Before the signal
A prior decline is required; without that context the same shape is not labelled a hammer.
Hammer Candlestick Pattern
See how a hammer candlestick is identified after a decline, study its exact shape, and explore the historical results currently available.
01 · Learn
What it looks like
Hammer
One closed candle after a decline, with a lower wick at least twice the body and almost no upper wick.
Only a closed candle can confirm the formation; an open candle is never treated as a completed signal.
Exact machine rule
The lower wick is at least twice the body while the upper wick is no longer than half the body.
A prior decline is required; without that context the same shape is not labelled a hammer.
Optional practice
Check your recognition
Select the chart where the formation is already complete.
Try it
A dotted candle is still forming; a solid candle is closed. Only one chart contains a completed signal.
The exercise checks recognition. Historical outcomes are calculated separately and do not promise a price move.Three features of Hammer
Signal and boundary
The lower wick is at least twice the body while the upper wick is no longer than half the body.
Completion
Only a closed candle can confirm the formation; an open candle is never treated as a completed signal.
Similar formations and limits of one example
A long lower wick after a rise is not a hammer under this definition. The shape identifies an event to research. It does not predict the next move or provide a trading signal by itself.
One formation does not establish the probability of a move. The historical comparison measures outcomes against a comparable background for each configuration.
Exact machine rule and definition version
The lower wick is at least twice the body while the upper wick is no longer than half the body.
Required context: A prior decline is required; without that context the same shape is not labelled a hammer.
Completion: Only a closed candle can confirm the formation; an open candle is never treated as a completed signal.
Definition version 2.1.0 · canonical definition.
Published research at a glance
Stored publication UTC · pattern-data-v21 · methodology research-v21-session-calendar-signed-bh-plan-v1.
Latest stored candle date in the curated family table: Nov 9, 2026 UTC.
The curated family table covers 202 core and 184 additional extended configurations. These are configuration counts; the own-result registry is separate. The study compares movement after a completed signal with a matched background at the same horizon.
Go to interactive research ↓Historical research
Select the exact market conditions. Statistics, examples and threshold evidence appear only when the same definition and complete configuration have a published row.
Research methodologyInitial conditions
Reset returns to forex, all researched instruments, H1, five candles, no higher-timeframe condition and the first teaching variant. The market scope and short address stay the same.
Previously selected statistics are hidden until the shared publication responds.
Further reading
These related TLAP materials for “Hammer” are in Russian. Their examples do not replace the historical calculation above.