Mastering Trading Multiple Time Frames

<p id="">Many traders need help picking the best time frames for technical analysis, and understandably so.</p><p id="">Every charting tool has an endless list of time frames available, potentially showing different trends, so choosing the “right” time frames for trade decisions can feel daunting.</p><p id="">The good news is we have recommendations on which time frames work best for certain trade styles.</p><p id="">Here we walk you through the steps of choosing the right time frames, complete with a case study so that you can trade more confidently.</p><h2 id=""><strong id="">Trading Multiple Time Frames</strong></h2><p id="">Using a single time frame for technical analysis can present a skewed market view, causing traders to miss critical price movements, overreact to “noise,” or fall victim to false signals.</p><p id="">To avoid these common mistakes, traders should analyze multiple time frames to gain a more holistic understanding of the markets and look for trade opportunities where multiple time frames show the same trend, a concept called confluence.</p><p id="">Historically, trades made in confluence have a higher probability of success.</p><p id="">Using confluence, every trade decision is supported by several time frames in agreement, strengthening confidence in market trends and ultimately leading to more disciplined and successful trades.</p><p id="">At<a href="https://insiderfinance.io/technical-analysis" id=""> InsiderFinance</a>, we recommend using a three time frame framework to make trade decisions:</p><ul id=""><li id="">Short-Term</li><li id="">Long-Term</li><li id="">Macro</li></ul><h3 id=""><strong id="">Macro Trend</strong></h3><p id="">The macro trend is the "established" trend. You have the best chance of success when you trade in the same direction as the macro trend (i.e. taking a long position when the macro trend is bullish).</p><p id="">We typically think of the Daily chart as the macro trend, but if you're planning a very quick in and out, the 1-hour or 4-hour may serve as the macro trend.</p><p id="">The longer you plan to hold, the higher the time frame you want to use as your macro trend.</p><h3 id=""><strong id="">Long-Term Trend</strong></h3><p id="">The long-term trend tells you which direction that ticker is likely moving for the day.</p><p id="">If the long-term trend changes direction, your macro trend is also at risk of changing directions shortly.</p><h3 id=""><strong id="">Short-Term Trend</strong></h3><p id="">The short-term trend helps you plan entries/exits, but even if your short-term chart turns the opposite of the macro chart, the overall trend may still be intact if you see the same trend on the long-term and macro charts.</p><p id="">So even though the short-term trend may turn opposite to your macro trend, that doesn’t necessarily mean you should exit immediately.</p><p id="">Typically, we lock in some profits early using pre-determined take-profit levels. That de-risks the trade and lets you play with some “house money.”</p><p id="">To decide when to exit the remainder of the position, we watch the long-term chart to see when the trend ends.</p><h3 id=""><strong id="">Best Time Frames for Day Traders</strong></h3><p id="">Day traders need faster and shorter time frames to execute their trades within the day effectively. The three best time frames for day traders include:</p><ul id=""><li id=""><strong id="">1-Minute or 5-Minute (Short Term)</strong>: Ideal for capturing short-lived price movements and identifying quick trading opportunities.</li><li id=""><strong id="">15-Minute (Long Term)</strong>: Offers a balanced view of market trends, minimizing erratic price fluctuations while providing timely insights.</li><li id=""><strong id="">1-Hour (Macro)</strong>: This slightly longer time frame smoothens out intraday noise, providing a broader perspective of the day's activity.</li></ul><h3 id=""><strong id="">Best Time Frames for Swing Traders</strong></h3><p id="">Swing traders, who typically hold positions overnight or for several days, need longer time frames to assess potentially profitable trends. The three best time frames for swing traders are:</p><ul id=""><li id=""><strong id="">1-Hour (Short Term)</strong>: Provides an overview of short-term trends, allowing traders to pinpoint subtle shifts in momentum.</li><li id=""><strong id="">4-Hour (Long Term)</strong>: Offers more significant insights for swing traders without getting overwhelmed with irrelevant fluctuations.</li><li id=""><strong id="">Daily (Macro)</strong>: Essential for identifying long-term moves and emerging patterns, thus enabling swing traders to capitalize on more sustained trends.</li></ul><h2 id=""><strong id="">Case Study: MSFT</strong></h2><p id="">To bring these concepts together, we’ll walk through an example of a bullish swing trade on Microsoft (MSFT) using the<a href="https://insiderfinance.io/technical-analysis" id=""> InsiderFinance Technical Analysis System</a>.</p><p id="">First, we’ll use our three time frame framework to see if we can enter the trade.</p><h3 id=""><strong id="">Trade Entry</strong></h3><p id="">We’ll start by checking out the Daily chart since we plan to hold for a few days.</p><p id="">Is the daily chart bullish? If so, the macro trend is bullish, and we can check other time frames to confirm the short-term trend. </p><p id="">If not, we’re going to look for another trade idea instead.</p><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/645142d6effdb93558c7599e_77a40bf3.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p id="">We can see above that the Daily chart shows a Strong Buy reinforced by a bull Trend Triangle.</p><p id="">We also see Strong Buys on the Squeeze and Momentum indicators, so we’re ready to check the 4-hour chart.</p><p id="">If the 4-hour chart is bullish, both the macro and long-term trends agree. </p><p id="">We will look for another trade idea if the long-term trend isn't bullish.</p><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/645142d67b2e53571b9f57d2_baefc19b.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p id="">We can see above that the 4-hour chart shows a Strong Buy on both the Algo and Confirm, along with another bullish Trend Triangle.</p><p id="">We also have Buy signals on the Squeeze and Momentum indicators, so we’re ready to check the 1-hour chart to plan our entry.</p><p id="">If the 1-hour chart is bullish, now we have three bullish trend confirmations on different time frames, so the trade is backed by robust technical analysis.</p><p id="">Assuming we don’t see any bearish options order flow, we’re good to trade!</p><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/645142d634a6f9f8d4bd0373_839ab034.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p id="">We can see from the above chart that we have a Strong Buy from the Algo reinforced with a bullish Trend Diamond.</p><p id="">We also see a Buy from the Confirm and Squeeze indicators, so we’re ready to enter the trade!</p><p id="">While we still like to check our time frames individually before entering, you can see that our<a href="https://insiderfinance.io/technical-analysis" id=""> Technical Analysis System</a> automatically displays the trends on higher time frames to expedite our analysis.</p><h3 id=""><strong id="">When to Exit</strong></h3><p id="">Now that we’re in the trade, how do we know when to exit? There are a few promising signs it may be time to exit:</p><ul id=""><li id="">The price hits the take profit or stop loss levels</li><li id="">The long-term trend or daily trend turns bearish</li><li id="">Option order flow turns bearish</li></ul><h4 id="">Take Profit and Stop Loss Levels</h4><p id="">Take profit and stop loss levels are generated each time there's a buy or sell signal, so it can be helpful to write them down if you don't enter them in your brokerage immediately.</p><p id="">Take profit and stop loss levels are also included in<a href="https://insiderfinance.io/technical-analysis" id=""> our automated alerts</a>.</p><p id="">Another question may be, which take profit and stop loss levels do I use? </p><p id="">We typically recommend the levels from your short-term chart since that's the time frame you use to plan entries and exits.</p><p id="">We’ll use the take profit and stop loss levels from the 1-hour chart (the short-term trend in this example).</p><p>‍</p><h4 id="">Long-Term Trend Reversal</h4><p id="">Another reason you may exit is if the long-term or macro trend reverses.</p><p id="">If the short-term chart changes from bullish to bearish, that may not mean you need to exit.</p><p id="">This happens frequently in the markets, but as long as your longer-term trends hold, the short-term trend may return to a buy shortly.</p><p id="">Is there an easy way to monitor all these time frames? The answer is yes!</p><p id="">We typically set<a href="https://insiderfinance.io/technical-analysis" id=""> automated alerts</a> on all three time frames for any position we enter to monitor trend changes effortlessly.</p><p>‍</p><h4 id="">Bearish Options Flow</h4><p id="">Even if our technical analysis looks excellent, we may exit a position if we see strong bearish options order flow.</p><p id="">Options flow volume inherently incorporates a “knowledge” element not present in technical analysis.</p><p id="">Options flow represents an actual trade executed by a professional trader at an institution or by a high-frequency trading algorithm developed and rigorously backtested by a quant.</p><p id="">Actual trades mean real money is on the line for these institutions and professional traders.</p><p id="">The trade’s direction (i.e. bullish or bearish) represents a professional trader’s confidence in the short-term market direction.</p><p id="">We<a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/options-flow-vs-technical-analysis-which-is-the-best-indicator" id=""> maximize our chances of success by using options flow and technical analysis together</a>.</p><h3 id=""><strong id="">Trade Exit</strong></h3><p id="">Now that we’ve discussed potential signs to exit a trade, we’ll look at possible exit points to see the best time to exit the trade.</p><p id="">We’ll primarily focus on the 1-hour chart as we use the short-term time frame to plan entries and exits.</p><p id="">Two days after entering, we received an automated alert saying the 1-hour time frame had changed trend.</p><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/645142d64f6fc31a601bf6fe_ceb3e2a1.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p id="">As you can see, we’ve already made a nice profit in just two days!</p><p id="">Our trade is well past the 1st take profit level and touched the 2nd, so we should have taken most of our initial capital out of the trade by now.</p><p id="">Looking at the chart, we now see a sell signal on the 1-hour chart, but our long-term and macro trends are still strong. Should we sell?</p><p id="">Since we’ve already de-risked the trade and the long-term and macro trends are still bullish, let’s hold and see what happens.</p><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/645142d6641903730950d73f_009a212d.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p id="">Five days later, more profits!</p><p id="">How long could we have held this trade? Let’s take a look at the Daily chart.</p><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/645142d62a712271b6eb2fcb_d83ee1e5.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p id="">The Daily chart held a buy signal for 13 days!</p><p id="">That’s a long time with plenty of opportunities to make a profit if you’re patient and keep the big picture (i.e. multiple time frames) in perspective.</p><h2 id=""><strong id="">Increase Your Win Rate Today</strong></h2><p id="">Now you’re ready to trade in confluence with multiple time frames and increase your win rate!</p><p id="">Don’t forget to use<a href="https://insiderfinance.io/technical-analysis" id=""> award-nominated technical analysis tools</a> to trade faster and more confidently.</p><p id="">Automated alerts and higher time frame analysis save significant time and take the guesswork out of reading charts.</p>

