Measured Move Projections
Overview
Measured move projections use the length of a prior price swing to forecast the target of the next swing in the same direction. The technique assumes market symmetry — that the second leg of a move will approximate the distance of the first leg. Measured moves apply to impulse waves, corrective patterns, and chart pattern breakouts, providing objective price targets that remove subjectivity from exit planning.
Key Concepts
An AB=CD pattern projects the length of leg AB from point C to find target D. Chart pattern targets project the pattern's height from the breakout point. Flag and pennant targets use the flagpole length projected from the consolidation breakout. Fibonacci extensions such as one hundred percent and one hundred sixty-one point eight percent provide refined measured move levels. Multiple measured move projections converging at a single price create powerful target clusters. The concept applies to both price targets and time projections using swing duration analysis.
Entry Signals
Enter continuation trades on pullbacks within a measured move progression when the first leg has been confirmed. Use measured move targets from a completed pattern as the basis for entering breakout trades. Enter when price pulls back to a prior measured move completion level that becomes support or resistance. Confirm symmetry by measuring the prior leg and projecting forward with Fibonacci tools.
Exit Signals
Take profit at the one hundred percent measured move projection — the most common target level. Extend targets to one hundred sixty-one point eight percent if momentum and volume support continuation. Exit if price stalls significantly before reaching the measured move target, indicating the symmetry assumption is failing. Use partial exits at the one hundred percent level with a trail toward extensions.
Best Timeframes
1H, 4H, Daily
Pro Tips
Measured moves work best in trending markets where price maintains structural symmetry. The AB=CD pattern is the simplest and most reliable measured move framework. When multiple measured move projections from different patterns or timeframes align at a single price level, that confluence zone becomes a very high-probability target or reversal area. Always combine measured moves with other technical tools rather than relying on projections alone.
More Topics in This Category
Broadening & Expanding Patterns
Broadening patterns, also called megaphone or expanding patterns, form when price creates progressively higher highs and lower lows, diverging rather than converging. These patterns reflect increasing volatility and disagreement between buyers and sellers, often appearing during periods of uncertainty or at major market turning points. Broadening patterns are among the most challenging formations to trade because they lack the contracting structure of typical chart patterns.
Rising & Falling Wedges
Rising and falling wedges are converging trendline patterns where both support and resistance slope in the same direction. A rising wedge (both lines slope upward, converging) is typically bearish, while a falling wedge (both lines slope downward, converging) is typically bullish. Wedges differ from triangles because both trendlines slope in the same direction rather than converging symmetrically.
Rectangle Patterns
Rectangle patterns form when price trades sideways between two parallel horizontal lines — a clearly defined support and resistance. Rectangles represent a period of equilibrium where buyers and sellers are evenly matched. The pattern resolves when price breaks decisively through one of the boundaries, often continuing in the direction of the prior trend.
Double Top & Double Bottom
Double tops and double bottoms are two-touch reversal patterns that form when price tests the same level twice and fails to break through. A double top signals bearish reversal after an uptrend, while a double bottom signals bullish reversal after a downtrend. The pattern is confirmed when price breaks the support or resistance level formed between the two peaks or troughs.