Where participants buy or sell units of a good. At a call auction, participants place orders to buy or sell units at certain buying or selling prices. Orders collected during a call auction are matched to form a contract. Call auction rules vary by auction.

In the securities market, this procedure replaces the method of continuously matching orders. Buyers set a maximum price at which they will buy the shares and sellers set a minimum price at which they are willing to sell the stock shares. Advantages of call auctions include a decrease in price instability.