Learn how to increase your win rate using technical analysis to identify trade opportunities where trends on multiple chart time frames show confluence.

Options Flow vs. Technical Analysis: Which Is the Best Indicator?

<p id="">Options flow and technical analysis are two of the most powerful leading indicators for predicting short-term market direction.</p><p id="">Nearly every successful trader uses one or both of these to help them determine which trades have the most potential within the current market context.</p><p id="">Naturally, many traders want to know the best indicator to predict market trends: options flow or technical analysis.&nbsp;</p><h3 id="">What is Options Flow?</h3><p id="">Options flow represents the 6 to 10 million options contracts traded daily. Why should traders care about options flow?</p><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/634469e0d6d2325422b946d9_bKIHKIEnfz9aoyVUiFGR3qLT7ZhR5AveLwjkt4MrpJjL8twkOzJONH67-9u_jFQcgvkTA7OAnYBdWyz1dffNnKBs6Qouz1xOFPRfKNhnst3kJWtb5pcpceUDKS8ybPCtop6yrm8q4WLK9PfAaEbmwIsJNdUxSVdloHFPOgNPvGCiP5RrxpsZngyj5w.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p id="">Options flow is one of the most accurate leading indicators for predicting short-term market movements by <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/" id="">giving retail traders visibility into the positions institutions take</a> that often cause large market movements <em id="">before</em> the moves happen.</p><p id=""><a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/top-10-tips-for-trading-with-options-flow" id="">Understanding how to leverage options flow data</a> can help traders predict short-term trends with high confidence and prevent disastrous trades.</p><h3 id="">What is Technical Analysis?</h3><p id="">Technical analysis indicates future price movements and trends by evaluating historical price and volume data. Why should traders care about technical analysis?</p><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/63593b7281bb58afd3a7882c_AXT4MwljIhrbpXP3NdEkmmVtf5dj0nrGaneeYWHApbfFqm-TgNGuVOb3UCf1qzsFdmJ3qaHTgPKSR2BJQe6evk9J0Xvi4rZXamYo2Z15-R3O-6tISmOvLRithZT6lRGmEYRreuOHNDEQx89tl8oXxQKH3mfx2vqRPhB6uMwPnz2MC_tz0dGbohUnIg.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p id="">High-potential trade ideas have a much higher chance of success when supported by robust technical analysis, so employing technical analysis can increase your win rate meaningfully.</p><p id="">How? <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/technical-analysis" id="">Traders gain an edge</a> when multiple technical indicators using different price concepts from various non-correlated techniques show the same trend.</p><p id="">Historically, trades made when <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/how-to-trade-in-confluence-with-technical-analysis-and-increase-your-win-rate" id="">technical indicators are in confluence</a> have a higher potential of working out successfully.</p><h3 id="">Options Flow vs. Technical Analysis</h3><p id="">Traders face many situations where options flow data and technical analysis indicators tell different stories. </p><p id="">For example, options flow data may show a very bullish trend while technical analysis indicates a bear trend. So how do you know which is right?</p><p id="">Typically, we consider options flow as the best indicator for price swings. </p><p id="">After all, volume moves markets, and options flow has proven time and time again to be the best predictor of large movements in the market.</p><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/6359370d4109b0461cfee046_ZJxIkqWN-suBndf6sSLWV2FwEoKky18kKX7ogP6pzHHm8iAR9WT3DX_TYIiMvzrrWMALAeNiahUEGmU4VEiaGY7DJ1J50zzfocrr2lZ8HWkLxyVriFYzDblFOH_VcJ3Z2jJhVdwMFbarxstnFNL3lDOl2_Y8VnldbN2iRzV24X-5juLJCJieuePQTg.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p id="">Options flow volume inherently incorporates a “knowledge” element that isn’t present in technical analysis.&nbsp;</p><p id="">Options flow represents an actual trade executed by a professional trader at an institution or by a high-frequency trading algorithm developed and rigorously backtested by a quant. </p><p id="">Real trades mean real money is on the line for these institutions and professional traders.&nbsp;</p><p id="">The trade’s direction (i.e. bullish or bearish) represents a professional trader’s confidence in the short-term market direction. </p><p id="">Sometimes the market direction is determined using non-public information that we aren't privy to.</p><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/6359370d249b210bad023623_eP3GWplKi2sP5Q7-Mlg4306tbtQSUcrT9U_XWz---hnqPPo4e0Z7byQ_QSIsADuEbDewy6_oFQ2jP3Qaf8odKcP9sIhQDAXn37TfbeTavm90rd2ePTsnApqSqYts0pT6qZJTVqBwQdKOU5hg1G5g7DEF1T75Kb99Z3DkXg7a9D9xd8ZnRbC2KaVj6A.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p id="">Institutional investors (“smart money”) use their considerable resources to access market-moving information before other market participants. </p><p id="">Smart money uses this information advantage to confidently take significant (and often highly-leveraged) positions that often cause sizable directional swings in the market.&nbsp;</p><p id="">Historically, smart money has used this substantial information advantage to outperform retail traders by a wide margin. </p><p id="">Through analyzing the options flow, we can understand professional traders' sentiment and potentially discover a trade they made using a proprietary strategy (and take the same trade).</p><p id="">While the individual option flow trades account for the newest (and usually non-public) information the fastest for rapid price movements, we don’t know what quantitative data the trader considered before entering the trade. </p><p id="">That’s where technical analysis comes in.</p><p id="">Technical analysis uses sophisticated math to predict trends and market direction based on historical data. Large amounts of quantitative data are analyzed to determine the most likely price action that can be seen using visuals.</p><p id="">Historically, technical analysis has proven to be an excellent predictor of future price trends. </p><p id="">However, technical analysis may fall short as “new” information is introduced to the market, which could cause price movements in the opposite direction that technical analysis predicted.</p><h3 id="">Summary</h3><h4 id=""><strong id="">Options Flow</strong> </h4><ul id=""><li id="">Excellent for accounting for the newest (and often non-public) information that hasn’t yet been priced into a stock, which serves as a leading indicator of rapid price movements before they occur</li></ul><h4 id=""><strong id="">Technical Analysis</strong> </h4><ul id=""><li id="">Excellent for incorporating historical quantitative data to easily visualize the price trend with clear entry and exit points based on a quantitative approach</li></ul><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/6359370d583ed8a97b8c92a7_zzsg5mecbKwA_J-ovIyAECRqih6UXhuI_4icWBoo-W9K6uVpAAuwiMbiXWv0tN9zCp75z1WGmyE8avrPwxpUwG672ytYnzrHtwba7z2KeSJHaQ5bNnTZWjiP0toWSSF77t0QTgo1vo-2sDMzT-dhrP0pqAroNzk9x7Bjy_io__x23BF-6HJWEIn8cQ.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p id="">Traders have the best chance of success (and highest win rates) by incorporating options flow and technical analysis into their trading strategy. </p><p id="">The more data points that predict the same direction, the better the chances the market moves in that direction, a concept called <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/how-to-trade-in-confluence-with-technical-analysis-and-increase-your-win-rate" id="">confluence</a>.</p><p id="">In a trading strategy using confluence, every trade decision is supported by several indicators and analyses, all in agreement, to increase the chances of success within the current market context.</p><p id="">At InsiderFinance, we recommend trading in confluence and prefer to avoid trading when there's conflicting information. </p><p id="">Instead, we recommend finding a trade where the options flow and technical indicators agree.</p><p id="">In the pictures of BBY above, you can see very bullish options flow but bearish technical indicators. Why enter a trade with a mixed outlook? </p><p id="">Let’s walk through an example where options flow and technical analysis agree.</p><h3 id="">Options Flow and Technical Analysis Case Study</h3><p id="">The following case study will analyze the options flow and technical indicators for GM ahead of a significant market movement.