or after 4:00 p.m. If a company reports earnings at 4:15 p.m. and the results are dramatically different from expectations, waiting until the next morning means buying or selling at a price that already reflects overnight reactions from other traders.
After-hours access also helps if your schedule makes it difficult to trade during the regular session. If you work a standard 9-to-5 job without easy access to a trading app, the evening window gives you time to research and place orders on your own terms. Just keep your expectations realistic about execution. Set your limit price carefully, and accept that your order might not fill if volume is thin. Checking the current bid and ask prices before you submit will give you a sense of whether your limit is likely to get matched.