Market flipping basics
Flipping is spread trading: buy liquidity now, sell into demand later, keep the spread after fees. The boring version works; the clever version donates coins to the market.
By ARC ECONOMYUpdated 2026-10-08
Quick answer
A flip works when sell price × (1 − fees) − buy price is comfortably positive - comfortably meaning it survives slippage. Check every trade in the flip margin calculator; the break-even line is a floor, not a suggestion.
The fee reality
Fees are the house edge on every flip. A 25% gross spread with a 5% fee is a 20% margin; two fee tiers higher and it's gone. Always compute net-first - set the calculator's fee to the current schedule [VERIFY] and leave it there.
The three flips that actually work
- The wide-spread sit: list mid-demand items between bid and ask; patience does the work.
- The event play: buy consumables/crafting inputs before patch-driven demand, sell into it. Risky at the tail - size accordingly.
- The cross-market loop: flip loot into components or crafted goods when the craft spread beats the raw spread.
Patch risk is the real enemy
- A balance change can zero a meta item's demand overnight - never flip more than you can write off.
- Patch-day volatility cuts both ways: the biggest spreads and the worst traps happen in the same 48 hours.
- Diversify listings; one item is a bet, ten items are a book.