What it does
An oscillator that quantifies trend direction and strength from the relationship between two sets of Bollinger Bands, typically a short 20-period set and a long 50-period set. It measures how far the short-term bands have pushed outside the long-term bands and nets the upper-side and lower-side excursions into a single histogram around zero. Positive values indicate bullish expansion, negative values bearish expansion, and readings near zero indicate a quiet or trendless state.
How to add it
Click Indicators (ƒx) in the header.
Search “BBTrend” and click the result.
Hover its legend row and click the gear to open settings.
How traders use it
- Histogram above zero supports long positioning, below zero supports shorts; the zero cross marks a trend-direction change.
- Rising histogram magnitude confirms strengthening trend; a shrinking histogram while price grinds on warns the move is losing energy.
- Values hovering near zero define a compression phase — avoid trend entries and prepare for a breakout in either direction.
- Combine with price structure: take BBTrend zero-cross signals only when price also clears a relevant swing level.
Inputs
| Input | Type | Default | Range / Options |
|---|---|---|---|
| Short Length | number | 20 | 2–200 |
| Long Length | number | 50 | 2–500 |
| StdDev | number | 2 | 0.1–10 |
Plots & styling
| Plot | Style | Default color |
|---|---|---|
| BBTrend | histogram | #2196f3 |
Every plot's color, line width and visibility can be changed on the Style tab. Precision (default 2 decimals), price-scale labels and status-line values are configurable at the bottom of the Style tab.
Reference levels
| Level | Value |
|---|---|
| 0 | 0 |
Level values, colors and line styles are editable in settings.
Tips
- Reference levels (where the study has them) are editable — tune them to the instrument you're trading.
- Hide the study from the legend eye instead of removing it when you only want it out of the way temporarily.
- Merge multiple oscillators into one pane from the legend ⋯ menu to compare them on a shared axis.
Watch out for
- As a derivative of moving averages and standard deviations it lags, so zero crosses arrive after the turn has begun.
- Sharp one-bar volatility spikes can jerk the histogram and mimic trend changes that immediately fade.