Candlestick Patterns
The shapes that tell you who is winning, and what each one is worth.
Every pattern has a twin
A candle records four prices — where a period opened, how high and low it traded, and where it closed. A pattern is what happens when a few of those sit side by side and tell a story about who ran out of conviction first. The two columns below mirror one another: each bullish shape has a bearish reflection, which is why they are quicker to learn in pairs than in a list.
- The body
- The distance between the open and the close. Green when price closed above where it opened, red when it closed below.
- The wicks
- The thin lines above and below, marking the highest and lowest price traded — what was attempted inside the period, and rejected.
- Reading the two together
- A long body means one side dominated. A long wick means they tried and failed. Every pattern below is built from those two facts.
Bullish patterns
Buyers taking control — at the end of a decline, or partway through an advance.
Hammer
Reversal
Small body up top, long lower wick, after a fall.
- What it means
- Sellers pushed price down and lost it all back before the close.
- Watch out for
- The same shape after a rally is a hanging man.
Inverted Hammer
Reversal
Small body at the bottom, long upper wick, after a fall.
- What it means
- Buyers tested higher for the first time in the move.
- Watch out for
- Weak alone. Wait for a higher close next candle.
Bullish Engulfing
Reversal
A green body that covers the whole red body before it.
- What it means
- One session undoes the last. Control has changed hands.
- Watch out for
- On thin overnight liquidity it is just a gap.
Piercing Line
Reversal
Opens below the low, closes above the middle of the red body.
- What it means
- The gap down was bought back hard.
- Watch out for
- A close short of that midpoint is not the pattern.
Morning Star
Reversal
Long red, a small pause candle, then a long green.
- What it means
- Selling ends, the market hesitates, buyers arrive.
- Watch out for
- The middle candle has to be small.
Three White Soldiers
Reversal
Three long green candles, each closing near its high.
- What it means
- Steady buying with no giveback. The base is over.
- Watch out for
- By the third, most of the move is behind you.
Bullish Harami
Reversal
A small green body sitting inside the long red one before it.
- What it means
- The fall suddenly stopped covering ground.
- Watch out for
- A pause signal. Tighten stops, do not buy it.
Tweezer Bottom
Reversal
Two candles that finish at the same low.
- What it means
- The market reached that price twice and was refused twice.
- Watch out for
- The lows have to match closely to count.
Bullish Doji Star
Reversal
A doji — open and close level — gapped below a long red candle.
- What it means
- A session that went nowhere means the selling has run out.
- Watch out for
- Indecision, not direction. It says stop, not up.
Three Inside Up
Reversal
A bullish harami plus a green candle closing above it.
- What it means
- The third candle turns the pause into a reversal.
- Watch out for
- Nothing counts until that candle closes.
Bullish Marubozu
Continuation
A long green candle with no wick at either end.
- What it means
- Buyers held control for the entire session.
- Watch out for
- Usually mid-move rather than the start of one.
Rising Three Methods
Continuation
A long green, three small reds inside it, then a new high.
- What it means
- The pullback never leaves the range. The trend resumes.
- Watch out for
- A close below the first candle’s low kills it.
Bearish patterns
Sellers taking control — at the end of a rally, or partway through a decline.
Hanging Man
Reversal
Small body up top, long lower wick, after a rally.
- What it means
- Sellers reached deep into the session for the first time.
- Watch out for
- Identical to a hammer. Only the trend tells them apart.
Shooting Star
Reversal
Small body at the bottom, long upper wick, at a high.
- What it means
- Price was marked up and sold straight back down.
- Watch out for
- Wait for a lower close before acting on it.
Bearish Engulfing
Reversal
A red body that covers the whole green body before it.
- What it means
- A full session of gains erased in one candle.
- Watch out for
- Strong at resistance, unreliable in mid-air.
Dark Cloud Cover
Reversal
Opens above the high, closes below the middle of the green body.
- What it means
- The gap up was sold from the opening bell.
- Watch out for
- A close above that midpoint is not the pattern.
Evening Star
Reversal
Long green, a small pause candle, then a long red.
- What it means
- Buying exhausts, the market hesitates, sellers take it.
- Watch out for
- The last candle must close deep into the first.
Three Black Crows
Reversal
Three long red candles, each closing near its low.
- What it means
- Three sessions of selling with no recovery between them.
- Watch out for
- By the third, a bounce is close.
Bearish Harami
Reversal
A small red body sitting inside the long green one before it.
- What it means
- The rally stopped making progress.
- Watch out for
- It warns of a stall. It does not promise a turn.
Tweezer Top
Reversal
Two candles that finish at the same high.
- What it means
- Price failed at the same ceiling twice.
- Watch out for
- Weak unless that level already mattered.
Bearish Doji Star
Reversal
A doji gapped above a long green candle.
- What it means
- A new high that then went nowhere all session.
- Watch out for
- It needs a red candle after it to mean anything.
Three Inside Down
Reversal
A bearish harami plus a red candle closing below it.
- What it means
- The third candle confirms the top.
- Watch out for
- Slower than an engulfing top, and more reliable.
Bearish Marubozu
Continuation
A long red candle with no wick at either end.
- What it means
- Sellers held control from the open to the close.
- Watch out for
- Usually mid-move rather than the start of one.
Falling Three Methods
Continuation
A long red, three small greens inside it, then a new low.
- What it means
- The bounce never leaves the range. The trend resumes.
- Watch out for
- A close above the first candle’s high kills it.
No pattern is a trade on its own. Each one describes what has already happened; what makes it actionable is where it happens — at a level that mattered before, in the direction of the higher timeframe, with a stop you sized before you clicked.