GlossaryIntermediate
Fractals and Swing High/Low
A specific multi-candle pattern (fractal) or more general concept (swing high/low) used to identify local turning points in price.
A fractal, in the Bill Williams sense commonly used in technical analysis, is a specific five-candle pattern where the middle candle has the highest high (a bearish fractal) or lowest low (a bullish fractal) relative to the two candles on either side of it, marking a local turning point.
Swing high and swing low describe the broader, more general concept of identifying local turning points in price — a fractal is one specific, formulaic way to define one, but not the only way traders identify swing points. See Kaavon's dedicated article for the full fractal construction.
Examples
- A bullish fractal forms when a candle's low is lower than the lows of the two candles on either side of it.
- Swing highs and lows are commonly used as the reference points for drawing other tools, including Fibonacci retracements and Andrews' Pitchfork.