Instant buys vs limit orders — and when to use which

There are two ways to buy and sell on Money Harbor, and picking the wrong one is among the more expensive beginner mistakes.

Instant buy: "right now, whatever the price is"

On the Buy & sell page, your order executes immediately at the current market price.

• ✅ Fast and simple. You know it will go through.
• ❌ You have no control over the price. In a fast-moving market, the price you saw and the price you get can differ.

Good when: what matters is that it happens, not at what price.

Limit order: "only at this price or better"

On the Trade page you set the price you want. The order waits until the market reaches it.

• ✅ The price is entirely yours. You never buy worse than you said.
• ❌ It may never execute. If the market doesn't reach your price, the order just sits there.

Good when: you have a specific price in mind and you're not in a hurry.

The bit that usually goes unmentioned: your money gets reserved

When you place a limit buy, the amount needed is set aside from your balance at that moment — not when the order executes. This is standard exchange behaviour, and the reason is simple: when the price arrives, the money has to actually be there.

So if you have several open limit orders, part of your balance is locked. Cancel an order and the money returns immediately.

And one simpler tool

If you'd rather not watch a chart all day, you can set a price alert on the Markets page. When the price reaches your number you get both a notification and an email. An alert fires once; set a fresh one if you want telling again.

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This explains how the tools work. It is not advice to buy or sell anything.