Market Basics
Volume
The number of shares or contracts traded during a period of time.
Also called: trading volume
What it means
Volume measures how much trading activity happened in a security or market over a set period, such as a day. Higher volume usually means more activity and often better liquidity, though it does not automatically tell you whether an investment is attractive.
Why it matters
Volume can provide context for price moves and trading activity, especially when an investment suddenly gets much more attention than usual.