Academy · Beginner

Technical analysis

The visual vocabulary of trading. How a candle encodes four prices, why a level matters only when it has been tested, and what a moving average is actually telling you.

  • ✓ 26 lessons
  • ✓ 104 minutes end to end
  • ✓ Free in MarketPro
  • ✓ No sign-up to start reading

Last reviewed by the MarketPro research desk · Editorial policy

Technical analysis is the study of price itself: the record of what traders did, rather than what they said they would do. A single candle carries four numbers, the open, high, low and close of its period, so one daily candle compresses 1,440 one minute candles into a single shape. Choosing a timeframe is therefore already an analytical decision, and two traders looking at the same instrument on the 5 minute and the daily can both be right.

This category covers candle anatomy and the common formations, support and resistance and what makes a level worth respecting, trendlines and channels, moving averages, volume, volatility, and how to read one instrument across two or three timeframes without contradicting yourself.

It expects you to know what a pip and a lot are, so start with forex basics if those are new. What it gives you is language precise enough to say why a level matters, which is what chart patterns, indicators and smart money concepts all build on top of.

The 26 lessons in order

  1. Candlesticks 101 A candlestick is a scoreboard for one period of trading. Here is how to read the contest it records, and why location matters… Beginner4 min
  2. Support and Resistance Support and resistance exist because of what people did the last time price was there. Here is how to mark the areas that matter… Beginner4 min
  3. Trendlines and Market Structure Structure is the sequence of swing highs and lows. Read it first, and a trendline becomes a visual aid rather than the analysis… Intermediate4 min
  4. Moving Averages A moving average is price with the noise averaged out. It is a good filter, a fair support zone and a poor timing tool, in that… Beginner4 min
  5. RSI: The Relative Strength Index RSI compares recent gains to recent losses on a 0 to 100 scale. Overbought means strong momentum, and strength is not a reason… Intermediate4 min
  6. ATR and Volatility ATR measures how far an instrument typically travels per candle. It has no view on direction, which is exactly what makes it… Intermediate4 min
  7. Multi-Timeframe Analysis Three charts, one order, every time. The higher timeframe sets bias, the middle finds the setup, the lower times the entry and… Intermediate4 min
  8. Common Chart Patterns A pattern is consolidation drawn as a shape. It is worth trading only when you can say what the shape means and where it is… Intermediate4 min
  9. MACD: Moving Average Convergence Divergence MACD is the distance between a fast and a slow moving average. It is slow on purpose, which is both its weakness and the reason… Intermediate4 min
  10. The Stochastic Oscillator The stochastic asks one question: where did the close land inside the recent range? That is useful in a range and misleading in… Intermediate4 min
  11. Bollinger Bands Bollinger Bands measure volatility, not value. A touch says this candle is unusual against the last twenty, and nothing more… Intermediate4 min
  12. Fibonacci Retracements Fibonacci levels mark how much of a move has been given back. They matter where they coincide with something else, and rarely on… Intermediate4 min
  13. Fibonacci Extensions and Projections Extensions project where a resumed trend might travel. They are useful for setting a target before entry, and unreliable as a… Intermediate4 min
  14. Volume Analysis Basics Volume measures how many people were involved, not which side won. On a forex chart it is a proxy, and it is still worth reading. Beginner4 min
  15. On-Balance Volume (OBV) OBV is a running total that adds volume on up-closes and subtracts it on down-closes. Read the shape of the line, never its value. Intermediate4 min
  16. Ichimoku Cloud Basics Ichimoku is five simple calculations sharing one panel. Start with the cloud alone as a trend filter and add the rest later. Intermediate4 min
  17. Pivot Points Pivot points are calculated from yesterday's high, low and close. They matter because everyone using the same formula gets the… Beginner4 min
  18. Spotting Divergence Divergence describes a change in momentum at a swing point. It has no invalidation price of its own, which is why it cannot be… Intermediate4 min
  19. Choosing the Right Chart Timeframe Pick the longest timeframe that still gives you enough setups. Every problem on the list gets worse as the timeframe shrinks. Beginner4 min
  20. Understanding Price Gaps A gap is a band of price where nothing traded. Nobody holds a position inside it, which is why price often crosses it quickly. Beginner4 min
  21. VWAP: Volume Weighted Average Price VWAP is where the session's business was actually done. It resets each day, which is both its purpose and its main limitation. Intermediate4 min
  22. Elliott Wave Theory Basics Elliott Wave organises price into five waves with the trend and three against it. Its three hard rules are the only falsifiable… Intermediate4 min
  23. Average Directional Index (ADX) ADX answers one question: is there a trend worth trading? Direction has to come from the DI lines or from the chart itself. Intermediate4 min
  24. Parabolic SAR Parabolic SAR draws a trailing stop on your chart that tightens as the trend runs. That makes it an exit tool, not an entry tool. Intermediate4 min
  25. Heikin-Ashi Candles Heikin-Ashi draws the same data through a filter. It makes trends legible, and the open and close it shows are averages, not… Beginner4 min
  26. Donchian Channels A Donchian Channel draws the highest high and lowest low of the last N periods. It defines a breakout as a fact, not an… Intermediate4 min

Guided paths that use these lessons

A path is an ordered run through lessons from several categories, which is how the app sequences them. One path draws on technical analysis.

Chart Reading Essentials

Candles, trend, support/resistance and the most common chart patterns. The visual vocabulary of trading.

10 lessons
Trade · Learn · Earn

Take technical analysis with you

All 26 lessons in this category, plus the other 294 in the academy, with a quiz on each one and your place kept. Free on any MarketPro account, in the app or your browser.

In your browserContinue on webor continue on web Download on theApp Store Get it onGoogle Play

Same account as the app · No install · Free to start

Not investment advice. Past performance is not indicative of future results.