Trends/Support and resistance

Classic pivot points

A set of levels calculated from yesterday's high, low and close, shown as a central line with two lines above and two below.

Support and resistanceBest on 3M, 6MAlso called floor pivots

Illustration of the classic pivot points shape. It is a sketch, not real price data.

What it shows

Pivot points are calculated, not found on the chart. They use the previous period's high, low and close to get a central pivot and levels around it. Floor traders used them to plan their day.

Because the numbers come from a formula, every trader who uses the formula sees the same lines.

How we find it

The same code that draws it on your chart follows these steps, with the same result every time.

Take the previous period's high (H), low (L) and close (C).
Pivot P = (H + L + C) ÷ 3.
R1 = 2P − L, S1 = 2P − H.
R2 = P + (H − L), S2 = P − (H − L).

Starting values: Period previous day (daily chart) or previous week (weekly chart). These are proposed and will be tuned on real price data before launch.

How to read it

The gold line is the pivot.
R lines (red) are above it and S lines (teal) below it.
Price above the pivot is above the previous period's average of high, low and close.

Status labels you may see

Label	What it means
Above the pivot	Last close is above P.
Below the pivot	Last close is below P.
Near a level	Within 0.5% of any R or S line.

What cancels it

Nothing cancels it. The levels are recalculated each period.

What traders check next

Which level price turned at most recently.
How far R1 and S1 are from the pivot.
Whether other levels line up with the same price.

Limits

The levels do not know about anything but three numbers.
Wide ranges produce wide levels.
They are most used on short periods.

Try it in forecastviz

Open any ticker and choose Support and resistance → Classic pivot points in the left menu.
Switch between 3M, 6M to see how the picture changes.
Compare with Fibonacci pivot points and Camarilla pivot points on the same chart.

Open on a ticker

Questions

Where does the formula come from?

It is a long-used floor trader method. Different books show small variations.

Do the lines predict price?

They do not. They show levels some traders watch.