Crypto trading involves buying and selling crypto assets such as Bitcoin, Ether, Solana, and Doge. Crypto traders use crypto exchanges as trading platforms to benefit from crypto price fluctuations. The crypto market is a 24*7 global market where trades are settled in real-time. Crypto traders use technical analysis and market indicators to make trading decisions.
Trading indicators help traders analyze price movements to make informed trade decisions. Technical indicators give insights into trends momentum and volatility, enabling traders to anticipate market movements.
We have compiled a list of the best indicators for crypto trading. This blog post will equip you to interpret different trading indicators to help you in trading.
Crypto technical analysis: Trading indicators for crypto trading
Technical analysis utilizes historical price and volume data to identify patterns and trends to get insights into future price movements of the token. Traders can use crypto chart analysis to spot potential trends, price support and resistance levels, gauge market sentiment, and much more. This empowers traders to make informed trading decisions, optimize their profits, and minimize the downside.
Some frequently used trading indicators include support and resistance levels, candlestick charts, and trend lines. Here are some of the best indicators for crypto trading, in no particular order.
1. Support and Resistance Levels
Support and resistance levels are the most basic, yet highly effective technical indicators used by new and experienced crypto traders alike. Traders try to identify the support and resistance levels before entering into a trade.
How to identify these levels? Here’s a simple way to identify them. Support is the zone where the prices have risen to a new high repeatedly over time, whereas resistance is the level where the prices have suffered a pullback.
You can use a trend line to map the support and resistance levels. For this, you must join three previous points in a straight line to identify the support and the resistance range.
2. Candlestick Charts
Candlestick charts form the base of technical analysis as they can predict the probable price trend of the crypto asset based on its price movements. The candlestick charts display the four different price levels for every interval, these prices include (moving from top to bottom):
- High price
- Opening price
- Closing price
- Low price
The candlestick chart displays this information with a bar and a wick. The peak of the candlestick on the charts depicts the highest price while the button depicts the lowest price at that time interval. Here is a simple guide to help you read the candlestick charts.
The body of the candle might be red or green. A red candle means the price closed at a lower value than the opening price while a green candle means the price closed at a higher value than the opening price. In a green candlestick, the top of the body indicates the closing price while the bottom indicates the opening price and the opposite is true for the red candlestick.
When reading a candlestick chart, every candle is read with the accompanying data points. This offers great insights to traders regarding their buy, sell, or hold decisions. Additionally, there are different patterns on the candlestick chart such as the hammer candlestick pattern, the spinning top pattern, the head and shoulders pattern, etc. The candlestick chart analysis is also known as crypto chart analysis.
3. Moving Averages
Moving Averages (MA) are used to identify the direction of market momentum for a specific time frame. There are two types of moving averages:
- Simple moving average (SMA)
- Exponential Moving Average (EMA)
The SMA is an average of price over a set time frame, giving a straightforward view of the price trend. EMA, on the other hand, gives more weightage to recent prices. This makes EMA more responsive to new information.
The moving averages smooth out the short-term market volatility to reveal the underlying price trend. A 50-day MA crossing above the 200-day MA for a cryptocurrency is considered a bullish price signal.
4. Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD)
The Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) is a momentum indicator. It helps crypto traders identify changes in strength, direction, momentum, and duration of the trend in a crypto’s price.
MACD consists of two moving averages. The MACD line is the difference between the 12-day and the 26-day EMA and the single line which is the 9-day EMA of the MACD line.
When the MACD line crosses the single line, it is a bullish signal, indicating a potential buying opportunity. On the other hand, a crossover below the single line is a bearish signal suggesting a potential selling opportunity.
The MACD histogram which is the difference between the MACD line and the signal line helps visualize the strength of the signals.
While MACD is the best indicator for crypto trading in a trending market it can produce false signals in a sideways market. This makes it essential to use MACD alongside other indicators for better results.
5. Relative Strength Index (RSI)
The Relative Strength Index (RSI) is a trusted crypto technical analysis indicator used by novice and seasoned traders. RSI is a momentum oscillator that measures the speed and change of price movements. It ranges from 0 to 100 and helps traders identify overbought or oversold conditions in crypto.