</p><h4 id="">Options Flow</h4><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/6359370d4bf47c4b5b2da033_WSmx3KOT_4QaTWIzBIdb_jAEf0mF3niDs0LBGBYsI-eafeYn6_jwb6_cyfFEIkL31YLbUMENYwohC4a5luwG1pR-xAtiGI9LxuWRzU1obwX5wrlbC7AtJAg9FO9H3KNSMHfwpbNjbBDdYLpbsXuO8XQ7BLy9-5vVx5gvRziVGJ5JjW6-YKOzi6lavA.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p id="">The table above shows GM options flow ahead of a substantial move. Notice a few points on the options flow:</p><ul id=""><li id="">The majority of the overall options flow is bullish</li><li id="">All of the unusual options activity (highlighted in blue) is bullish</li><li id="">The options flow trades with the highest <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/what-is-the-insiderfinance-heat-score" id="">Heat Scores</a> are bullish</li><li id="">The large bearish put on 10/19 has an expiration date of 1/20, which can be interpreted as a longer-term bearish outlook that shouldn’t impact our short-term analysis</li></ul><p id="">Given the points above, we can now conclude that the options flow for GM is very bullish. </p><p id="">That gives us great confidence in the short-term market direction, given real traders risked real money that GM will rise in the short term.</p><p id="">However, to ensure we have the highest chance of success for a profitable trade, let’s perform technical analysis and compare the results.</p><h4 id="">Technical Analysis</h4><p id="">The foundation of a confluence trading strategy that includes technical analysis is typically overlaying multiple technical indicators onto the same chart and comparing multiple time frames.</p><p id="">The <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/technical-analysis" id="">InsiderFinance technical analysis system</a> uses proprietary and well-known indicators from multiple sources to identify trends with unmatched accuracy. </p><p id="">Our high-performing indicators are in confluence for every buy/sell signal generated.</p><p id="">We recommend looking at multiple time frames to add another level of confluence. The "higher" the time frame, the longer "term" the trend.</p><ul id=""><li id=""><strong id="">1-Hour</strong>: Short Term</li><li id=""><strong id="">4-Hour</strong>: Long Term</li><li id=""><strong id="">Daily:</strong> Macro Trend</li></ul><p id="">We think of the daily chart as the macro "established" trend. </p><p id="">Traders have the best chance of success when trading in the same direction as the daily chart (i.e. taking a long position when the daily chart is bullish).</p><p id="">In this case study, we’ll skip the daily chart analysis to avoid being overly repetitive, but the daily chart showed a bullish trend.</p><p id="">In the 4-hour chart below, we see the <a href="https://learn.insiderfinance.io/courses/1699651/lectures/39581657" id="">InsiderFinance 4-point confirmation</a> on 10/17:</p><ul id=""><li id="">Algo buy signal</li><li id="">Squeeze buy signal</li><li id="">Momentum buy signal</li><li id="">Trend confirmation triangle</li></ul><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/635938b7e98d642acc04e6b8_rYf0JkKpDRh2b8pt0Q0fp9u8zQAL873VuhXOAsJNwWSL2_TbwHubA5Xc6OdOTsNhFuUmzP7Ymru-OGlpsmz1a485JweRKSiyJnHfVLCOPVLtqD3RdatzzkWMQuQ5tMDAJKhSlz9Y89uWUgWcyy0ZzhbVF34vxf1L3hW-7rFQEzX-shpOsbkF71novw.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p id="">Based on the 4-hour chart above, we can conclude that GM started a long-term bullish trend on 10/17. Let’s see if our 1-hour chart tells a similar story.</p><p id="">In the 1-hour chart below, we see the majority of the InsiderFinance 4-point confirmation on 10/21:</p><ul id=""><li id="">Algo buy signal</li><li id="">Swing diamond</li><li id="">Squeeze change from bearish to bullish</li><li id="">Momentum buy signal</li></ul><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/63593956a0dd4c4b2f9d24e1_FxViwi_cmO-L2hZdp3WoNaJu8gvjmj1M83n8FcI74VndnCEy61U6D8p62MFkBFaR7OrhFedWlABFvMbAOVVJ3vxA7gYg8ybfc1f3YwF209FMbC6elc81BmDpEf0BPO9Gq6PUUhE3GzNf8jl_ZpfaKINLXZOAUsIrstcmIxd1TEM9-D9k8hNJyrTkoA.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p id="">Our technical analysis results agreed with our options flow data that a bull trend is likely the short-term market direction. That’s great news!</p><p id="">Once we know the market direction, we can enter a trade that fits our trading strategy and becomes profitable when the market moves in the same direction as our analysis (i.e. buy a call when our analysis predicts a bull trend).</p><h4 id="">News Sentiment</h4><p id="">This article was primarily focused on comparing options flow and technical analysis, but for the best chance of success, we should also evaluate news sentiment before trading.</p><p id="">The below news sentiment analysis for GM is overwhelmingly positive, with no “red flag” articles, so we can still enter this trade confidently.</p><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/6359370ea0dd4c39c49cfa0a_xRn_IvBRnfZTs_Ym2rJVVlkMC_1FCKWs4KtmauEjoIPQ_Mv2W3UQ-qHZEDnveheaH1_Mwy6fgjsYHPteyI3PVIcq7P3OfnNE5cSf7lkPX2IK--QnbW0Nofh3nPqNUmj3BAWBG_xQY2qlC0rs1VWdOd5pyL2BNEY6yN1fDRpeFAOiRN2bLpgUdq8C.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><h4 id="">Dark Pool</h4><p id="">Another piece of information we should consider before entering a trade is <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/what-are-dark-pool-trades" id="">dark pool</a>, particularly dark pool levels.</p><p id="">Dark pool trades, or prints, are equity block trades executed over-the-counter (OTC) through a private exchange only available to institutional investors. </p><p id="">Dark pool trades can also be leading indicators of market movements. </p><p id="">Let’s take a look at the dark pool trades for GM below. </p><p id="">We see some dark pool activity, but we don’t see any clearly bullish or bearish trades <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/intelligent-dark-pool-tracking" id="">identified through InsiderFinance’s intelligent tracking</a>.</p><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/6359370eff2fdd24eb989f6d_gHTYPJ8fNt2hftFa58MXmlIAwjDKJAKrLXMBQK4gWHcv6XtvvwEjxdsw5dHI4WjHL_tT1zuX8u_TqU_F9yPnLjEIouwsSuPTQ_OUmlzzuYRnyo9QZipQvCF4kygLXoany34ce-RsXim-BJfXQeTaTWkaBXtSXiF4reVbdGOexqVminpz2_MqVebdQw.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p id="">Even though we didn’t see any bullish or bearish signals, we can still use dark pool to determine potential support and resistance levels.</p><p id="">Tracking the price level that dark pool prints are trading over time helps identify support and resistance levels (i.e. dark pool levels).</p><p id=""><a href="https://learn.insiderfinance.io/courses/1699651/lectures/39492266" id="">Dark pool levels</a> are beneficial in understanding whether the overall market is trying to break through a resistance level, which we would interpret as bearish overall, or held up by a strong support level, which we would interpret as bullish sentiment.</p><p id="">Let’s take a look at the dark pool levels for GM below. </p><p id="">We see GM’s current price is $35.45, and a strong dark pool level formed at $33.44.&nbsp;</p><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/6359370e923e4ab89281074f_dynmV5nu32jUBInjGiuA6MSdvaXjlzZp32rDrZy7IRP2D7frsrrkyvrQFRCUqWtlJnXOcUqiB2YiihencATuo3_Mdi7YUJ2zySCa-f8Sfw-DW2midhVUF-gLrFKT90PsETvJ-tcgxgfeQXZpFVcdgF7B8fUR8zOvf4V-R-Fn1y78a8PxWsklmopNjw.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p id="">Because the current price of GM is above the strongest dark pool level, that price level serves as the near-term support level, which means the market could dip a little but likely not past that point.</p><p id="">A support level indicates that the overall sentiment is bullish, which also agrees with our analysis of options flow, technical indicators, and news sentiment. </p><p id="">We should feel confident entering this trade with many powerful data points in confluence!</p><h3 id="">Start Trading with Options Flow and Technical Analysis</h3><p id="">So, what’s the best indicator to predict short-term market movements? A combination of options flow and technical analysis!</p><p id=""><a href="https://insiderfinance.io/" id="">Start trading with options flow and technical analysis</a> (and winning on more trades) today!</p><p id="">Remember to set stop losses and start with small amounts/paper trading, especially if these concepts are new to you. They’re powerful concepts that can significantly increase your win rate once you learn to use them, but always protect your capital as you learn something new.</p>

