. Basic idea
It is a price pattern that looks like a human figure: one higher peak in the middle (the head) and two lower peaks on either side (the shoulders), connected by a support line called the neckline.
The standard head and shoulders (top) is a bearish reversal: it usually forms after a bullish move and warns that the uptrend may be ending and a downtrend may start.
There is also an inverse (inverted) head and shoulders, which is the mirror image and usually signals a reversal from bearish to bullish.
2. Structure of the pattern
A typical head and shoulders top (bearish) has four key parts:
Left shoulder
Price rallies to a peak and then pulls back to form a trough.
This is the first “shoulder” and happens while the uptrend is still intact.
Head
Price rallies again, making a higher peak than the left shoulder (the tallest point of the pattern).
After this higher high, price falls back again, usually to around the same area as the previous trough.
Right shoulder
Price rallies a third time but fails to make a new high; it peaks below the head, often near the height of the left shoulder.
This shows buyers are weaker than before.
Neckline
Drawn by connecting the two troughs: the low after the left shoulder and the low after the head.
It can be horizontal or sloping.
When price breaks below the neckline after the right shoulder, the pattern is considered confirmed, and a trend reversal is likely.
In an inverse head and shoulders, the same logic applies but with valleys instead of peaks: three lows (shoulder–head–shoulder) and a neckline above them, with a bullish signal when price breaks above that neckline.
It is a price pattern that looks like a human figure: one higher peak in the middle (the head) and two lower peaks on either side (the shoulders), connected by a support line called the neckline.
The standard head and shoulders (top) is a bearish reversal: it usually forms after a bullish move and warns that the uptrend may be ending and a downtrend may start.
There is also an inverse (inverted) head and shoulders, which is the mirror image and usually signals a reversal from bearish to bullish.
2. Structure of the pattern
A typical head and shoulders top (bearish) has four key parts:
Left shoulder
Price rallies to a peak and then pulls back to form a trough.
This is the first “shoulder” and happens while the uptrend is still intact.
Head
Price rallies again, making a higher peak than the left shoulder (the tallest point of the pattern).
After this higher high, price falls back again, usually to around the same area as the previous trough.
Right shoulder
Price rallies a third time but fails to make a new high; it peaks below the head, often near the height of the left shoulder.
This shows buyers are weaker than before.
Neckline
Drawn by connecting the two troughs: the low after the left shoulder and the low after the head.
It can be horizontal or sloping.
When price breaks below the neckline after the right shoulder, the pattern is considered confirmed, and a trend reversal is likely.
In an inverse head and shoulders, the same logic applies but with valleys instead of peaks: three lows (shoulder–head–shoulder) and a neckline above them, with a bullish signal when price breaks above that neckline.
Disclaimer
The information and publications are not meant to be, and do not constitute, financial, investment, trading, or other types of advice or recommendations supplied or endorsed by TradingView. Read more in the Terms of Use.
Disclaimer
The information and publications are not meant to be, and do not constitute, financial, investment, trading, or other types of advice or recommendations supplied or endorsed by TradingView. Read more in the Terms of Use.
