What is difference between "Instant buy" or "limit buy" ?

[3333Shawn3333]

I recently saw there is two option to buy lindens, "instant buy" and "limit buy" so which one should I get?

Edited November 16, 2020 by 3333Shawn3333

[Fritigern Gothly]

With instant buy, you pay a certain rate (price) for your L$ and you will immediately receive the L$

With limit buy you choose the rate you will want to buy your L$ at as the exchange rate does fluctuate over time. However, this will only get you your L$ if the exchange rate reaches the rate that you chose and not before. If you choose too low a rate, it could be a very long time (weeks, maybe months) before you get your L$.

Personally, I just always go for instant buy, which you can even do straight from the viewer (just click your L$ balance in the bar, top right) because I don't want to wait. But some people do enjoy the wait, it can even be a game for them. 

[3333Shawn3333]

Great! Thanks for informing😊  

[Bree Giffen]

On the other side, there is a Market Sell and Limit Sell. Residents can sell linden dollars at the current exchange rate with Market Sell or try to make more real money by using Limit Sell and waiting to see if the exchange rate goes up high enough to their limit.

[Rolig Loon]

You should be aware that the LindeX is a currency exchange, not a shop.  Like all RL currency exchanges, it handles trades between individual sellers and buyers.  In this case, that means you are never trading with Linden Lab, but with other residents.  If you choose to use the Limit Buy/Sell option, you are offering a proposed price at which you will be willing to trade.  Once your offer has been posted in the LindeX, you will have to wait until some other resident is willing to match that price.  If you make an offer that is ridiculously off what most residents are willing to consider, you might end up waiting for a very long time -- maybe forever.  Therefore, when you use the Limit option, it is wise to never offer a price that is more than a couple of L$ different from where the greatest number of outstanding offers are right now.

Until you have some practice or at least a basic understanding of how a currency exchange works, you are wiser to use the Market Buy/Sell option, which means that you will accept any offer that is at the current price in the market -- no haggling, no limit matching.  Your offer will go through instantly.  Unless you are trading more than at least $20 US, that's probably a smart move anyway.  The amount that you might save by using a Limit option is negligible unless you are buying or selling more than that.

Finally, remember that every LindeX transaction involves a trading fee.  If you are making small trades, the fees can amount to a sizeable fraction of your total cost, so it makes sense to buy and sell in larger amounts.

[Nalates Urriah]

A longer explanation and why you would use one or the other method...