Can You Buy and Sell Stock in the Same Day?

Learn about buying and selling a stock in the same day, hour, and even minute.

By Adam Levy – Updated Sep 5, 2025 at 12:27 PM | Fact-checked by Margo Winton Parodi

Key Points

To be a pattern day trader, investors must maintain $25,000 in their account and get margin trading approval.
Day trading involves regulations set by FINRA and potential brokerage limits.
Short-term trading can lead to gains being taxed at ordinary income rates.

There are plenty of ways to make money in the stock market. While The Motley Fool recommends buy-and-hold investing, some people have profited by buying and selling a single stock in very short order. You can buy and sell a stock on the same day, which is known as day trading, but there are certain restrictions you need to be aware of.

Not only does the Financial Industry Regulation Authority (FINRA) place specific restrictions on day traders, but your broker may restrict trading activity in your account even further. Here's what you need to know if you're interested in buying and selling a stock in the same day.

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An infographic explaining the rules around buying and selling stock in the same day. — Image source: The Motley Fool

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Margin

In investing, trading on margin basically means borrowing money to invest. Learn the definition of margin, how margin trading works, and why it's usually a bad idea.

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About the Author

Adam Levy is a contributing Motley Fool stock market analyst covering technology, consumer, and financial stocks and how policy, economic, and consumer trends shape personal finance, Social Security and retirement savings. Before The Motley Fool, Adam was a financial advisor at Edward Jones. He studied finance and electrical engineering at Carnegie Mellon University.

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