As a general rule, an RSI above 70 indicates that the crypto is overbought and may be ripe for price correction, while an RSI below 30 signals that the asset is oversold and may experience a price increase.
While widely trusted and used, RSI can generate false signals in a volatile or sideways market. Therefore, it is recommended that traders use a combination of other indicators to make trading decisions.
6. Trend Lines
Trend lines are used to highlight a potential trend. Trend lines can take multiple forms and multiple trendlines can be drawn on the same chart to highlight complex patterns.
In other words, trend lines illustrate a potential trend by joining the price highs and lows on the chart. The more points a line connects, the stronger the trend.
There are two types of market trends, the upward trend and the downward trend. Trend lines are frequently used trading indicators as various patterns can be drawn to infer the bearish or bullish nature of the trend.
7. On-balance Volume
The on-balance volume (OBV) is a crypto technical analysis indicator that measures the buying and selling pressure by using the volume flow to predict changes in crypto prices. OBV works on the principle that volume precedes price.
OBV is calculated by adding up the volume on the up days and subtracting the volume on the down days.
A rising OBV indicates that buying volume is outpacing selling volume, suggesting a probable rise in price. Conversely, falling OBV signals a rise in selling volume, indicating a potential decline in price. OBV is used in crypto technical analysis to confirm trends and identify trend reversals.
8. Fibonacci Retracement
Fibonacci retracement is one of the top indicators for trading as it identifies strategic target prices for entering the market, building positions, stop-losses, etc. After significant volatility often seen in the crypto market, the new support and resistance levels are often around the Fibonacci retracement line.
It is the best indicator for crypto trading trusted by experienced crypto traders as the Fibonacci Retracement levels are static and do not change like the moving average. The static nature allows the traders to anticipate and easily identify the support and resistance levels.
The key Fibonacci levels are 23.6%, 38.2%, 50%, 61.8%, and 100%. These levels are derived from mathematical relationships within the Fibonacci sequence. Crypto traders apply these levels by plotting them between a significant high and low on a price chart for the given time frame. The idea is that after a significant price movement, the price will be pulled back for a portion of that move before rallying in the original direction.
9. Bollinger Bands
Bollinger bands are volatility indicators consisting of three lines, The Simple Moving Average (SMA) middle, and two outer bands that are standard deviations away from the SMA. Normally, the 20-day SMA will form the middle band and the outer bands will usually be set two standard deviations apart. This arrangement adjusts for crypto market volatility.
Bollinger Bands helps crypto traders analyze and identify overbought and oversold conditions in a cryptocurrency.
A crypto is deemed to be in overbought territory when the price touches the upper band. This suggests a potential selling opportunity. On the other hand, a token will be considered oversold when the price touches the lower band, indicating a buying opportunity.
Typically, the widening of bands signals high volatility and contracting bands signal low volatility. While Bollinger Bands are widely used, they should be read in conjunction with other technical indicators to confirm trends.
10. Stochastic Oscillator
The Stochastic Oscillator is a momentum indicator that compares the cryptocurrency’s closing price to a time-specific price range, typically 14 days. The indicator consists of two lines: %K and %D.
● %K Line: This is the main line calculated as 100 times the current closing price minus the lowest low over the same period, divided by the highest high minus the lowest low over the same period.
● %D Line: The 3-day simple moving average of the %K line.
The Stochastic Oscillator readings range from 0 to 100. A reading above 80 indicates overbought conditions and readings below 20 indicate oversold conditions. Additionally, the Stochastic Oscillator also indicates trend reversals.
Technical analysis comes in handy for traders. We have listed some of the best indicators for crypto trading. Investors would be better off using a combination of indicators to confirm a trend.
Conclusion
Crypto trading can be exciting. Successful crypto traders often base their trading decisions on technical analysis rather than gut feelings. Crypto chart analysis can help them predict market trends and identify the support and resistance levels. Our curated list of the best indicators for crypto trading should serve as a useful guide in your investment journey.
