Candlestick patterns reveal the battle between buyers and sellers within each trading period. They originated in 18th-century Japanese rice markets and have proved remarkably durable across every asset class — including crypto's 24/7 markets. The key is not memorising all patterns but mastering the few with the highest reliability.
Each candle represents the Open, High, Low, and Close (OHLC) price for a given period. The body spans Open to Close; the wicks (shadows) show the High and Low extremes. A green/white body = price closed above open (bulls won). A red/black body = price closed below open (bears won).
Small body at top, long lower wick. At support after downtrend. Bulls rejected lower prices decisively.
Small body at bottom, long upper wick. At resistance after uptrend. Bears rejected higher prices decisively.
Large green candle completely engulfs prior red candle. Strong momentum reversal signal at support.
Large red candle completely engulfs prior green candle. Strong reversal signal at resistance levels.
3-candle pattern: long red, small doji/spin, long green. Signals end of downtrend at key support.
3-candle pattern: long green, small doji/spin, long red. Signals end of uptrend at key resistance.
Open and close nearly identical. Neither bulls nor bears in control. Signals potential reversal when at extremes.
Long lower wick, no upper wick. Open=High=Close. Strong bullish rejection at lows.
Long upper wick, no lower wick. Open=Low=Close. Strong bearish rejection at highs.
Full body with no or tiny wicks. Complete control by either bulls (green) or bears (red). Continuation signal.
Doji nested inside previous candle's body. Signals loss of momentum and potential reversal.
3 consecutive large green candles with higher closes. Strong bullish reversal from downtrend.
Never trade a candlestick pattern in isolation. A hammer at major support with high volume and RSI oversold is high-probability. A hammer in the middle of a downtrend with no confluence is noise. Always require 2–3 confirming factors before entering on a single candle pattern.