Options flow and technical analysis are two powerful leading indicators for predicting short-term market direction. Which is the best indicator?

Top 10 Tips for Trading with Options Flow

<h3 id="">Why Trade with Options Flow?</h3><p id="">Any trader can benefit from trading with options flow, whether you’re just starting or an experienced trader.&nbsp;</p><p id="">Options flow is one of the most powerful leading indicators for predicting short-term market movements. Understanding how to leverage this critical data can help you predict short-term trends with high confidence and also save you from some disastrous trades.</p><p id="">Why is options flow such a powerful indicator? Options flow gives retail traders visibility into the positions institutions take that often cause large market movements.</p><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/634469e0d6d2325422b946d9_bKIHKIEnfz9aoyVUiFGR3qLT7ZhR5AveLwjkt4MrpJjL8twkOzJONH67-9u_jFQcgvkTA7OAnYBdWyz1dffNnKBs6Qouz1xOFPRfKNhnst3kJWtb5pcpceUDKS8ybPCtop6yrm8q4WLK9PfAaEbmwIsJNdUxSVdloHFPOgNPvGCiP5RrxpsZngyj5w.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p id="">Institutional investors use their considerable resources to access market-moving information before other market participants. They use their information advantage to confidently take significant (and often highly-leveraged) positions that often cause sizable directional swings in the market.&nbsp;</p><p id="">Historically, institutional investors have used their substantial information advantage to outperform retail traders by a wide margin. However, retail traders can now use options flow to have the same information advantage as institutional investors without spending millions of dollars.</p><h3 id="">How to Trade with Options Flow?</h3><p id="">Several tools can help traders identify institutional flows. However, the best tools don’t just show where institutions are positioned — they also help traders determine which trades have the most potential within the current market context.</p><p id=""><a href="https://insiderfinance.io/" id="">InsiderFinance</a> is the complete platform for retail traders to level the data advantage with institutions while being so simple and intuitive that traders of any skill level can benefit immediately.</p><p id="">Our platform provides a curated list of tradable information plus multiple data points and visuals so you can make better trade decisions faster and dramatically increase your chance of success on every trade using a data-driven approach.</p><p id="">Our traders have found that our curated approach focused on actionable information saves hours of research daily and significantly increases their win rate.</p><p id="">How do we accomplish this? Underpinning the industry-leading InsiderFinance platform is a proprietary algorithm, developed by a trained Wall Street quant, that intelligently processes and filters the options flow and dark pool prints to increase your probability of success.</p><p id="">Our algorithms do the heavy lifting for you so you don’t have to spend hours filtering through distracting order flow.</p><h3 id="">Top 10 Tips for Trading with Options Flow</h3><p id="">Now that you understand how powerful options flow can be, let’s discuss how to trade with options flow successfully.</p><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-floatright" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="floatright"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/63446b2209693a876316f8ce_0DrPSyDyUvx9dl8myGr9u0kew1JyWubpgermLZS3nzYxrMliPEw4n_C-3v1-13KZZOASJyAQd0h6ojbpJBhetdssjnInEUl9VQGg_E1hUahlw16t8IqDJwSnz6Y9osXa-mWnIwDxnjcrbYzfvGCcpMARbE2I6_pAwurF-_EYRlUJpMfTAqSAN10Kug.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><h4 id="">Tip 1: Observe the Flow</h4><p id="">If you’re new to trading with options flow, don’t put real money on the line immediately. Trying to trade with options flow without learning some basics can lead to disastrous results.&nbsp;</p><p id="">Why? Not all options flow is the same, and you have to get a feel for the type of flow that fits your trading style to get the best results. Otherwise, you may have a false sense of security that hurts your win rate.</p><p id="">But don’t worry! It’s not hard to learn, and many resources are available online to learn the basics. If you’re looking for all the information you need in one place, we recommend our <a href="https://learn.insiderfinance.io/p/mastering-the-flow" id="">completely free masterclass</a> with bite-sized lessons to make learning fast and easy.</p><h4 id="">Tip 2: Understand the Why</h4><p id="">If you are new to using smart money order flow as a leading indicator of big market movements, start by understanding the intent behind the trade to see which ones get results.</p><ul id=""><li id="">Why are they buying?</li><li id="">What is that ticker doing today?</li><li id="">Any recent news?</li></ul><p id="">As you observe the options flow, pay attention to develop a feel for what's normal. We can see orders but not the traders' intentions.</p><ul id=""><li id="">A large call position can be a hedge against a larger put position.</li><li id="">A large put position can be a hedge against a larger call position.</li></ul><p id="">We also don't know the traders' intended hold time. The trader could hold through expiration or be out of the trade in seconds.</p><p id="">Understanding the "why" behind an order will produce the most winners. For example, is there a catalyst, recent news, or earnings ahead?</p><h4 id="">Tip 3: Don’t Trade Blindly</h4><p id="">This tip may sound obvious to you, and the concept applies to any trading strategy, even without options flow. However, it’s essential when trading options flow.</p><p id="">Having visibility to institutional investors' options flow is a very powerful leading indicator, but that doesn't mean you can trade it blindly.</p><p id="">Options flow is only one piece of the puzzle. For the highest chance of success, traders should look for multiple data points in agreement supporting a trade idea.</p><p id="">For example, which of the below trades do you think is more likely to be profitable?</p><ul id=""><li id="">Trade 1: strong bullish options flow, mixed news sentiment, very little dark pool activity, bearish technical indicators on multiple time frames</li><li id="">Trade 2: strong bearish options flow, negative news sentiment, moderate dark pool activity with a few late sells, and bearish technical indicators on multiple time frames</li></ul><p id="">Trade 2, of course! Why pick a trade with a mix of bearish and bullish signals when you can choose one with multiple data points all in agreement?</p><p id="">It’s important to consider <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/" id="">technical analysis, dark pool activity, and news sentiment</a> when trading with options flow.</p><h4 id="">Tip 4: Pay Attention to the Big Picture</h4><p id="">Look for tickers you expect to move in the same direction as the sector they’re in and the overall market for best results.&nbsp;</p><p id="">Sectors with the highest OTM % and overwhelmingly bullish or bearish premium flow are where Wall Street expects the most considerable price movements with the most “consensus.”</p><p id="">Combined, these two graphs help you avoid trading “against the current.”</p><p id="">All ships rise with the tide, so it can be easier to trade a bullish position in a sector with almost all bullish flow.&nbsp;</p><p id="">Let’s look at an example to illustrate. The graph below shows that the technology sector has mixed sentiment, the energy sector has bearish sentiment, and all other sectors have bullish sentiment.</p><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/634469e0e7b89d486fdf6838_bkVJzLsbZuAM0i-Ch9JGQogdTUTaU-5AQ7ZNT10kl2ovJt9qFSyCO9vzaCQlvo5kWNAazPhfJh9l1uRsQobtcXCmYHddAkKqh9eEKWtbohMW6Gn5Zw5JpfZdcFh2-QXdYWDFpRITIxl6eGlLavoqCZhxvWzfd1Y83ccxYPG3Rkg_BZsvnKPZ9dE1Gg.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p id="">Based on the sector sentiment, we’d avoid technology and energy tickers to increase our chances of success.</p><p id="">The same concept applies to the overall market sentiment. You’ll have the best chance of success trading in the same direction as the overall market, not against it.</p><p id="">ETF flow is beneficial to understand market sentiment. However, most of the put flow that comes from SPY, IWM, QQQ, and others is probably a hedge, even high dollar ones, so ETF sentiment is only meaningful when it's clearly bullish or bearish.</p><h4 id="">Tip 5: Trade Tickers with the Most Consensus</h4><p id="">Traders have the best chance of success when trading tickers with the most “consensus.”&nbsp;</p><p id="">Tickers with close to 100% bullish or bearish flow mean institutions are “in agreement” on whether they think the price will go up or down in the short term and are not typically part of a broader strategy.</p><p id="">Let’s take a look at the table below to illustrate. Which ticker seems like the most promising to research?</p><ul id=""><li id="">AMD: 34 trades with 35% put flow</li><li id="">MPC: 3 trades with 69% put flow</li><li id="">PSX: 4 trades with 100% put flow</li></ul><figure id="" class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div id=""><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/634469e0f2cdde18e3329734_tCWndeSLjujG74RPanEVxLuHrUIBhvg52ILPI124lndMte6bC1zpAuSuPomg4l_DKre_CrXfvdNw2q6pF_sqz6LOYsZDKG6cNth6u3uhW-yBf9tYmwoy8OSqeFdp17dBDXq7Z79tGYfrYgRrqB-ldwJMekfPd1DiXrxSvN8YlXEqRsMEl20TdtoACQ.png" id="" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p id="">PSX, of course! Multiple trades in the same direction are much clearer than more trades with mixed sentiment.</p><p id="">We still can’t trade blindly as options flow is only one piece of the puzzle, but having consensus on options flow is a good signal and a great place to start.</p><h4 id="">Tip 6: Pass on News Jumps and Earnings</h4><p id="">Both news jumps and earnings can be unpredictable and volatile, so avoid trading in either situation.</p><p id="">Sometimes stocks quickly move 2%+ when reacting to "breaking news."&nbsp;</p><p id="">Don't act on these immediately; pass or let it settle before entering. These orders are typically from high-frequency trading bots that buy and sell within seconds.</p><p id="">How stock price will react to earnings is unpredictable. Sometimes stocks beat earnings and dip or miss earnings but rocket upwards. That’s because it’s challenging to understand what information and predictions about earnings are already priced into the stock.</p><p id="">And that’s why we recommend not trading through earnings. You can always sell for the earning announcement and then buy back in. Don't get attached and trade with emotion.</p><h4 id="">Tip 7: Small Orders Matter</h4><p id="">It's not always about big premiums. <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/case-study-small-options-flow-as-leading-indicator" id="">Small orders can be leading indicators</a> that big orders will be pouring in soon.&nbsp;</p><p id="">Big flows almost always start with a small order, so pay close attention to the small orders, particularly “unusual” ones. Why?</p><p id="">Institutions don't just take significant positions immediately. They build positions slowly over time by averaging up into winners and cutting losers early.</p><p id="">So you may see small flows at first as they're starting to build a new position. As they become more confident in the position (and begin to see some returns), they start placing large orders.</p><h4 id="">Tip 8: Look for New Names or Changes in Flow</h4><p id="">Don't chase after trades that have already been run up (i.e., substantial bullish flows for weeks). The orders are likely in the money (negative OTM %) and adding to positions already deep in the green.</p><p id="">You'll have the best odds if you trade tickers that are either seeing new flow or where the flow has changed directions (from bullish to bearish or from bearish to bullish). Puts that come in after large bull runs can be big winners.</p><h4 id="">Tip 9: Manage Your Risk</h4><p id="">Managing risk well can be the difference between being profitable and losing money. While often overlooked, the concept couldn’t be more critical.</p><p id="">A well-defined risk management strategy has two parts:</p><ul id=""><li id="">Clearly defined entries and exits</li><li id="">Multi-leg options strategies</li></ul><p id="">Traders can significantly increase profits using a data-driven framework to decide when to trim positions while winners are running and when to cut losses early.</p><p id="">Traders can also manage risk by choosing lower-risk options like a vertical debit spread or vertical credit spread.</p><p id="">Institutions may take high-risk single-leg options contracts, but you don’t have to trade the exact contracts as institutions. Instead of trading the same contract an institution is trading, you can de-risk your trade in a few different ways:</p><ul id=""><li id="">Multi-leg strategy with lower risk</li><li id="">Longer expirations</li><li id="">Closer to at the money&nbsp;</li><li id="">Stocks instead of options</li></ul><p id="">Any or all of these will lower the volatility of the trade, which may make it easier to manage and increase the chance the profitability.</p><p id="">Even if you’re not taking the exact trades as institutions, options flow is still incredibly valuable to predict short-term market direction.&nbsp;</p><p id="">After you know the direction based on institutional activity, you can adjust the trade risk to match your tolerance better using any of the above strategies.</p><h4 id="">Tip 10: Stick To Your Trade Plan</h4><p id="">We saved the best for last! Trading is mostly psychology, so having a trade plan is incredibly important so you avoid trading with emotion.</p><ul id=""><li id="">Don't blindly trade - do your research.</li><li id="">Pick an entry and exit point before you trade.</li><li id="">Stick to the plan and don't trade on emotion.</li></ul><h3 id="">Start Trading with Options Flow</h3><p id="">After these tips, you’re ready to <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/" id="">start trading with options flow</a> (and winning on more trades)!</p><p id="">Remember to set stop losses and start with small amounts/paper trading, especially if these concepts are new to you. They’re powerful concepts, but always protect your capital as you learn something new.</p>

Options flow gives retail traders visibility into smart money institutional trades that cause large market movements. Learn top tips to benefit today.

How to Trade in Confluence with Technical Analysis (And Increase Your Win Rate)

Successful traders validate trade ideas using confluence, combining multiple indicators, strategies, or analyses into a single, comprehensive strategy.

