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[TP] Fair Value Gaps - Mentor

A fair value gap is a three-candle pattern: the middle candle moved so fast that the first and third candles do not overlap, so a slice of price was crossed in one candle. That is all it is: a fast move, drawn as a box. This indicator draws every one by that single plain rule, and then shows what happened when price first came back.

Many gap tools hint that price has to come back and fill the gap, or that every gap works like a floor. This one makes neither claim. It never removes a gap because price touched it, watches ten finished candles after each first return, and sorts the result: held, closed through, or no clear move. Once a return settles, the panel names the textbook play the chart has just made, such as "Gap below held: it acts as support.", with the zone's prices, the next open gap and the close that would end it. While that zone holds, the header leans that way; otherwise it reads "No clear lean". If you want the bigger picture, it can also draw higher timeframe gaps as dashed outlines, and those are never counted. Every number on the panel comes from the chart it sits on. It reads finished candles only. A named play is a pattern, not a promise.

Coming to TradingView on 11 Nov

--days--hours--mins--secs

How to read it
[TP] Fair Value Gaps - Mentor on a light NAS100 one-hour chart: shaded gap boxes above price, faded dotted outlines of past gaps, circle and square marks where price first came back, and the Mentor panel at the top left leaning down. [TP] Fair Value Gaps - Mentor on a dark NAS100 one-hour chart: shaded gap boxes above price, faded dotted outlines of past gaps, circle and square marks where price first came back, and the Mentor panel at the top left leaning down.
NAS100 one hour, default settings, read on 22 Oct 2026. A real chart, an example only, not a recommendation.

What you see on the chart

Every part of the indicator, numbered on one chart. Tap a number to jump to what it means.

NAS100 one-hour chart with seven gold numbered callouts and a key under the chart: 1 an untouched gap, 2 a faded past gap, 3 a held mark, 4 a closed-through mark, 5 a no-clear-move ring, 6 the panel header, 7 the panel rows.
NAS100 one hour, read on 22 Oct 2026. Default settings except one: "Settled marks shown" is raised from 12 to 20 for this picture only, so an older ring (no clear move) is on screen. With the default 12 the chart keeps fewer past marks.
  1. Untouched gap (shaded box)A fair value gap price has not come back to yet. Green below price, orange-red above, extending to the right.
  2. Past gap (faded outline)A gap price came back to, or that went 300 candles untouched. It stays on the chart, whatever happened.
  3. Held (circle)Price came back into the gap for the first time, then closed a clear distance away from it.
  4. Closed through (square)Price came back into the gap, and a candle closed beyond its far edge.
  5. No clear move (ring)Price came back into the gap, and neither happened within ten candles.
  6. HeaderThe answer first: "Leans up" or "Leans down" while a named play's zone holds, otherwise "No clear lean".
  7. Panel rowsThe gap in words, any named play with its prices, and this chart's own counts.

What it is in 30 seconds

A fair value gap is a classic idea: when one candle moves so fast that the candles either side of it do not overlap, it leaves a price range that was crossed in a single candle, and many traders watch that range when price comes back to it. Ours draws that range by one fixed rule you can check, keeps touched gaps on the chart, names the play once a first return settles, and counts what first returns did on this chart. It describes what the chart has done and where the next level sits. It does not say what to do.

One plain rule

Three finished candles. The third does not overlap the first, the middle one closed beyond the first, and the space between is at least a quarter of a typical candle. That space is the gap. Hover it and it says so in words.

Touched gaps stay

Gaps price came back to and gaps that went untouched both stay on the chart as faded outlines. Nothing is removed because of how it turned out, so the chart is never a gallery of winners. The chart holds the newest 40 gaps by default.

It names the play, with prices

Each first return is sorted into held, closed through, or no clear move. A held or closed-through return names the play ("Gap above went through: now support.") with its zone, the next open gap and the close that would end it. The panel also counts this chart's returns, held and went through side by side.

What counts as a fair value gap here

Gap tools differ on size, on which candles count, and on when a gap is "filled". This one uses one rule, explains it in each gap's tooltip and the panel's definition line (the size rule sits in the settings tooltip), and never changes a gap after drawing it.

