Also called GTC
Good-til-canceled
An order that stays live across sessions until it fills or you cancel it, as opposed to a day order that expires at the close.
Updated 2026-09-05
A good-til-canceled order stays live across sessions until it fills or you cancel it. The alternative is a day order, which expires at the close.
GTC is how a patient limit is expressed: a price you would happily transact at whenever the market comes to you. The discipline it requires is reviewing them, because an order left resting for months may be based on a view of the company you no longer hold.
See also
- Limit order — An instruction to trade only at a set price or better. It guarantees the price and guarantees nothing about whether you get filled at all.
- Stop order — A resting instruction that turns into a live order once the price crosses a trigger. Its purpose is to cap a loss without watching the screen.
Educational content, not investment advice. Angie explains how a valuation is built so you can judge it yourself. What you do with that is your call.
