When the Stock Market Opens and Closes: Trading Hours You Need to Know
U.S. stock markets open at 9:30 a.m. Eastern Time on weekdays
The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and NASDAQ, where most U.S. stocks trade, both open their main trading session at 9:30 a.m. Eastern Time and close at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time. This is the regular trading window, Monday through Friday, excluding U.S. federal holidays. If you place an order during these hours, it executes during what's called the "regular session."
The market does not open on weekends or on federal holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Independence Day. On days when the market closes early — which happens the day after Thanksgiving and on Christmas Eve if it falls on a weekday — trading ends at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time instead of 4:00 p.m.
Time zones matter if you are not on the East Coast. 9:30 a.m. Eastern is 8:30 a.m. Central, 7:30 a.m. Mountain, and 6:30 a.m. Pacific. If you live on the West Coast and want to trade during regular hours, you need to place your order before 6:30 a.m. your local time.
Key Takeaways
- Regular stock market trading runs from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, excluding federal holidays.
- Pre-market trading begins as early as 4:00 a.m. Eastern and after-hours trading runs until 8:00 p.m. Eastern, but with lower volume and wider price swings.
- Orders placed outside regular hours may not fill at the price you see, because fewer traders are active and bid-ask spreads are wider.
- Your brokerage sets its own cut-off times for submitting orders in pre-market and after-hours sessions, so check your platform's rules.
Pre-market trading starts before the official open
Before 9:30 a.m., you can trade stocks in what is called the pre-market session. Most brokerages allow pre-market trading from 4:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. Eastern Time, though some start as early as 7:00 a.m. and some as late as 8:00 a.m. Check your brokerage's website or app to see what window it offers.
Pre-market trading is real — your order can fill and you can own the stock — but it is much thinner than regular trading. Fewer traders are active, so the bid-ask spread (the gap between what buyers will pay and what sellers will accept) is wider. A stock might trade at $50.00 during the day but show a $49.50 to $50.50 spread in pre-market, meaning you could pay more to buy or receive less to sell. Prices can also swing sharply on thin volume, so a small order can move the price.
Pre-market is useful if you want to react to overnight news — earnings reports released after hours, international market moves, or breaking events — before the regular session begins. But most individual investors stick to regular hours because the spreads are tighter and the price is more stable.
After-hours trading runs until 8:00 p.m. Eastern
After the market closes at 4:00 p.m. Eastern, you can continue trading in the after-hours session until 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Like pre-market, after-hours trading is real but thin. Spreads widen, prices can jump on small volume, and your order may not fill at all if there are no buyers or sellers at your price.
After-hours trading is most active in the first 30 minutes after the close, when traders react to the day's close and any news released at 4:00 p.m. or just after. By 6:00 p.m., volume drops sharply. If you place an order at 7:30 p.m., you may wait hours for it to fill, or it may not fill before the session ends.
Many brokerages allow after-hours trading, but not all. Some require you to enable it in your account settings or charge a fee. Check your brokerage's rules before you assume you can trade after 4:00 p.m.
Why prices move differently outside regular hours
During regular trading hours, millions of shares change hands every minute. Buyers and sellers are constantly meeting, so the price reflects what the market thinks the stock is worth right now. The bid-ask spread is usually just a penny or two.
In pre-market and after-hours, volume is a fraction of that. If you want to sell 1,000 shares of a stock and there are only 500 shares bid at your price, your order partially fills and the rest waits. Or if you are the only seller at that price, the next buyer may have to pay more to get your shares, moving the price up. This is why you see bigger price swings and wider spreads outside regular hours.
News released after hours — an earnings miss, a product recall, a CEO resignation — can cause sharp moves in after-hours trading. But that move may reverse or shift again when regular trading opens and millions of traders react. A stock that jumps 5% after hours might open flat or even down the next morning.
How to place orders outside regular trading hours
Most brokerages let you place orders in pre-market and after-hours through their website or mobile app, the same way you place a regular order. You select the stock, enter the number of shares, and choose "buy" or "sell." The order sits in the queue until someone on the other side matches your price, or until the session ends and your order cancels.
Some brokerages require you to opt in to extended-hours trading in your account settings before you can place these orders. Others allow it by default. A few brokerages, especially those aimed at beginners, do not offer pre-market or after-hours trading at all.
When you place an order outside regular hours, pay attention to the order type. A limit order — where you specify the price you will accept — is safer because your order will not fill above (for a buy) or below (for a sell) your limit. A market order — where you accept whatever price is available — can fill at a much worse price in thin after-hours trading. Most traders use limit orders for pre-market and after-hours.
International stock markets have different hours
If you own stocks listed on exchanges outside the U.S., they trade on their own schedules. The London Stock Exchange opens at 8:00 a.m. GMT and closes at 4:30 p.m. GMT. The Tokyo Stock Exchange opens at 9:00 a.m. JST and closes at 3:00 p.m. JST. The Shanghai Stock Exchange opens at 9:30 a.m. CST and closes at 3:00 p.m. CST.
You can trade many international stocks through a U.S. brokerage as American Depositary Receipts (ADRs), which are certificates representing shares in a foreign company. ADRs trade on U.S. exchanges during U.S. hours, so you can buy them at 10:00 a.m. Eastern even though the foreign exchange is closed. But the ADR price reflects what traders expect the foreign stock to be worth when that exchange opens, not the live price on the foreign exchange.
Market holidays and early closes
The U.S. stock market is closed on these federal holidays: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents' Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day. The market is also closed on Election Day if it falls on a Tuesday in a presidential election year, though this is rare.
On the day after Thanksgiving and on Christmas Eve (if it is a weekday), the market closes at 1:00 p.m. Eastern instead of 4:00 p.m. Pre-market and after-hours sessions are also shortened or closed on these days. Check your brokerage's holiday calendar before you assume the market will be open.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I place an order before 9:30 a.m. and have it execute at the regular open?
Yes. If you place a limit order during pre-market, it stays in the queue and can fill during regular trading if the price reaches your limit. You can also place an order the night before, and it will sit until the market opens. But if you place a market order in pre-market, it will fill immediately at whatever price is available then, not wait for the regular open.
Why did my after-hours order not fill?
After-hours volume is thin, so if no one is willing to buy or sell at your price, your order waits. If it does not fill by 8:00 p.m., it cancels. The next morning, you can place a new order during regular hours. Using a limit order helps — it will not fill at a worse price — but it also means your order may not fill at all if the stock never reaches your limit.
Do I pay different commissions for pre-market or after-hours trades?
Most brokerages charge the same commission (or no commission) for pre-market and after-hours trades as they do for regular trades. But spreads are wider, so you pay more in the difference between bid and ask. Check your brokerage's fee schedule to be sure.
What time should I place my order to get the best price?
Regular trading hours (9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern) usually offer the tightest spreads and most stable prices because volume is highest. The first 30 minutes after the open and the last hour before the close are often the most active. Pre-market and after-hours can work if you need to react to news, but expect wider spreads and more volatility.