The Forex market and the digital currency market change very quickly every second, but what shocks traders the most isn’t the volatility itself—it’s a phenomenon called Slippage. This is the one that, if you don’t understand it well, can make your profit disappear immediately.

What is Slippage? Let me explain simply: it’s the difference between the price you intend to buy or sell and the price you actually get when the order is filled in the market. For example, we click to buy EUR/USD at 1.3650, but after a moment the price changes. We may end up getting filled at 1.3660 instead—that’s unfavorable Slippage. Or sometimes the price may improve to 1.3640—that’s favorable Slippage.

What’s interesting is that Slippage isn’t always a bad thing. All ECN accounts have to experience Slippage because it’s part of the real market, not a trick by a bad broker. Normal Slippage indicates that the market is operating actively and energetically.

So how do we reduce Slippage? First, you need to choose a truly trustworthy broker that is regulated by authorities such as ASIC or FCA. If Slippage exceeds 10% every time you trade, or is frequently higher than other brokers, then you should switch brokers.

Internet connection also matters. If possible, use a wired connection instead of wireless. Close any other programs that use the internet while trading. If you like Scalping, you need to take connection quality much more seriously.

Another way is to set a Maximum Slippage in the terminal. If the price deviates more than the value you set, the order will not be executed. This is a way to protect yourself.

Pending Limit Orders can also help. Limit orders are more likely to be canceled at the requested price than Stop orders, but this works well for accounts that can access the Interbank level.

Another tip is to switch to a higher timeframe. The Slippage that is a problem for minute traders will disappear much more when you trade on a daily basis.

Financial and political news is the enemy of Slippage. The likelihood of Slippage increases many times when news is released. So don’t trade 30–40 minutes before the news, and wait about 30 minutes after the news is released before trading.

But if you must trade during periods of highly volatile news, try to choose news that creates stronger market movement. If normal news causes 30 points of movement, but some news causes 50 points, then trade only that kind of high-movement news. In that way, Slippage will eat into your profits less, because your overall profit will be higher.

Which currency pairs have the least Slippage? EUR/USD and USD/JPY have high liquidity, which reduces Slippage in normal market conditions. But when major news comes out, even these pairs can still experience Slippage.

In summary, Slippage is a risk that investors have to bear. We can’t avoid it entirely, but there are many ways to reduce it. Choose a good broker, take care of your internet connection, set the maximum Slippage, and avoid periods of major news—this is the basic formula for managing Slippage intelligently.