TL;DR
TradingView is a browser-based mapping and screening platform for cryptocurrencies and other financial assets. The mapping tool is also available for use directly within the Binance trading UI. Apart from mapping, you can also share trading strategies and live stream your analysis.
When it comes to free options, TradingView is a great tool for all experience levels. The basic features are sufficient for most traders. However, be careful about browsing other users' ideas and streams. It is important to distill information that adds value to your strategy and not blindly follow others.
Introduction
For traders who enjoy technical analysis, a powerful mapping tool is essential. TradingView is an option for both amateur and experienced traders. The platform offers a number of trading and mapping tools as well as free membership options. Admittedly, not everyone has the money or the need for a regular Bloomberg subscription.
If you have traded on Binance, you may have already noticed the TradingView tool on the exchange. However, these tools can be quite intimidating if not understood. There are lots to try, but where is the best place to start? Explore our beginner's guide to find out what TradingView has to offer.
What does TradingView do?
TradingView is a platform that allows you to customize technical indicators, create charts and analyze financial assets. These indicators are patterns, lines, and shapes that are used every day by millions of traders. TradingView is completely browser-based with no client download required. You can also download the app for iOS and Android if you like the mobile experience.
TradingView launched in Westerville, Ohio in 2011 and now has a large user base with eight million accounts created in 2020 alone. Users can chart and analyze various stocks, commodities and cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin with a free or premium account. Once you've created your strategy and template, you can publish your findings to the community. This way, you can build your skills with feedback from other TradingView members.
TradingView on Binance
Binance has a built-in TradingView tool within its exchange UI, allowing users to chart and trade simultaneously. The tools you see on the left are just a small selection of those available and offer a similar experience to the TradingView website.
To get a quick tour of the interface, find out How to use Binance's TradingView Web Tool.
Is TradingView expensive?
As mentioned, TradingView is free for anyone to use. There is also a premium subscription that increases the number of indicators and charts that can be viewed simultaneously. For beginners, a free account with one chart and three indicators is a good start. You'll also encounter ads, but they're not as annoying. You can see more details about the differences in the packages below:
What is TradingView social network?
TradingView offers Instagram-like features for sharing and showcasing trading strategies. The Ideas and Streams pages of this website provide the opportunity for you to get tips or feedback. If you navigate to the Ideas page, you'll see diagrams, videos, and comments from other users. Community members can also engage in discussions and chat rooms. However, remember that any user can create and share ideas. So, be careful. Every trader has a different style and strategy. So, you should not take it as financial advice.
Just like watching Twitch streams from your favorite gamers, TradingView Streaming allows you to observe other traders charting in real-time. This is a fun extra feature, but it's still in beta and the amount of content is relatively low.
Understanding the TradingView UI
If you've never used a mapping tool before, TradingView may seem a little confusing. Let's break it down a bit first.
Toolbar 1
This toolbar contains all the mapping and drawing tools that can be used directly in the diagram area. There's a lot to explore, from simple lines to long/short positions. You can also right-click on each tool to see additional options. Some are more advanced than others, but the default lineup contains enough basics to get started.
Toolbar 2
Here, you will find options to change the appearance of the chart. You can choose between candlesticks, line charts, area charts and more. There is also a search bar on the left side to change the assets displayed. Another tool worth noting is the [Indicators & Strategies] button for inserting pre-made analysis patterns, such as moving averages.
Toolbar 3
TradingView does not offer brokerage services, but you can trade within its website using the [Trading Panel] tab. You will find a list of partners you can choose to exchange with if you already have an open account with that partner. You can also backtest your strategy using the [Strategy Tester] function.
Toolbar 4
This section generally includes TradingView news and social elements. You can customize your watch list, send private messages to other users, explore Ideas and Streams, and access your personalized calendar. If you need to find data, lists, or any information, this is a great area to visit.
Area diagram
When changing the searched asset, using any tool, or installing an indicator, you will see it displayed in the main chart area. You can also customize almost everything that is visible which will be discussed in the next section.
Personalize TradingView charts
Everyone has their own preferences when it comes to diagram layout. Customizing colors, lines, and axes makes it easy to quickly read and understand your graphs. You can find all the necessary options by right-clicking on the graphics area and then clicking [Settings...].
You can also reset your charts to become cluttered and set custom email price alerts from the [Settings...] menu.
After clicking [Settings...], you will be in the [Chart settings] window where you can try various options. Let's dive into the basics briefly.
1. [Symbol] allows you to change the appearance of the candlestick chart. Each part of the candlestick pattern can be colored as desired.
2. [Status line] contains options for changing the information that will be found on the left side of the chart, such as OHLC data (opening, high, low, and closing prices) as well as buy and sell buttons. The red box displays the lowest ask price (38,345.96) and the blue box displays the highest bid (38,345.97). Among them, there is a bid-ask spread (0.01).
3. [Scales] provides the option to change the trackers that can be seen on the right side of the axis. For example, you can add today's high and low prices or a countdown to the close of the bar.
