What you will learn
- Understand how the eight-level Murrey grid is built
- Tell apart the roles of the 0/8, 4/8 and 8/8 lines
- Relate zone width to the instrument's ATR
- See the limits of the method
The market moves along a "ruler"
Murrey levels are a grid of nine lines (0/8, 1/8 … 8/8) that divides the price range into eight equal steps. The market moves as if along a ruler: it clings to these lines, bounces off them, and breaks through them.
Not all steps are equal. The strong ones are 0/8, 4/8, and 8/8 (bottom, center, ceiling). 2/8 and 6/8 are also notable reversal levels. The rest (1/8, 3/8, 5/8, 7/8) are weak intermediate ones, where price lingers only briefly.
Analogy. Floors in a building. The central floor is the "main" one, the roof and basement are the extremes. Between them are ordinary landings where you don't linger.
Break the grid down by points
Tap the three key levels on the left. Open them all to complete the step.
- 4/8 — the main level
- The center of the grid. The strongest support and resistance: price respects it most often.
- 8/8 — the ceiling
- The top of the range. Here the up-move usually runs out of steam — expect a reaction.
- 0/8 — the bottom
- The bottom of the range. Strong support: a bounce most often starts from here.
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 chartThe grid on a real move
Nine lines (0/8…8/8) of murrey over the chart. The strong lines are brighter. Watch how price reacts to 4/8 and clings to the neighboring steps.
Where's the nearest target?
Price bounced off 4/8 and went up. Where does it make more sense to set the first target?
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 chartBuild a trade off a level
Put the steps of trading off a level in order — click them one by one.
- Wait for price to test the level
- Wait for a reaction — a bounce or a break
- Enter toward the next level
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 chartCheck off what you've learned
- I understand the 0/8…8/8 grid — nine lines, eight steps
- I know that 4/8 is the main support and resistance
- I know the strong 0/8·4/8·8/8 and reversal 2/8·6/8
- I remember the scheme: test → reaction → entry
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 chartHow the grid is built
A significant price range is taken, rounded according to the method's rules and divided into eight equal intervals. That yields nine lines, from 0/8 to 8/8, each of which by design has its own behaviour.
Three matter most. The 4/8 line is the midpoint: it is considered the main equilibrium level and produces the most bounces. The 0/8 and 8/8 lines are the range boundaries: breaking them means moving into a new grid. The intermediate 3/8 and 5/8 form the zone where the market usually spends most of its time.
The main merit of the approach is that the levels exist before price arrives at them. That removes the temptation to draw a line after the fact exactly where it will confirm an opinion you already hold.
Why it works at all
The honest answer: partly through self-fulfilment. The Murrey grid is built on rounded values, and round levels are where participants place orders and stops en masse regardless of any theory.
The second factor is that dividing by eight produces a step close to the typical daily range of many instruments. The levels end up roughly where price would have reached anyway within a day.
The right attitude follows: the method does not reveal hidden market structure, it provides a convenient grid known in advance. Expecting more from it is a source of disappointment.
Pairing with ATR
The ATR (average true range) shows how far an instrument typically travels in a period. Comparing it with the width of a Murrey zone answers a practical question: how many zones are realistically covered in a day.
If the zone width is roughly equal to the daily ATR, a target one zone away is realistic and three zones away is not. That is a simple filter that removes obviously unreachable targets.
The reverse is useful too: if price covered three zones in a day on a one-zone ATR, the move is abnormal and continuation is unlikely — a pullback is the better expectation.
Limits of the method
First and foremost: the grid knows nothing about the market. It is built arithmetically and is identical in a trend and in a range, before news and after it.
Second, the choice of base range determines the whole grid. Different periods yield different levels, and it is always possible to pick the one where the lines line up neatly with past reversals.
So the sensible use is as supporting markup alongside volume and structure, not as a standalone system. A Murrey level coinciding with a value-area edge or an unfilled imbalance is worth far more than the level itself.
Frequently asked questions
- What are Murrey math levels?
- A grid of nine lines dividing a price range into eight equal parts. Each line is assigned a role; 4/8 is treated as the equilibrium level, 0/8 and 8/8 as the boundaries.
- How reliable are Murrey levels?
- They work largely through rounded values, where participants place orders anyway. As a standalone system the method is weak; as supporting markup alongside volume and structure it is useful.
- Why add ATR to Murrey levels?
- To judge how many zones can realistically be covered in a period. If a zone is about one daily ATR wide, a one-zone target is realistic and a three-zone target is not.
- How do Murrey levels differ from Fibonacci?
- Fibonacci is drawn from a specific move and divides it in set proportions. The Murrey grid is arithmetic and not tied to any move: it exists regardless of what price has done.
Other lessons in this track
Terms covered
This material is educational and is not individual investment advice.