  1. 1. Three finished candlesFor a gap below price: the third candle's low sits above the first candle's high, so the two do not overlap. For a gap above price, the mirror: the third candle's high sits below the first candle's low.
  2. 2. A fast middle candleThe middle candle closed beyond the first candle's high (or below its low, for a gap above). The range between candle 1 and candle 3 is the gap.
  3. 3. Big enough to matterThe gap must be at least 0.25 of ATR, the average size of one candle over the last 14. Smaller gaps are ignored. An optional filter keeps only gaps whose fast move also closed beyond a confirmed swing.
Drawn when the third candle closes

A gap only exists once its third candle has closed, so the box appears then, starting back at the first candle. Nothing is drawn from a candle that is still open.

Never moved

Once drawn, a gap keeps both price edges for good. It only changes how it looks: shaded while untouched, a gold border while its first return is being watched, a faded dotted outline once its result is in.

A fast move, not a magnet

A gap records that price moved quickly through a range. It does not mean price must come back, and it does not explain why the move was fast. Many gaps are never revisited at all.

Each part, up close

Gaps below price and gaps above price are treated the same way, mirrored, and counted separately. The marks use shapes, never arrows, so their meaning lives in the shape, not the colour.

Close-up of untouched fair value gaps on a light chart: two lightly shaded boxes above price in the down colour, each starting at the first of its three candles and extending to the right. Close-up of untouched fair value gaps on a dark chart: two lightly shaded boxes above price in the down colour, each starting at the first of its three candles and extending to the right.

 Untouched gap

A gap below price comes from a fast move up, and is shaded in the up colour. A gap above price comes from a fast move down, and is shaded in the down colour. While price has not come back, the box keeps extending to the right with a light fill and a thin solid border.

The newest three untouched gaps on each side stay solid; older untouched gaps fade so the chart stays readable ("Untouched zones emphasized per side", 0 to 10). A gap price does not come back to within 300 finished candles no longer extends, fades, and is never counted. The chart keeps the newest 40 gaps by default ("Zones drawn", 1 to 100); past that, the oldest is retired. A gap is never removed because price touched it.

Back to the chart
Close-up of past gaps on a light chart: thin dotted outlines with no fill, some where price held and some where it closed through. Close-up of past gaps on a dark chart: thin dotted outlines with no fill, some where price held and some where it closed through.

 Past gap

Once price has come back to a gap, or it expires untouched, the fill goes and a faded dotted outline stays, cut off at the candle where its result settled (for an expired gap, its 300th candle). Gaps that held and gaps that were closed through look the same. That is deliberate: if broken gaps vanished, every box left on a scrolled-back chart would look like one that held.

"Show past gaps (faded)" turns the outlines off without changing a single count. "Retone closed-through gaps" (off by default) gives a gap that was closed through the other side's muted border, if you want to tell them apart.

Back to the chart
Close-up of a held mark on a light chart: a small filled grey circle by the candle where price first came back into a gap, with later candles closing away from the gap. Close-up of a held mark on a dark chart: a small filled grey circle by the candle where price first came back into a gap, with later candles closing away from the gap.

 Held

The first finished candle after the gap was drawn whose range reaches into it is its first return. From that candle the indicator watches ten finished candles, the return candle and the nine after it.

Held means a candle closed at least one ATR clear of the gap's near edge, on the side price came from, before any close beyond the gap's far edge. ATR is measured on the return candle and then fixed. Hover the circle and the tooltip says "Held", how deep the return reached ("Reached the near boundary", "Reached the middle" or "Reached the far boundary"), and "Judged on closes over 10 candles."

Back to the chart
Fvg el through paper Fvg el through ink

 Closed through

A square means a candle closed beyond the gap's far edge first: below the bottom of a gap below, or above the top of a gap above. If the return candle itself closes through, it is settled on that candle. The tooltip says "Closed through".

Only closes decide. A long wick through either line decides nothing; it only changes how deep the tooltip says the return reached.

Back to the chart
Close-up of a no-clear-move ring on a light chart: a small hollow ring by the return candle, with ten candles that stayed near the gap. Close-up of a no-clear-move ring on a dark chart: a small hollow ring by the return candle, with ten candles that stayed near the gap.

