What you will learn
- Read a volume profile and interpret its shape
- Find the point of control (POC) and the value area
- Tell zones of acceptance from zones of rejection
- Use thin areas of the profile as movement targets
IdeaWhere the market "lives" the longest
The volume profile turns the chart on its side and shows how much traded at each price level over the chosen period — how many contracts went through at that price, not at what time.
The thick part of the histogram is the level where the most volume (contracts) went through. The thin part — prices the market flew past almost without trades.
Analogy. A path in a park: where people walk more often the grass is trampled wide, where they hardly walk it's a narrow strip. Price behaves the same way.
AnatomyBreak the profile down by points
Tap the three markers to the right of the chart. Open them all to complete the step.
- POC — point of control
- The "fattest" level: the most volume (contracts) went through here. A magnet for price.
- Value area (VAH–VAL)
- The range where ~70% of volume went through. VAH is the top, VAL is the bottom of this zone.
- Low volume
- A thin strip: few trades. The market passes such prices quickly, with almost no lingering.
This is an exercise from the lesson. You can run it on a live chart in the terminal, where progress is recorded.
Try it on the chartSee it liveThe profile on a real move
On the right is the profile histogram, with three key levels over it. Notice: price keeps returning to the POC, like a center of gravity.
PracticeHow does price behave near the POC?
Price slowly approaches the POC — the level of maximum volume. What's more likely on the first approach?
This is an exercise from the lesson. You can run it on a live chart in the terminal, where progress is recorded.
Try it on the chartPracticeFind the POC level
Tap the highest-volume level on the chart — where the profile is widest.
RecapCheck off what you've learned
- I understand that the profile shows volume by price
- I know that the POC is the point of maximum volume
- I tell the value area (VAH–VAL) from the edges
- I remember that the POC attracts price
This is an exercise from the lesson. You can run it on a live chart in the terminal, where progress is recorded.
Try it on the chartPoint of control and value area
The point of control (POC) is the price level with the most volume over the chosen period. It is the price the market traded around longest — the one both buyers and sellers found acceptable. Such levels act as magnets: price comes back to them.
The value area is the range containing roughly 70% of the volume. Everything inside it the market accepted; everything outside it rejected. The edge of the value area is one of the most practical levels you can put on a chart at all.
From that comes the basic logic: a return into the value area after leaving it usually means the attempt at repricing failed, and price will head for the opposite edge.
Profile shape: what it tells you
A bell-shaped profile means a balanced market: most volume is concentrated in the middle and the extremes were rejected. This is an accumulation state, and it is traded from the edges.
A profile stretched vertically with even volume means a market in motion: price travelled and did not linger. Such a day continues more often than it reverses.
A double distribution — two dense areas with a gap between them — means the market repriced: it worked at one level, moved to another and is working there. The gap between them is usually crossed quickly, because nobody considers it a fair price.
Thin zones and why they matter
A section of the profile with little volume means price passed through fast and barely traded there. The practical meaning: if it returns, there will again be nothing to hold it.
Hence the typical use: thin zones are treated as areas price crosses without stopping, and targets are placed beyond them rather than inside them.
This also explains the link between profiles and imbalances: both describe the same phenomenon — a stretch where almost no exchange took place. The profile shows it through accumulated volume, an FVG through candle shape.
Settings and limits
The main choice is the profile period. A daily profile answers intraday questions; weekly and monthly profiles give levels that work for weeks. Mixing them is unwise: each has its own horizon.
Second, the type of volume. Everything above holds where volume is real: exchange futures, crypto. On forex the profile is built from tick volume and remains an estimate.
And a limit of substance: a profile describes a past distribution and says nothing about future direction. It supplies levels; the decision about direction comes from structure.
Frequently asked questions
- What is POC in Market Profile?
- Point of Control — the price level with the highest volume over the period. The price the market traded around longest, and one it frequently returns to.
- What is the value area?
- The range containing roughly 70% of the period's volume. Inside it the market accepted price; outside it rejected it. Its edges are used as levels.
- How does a volume profile differ from ordinary volume?
- An ordinary histogram shows volume over time; a profile shows it over price. The first answers "when", the second "at what price". For finding levels, the second is what helps.
- What does a thin zone in the profile mean?
- That price crossed that stretch quickly and barely traded there. On a return it usually crosses it just as fast, so targets are set beyond such a zone rather than inside it.
Other lessons in this track
Terms covered
This material is educational and is not individual investment advice.