Upgrade and Save: How to Upgrade to a Longer Plan

<h3>Upgrade and Save!</h3><p>Love InsiderFinance? You can save up to $240 by upgrading to a longer plan.&nbsp;</p><h5><strong id="">Save $120 per year by upgrading to a quarterly plan. That’s like receiving 1.5 months of free service compared to the monthly rate.</strong></h5><h5><strong id="">Save $240 per year by upgrading to an annual plan. That’s like receiving over 3 months of free service compared to the monthly rate.</strong></h5><p>That’s a lot of savings! It only takes a few minutes to <a href="https://app.insiderfinance.io/my/settings">upgrade from your settings page</a>.</p><p>First, click Update Payment Details and Subscription.</p><figure class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/62b4b2c235f6367825b83040_V_eiTz3RaELLangQTzJ_mmQo5gApGZdJgv9hqSwUoOqhWEKIcEO92a4vGR43PHCYUfCCY6OKUeoOWg2ZEkghJc_II3CB41rqlv5mO4gkQ-yOG82WwsGzvGdKSKylDvzpqDVPIZL-xTWewHtWMg.png" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p>‍</p><p>Click Update Plan.</p><figure class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/62b4b2c28b0c4c33576c820d_yOw3XDBAPx44GukOBuIUOXqimMNolTGvN6bki7bGPUVzYy5szXcyp-mGSAU4OHGONo6z6AaZZ8GRiYEpJUAnffyrcpxWHuZSvPNj37p8mxQFvu7XI8TCYTOoXVVf8Q5r9c8JkrRFdax0KXSr4w.png" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p>‍</p><p>Select the Quarterly or Yearly plan, and then click Continue.</p><p>‍</p><figure class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/62b4b2c2b3942a56bcc0ad20_4TztlUA4s9i_ycNkCsymIQPUd7X5Jz1ByACn5TNJh0j_k7vbPgzdGeUup_-bccmf8G3AqLG1lmfJ6bm2yMbUs4nixiyjxRKv9Ze3UuEDZ01DLiR3EImsA5fQithkOlKcqKpjV46Rs2lVqB13LQ.png" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p>Review the details, and click Confirm.&nbsp;</p><figure class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/62b4b2c24b16b0a1ccd07f41_WN6hfbVKubzmoa-wQgz-76RVkBOPp0vZFXWDB84qCXV7kSZD2E9FYaHyj78n4LJy89CtIS0b_e14AdaR9QMOLYFLlM-3NAK-k3X6HLb1eQ7NoFK3euSQw7I9UgUh59zsooh-PvBuxmSdZsYJBA.png" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p>‍</p><p>That’s it! Your plan is upgraded, and you’re now saving money.</p><p>Thanks for your business, and we look forward to having you in our community for the long run!</p><p><strong id="">If you need help with this process, please email us at team@insiderfinance.io</strong></p>

Love InsiderFinance? You can save up to $240 by upgrading to a longer plan, and this short article provides step-by-step instructions. Start saving today!

FREE InsiderFinance Trading Masterclass

<h2>Bite-Sized Lessons to Increase Your Win Rate</h2><p>Learn how to <a href="https://learn.insiderfinance.io/p/mastering-the-flow">increase your win rate with the InsiderFinance toolkit</a> completely for free (no subscription required).</p><p>Taught by our founders, these <a href="https://learn.insiderfinance.io/p/mastering-the-flow">bite-sized lessons</a> make it fast and easy for you to master trading with options + dark pool order flow supported by automated technical analysis.</p><p>We're confident you'll discover it's the most powerful and most intuitive resource for traders available.</p><p>Here's what's included:</p><ul><li>InsiderFinance Overview</li><li>New Member Checklist</li><li>Your Complete Trading Toolkit</li><li>Understanding Options Order Flow</li><li>Small Options Flow as a Leading Indicator</li><li>Understanding Dark Pools</li><li>Using Option Flow + Dark Pool Together</li><li>Automated Technical Analysis</li><li>How to Find Winning Trades</li><li>3 Case Studies</li></ul><p>We hope you take advantage of this free resource to increase your win rate!</p><p><a href="https://learn.insiderfinance.io/p/mastering-the-flow"><strong>&gt; Click here to start learning for FREE &lt;</strong></a></p>

FREE InsiderFinance Masterclass offers bite-sized lessons to help you master trading with options order flow and dark pool using our complete toolkit.