 No clear move

A hollow ring means neither close happened within the ten candles. Every unclear case lands here, never in held. The tooltip says "No clear move".

Each mark sits on the return candle at the gap's middle price, so it sits on the gap it belongs to, and appears only once the result is in, so nothing moves once drawn. All three shapes are the same neutral grey, so the shape carries the meaning. The chart keeps the last 12 marks by default ("Settled marks shown", 0 to 30). "Mark past events" switches them off without changing the panel's counts.

Back to the chart
Close-up of the panel header on a light chart: [TP] FVG followed by its lean in words, with the gap row under it. Close-up of the panel header on a dark chart: [TP] FVG followed by its lean in words, with the gap row under it.

Header

The header gives the answer first, in words: "[TP] FVG | Leans up", "[TP] FVG | Leans down" or "[TP] FVG | No clear lean". Hover it and the tooltip explains: "A fair value gap is a price range crossed in one candle. This panel counts what followed the first return."

Where does the lean come from? Only from the play on the chart right now. While a support play's zone holds on closes, the header reads "Leans up" in the up colour; while a resistance play's zone holds, "Leans down" in the down colour. Inside a gap's ten-candle test, after a no-clear-move return, or once a play has ended, it reads "No clear lean" in a muted colour. It is never a percentage, and the history counts never set it.

Back to the chart
Fvg el rows paper Fvg el rows ink

Panel rows

Under the header, the panel reads one side: the gap being watched if a return is open, otherwise a named play's side, otherwise a gap price is inside, otherwise the newest gap. Gaps below and gaps above are counted separately. The rows, in order (prices and counts are worked examples):

  • The gap in words: "Back in a gap below, 2 candles ago.", "Last return settled 4 candles ago." (while a play is named), "Gap above, untouched 14 candles.", "Last return 6 candles ago." or "No gap on this chart yet."
  • The named play, in the lean's colour: "Gap below held: it acts as support.", "Gap above held: it acts as resistance.", "Gap below went through: now resistance." or "Gap above went through: now support."
  • The zone: "Support zone: 21480.25 to 21512.50." or "Resistance zone: ..."; during a test "Test zone: ..."; for an untouched gap "Open gap below: ..." or "Open gap above: ...".
  • The measured level: "Next gap above: 21610.00, the next test." (or "No open gap above: no measured level."); during a test "Held if a close reaches 21552.75."
  • What changes it: "Changes if: a close below 21480.25."; during a test "Went through if a close passes 21480.25."
  • This chart: "Here: 5 held, 7 went through.", from settled first returns on that side in the last 500 candles. Under 8 it reads "Too few here to count yet (5)." with the number so far.
  • No clear move: "1 of 13 had no clear move.", shown from 8 settled returns, and only when at least one had no clear move.
  • The definition: "Fair value gap: range crossed in one candle." (only when no play is named and no test is open).
  • The footer: "Closed candles, last 500. Not advice."

The default Compact panel on the chart at the top of this page (NAS100, one hour, read on 22 Oct 2026), top to bottom:

  • The header: "[TP] FVG | Leans down"
  • The gap: "Last return settled 2 candles ago."
  • The play: "Gap below went through: now resistance."
  • The zone: "Resistance zone: 29758.0 to 29800.5."
  • The measured level: "No open gap below: no measured level."
  • What changes it: "Changes if: a close above 29800.5."
  • This chart: "Here: 13 held, 11 went through."
  • The footer: "Closed candles, last 500. Not advice."
Back to the chart
Close-up of a gap being watched on a light chart: the box has a thicker gold border and a gold ring, the same size as the other marks, sits on the return candle. Close-up of a gap being watched on a dark chart: the box has a thicker gold border and a gold ring, the same size as the other marks, sits on the return candle.

 A first return being watched

While a first return is inside its ten-candle window, its gap gets a thicker gold border and "Show still-open event" (on by default) puts one gold ring on the return candle, centred on the gap middle and the same size as the other marks. Its tooltip says "Still open, not counted yet". It is not in the counts until the result is in, and then it becomes a circle, a square or a ring like the rest.

Only one return is watched at a time. If price reaches another gap for the first time while a window is open, that gap is marked as returned and faded, but it is not counted, so the same stretch of candles is never counted twice.

