Swing Highs and Swing Lows: The Building Blocks of Structure
A swing high is a candle whose high is greater than the highs of a set number of candles on both sides. A swing low is the mirror image. They are the "corners" of market structure.
The rule
With a lookback of 3 left and 3 right:
- Swing high:
high> the highs of the 3 candles before and the 3 candles after. - Swing low:
low< the lows of the 3 candles before and the 3 candles after.
Comparisons are strict: equal values do not qualify. That keeps the definition unambiguous.
Confirmation delay
You cannot know a candle is a swing high until the right-hand candles have closed. With a lookback of 3, the swing is confirmed three candles later. Rule-based engines only act on confirmed swings, otherwise the chart "repaints" — a swing appears, then vanishes when price makes a higher high.
Choosing the lookback
- Small (1–2): many minor swings, faster signals, more noise.
- Large (5–10): fewer, more significant swings, slower signals.
BlessedForex defaults to 3/3 on the execution timeframe and 2/2 for bias, and both are editable in the admin settings (every change is audited).
Swing strength
A swing that dominates more candles on each side is stronger. Strength helps rank liquidity pools: a swing high that held for 10 candles either side is more meaningful than one that barely qualified.
Uses
- Labelling HH/HL/LH/LL
- Defining breaks of structure and MSS
- Building liquidity pools and equal highs/lows
Takeaway
If a tool marks swings without telling you its lookback and confirmation rule, you cannot trust its history.
Questions & answers
Why does a swing point appear late?
Because it needs candles after it to prove it was the extreme. A 3-candle right lookback means confirmation three candles later.
What lookback is best for gold?
There is no single best value. 3/3 on M5 is a common starting point; test alternatives on your own data and keep changes in a new strategy version.
What is the difference between a swing and a fractal?
A Williams fractal is a swing high or low with a lookback of 2 on each side. Swing detection generalises that to any lookback.
Can two candles in a row be swing highs?
Not with strict comparison: each must be higher than its neighbours, so neighbouring candles cannot both qualify.