Before the signal
Price must have risen before the formation; pivots require three closed candles on each side.
Head and Shoulders: Standard and Inverse
Learn the standard and inverse head-and-shoulders definitions, neckline and completion point, then explore their separate historical results.
01 · Learn
What it looks like
Head and shoulders
Three peaks form a higher head between two shoulders. The figure completes when price closes below the neckline through the two intervening lows.
The figure completes only after a close below the precomputed neckline.
Exact machine rule
Three confirmed peaks form left shoulder, higher head and right shoulder. The shoulder difference is limited relative to head height, and the neckline joins the two intervening troughs.
Price must have risen before the formation; pivots require three closed candles on each side.
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 Head and shoulders
Signal and boundary
Three confirmed peaks form left shoulder, higher head and right shoulder. The shoulder difference is limited relative to head height, and the neckline joins the two intervening troughs.
Completion
The figure completes only after a close below the precomputed neckline.
Similar formations and limits of one example
Three visible peaks alone are not enough: pivot confirmation, symmetry, neckline slope and the closing break are required. 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
Three confirmed peaks form left shoulder, higher head and right shoulder. The shoulder difference is limited relative to head height, and the neckline joins the two intervening troughs.
Required context: Price must have risen before the formation; pivots require three closed candles on each side.
Completion: The figure completes only after a close below the precomputed neckline.
Definition version 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 0 core and 2 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 ↓- Head and shoulders
- Three peaks form a higher head between two shoulders. The figure completes when price closes below the neckline through the two intervening lows.
- Inverse head and shoulders
- Three troughs form a lower head between two shoulders. The figure completes when price closes above the neckline through the two intervening highs.
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 “Head and shoulders” are in Russian. Their examples do not replace the historical calculation above.