4. [Appearance] allows you to change the grid lines, background color, axes and other beauty features.
5. [Trading] allows you to customize visual elements if you are already logged in to your brokerage account.
6. [Events] provides the option to display dividends, splits and other events in the chart area.
In addition to customizing the appearance of the chart, you may also want to change the candlestick intervals or other symbols. To do this, navigate to the top bar and click the leftmost button. You'll find a list of various intervals, ranging from seconds to months. You can also favorite some intervals to appear in the top bar.
Once you start customizing a chart, you don't need to save it manually. TradingView saves all edits in real-time, so you can leave and come back later.
Draw trend lines
For the first chart, the easiest choice is a trend line. This chart is an easy way for beginners to model price action and one of the most commonly used chart patterns for day traders and swing traders.
1. To start the tutorial, select the line tool from the left side toolbar.
2. You should also turn on the magnetic tool. Your line will be attached to the nearest OHLC point which is useful in improving accuracy.
3. For a downward trend, start at the local high point (point 1) before the price decline which is called the swing high. Click where you want the line to start then try to include as many highs as possible. Click again if you want to complete the trend line.
Points 1, 2, and 3 indicate resistance points. The best practice is to have at least three points testing your trend line, as two points can be considered a fluke. Point 4 indicates a breakout of the trend. This means that the best practice is to draw a new trend line.
After establishing a downtrend, one possible strategy is to sell when the price is reached and test your line. If you decide to draw an upward trend, make sure to start the line using the low price so that the line is below the candlestick.
For more information on this, please read the Basics of Support and Resistance Explained.
Drawing pitchfork
Pitchfork is an advanced chart that develops the concept of trend lines. The technical indicator was created by Alan Andrew, a famous 20th century American investor and teacher. These diagrams are easy to draw and provide more insight than simple lines. So, let's dive into it step by step.
1. To get started, select the pitchfork tool under the line tools.
2. We will create a pitchfork by selecting three points at the start and end of the trend.
3. You can see in the example below that we started with point 1, which is the swing low of a downtrend. Then, we click on point 2, which is the swing high of an uptrend, followed by point 3, which is the swing low of the next downtrend.
4. The dots create a pitchfork shape with the top line continuing from point 2 indicating the resistance level and the bottom line continuing from point 3 indicating the support level. The median line is the approximate price direction.
5. Similar to our trendline example, support lines show possible areas to buy and resistance lines show areas you can sell. You can also place a stop-loss order just below the trend line as a risk management method. Note that pitchfork does not always work as expected, just like other indicators. Consider combining it with other tools and strategies to reduce risk.
If you are interested in learning more, read How to Create a TA Indicator in TradingView.
TradingView pros and cons
TradingView is just one of the many options available when it comes to asset screeners. Most of these options offer a similar set of mapping and trading tools, but let's look at the main aspects. TradingView does do some things very well, but there are also areas that could be improved.
Pro
HTML5 Mapping - Any device with an internet browser can access TradingView. You don't need to install any software and can view diagrams anywhere.
Free membership - Anyone can access most of the available features.
Server side alert system - If you set up an alert, TradingView will keep track of it on their servers. You do not need to open TradingView to receive alert notifications.
Compatibility with Binance - While you can't access Binance from the TradingView website, you can use TradingView in the Binance trading UI. You can buy and sell crypto easily using Binance while creating charts.
Scripts - Advanced users can create custom indicators that are stored on TradingView servers. This feature is supported by Pine Script, which is TradingView's easy-to-use coding language.
Asset selection - There is a huge amount of equity, securities, commodities and foreign exchange info available to map. It's not just limited to cryptocurrencies!
Backtesting - After developing a strategy, it is easy to backtest using internal tools.
Against
Community issues - While the concept of the Stream and Ideas tabs is interesting, the quality of your findings varies greatly. Most of the advice given is highly speculative and not very helpful to new users. The comments section also sometimes contains trolling.
Customer support - The TradingView community commonly reports problems with TradingView customer support. Only paid customers can report issues and free users receive no support.
Broker integration - TradingView has combined several brokerage and trading platforms, but the choice is still quite limited.
Cboe BZX - Prices on TradingView' data for US stocks does not come directly from the respective stock markets. For example, NASDAQ stocks get their prices from the Cboe BZX exchange which can be slightly different from the actual price. Real-time data from an exchange is available for a fee.
Closing
For anyone looking for a free solution with a significant amount of tools to work with, TradingView is a great option to explore. The educational materials are also free to access and cover the basics of mapping and technical indicators in detail.
However, the social side is not that strong. Its chat rooms often contain speculative advice that should be avoided. This factor makes the social aspect less valuable for beginners, as you have to filter out good and bad advice.
However, TradingView is worth trying for its mapping tools and is a great place to backtest trading strategies. Technical analysis is a deep topic and there is a lot to explore with just a free account.
Disclaimer: The content presented here is for educational purposes only. This article does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation and the information provided should not be considered financial advice. All screenshots are taken from the official TradingView website and comply with their Terms of Use.