How to Find Trade Ideas with Top Tickers

<h3>Powerful Trading Tools</h3><p>InsiderFinance offers the most powerful and complete platform for retail traders to level the data advantage with institutions.&nbsp;</p><p>The platform was designed to be so simple and intuitive that traders of any skill level can use the tools and actionable insights we provide for better and quicker data-driven decisions trading any asset class.</p><p>Our platform provides a curated list of tradable information plus multiple data points and visuals so you can make better trade decisions faster and dramatically increase your chance of success on every trade using a data-driven approach.&nbsp;</p><p>The results speak for themselves. Our traders have found that our curated approach focused on actionable information saves hours of research a day and increases their success rate significantly.</p><p>So how do we accomplish this? Underpinning the industry-leading InsiderFinance platform are proprietary algorithms, developed by a trained Wall Street quant, that intelligently identify high-power options order flow and dark pool prints to increase your probability of success.</p><p>Our advanced algorithms do the heavy lifting behind the scenes to bring you high-potential trade ideas whose results have a proven track record without spending hours digging through distracting order flow.</p><p>We call these high-potential trade ideas Top Tickers, and this guide explains how to find winning trades using our Top Tickers.</p><h3>Find High-Potential Trade Ideas with Top Tickers</h3><p>Finding trade ideas using InsiderFinance is easy! The platform was designed to provide multiple sources of curated trade ideas for any trading style.</p><h4><strong>Options Flow Top Tickers</strong>&nbsp;</h4><p>InsiderFinance has multiple categories of Options Flow Top Tickers on both the Flow Dashboard and the dedicated Top Tickers Page.&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Flow Dashboard:</strong></p><ul><li>Out of the Money (OTM)</li><li>Unusual Out of the Money (OTM)</li><li>Momentum</li><li>Unusual Volume</li><li>Unusual Premium</li><li>Call Volume</li><li>Call Premium</li><li>Put Volume</li><li>Put Premium</li><li>Sweep Volume</li><li>Sweep Premium</li></ul><figure class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/62444ddda75d2f41e0b14f50_7w8XawIcbfQCklXN3EDcPrNlWJ0_aDj7WzSjnR8ImD4h2t61mqG0Q2L-LsF0iuwlKdLMF-jwDbXI6CzQmOI3Hz5SUw2OyscbcobwElF4K9F-li9YEz4lswHBBSOvH-gwVFNkfPLi.png" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p>‍</p><p><strong>Top Tickers Page:</strong></p><ul><li>Unusual Out of the Money (OTM)</li><li>Momentum</li><li>Sweeps</li></ul><p>‍</p><figure class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/620f8d74f079ac150c0a89f9_byBC3_55B52Ur9XbRU2clJFmI0B-Ny3J29OTGH0oOTTjUn4_r6sXyO533qcGVZh0YX_lxG9Ao7d7KREy5hYxLPhTbTUV5N0NhwsQ8P6VD1YaKTQx4QoFgikpnSldDv-JJHavPzcn.png" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p>‍</p><p>The Top Tickers page features different tickers than the Flow Dashboard. </p><p>The main difference is that any ticker on the Top Tickers page has strong “agreement” on the trade direction.&nbsp;</p><p>These signal categories fit different trading styles and different trade performances. </p><p>In our experience, Unusual trades tend to move the “slowest” (1-3 days to play out), and Momentum trades tend to move the “fastest” (often same day).&nbsp;</p><h4>‍<strong>Dark Pool Top Tickers</strong></h4><p>InsiderFinance has multiple categories of Dark Pool Top Tickers on the Flow Dashboard:</p><ul><li>Premium</li><li>Volume</li><li>Late Buys (Bullish Sentiment)</li><li>Late Sells (Bearish Sentiment)</li><li>Golden Trades (Large Relative Volume)</li><li>Sector Sentiment</li></ul><figure class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/62444dde0099b993202ae2e7_QJ20d6iAac2BhTaOztKw-w068Fmxdh3LDmqInMoyldCoy1fKvkkM3ck38lh6QUId0Q94jl_rddCYnbjhtqXrFxqte-Vcr5ctaGli6rtfJQzsXOc_G3ZEP2lLyFZR-AI1cdk8Id2t.png" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p>‍</p><p>Many members have had success adding their favorite top tickers to the watchlist and waiting to enter the trade when they show strong technical indicators.&nbsp;</p><p>We recommend using the <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/guide-to-technical-analysis-tools">technical analysis tools</a> included with your subscription. </p><p>You can even set <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/creating-tradingview-alerts-for-insiderfinance-algo">custom alerts</a> for any ticker on any time frame to time an optimal entry and exit.</p><p>To tailor the Top Tickers to meet your trade style, you can <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/filtering-the-dashboard">filter the dashboard</a> with our Actionable Presets or Command Center. </p><p>Any filters applied will be reflected in the Top Tickers on the Flow Dashboard.</p><h3>How to Trade Top Tickers</h3><p>When picking a high-potential top ticker to trade, we like bullish trades on individual tickers with the most support behind them:</p><p><em>Repeated calls and close to 0% put flow&nbsp;</em></p><ul><li>Close to 0% put flow means that Wall Street is in agreement that the price will rise</li></ul><p><em>Recent </em><a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/intelligent-dark-pool-tracking"><em>dark pool activity</em></a></p><ul><li>Green highlights or gold boxes are ideal</li></ul><p><a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/guide-to-technical-analysis-tools"><em>Strong technicals</em></a></p><ul><li>4-point confirmation on the 1-hour chart and ideally also the 4-hour chart</li></ul><p><em>Positive news sentiment</em></p><ul><li>Mostly positive sentiment and no major red flags in recent headlines</li></ul><p><em>Bullish sector activity</em></p><ul><li>Bullish sector sentiment helps you avoid trading “against the current”</li></ul><p><em>High Heat Scores</em></p><ul><li>Trades were made with high conviction</li></ul><h4><strong>Finding a trade idea using the Top Tickers</strong></h4><p>One of our favorite strategies for trading Top Tickers is picking an algorithmically curated trade idea straight from the Top Tickers page. It’s that easy!</p><p>That doesn’t mean you can trade blindly though. </p><p>Many members have had success adding their favorite top tickers to the watchlist and waiting to enter the trade when they show strong technical indicators.&nbsp;</p><p>We recommend using the <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/guide-to-technical-analysis-tools">technical analysis tools</a> included with your subscription. </p><p>You can even set <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/creating-tradingview-alerts-for-insiderfinance-algo">custom alerts</a> for any ticker on any time frame. </p><p>We recommend the 1-hour and 4-hour charts for Unusual Options Activity as in the following example.</p><p>Here’s an example of the process we use. </p><p>First, we find PROG on the Top Tickers page.