How To Change Time Frames On Tradingview Charts

You can change time frames on Tradingview charts by clicking any of the time frames listed at the top left part of your chart or by clicking the time frame dropdown menu and selecting the time frame you would like to use from the menu.

How To Add Favorite Time Frames To Your Shortcut List

To make your life easier while trading, I recommend adding your most used time frames to your favorites so that they show on the top row of your chart settings at all times. This makes it easy to just click the timeframe you want to switch to, without having to open up the dropdown menu and search for the specific time frame you want.

To add time frames to your favorites, open up the time frame menu and then click the star icon next to any of the time frames you like to use regularly. Clicking the star icon adds that time frame to your favorites and whatever time frames are in your favorites will then appear in the top row of your chart settings.

Now you have a full list of your favorite time frames so you can easily switch back and forth.

How To Create And Delete Custom Time Frames

Tradingview allows you to create and use custom time frames outside of the normal time frames. This can be done easily by clicking the option at the top of the time frame dropdown titled + Add Custom Interval.

When you click the add custom interval option, it will open a popup window with 2 options: Type and Interval. The type option lets you select from a list of time frame types which are minutes, hours, days, weeks, months and range. Choose your type and then move to the next option, interval. In the interval box, you manually input the exact number of time units you want to use according to the type option you already selected. Then just click add and it will add that option to the appropriate time frame type section of your menu.

Let’s look at some examples of how to set up custom time frames.

If you want a 3 minute chart, select minutes from the type menu and then set the interval to 3.
If you want a 3 day chart, select days from the type and then set the interval to 3.
If you want a 40 range chart, select range from the type and then set the interval to 40.

Then once you have created your custom intervals, make sure to find them in the dropdown time frame menu and click the star icon next to them so they appear in the top row of your chart for easy access at all times.

To delete a custom time frame, just click the trash can icon next to that time frame in the dropdown menu.

Tip: Make sure you set your chart time zone to the same as the exchange time zone so that your times on the chart reflect the same times as the exchange. We have a complete guide on how to change the time zone on Tradingview charts you can read to learn about the process and understand what time zones to use.

Custom Tick And Second Time Frames Are Not Allowed

It is important to note that when you are creating custom time frames, you will notice that there is no option in the type menu for tick or second intervals. This means that Tradingview does not allow you to create custom time frames using ticks or seconds, so stick to minute intervals and above.

Using Range Charts As Your Time Frame

If you are looking to remove time from the equation when charting, try out range charts. Range charts are a unique way to look at price, without normal time chunks breaking up each bar. Instead, each bar shows the range of price when it has moved X number of ticks up or down from the opening price of that bar.

I know that sounds confusing, but here is an easy breakdown.

If a bar opens at $1 and the minimum tick for that asset is $.01 then $.01 is 1 range. So if you are set to a 50 range chart, then $.50 is the range needed to travel as a total from up and down movement from the open price for a bar to print and finalize. The total range is calculated by multiplying the range amount 50 by the minimum tick $.01. So 50 X $.01 would mean each bar will represent $.50 of movement away from the opening price. That movement will be the combined up movement and down movement.

For example if the bar opens at $1 with a $.01 minimum tick and 50 range chart, then the bar moves down by 10 ticks($.10) then that is 10 ranges so far. Then the price reverses and goes up 40 ticks($.40), then the bar will close and start another bar because the total distance traveled was 50 ticks and the chart was set to a 50 range interval.

Here is another example. On a chart with a $.25 minimum tick and a 100 range chart, let’s say the bar opens at $500. 100 ticks at $.25 per tick means one bar would represent 100 x $.25 = $25 per bar. So if the bar opens at $500 and moves up by $14, then moves down by $11, the combined total of $14 and $11 is $25 which completes the range for that bar and the bar will then immediately close upon reaching a total of $25 in movement.