Back to the chart

The rule, on every gap

Each gap carries a tooltip at its middle, on its second candle. Hover it, or tap it on a phone, and it explains that gap in words:

Gap tooltip, gap below"Fair value gap: price crossed this range in one candle on the way up. Drawn when the third candle closed."

A gap above says "on the way down". Each mark has its own tooltip too, for example "Held. Reached the middle. Judged on closes over 10 candles." The depth tells you how far into the gap the return reached; it never changes the outcome.

Back to the chart
Close-up of the Full panel on a light chart: the change row, a teaching line and the mark legend above the footer. Close-up of the Full panel on a dark chart: the change row, a teaching line and the mark legend above the footer.

Full detail

"Panel detail" on Full adds up to three rows (four with higher timeframe gaps on). When no play is named and no test is open, it adds what would change the read, the gap's own far edge:

Change"Changes if: a close below the gap." / "Changes if: a close above the gap."

(With a play or a test on the panel, its priced change row already shows in Compact.) Then one teaching line. While a play is named it reads "A named play is a pattern, not a promise."; otherwise it changes each time a new return starts: "Touched is not held; both are counted.", "A gap is a fast move, not a magnet.", "A gap shows speed, not intent." or "Only gaps price came back to count." Then the legend "● held ■ closed through ○ no clear move".

Back to the chart

The named plays, with their prices

When a first return settles held or closed through, the panel names the textbook play the chart has just made, and shows its prices from this chart:

Support plays (header "Leans up")"Gap below held: it acts as support." / "Gap above went through: now support."

Resistance plays (header "Leans down")"Gap above held: it acts as resistance." / "Gap below went through: now resistance."

Under the play: the zone ("Support zone: 21480.25 to 21512.50."), the next open gap on the side the play points to ("Next gap above: 21610.00, the next test.") and what would end it ("Changes if: a close below 21480.25."). The prices are examples. A return with no clear move names no play.

A play ends on a close back through its zone ("Play ended" alert), when a newer first return starts, or after "Name a play for" candles (50 by default). Then the header goes back to "No clear lean". A named play is a pattern, not a promise: it says what the chart did and where the next level sits, never what to do.

While a return is still being watched, the panel prices the two closes that would settle it instead: "Held if a close reaches 21552.75." and "Went through if a close passes 21480.25."

Back to the chart
Fvg el htf paper Fvg el htf ink

Higher timeframe gaps (off by default)

"Higher timeframe gaps" has three choices: Off (the default), One step up, or Custom with a timeframe you pick ("Custom timeframe", 4 hours to start). One step up from a one-hour chart is four hours. The same three-candle rule and size filter are used on finished higher timeframe candles only, so a higher timeframe gap appears once its third candle has closed and never changes.

They are drawn as dashed outlines with no fill, so they never look like this chart's own gaps. Hover one and it says, for example:

Higher timeframe gap tooltip"Higher timeframe gap (4H)"

They are never counted and never name a play: no mark, and no "Here" count includes them. The newest 20 stay on the chart. With Panel detail on Full, one row says how the newest one sits against the side the panel is reading: "Neutral: no higher timeframe gap yet.", "Agrees: higher timeframe gap same side." or "Disagrees: higher timeframe gap other side." That row is context, not a count.

Back to the chart

Two panel layouts

Compact (default)

The header, the gap in words, any named play with its zone, measured level and change rows (or a test's two priced closes), this chart's count, how many had no clear move, the definition (only with no play and no test) and the footer. Nine rows at most.

Full

Everything in Compact, plus "Changes if" with the gap's own edge when no priced change row shows, a teaching line and the mark legend, and the higher timeframe row when that setting is on. Twelve rows at most.

The counts: this chart only

Every number on the panel comes from the chart it sits on. The panel counts this chart's settled first returns on the side it is reading, within the last 500 candles, and shows them from 8: "Here: 13 held, 11 went through." (NAS100 one hour, 22 Oct read) and "1 of 18 had no clear move." (XAUUSD four hours, same day). Under 8 it says "Too few here to count yet (5)." with the number so far.

What it shows

What first returns to gaps on this chart actually did, sorted by the same ten-candle rule, with every one marked on the chart so you can check the count by eye.

