Volume by price, not by time
A normal chart shows volume per time bar. A volume profile rotates that question ninety degrees: for a chosen range — a session, a swing, a whole trend — how much volume traded at each price? The result is a histogram down the side of the chart. Fat rows are prices the market kept returning to; thin rows are prices it passed through quickly.
The key levels
Three readings matter. The point of control (POC) is the price with the most traded volume — a magnet the market often revisits. The value area is the band (commonly 70% of volume) around the POC where most business got done. High-volume nodes (HVN) act as support/resistance; low-volume nodes (LVN) are air pockets where price tends to travel fast because little changed hands there.
Volume profile is built to dissect one market over one range. vyx is the complementary lens: it does not draw a per-symbol profile, it scans 300+ markets for the flow and pressure that build those profiles — sweeps into low-volume gaps, liquidity stacking, absorption at the POC. Find the active market on vyx; profile it on your chart.
- 1 Price has carved a clear value area with a thin low-volume node just below it.
- 2 Sellers sweep into that gap — there is little resting liquidity, so price drops fast.
- 3 It stalls at the next high-volume node, where real volume traded before and resting orders wait.
Further reading
- James Dalton — Mind Over Markets (Auction Market Theory)
- Market Profile & TPO, Explained
- Liquidity in Trading, Explained
Related
FAQ
What is the point of control (POC) in a volume profile?
The point of control is the single price level with the highest traded volume over the profiled period. Because so much business was done there, the market often gravitates back to it, making it a reference for support, resistance, and mean reversion.
What is the difference between volume profile and market profile?
Volume profile measures how much volume traded at each price. Market profile (TPO) measures how much time the market spent at each price. Volume profile answers "where did size trade?"; market profile answers "where did the market spend time and find acceptance?"
What is the value area?
The value area is the price band — conventionally the central 70% of volume — around the point of control where the majority of trading occurred. Price inside the value area is considered "fair"; moves outside it are potential imbalances.
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