&nbsp;</p><figure class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/622f3865456f9a0723cc9539_oR8Kv5V5LLxuCRBfDv16B2JSaHjKKqYVJDYAKLFtezBQXRJF7iOh7eZqXJwIr8Kg3A1A5yoHcIYAtGkbuUVDXz-vzPaVnlMULWaajAMjSXbRkdXzGoDHB75PS0rj-5XV6IpX4uW6.png" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p>‍</p><p>Why do we like it? We see repeated call activity and a trade with a high heat score. </p><p>We can’t trade blindly on that though. The next step is validating the trade idea with technical analysis.</p><h4><strong>Validating the trade idea</strong></h4><p>Next, let’s check the technicals using the InsiderFinance automated technical analysis tools and set an alert if we don’t like them quite yet.</p><figure class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/622f3865265f4d81ab021407_l27FkwtUMWsxPLrVA7Hpis-SWjvQgn2WRzOT9uwPjzc6F5D5KejqeNw6MMxXqbB13lBranEf_cnXlzoDwKOHiva79TU0SRrsb3w7vW2fpQKe6xBqlpse-fbFXXyF5MRSvtyeVfmV.png" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p>‍</p><p>Notice that the initial bullish flow with a high heat score came in on 11/11 around 10am, but we didn’t receive a Long Signal alert on the 1-hour chart until 11/12 at 12:30pm. </p><p>This is what we mean when we say that Unusual Options Activity can take 1-3 days to play out.&nbsp;</p><p>You can see the Trend Reversal Diamond and Trend Confirmation Diamond very close to the Buy Signal. </p><p>A few bars later, we see a buy signal on the InsiderFinance Squeeze Indicator and InsiderFinance Momentum Indicator.</p><p>At this point, assuming we don’t see any huge red flags on the Ticker Research page, we can consider trading, but <strong>you should always set a stop-loss</strong>. </p><p>Let’s check the 4-hour chart for the “long-term” trend.</p><figure class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/622f38652c6ce9ef85432721_sBPvScYw5aniSft4ysDbtqhi-vSNPIWvwPm7LngyJZw-l1fXlOpfKdrgyiE-U8-BjS0pS9kXV77XstNhyIHPBiT3JBvbkg2Co5-L8W_K9_RBjxUoh04Sd2egoztXNuC_gY-WH5w1.png" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p>We don’t see a buy signal on the 4-hour chart until 11/15 at 9:30am, but we see a very strong buy signal reinforced by a Trend Reversal Diamond and Trend Confirmation Triangle. </p><p>If we didn’t enter the position before now, the long-term and short-term technicals are pretty compelling.</p><p>So what happened? To recap, we spotted PROG as a Top Ticker on 11/11 and received our first alert for a buy signal on the 1-hour chart on 11/12 at 12:30pm when PROG was trading below $3. </p><p>At the peak around 3 trading days later, PROG was trading over $6 for a 100% increase <em>on the underlying ticker!&nbsp;</em></p><p>Since we traded the same options contract as smart money, we had a 400%+ profit in just 3 trading days from the Unusual OTM % Top Ticker PROG!</p><h3>Signs to Take Profits</h3><p>Now that you saw what to look for when entering a position, let’s discuss when you might want to consider taking profits. </p><p>We typically look for two main signs to exit a long position: very bearish order flow or a change in technicals, whichever comes first.&nbsp;</p><p>To spot the change in order flow, make sure to add the ticker to your <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/use-the-watchlist-to-follow-tickers-and-flows">watchlist</a>. </p><p>If you start to see repeated bear activity, especially with large volume or premiums, it may be a sign that the uptrend is over.</p><p>Our technical analysis system comes with everything you need to identify a chance in technicals and time the perfect exit:</p><p><strong>Take Profit &amp; Stop Loss Levels</strong></p><ul><li>Three take profit levels and a stop loss level are automatically generated for each buy/sell signal. </li><li>If your trade goes below the stop loss level or above any of the take profit levels, that’s typically a good time to consider taking profits or cutting your losses.</li></ul><p><strong>Caution Candles + Dots</strong> </p><ul><li>Yellow candles and caution dots can indicate the current trend is slowing down or changing. </li><li>If you start to see multiple yellow candles or caution dots, that’s typically a good time to consider taking profits or cutting your losses.</li></ul><p>‍<strong>Trend Changes</strong></p><ul><li>Signs of an opposite trend or a change in trend are worth evaluating. </li><li>For example, if you’re in a long position, consider taking profits or exiting a position when you see sell signals, bear caution dots, or bear trend reversal diamonds. </li><li>If you’re in a short position, consider taking profits or exiting a position when you see buy signals, bull caution dots, or bull trend reversal diamonds.</li></ul><p>Look for the above signals to determine the best time to take profits or exit a position. Remember to stick to your trade plan and keep emotion out of the process.</p><h3>More Resources to Increase Your Returns Using InsiderFinance</h3><p>Your success is our mission, and we're committed to helping you master the service. We’re actively adding more resources but wanted to share a few we have available:</p><p>Our <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/how-to-trade-unusual-options-activity-using-insiderfinance">How To Trade Unusual Options Activity</a> guide walks your through how we identify and trade unusual options activity using our platform and includes an in-depth analysis on researching a trade.</p><p>Our <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/guide-to-order-flow-tools">Guide to Order Flow Tools </a>walks you through our powerful trading tools and how to use them.</p><p>Our <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/explaining-the-order-flow">Explaining the Flow</a> article walks you through how to interpret the options flow and dark pool prints you’re seeing on the dashboard.</p><p>Our <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/guide-to-technical-analysis-tools">Guide to Technical Analysis Tools</a> walks you through our powerful charting tools and how to use them.</p><p>Our <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/3-steps-to-trade">3 Steps to Trade</a> article captures the typical routine we go through to identify trade opportunities. In general, the more data points that you support a trade idea, the higher the probability of success.</p><p>Our <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/videos-and-walkthroughs-from-real-traders-using-insiderfinance">Videos and Walkthroughs from Real Traders Using InsiderFinance</a> article contains high-quality resources from our content partners to help you master our service.&nbsp;</p><p>We wrote our <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/advice-for-new-members">Advice for New Members </a>article after one of our members reached out about having trouble using the information. </p><p>We gave him some suggestions on educational content and then he upgraded to an annual subscription. </p><p>We asked specifically what made the difference for him and if we could share his experience with other members, which he was happy to let us.</p><p>Of course, our team is always available to help, so reach out if you need us!</p>

Finding trade ideas using InsiderFinance is easy! The platform was designed to provide multiple sources of curated trade ideas for any trading style.

