Morning Star
Three-candle bottom: a big red candle, a small pause, then a strong green close into the first body.
Cheat sheet
Candlestick patterns cheat sheet: 24 candle patterns and 11 chart patterns.
What each pattern looks like and what it says about buyers and sellers. Genni Charts finds them for you on live charts and shows how each one has actually performed.
24 candlestick patterns
One to three candles that show who won the fight between buyers and sellers. Bullish patterns matter after a fall, bearish ones after a rise.
Evening Star
Three-candle top: a big green candle, a small pause, then a strong red close into the first body.
Three White Soldiers
After a decline, three strong green candles in a row, each closing higher: buyers taking over.
Three Black Crows
After a rise, three strong red candles in a row, each closing lower: sellers taking over.
Bullish Engulfing
A green body swallows the previous red body after a decline: buyers took over.
Bearish Engulfing
A red body swallows the previous green body after a rise: sellers took over.
Piercing Line
After a red candle, price opens low but closes above the middle of that red body.
Dark Cloud Cover
After a green candle, price opens high but closes below the middle of that green body.
Bullish Harami Cross
A doji sits inside the previous big red body: selling is stalling.
Bearish Harami Cross
A doji sits inside the previous big green body: buying is stalling.
Bullish Harami
A small green body inside the previous big red body: downside momentum is fading.
Bearish Harami
A small red body inside the previous big green body: upside momentum is fading.
Tweezer Bottom
Two candles with matching lows after a decline: a floor is being defended.
Tweezer Top
Two candles with matching highs after a rise: a ceiling is being defended.
Hammer
Long lower wick after a decline: sellers pushed down, buyers pushed it back up.
Inverted Hammer
Long upper wick after a decline: buyers are testing higher prices.
Hanging Man
Hammer shape after a rise: a warning that sellers are appearing.
Shooting Star
Long upper wick after a rise: buyers pushed up but sellers slammed it back.
Bullish Marubozu
A big green candle with almost no wicks: buyers controlled the whole session.
Bearish Marubozu
A big red candle with almost no wicks: sellers controlled the whole session.
Dragonfly Doji
Opens and closes at the high after a long dip: strong rejection of lower prices.
Gravestone Doji
Opens and closes at the low after a spike up: strong rejection of higher prices.
Doji
Open and close almost equal: buyers and sellers are undecided.
Spinning Top
Small body with wicks both sides: indecision after a move.
11 chart patterns
Bigger shapes that form over many candles and describe a turn or a pause in the trend.
Head & Shoulders
Three peaks with the middle one highest; a break of the neckline often starts a decline.
Inverse Head & Shoulders
Three troughs with the middle one lowest; a break above the neckline often starts a rally.
Double Top
Two peaks at about the same price: buyers failed twice at that level.
Double Bottom
Two troughs at about the same price: sellers failed twice at that level.
Triple Top
Three peaks at about the same price: strong resistance.
Triple Bottom
Three troughs at about the same price: strong support.
Ascending Triangle
Flat ceiling with rising lows: buyers keep pressing the same resistance.
Descending Triangle
Flat floor with falling highs: sellers keep pressing the same support.
Symmetrical Triangle
Lower highs and higher lows squeezing together: a breakout is building, direction unknown.
Rising Wedge
Both lines rising but narrowing: the rally is losing strength.
Falling Wedge
Both lines falling but narrowing: the sell-off is losing strength.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Do candlestick patterns really work?
On their own, only a little. Studies and our own testing show most patterns are right only slightly more often than chance. They become useful at an important level (support, resistance, a moving average) and in the direction of the larger trend. Genni Charts shows, for every pattern it marks, how often that pattern was followed by the expected move on the exact chart you are viewing.
Which candlestick pattern is the most reliable?
Multi-candle reversal patterns such as the Engulfing patterns, Morning Star and Evening Star tend to be more dependable than single candles like the Doji, because they show a clear change of control over several candles.
What timeframe is best for candlestick patterns?
Higher timeframes (4-hour and daily) carry more weight because each candle represents more trading. On 5-minute charts the same shapes appear constantly and mean far less.
What is the difference between a candlestick pattern and a chart pattern?
A candlestick pattern is made of one to three candles and speaks about the next few candles. A chart pattern, such as a Double Top or a Triangle, forms over dozens of candles and describes a bigger turn or pause in the trend.
This page is education, not investment advice. Trading involves substantial risk of loss. Read next: Trading indicators · Trading strategies · Candlestick patterns