Free Chart Patterns Guide
A one-page reference to the classic chart formations, with how each is drawn, measured and invalidated.
Reversal formations
Reversal shapes describe attempts to extend a trend that failed. Each one is a sequence of swings, and each one has a level whose break turns the observation into a decision point.
- Double top — two failed highs, neckline at the pullback low
- Double bottom — two rejected lows, neckline at the bounce high
- Head and shoulders — failed extension between two weaker attempts
- Rising wedge — advancing while narrowing, losing conviction
Continuation formations
Continuation shapes describe pauses that did not undo the prior move. Quality lives in the pause: shallow, orderly and short relative to the move that preceded it.
- Bull and bear flags — shallow, orderly pullbacks
- Pennants — converging pauses
- Ascending and descending triangles — compression against a flat boundary
- Cup and handle — long rounded base with a shallow drift
How to use this sheet
Before labelling a pattern, describe the chart in one sentence without pattern names. Then check whether the shape adds anything to that description. If it does not, the label is decoration.