What it does not show

A direction from the history. One chart holds too few returns to tell a habit from chance, so the counts stay in a neutral colour and never set the header. The lean comes only from the live named play.

How the Mentor helps you at every level

Same indicator, same panel. What you take from it grows with you. The quoted lines are the panel's own words. Counts marked as a worked example illustrate the format and are not from a chart.

  1. Level 1

    Beginner

    What gets in the way

    • Believing every gap has to be filled.
    • Treating every gap as a floor or a ceiling before price has shown it.
    • Charts where filled gaps vanish, so only the ones that held are left.

    The habit it builds: seeing a gap as one fast move, drawn by a rule you can check.

    What the Mentor says

    Definition line"Fair value gap: range crossed in one candle."

    Teaching line"A gap is a fast move, not a magnet."

  2. Level 2

    Intermediate

    What gets in the way

    • Calling a gap "held" the moment price touches it.
    • Counting every touch of the same gap as fresh evidence.
    • Letting a long wick decide what a gap did.

    The habit it builds: first returns only, judged on closes only.

    What the Mentor says

    Gap state, worked example"Back in a gap below, 2 candles ago."

    The test, worked example"Held if a close reaches 21552.75."

    Teaching line"Touched is not held; both are counted."

  3. Level 3

    Advanced

    What gets in the way

    • Trusting a handful of returns on one chart.
    • Reading only the returns that went the way you hoped.
    • Remembering the gaps that held and forgetting the ones that broke.

    The habit it builds: calling a gap support or resistance only after the chart has shown it, knowing the close that would end it, and reading held, went through and no clear move together.

    What the Mentor says

    Named play, worked example"Gap below held: it acts as support."

    Its change row, worked example"Changes if: a close below 21480.25."

    This chart, NAS100 one hour, 22 Oct read"Here: 13 held, 11 went through."

    No clear move, XAUUSD four hours, 22 Oct read"1 of 18 had no clear move."

  4. Level 4

    Expert

    What gets in the way

    • Telling a story about who caused the fast move, when the chart only shows that it was fast.
    • Reading a dozen returns on one chart as a rule for every chart.
    • Changing the size filter until an old chart looks clean.

    The habit it builds: a steady second pair of eyes: the same plain read on every chart, with its limit every time.

    What the Mentor says

    Teaching line"A gap shows speed, not intent."

    Teaching line"Only gaps price came back to count."

It reads both sides the same way

Gap below price From a fast move up

Held means a close one ATR above the gap; through means a close below it.

"Gap below held: it acts as support." / "Gap below went through: now resistance."

Gap above price From a fast move down

Mirrored: held means a close one ATR below; through means a close above.

"Gap above held: it acts as resistance." / "Gap above went through: now support."

Neither No clear move

Neither close within ten candles: counted, never called held, and no play is named.

"1 of 18 had no clear move."

Three things to remember

  1. A gap is a fast move. It records speed. It does not promise a return, and it does not say who moved price.
  2. Read the whole count. "Here: 13 held, 11 went through." is one chart's history. Read held and went through together, and remember how few returns that is.
  3. A named play is a pattern, not a promise. It says what the chart did and the close that would end it. The next candle can go either way.

Honest about timing, honest about limits

When things are drawn

A gap only exists once its third candle closes, so it is drawn then, starting back at the first candle. A return is judged on finished candles, one window at a time. Nothing is drawn from a candle that is still open, and no gap, count or mark changes once it is final. Bar Replay shows exactly what the chart showed at the time.

What it does not do

No arrows, no percentages in the panel, no colour without words, and no claim about who moved price or why. A named play names what the chart did and its prices; it never says what to do. It does not hide gaps that were closed through. This chart's count comes from one chart, one timeframe and the settled first returns of the last 500 candles, and it moves as the window rolls.

Change the minimum size or turn on the swing-break filter and the gaps change with it, so this chart's count does too. None of those settings is the right one.

Fair value gaps mentor xauusd 4h
XAUUSD four hours, default settings. Another chart, its own gaps and its own count. The panel's words and counts are read on the day of the shot.
A NAS100 one-hour chart at phone width: the gaps and marks on the chart, and the Compact Mentor panel readable at the top left.
At phone width, the Compact panel at Tiny text stays readable.

