> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.getpanther.app/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Order Book

> Live bids, asks, and market depth — click a level to trade there.

The **Order Book** panel shows the live ladder of buy and sell orders for a market — who's willing to trade, at what price, and in what size. Open it with <kbd>/</kbd> → `OB`, or use the book built into the [Event Viewer](/panels/event-viewer).

![Order book ladder with asks above, bids below, and the spread row between](https://cdn.getpanther.app/docs/web-order-book.png)

## Reading the ladder

* **Asks** (above the spread, red) — what sellers are asking. The lowest ask is the price you'd pay to buy *right now*.
* **Bids** (below the spread, green) — what buyers are offering. The highest bid is what you'd receive to sell *right now*.
* **The spread row** separates them and shows the current gap. A 1¢ spread means a liquid, cheap-to-trade market.
* Each level shows the **quantity** resting there and its **dollar total**, so you can see exactly how much size the market can absorb at each price.
* The footer tracks the day's traded value for the market.

## Using it

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Click a price to trade there" icon="crosshairs">
    Clicking a level pre-fills a limit order at that exact price — the fastest way to place a resting order where you want it.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Lock to the spread" icon="lock">
    The Lock control keeps the ladder centered on the spread as prices move, so the action never scrolls out of view.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Size up your order" icon="scale-balanced">
    Before a big market order, check how much is available at the top of the book — it tells you your real fill price.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Watch for walls" icon="wall-brick">
    A huge resting order at one price acts like support or resistance — the price has to eat through it to move past.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

<Tip>
  Classic layout: dock the Order Book beside a [Chart](/panels/chart) — price history on one side, live depth on the other. See [Panels, tabs & layouts](/workspace/overview) for how to arrange them.
</Tip>