Why look at 4-hour, 1-hour, and 15-minute candlesticks?
Many people in the crypto space repeatedly fall into traps due to focusing on just one timeframe.
Today, I will discuss my commonly used multi-timeframe candlestick trading method,
which consists of three simple steps: grasping direction, finding levels, and timing.
1. 4-hour candlestick: Decides your major direction for going long or short
This timeframe is long enough to filter out short-term noise and clearly see the trend:
• Uptrend: Highs and lows are rising together → Buy on pullbacks
• Downtrend: Highs and lows are falling together → Short on rebounds
• Sideways consolidation: Prices fluctuate within a range, making it easy to get whipsawed, so frequent trading is not advised
Remember this: Trading with the trend increases your win rate; going against the trend only gives away money.
2. 1-hour candlestick: Used to delineate ranges and find key levels
Once the larger trend is confirmed, the 1-hour chart can help you find support/resistance:
• Approaching trend lines, moving averages, or previous lows are potential entry points
• If approaching previous highs, significant resistance, or top formations, consider taking profits or reducing positions.
3. 15-minute candlestick: Only for the final “trigger action”
This timeframe is specifically used to find entry timing, not to observe trends:
• Wait for small timeframe reversal signals (engulfing, bullish divergence, golden cross) to appear at key price levels before entering
• Volume needs to increase; a breakout is only reliable then; otherwise, it may be a false move.
How to coordinate multiple timeframes?
1. First, set the direction: Use the 4-hour chart to determine whether to go long or short.
2. Find entry zones: Use the 1-hour chart to mark support or resistance areas.
3. Precise entries: Use the 15-minute chart to find the final signal for entry.
Additional points:
• If the directions of several timeframes conflict, it’s better to stay out and observe rather than take uncertain trades.
• Small timeframe volatility is fast; always use stop losses to prevent being repeatedly stopped out.
• Combining trend, position, and timing is far better than staring at charts and guessing.
This multi-timeframe candlestick method,
which I have used for many years,
is a foundational configuration for stable output.
Whether you can use it well depends on your willingness to observe more charts and summarize.