How to Trade Unusual Options Activity Using InsiderFinance

Unusual Options Activity (UOA) represents anomalies that serve as a leading indicator ahead of a large movement. See how InsiderFinance helps you trade it.

Earn Monthly Income With The InsiderFinance Affiliate Program

<p>Love InsiderFinance (or making money)? </p><p><strong>You can earn recurring monthly income by spreading the word to your friends or trading community through our affiliate program!&nbsp;</strong></p><p>It only takes a few minutes to <a href="https://app.insiderfinance.io/signup">sign up</a> for the affiliate program and start earning recurring monthly income.</p><p>First, <a href="https://app.insiderfinance.io/signup">create an account</a>, and you can access our affiliate program information and your affiliate dashboard through your <a href="https://app.insiderfinance.io/my/settings">settings page</a> (no subscription required).</p><p>Enter the username you'd like to use and click submit.</p><p>The username you select will be a part of your affiliate link. For example, if you choose “rob” as your username, your affiliate link would be <strong>https://app.insiderfinance.io/go/rob.</strong><br></p><figure class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/6220af1eddbbd614a451dce9_9jBwFvWHirlGlqSR1X6aU_yFPbdd1BHIMSjwR8Gt35ifAH6nOIo7slbeBXB3N-hiaR91WKJKW8zYA-BVtj2G0w_LLpsPSGrzsZG0txGTmjxTd6_hrhiI1YD1jP-XWdUpo27z8z7B.png" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p><br></p><p>After you enter your username, your affiliate link will show up on your<a href="https://app.insiderfinance.io/my/settings"> settings page</a> and<a href="https://app.insiderfinance.io/my/affiliate"> affiliate page</a>.</p><figure class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/6220af1eac392052dbe1e18b_dHd3DTt3sQTSAT8BTqXxIbCtSzerrA4VFj5bJgSLNcJSRy0zEhQDOnMGa7zZ50wKqATzNUuEJC2gAmUxWu7pwwlxoMESCceBbmp6bTQV9xpZVSDH-xDFpCq7lDxwEfABRrIQ-J1G.png" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><figure class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/6220af1ec906c6774b70566c__HE-8Njpa1TRND_pyy_OXi0_rOIRU5g6Mkil0VDErfyi3ywhx4N2en2hf-XqWXAUQzheIo6NXDasz7we4bSeNM8N47XYRKf4i8j2_oyAic4-8ip2czRHQB3QEdZxzVmf9183f0jc.png" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p><br></p><p>Once you create the affiliate link, then you share that affiliate link with anyone you'd like to refer.&nbsp;</p><p>After someone clicks the link, we track whether they sign up within the next 4 weeks. </p><p>If they do sign up, that's when you start earning recurring income!&nbsp;</p><p>You can track any clicks and sales through your affiliate dashboard on the <a href="https://app.insiderfinance.io/my/affiliate">affiliate page</a>.<br></p><figure class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/6220af1e7f37956df936fb95_dVBKIR0fMWtqxgpjD127kouO1k8vxGiHv-HS7yWiQwwgji2FqT3hiUwBmtIiw8dGyF4nEWXdXLSXEHTawdy3Qlcdq1-cF3IVlTWvx8Q_8kt1u6Zp9CX_MHkz7CAAJgGI13YPXO3v.png" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p>‍</p><p>Below are the affiliate program payment details for when you refer a friend. </p><p>Essentially, you receive 20% of their subscription payment for each month they're active.<br></p><ul><li>You earn recurring income every month the referral's subscription remains active. Example: you refer a friend who buys a monthly subscription and stays for 15 months. You receive income every month for all 15 months.</li><li>Each payment earns you 20% of the recurring sale price after fees. Example: a $100 sale costs us 2.9% + 30 cents in fees. So it's $96.80 in sales after fees. You'll earn 20% of that on every subscription payment.</li><li>Each URL sets a 4 week cookie.</li><li>These URLs can be put behind any URL shortener if desired.</li><li>The affiliate code is not case sensitive, so you can capitalize/lower case to fit your branding.</li><li>Sales and subscription payments are updated in real-time though numbers may change if refunds are given or fraud is detected.</li><li>We pay out the previous month's earnings in ~30 days. This is to account for any credit card fraud or refunds.</li><li>You agree to adhere by the InsiderFinance Terms of Service when promoting the brand.</li><li>You agree to promote InsiderFinance in good faith and won't use any illegal, unethical, or spammy tactics to promote the brand.</li><li>By sharing a link, you understand and agree to the terms laid out above.</li></ul><p>Please feel free to share images of the dashboard. </p><p>We encourage images as you share your experience. </p><p>Having others show how they use our data to profit is incredibly valuable, so we encourage that!</p><p>If you have a large audience, we also provide a custom discount code for you to share and post your content in our <a href="https://insiderfinance.io/resources/videos-and-walkthroughs-from-real-traders-using-insiderfinance">resource center.</a> Please reach out to us if that’s you!</p><p>There's currently a big opportunity for making YouTube videos and writing blog reviews. </p><p>Include InsiderFinance in the title of any videos or blog reviews you do, and your content will likely be on the front page of Google and YouTube! We'd point people there as well.</p><p>That’s it! You’re ready to start earning recurring income.<br></p>

You can earn recurring monthly income by spreading the word to your friends or trading community through the InsiderFinance affiliate program.

Use the Watchlist to Follow Tickers and Flows

<p>It’s easy to follow your favorite tickers on the InsiderFinance Dashboard with the Watchlist.<br></p><figure class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/60fb255fb8a361525440f152_nPP5fvsS2CLbN8WdUF8wRc3x6HmOs6IHeOsrQ-vWLLxcEmZc24QxfvYphu3S5wmd7-Lnc3abkCLJsH5O5Ga92Q7TmIQnJQmd0M6Peq0kB9zMi4dnoZJsDiYYxpVZ7DYwb5feoFEw.png" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p><br></p><p>Simply add any ticker you want to follow to your custom watchlist and select whether you want to filter the Smart Market Insight by Ticker, Real-Time Option Flow, both, or neither.<br></p><p>If you choose to filter the dashboard, only the tickers on your custom watchlist will be visible in the section you filtered. </p><p>Any new trades added to the dashboard from tickers on your watchlist are easy to identify with stars.<br></p><figure class="w-richtext-figure-type-image w-richtext-align-center" data-rt-type="image" data-rt-align="center"><div><img src="https://uploads-ssl.webflow.com/5fc2ca2539e4567cfe1ba619/60fb255fe1da5e1c2bb78cb6_ZAKdYmGMzIVwbTBfox3q3dJi2SkR7q5u_JeDI9I9q2X64AIY4eOhDcVzjYppFOH2uRKwSE72A5nD9-7c73I5CODo8_zpzAFXTsBxCm46e-lA5R9uDkRFYwled3IqVNlEk-SpMH9O.png" width="auto" height="auto" loading="auto"></div></figure><p><br></p><p>If you only want to hear sound notifications for tickers on your watchlist, simply filter the flow for starred tickers.<br></p><p>Tickers can also be easily removed from your watchlist. </p><p>Once removed, the tickers will show up in the Inactive Items section so you can easily add them back if desired.<br></p>

An overview of the InsiderFinance watchlist which enables you to track tickers with ease and filter the options order flow for specific trades.

Use the Watchlist to Follow Tickers and Flows

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