Settings

The defaults work out of the box. These are the ones worth knowing.

On a small screen, swipe the table sideways to see every column.
SettingWhat it doesDefault
ATR lengthThe number of candles in the average candle size used to judge gap size and a held outcome (2 to 100).14
Minimum gap sizeGaps smaller than this share of ATR are ignored (0 to 5). Lower finds more, smaller gaps.0.25
Untouched expiryAfter this many finished candles with no return, a gap no longer extends, fades, and is not counted (20 to 500).300
Only gaps after a swing break / Confirmed swing lengthWhen on, keeps a gap only when its fast move also closed beyond the latest confirmed swing. The swing length sets how many candles on each side confirm a swing (2 to 50).Off; 5
Higher timeframe gaps / Custom timeframeDraws gaps from finished higher timeframe candles as dashed outlines with no fill. One step up picks the next timeframe for you (four hours on a one-hour chart); Custom uses the timeframe you set. These gaps are not counted in this chart's tally.
OffOne step upCustom
Off; 4 hours
Alert directionWhich side may raise the return, outcome and play alerts. The gap formed alert fires for either side. It does not change gaps, plays or counts.
BothGaps belowGaps above
Both
Zones drawn / Untouched zones emphasized per sideHow many gap boxes stay on the chart (1 to 100), and how many of the newest untouched gaps on each side stay solid (0 to 10). Neither changes the counts.40; 3
Show past gaps (faded) / Retone closed-through gapsKeep returned and expired gaps as faded dotted outlines, and optionally give a closed-through gap the other side's muted border.On; Off
Show middle lineDraws the halfway price of each gap as a dotted line, with its own tooltip. The outcome marks sit at this price whether or not the line is shown.Off
Fill transparency / Border widthHow lightly untouched gaps shade the candles (70 to 100, higher is fainter), and the border thickness (1 to 4).88; 1
Mark past events / Settled marks shownThe circle, square and ring at settled first returns, and how many to keep (0 to 30).On; 12
Mark sizeHow big the circle, square and ring are, and the still-open ring too.
TinySmallNormalLarge
Normal
Show still-open eventOne gold ring, at the Mark size, while a first return is waiting for its result.On
Show the Mentor panel / Panel detailCompact shows the read, any named play with its prices, and this chart's count. Full adds context, a teaching line and the mark legend.
CompactFull
On; Compact
Name a play forHow many finished candles a settled play stays named while its zone holds (5 to 300). A close back through the zone ends it sooner.50
Play alerts with pricesSends a plain-words alert with this chart's prices when a play is named, when it ends, and when price comes back into a gap. Pick "Any alert() function call" when you create the alert.On
Panel positionAuto puts it at the top left, clear of the newest candles, or pick any of nine spots.
Top LeftTop CenterTop RightAutoBottom LeftBottom Right
Auto
Panel text size / ColoursTiny is the usual choice for a phone. Colours on Auto matches your chart background: Paper on a light chart, Ink on a dark one.
TinySmallNormalLarge
Tiny; Auto

Every setting has a small (i) next to it. Hover over it, or tap it on a phone, and it explains that setting in plain English, right there on your chart.

See the whole settings window

Open it by double-clicking the indicator's name on your chart. Top to bottom, at the defaults:

Settings, part 1: the Fair value gap rules group: ATR length, Minimum gap size, Untouched expiry, Alert direction, Only gaps after a swing break and Confirmed swing length.
1. Fair value gap rules
Settings: the Higher timeframe gaps group: Higher timeframe gaps, set to Off, and Custom timeframe.
1b. Higher timeframe gaps
Settings, part 2: the Zones and marks group: Zones drawn, Untouched zones emphasized per side, Show past gaps, Retone closed-through gaps, Show middle line, Fill transparency, Border width, Mark past events, Show still-open event, Settled marks shown and Mark size.
2. Zones and marks
Settings, part 3: the Mentor panel group: Show the Mentor panel, Panel detail, Name a play for, Play alerts with prices, Panel position, Panel text size and Colours.
3. Mentor panel
Light or dark, it matches

The gaps, marks and panel come in a warm light and a warm dark palette. With "Colours" on Auto, it reads your chart background and picks the right one. The marks keep their shapes in both, so their meaning never depends on colour.

