Web Trader MT5
The difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay (the bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept (the offer, also called the ask). It’s the price you pay for immediate execution.
Tight spreads mean liquid markets; lots of participants, narrow gap, low cost of trading. Wide spreads mean illiquid or stressed markets, where market makers are charging more to take the other side. The spread also widens around news events, before market opens, in fast-moving conditions, or for less actively traded instruments.
Retail traders often underestimate how much spread matters. On a high-frequency strategy, half a basis point of spread eats most of your edge. On a long-term position, it barely matters.
Example: EUR/USD in liquid London hours trades with a spread of around 0.1 pips at major dealers. The same pair quoted at 3am during a Tokyo holiday with thin volume might widen to 1.5 pips, fifteen times the cost, even though the mid-price has barely moved.
