Hyperliquid supports nine order types in 2026: market, limit, stop-market, stop-limit, TWAP, trigger orders, post-only limit, reduce-only, and ALO. Each controls a different tradeoff between fill certainty, price, and time. choose based on whether you need immediate execution, price protection, or scheduled accumulation.
How Hyperliquid order types work
Every order on Hyperliquid passes through the on-chain order book on HyperCore. The order type determines whether you cross the spread now, wait for a price, trigger on a condition, or slice into the book over time. Picking the wrong type costs you slippage on entry or skipped fills on exit. both compound across positions.
Order type comparison table
Order type | When to use | Execution mechanics | Example |
Market | Need immediate fill, willing to pay spread | Crosses book at best available price up to slippage cap | Closing a losing position before liquidation |
Limit | Want a specific price or better | Rests on book; fills only at limit price or improvement | Buying HYPE at $18 when spot is $19 |
Stop-market | Cap downside or chase breakout | Triggers a market order when mark price crosses stop | Stop at $17 to exit if HYPE breaks support |
Stop-limit | Stop with price protection | Triggers a limit order at a set price when stop hits | Stop $17, limit $16.80 to avoid bad fills |
TWAP | Large size, minimize impact | Slices order into equal child orders over a chosen window | Buying 50,000 HYPE across 30 minutes |
Trigger | Conditional entry or exit | Activates an underlying order when a condition fires | Buy if HYPE closes above $20 |
Post-only limit | Earn maker rebate | Cancels if it would cross the book | Resting bid that must not take liquidity |
Reduce-only | Close without flipping side | Rejected if it would open or grow a position | Safety net on a take-profit limit |
ALO (Add Liquidity Only) | Same as post-only. guaranteed maker | Order rests or cancels; never takes | Market-making strategies |
Market orders
A market order on Hyperliquid fills immediately against the best available bids or offers on HyperCore until your size is filled or the slippage cap is hit. Hyperliquid enforces a default 8% slippage tolerance to prevent catastrophic fills in thin books, configurable per order. Use market orders when fill certainty matters more than price. closing a losing position, exiting before liquidation, or grabbing a sharp move.
Example: you are long 10 HYPE at $19 and the price drops to $17. You expect $16 next. Sending a market sell closes the position at the current bid stack instantly. If liquidity is thin, the slippage cap protects you from a $14 print on a flash wick.
Limit orders
A limit order rests on the order book at your specified price and fills only at that price or better. If you bid $18 for HYPE and the best offer is $18, you fill. If the best offer is $18.05, you wait. Limit orders pay maker fees (often a rebate) when they rest and get taken; they pay taker fees if they cross the book on placement.
Example: HYPE is at $19 and you think it dips before continuing up. You place a limit buy at $18. If price drops to $18, your order fills. If price rallies away, you never get filled. that is the tradeoff.
Stop and stop-limit orders
A stop-market order watches the mark price; when the price crosses your stop level, it submits a market order. A stop-limit submits a limit order instead, giving you price protection at the cost of fill certainty. Hyperliquid evaluates stop triggers against the oracle-based mark price, not the last trade, which reduces wick-driven false triggers.
Example: long HYPE at $19 with a stop at $17. If mark hits $17, a stop-market sells at the next available bid. A stop-limit at $17 trigger, $16.80 limit, would only sell down to $16.80. if the book gaps through, the order sits unfilled and you keep the position.
TWAP orders
TWAP (time-weighted average price) splits a parent order into evenly-spaced child orders over a user-defined window, typically 30 seconds to several hours. TWAP reduces market impact for large size and is the standard way to enter or exit positions that would otherwise move the book. Hyperliquid's native TWAP runs on HyperCore. no off-exchange routing or third-party algos.
Example: you want to buy 50,000 HYPE without spiking the price. A 30-minute TWAP fires roughly one child order per minute, each filling a fraction of the parent. Your average fill tracks the volume-weighted price over that half hour instead of paying the full impact of a single market sweep.
Trigger orders
A trigger order is a conditional wrapper: it stays dormant until a price condition fires, then activates an underlying market or limit order. Triggers differ from stops in framing. stops are usually defensive (exit), triggers are usually offensive (breakout entry). On Hyperliquid, both use the same conditional engine under the hood.
Example: HYPE is consolidating between $18 and $20. You believe a close above $20 confirms a breakout. A trigger order buys 5,000 HYPE when the mark touches $20.10, so you never miss the move while you sleep.
Post-only limit and ALO
A post-only limit (also called ALO. Add Liquidity Only) is a limit order that must rest on the book. If your price would cross and take liquidity at placement, the order is cancelled rather than executed. Post-only guarantees you pay maker fees (or earn rebates) and never accidentally take the spread.
Use ALO for market-making strategies or any time you must be the maker. for example, when running a quoting bot where taking even one fill blows your unit economics.
Reduce-only orders
A reduce-only flag tells Hyperliquid the order may only shrink an existing position, never open a new one or flip your side. If you are long 10 HYPE and place a reduce-only sell for 15, the exchange caps the fill at 10 and rejects the rest. Use reduce-only on every take-profit and stop to prevent surprise flips on partial fills.
Which order type should I use?
If you need to be filled now, use a market order with a tight slippage cap. If you want a specific price and can wait, use a limit. If you are protecting a position from downside, use a stop-market for fill certainty or a stop-limit to avoid bad prints. If you are moving size that the book cannot absorb, use a TWAP. If you are running a maker strategy, use ALO. Layer reduce-only on every exit order.
How does Hyperliquid handle stop wicks?
Hyperliquid triggers stops on the oracle mark price, a median of external venue prices, instead of the last trade on HyperCore. A flash wick on Hyperliquid alone will not fire your stop unless the broader market moves with it. This is documented in the Hyperliquid GitBook under "Order types" and "Mark price."
Related reading
Methodology and sources
This article references the Hyperliquid documentation at hyperliquid.gitbook.io for order type specifications, mark-price behavior, and TWAP mechanics. Slippage defaults and ALO semantics reflect the protocol state as of May 2026. Examples use illustrative HYPE prices and do not reflect live quotes. Hyperliquid is a perpetuals DEX; the same order primitives appear on other venues like dYdX with venue-specific differences in trigger semantics and TWAP windows.