The center of the actual range, not of the closes.
The short answer
- What is the Midprice (MIDPRICE)?
- Midprice: the average of the highest high and lowest low in the window.
- When does MIDPRICE get it wrong?
- Sensitive to abnormal candles. See its current reading on the platform's symbols, at the latest daily close, in the "Current reading" table on this page. See current reading →
Reading now
| Ticker | Value | Five sessions ago | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| SPY | 770.20 | 769.80 | Price is 1.0% above the line |
| QQQ | 747.25 | 738.09 | Price is 0.5% below the line |
| IWM | 279.58 | 282.20 | Price is 1.0% below the line |
| DIA | 513.74 | 513.63 | Price is 0.5% above the line |
A description of where the number sits against its thresholds. It is not an entry or exit signal.
Indicator limit
Sensitive to abnormal candles.
Read it with
Average True Range: abnormal candles move it, and ATR shows them when it jumps.
Answers: is it moving in a cycle?
What it actually does
The midprice takes the middle of the period's full range: (highest high + lowest low) ÷ 2 · using session highs and lows, not closes. That is its only real difference from the midpoint: it sees every wick, not just the candle bodies.
Why wicks matter
Because the instantaneous highs and lows are where the fights actually happened: stops were hit and breakouts rejected there. The middle of the full range sits in the center of the whole real battlefield, while the middle of the closes sits in the center of only its announced results.
How it is read in practice
Like its sibling: a balance line and a range reference. It is also the middle component of Donchian channels, where a channel is drawn from the highest high, the lowest low and their midpoint · the breakout system whole trading schools were built on in futures markets.
Hypothetical example
A channel trader uses a 20-session channel: enters on a breakout of the high and exits on a return to the middle line. The middle line here is this indicator itself · the point of "the move I entered for is over" in a tightly defined system.
Where it errs and why
One candle with an abnormal wick (a quick liquidity sweep) distorts the midprice for as long as that candle stays in the window · an effect the closes version doesn't suffer. Choosing between them is choosing between sensitivity to wicks and immunity to them.
Read it with
It is not read alone. First classify the environment with the trend strength indicator. Then confirm with volume, which separates a backed move from an empty one. Then place it on the structural levels from the gamma map, since a signal at a dense wall carries more weight than one in open space.
Where to see it on the platform
The technical chart in the members area shows it on any ticker and timeframe, within its full family in the indicator list.
Its window and tuning
The common window is 14 sessions. Channel schools use 20 for entries and 10 for exits, following the well-known Turtle convention. The longer the window, the heavier the middle line and the further from current price, so entries and exits drift apart and trades get fewer · which is intended in systems that follow major trends.
