
Adding volume to your thinkorswim chart can be a game-changer for deeper insights into market trends.
Thinkorswim's volume feature allows you to overlay volume data on your chart, giving you a clearer picture of trading activity. This is particularly useful for identifying trends and patterns.
By analyzing volume, you can determine the strength of a trend and anticipate potential price movements. For instance, a high volume spike can indicate a strong buying or selling pressure.
As you explore thinkorswim's volume feature, you'll discover that it can be customized to suit your trading style and preferences.
Setting Up Thinkorswim
To set up thinkorswim, start by defining the main inputs, including the volume calculation length and the five symbols you want to track. This makes it easy to customize which stocks the indicator will analyze.
The declare lower command is used to ensure that this indicator appears in the lower panel of thinkorswim, separate from the price chart. The length of 20 periods is used to average volume.
Consider reading: Lower Zoom Volume
You can adjust the symbols and length values as needed to suit your trading strategy. The user can customize which stocks the indicator will analyze.
Setting a length of 20 periods is a common choice for averaging volume, but you can experiment with different values to find what works best for you.
Customizing the Chart
You can add volume to your chart on thinkorswim by selecting the "Volume" column in the "Studies" tab. This allows you to view the volume of trades for a specific time period.
To further customize the chart, you can use the "Properties" tab to adjust the appearance of the volume column. For example, you can change the color of the volume bars or add a moving average to the chart.
By using the "Studies" tab, you can also add other technical indicators to your chart, such as the Relative Strength Index (RSI) or the Bollinger Bands.
Take a look at this: Thinkorswim Studies
Step 8: Customizing the Indicator
Customizing the indicator is where the magic happens. You can fine-tune it to your heart's content.
To adjust the length of the volume average, try changing the length value. This will make the indicator more responsive or smoother.
You can also modify the color thresholds to make color shifts more aggressive or subdued. This is done by adjusting the AssignValueColor thresholds.
If you want to track different stocks, swap out the current symbols. This is as simple as replacing the existing symbols with the ones you want to monitor.
Here are some key adjustments you can make to customize your indicator:
- Length: Change the length value for a more responsive or smoother volume average.
- Color Thresholds: Modify the AssignValueColor thresholds to make color shifts more aggressive or subdued.
- Symbols: Swap out the current symbols to track different stocks.
Plotting Price
Plotting price is a crucial aspect of customizing your chart, and it's where the Volume Profile study really shines.
The Volume Profile study plots a horizontal histogram of volume traded at specific prices, giving you a clear picture of trading activity over a specified time period.
The point of control (POC) is the specific price when the most volume has traded over the specified time period, and it's defined by the widest horizontal row of the Volume Profile.
The value area is the range of prices around the POC that contain 70% of total volume for the period, highlighted by a yellow region in the example of stock XYZ on a year-to-date chart.
In this chart, the POC is highlighted by a horizontal row at 3984.75, showing you exactly where the most volume has traded.
This information can be super helpful in understanding market dynamics and making informed trading decisions.
Understanding Chart Data
Stocks trading above their value area high are typically bullish, as seen in the example of stock XYZ trading above 4159.83.
The value area high can shift higher if the stock continues to trend upwards, building more volume at prices above 4159.
Support should materialize on the first test of the value area high at 4159.83, which is a level that coincides with previous highs.
The Volume Profile appears to be confirming this support level, but there's no guarantee that the levels of support will converge.
If a stock experiences a deep pullback and falls back below the value area high, the POC at 3984.75 could come into play.
A unique perspective: Thinkorswim Auto Support
Interpreting the Chart
Thinkorswim's add volume to chart feature provides a more detailed view of market activity, allowing you to analyze price movements in relation to trading volume.
The volume bars on the chart can be colored differently to distinguish between buying and selling volume, making it easier to identify trends and patterns.
By adding volume to your chart, you can see how much of the price movement is driven by buying or selling pressure.
Thinkorswim's charting tools also allow you to adjust the scale of the volume bars, giving you a more granular view of the data.
This can be particularly useful for identifying key levels of support and resistance, as well as spotting potential trading opportunities.
Thinkorswim's add volume to chart feature can be customized to display different types of volume data, such as the number of contracts traded or the total value of trades.
You might enjoy: Live Data Thinkorswim Schwab
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I add a volume profile to my tos?
To add a volume profile to your Tos, simply let it use default settings and follow the prompts to apply and confirm. This will create a basic volume profile that you can customize further as needed.
Sources
- https://usethinkscript.com/threads/add-volume-indicator-to-thinkorswim-chart.1299/
- https://tosindicators.com/indicators/volume-intensity
- https://thexbrat.com/product/volume-behavior-for-thinkorswim/
- https://whoa.fyi/how-to-enable-volume-profile-study-on-thinkorswim/
- https://www.schwab.com/learn/story/richer-technical-view-analyzing-volume-by-price
Featured Images: pexels.com