The parts of a candle

The body

The body is the thick part. It goes from the open to the close.

• A green candle means price went up: it closed higher than it opened. So on a green candle, the open is at the bottom of the body and the close is at the top.
• A red candle means price went down: it closed lower than it opened. So on a red candle, the open is at the top and the close is at the bottom.

Some charts use white and black instead of green and red. Same idea: white (or hollow) is up, black (or filled) is down.

The wicks

The wicks are the thin lines sticking out of the body. Some people call them shadows.

• The top wick reaches up to the high.
• The bottom wick reaches down to the low.

A wick shows where price went, but didn't stay. A long top wick means buyers pushed price way up, but sellers pushed it back down before the candle closed.

Read one candle in 3 seconds

1. Color: green = up, red = down.
2. Body size: big body = one team won big. Small body = close fight.
3. Wicks: long wick = price tried to go that way and got pushed back.

Remember

• Body = open to close. Wicks = the high and the low.
• Green: open at the bottom, close at the top. Red: the opposite.
• A long wick means price went there but got pushed back.