Alerts

Each alert says what happened, once, after a candle closes. Eight conditions are in TradingView's alert dialog, one per named play among them, and the play alerts can also carry this chart's prices. None tells you what to do.

  • A gap formedFVG Mentor: [symbol] on [timeframe] formed a fair value gap on the finished candle.
  • Price returned to a zoneFVG Mentor: [symbol] on [timeframe] returned to a fair value gap on the finished candle.
  • A zone's outcome settledFVG Mentor: [symbol] on [timeframe] settled a zone outcome on the finished candle.
  • Play: gap below heldFVG Mentor: [symbol] on [timeframe]: a gap below held on its first return; it acts as support. Close [close].
  • Play: gap above heldFVG Mentor: [symbol] on [timeframe]: a gap above held on its first return; it acts as resistance. Close [close].
  • Play: gap below went throughFVG Mentor: [symbol] on [timeframe]: price closed through a gap below; it reads as resistance now. Close [close].
  • Play: gap above went throughFVG Mentor: [symbol] on [timeframe]: price closed through a gap above; it reads as support now. Close [close].
  • Play endedFVG Mentor: [symbol] on [timeframe]: a close went back through the named play's zone; the play has ended. Close [close].

Open TradingView's alert dialog, pick this indicator in the condition box, and choose the condition by name. TradingView fills in the symbol and timeframe. Each fires once per event, not on every candle inside a gap. "Alert direction" limits the return, outcome and play alerts to gaps below or gaps above; the gap formed alert fires for either side.

With "Play alerts with prices" on (the default), choose "Any alert() function call" instead and each message carries the prices from your chart, for example (example prices): "FVG Mentor NAS100: Gap below held. Support zone 21480.25 to 21512.50. Next gap above: 21610.00. Changes if a close below 21480.25.", "FVG Mentor NAS100: the named play ended. A close went below 21480.25, back through its zone." and, on a first return, "FVG Mentor NAS100: back in a gap below, 21480.25 to 21512.50. Held if a close reaches 21552.75; went through if a close passes 21480.25."

Learn more

Start with the lesson, then watch the indicator explained.

Foundry lesson

Fair value gaps: a fast move, and what came after

What a fair value gap is in plain words, how three candles make one, why touched is not held, what counts as a first return, how a gap becomes support or resistance once the chart shows it, and how to read this chart's own count. Concept first, indicator second, with a quiz.

Open the lesson
Trading journal

Keep a study log

Note each gap as it forms, say what you expect on its first return, then write down what happened, right or wrong. Over time your own notes show you more than any single chart.

Coming soon

Watch it explained

Coming soon Video, about 2 minutes

How to read [TP] Fair Value Gaps - Mentor

Every part of the indicator, one at a time, on real charts: the gaps and how they are drawn, the faded past gaps, the circle, square and ring marks, the named plays with their prices, and this chart's own count.

Coming soon Video, about 2 minutes

Fair value gaps explained: a fast move, and what came after

What a fair value gap is, why a gap is not a magnet, why touched is not held, and how to read what first returns on your chart did, in plain English. Concept first, then the indicator.

The Titan suite

A glimpse here, the depth there

Fair Value Gaps Mentor reads one lens deeply: the fast moves a chart leaves behind, and what they did when price came back. The full suite reads that together with momentum, volume, structure and flow, in the same plain-English Mentor voice.

See the full suite
Get it

Find it on TradingView

[TP] Fair Value Gaps - Mentor comes to TradingView on 11 November 2026. Check back on the day.

Coming to TradingView on 11 Nov

One concept, read well

[TP] RSI - Mentor, [TP] Volume - Mentor, [TP] Market Structure - Mentor, [TP] Trend - Mentor, [TP] VWAP - Mentor, [TP] Fibonacci - Mentor, [TP] MACD - Mentor, [TP] Bollinger Bands - Mentor, [TP] Regime - Mentor, [TP] Market Board - Mentor, [TP] Order Blocks - Mentor, [TP] Support and Resistance - Mentor, [TP] Volume Profile - Mentor, [TP] Fair Value Gaps - Mentor and [TP] Elliott Wave - Mentor each read one thing deeply, for free. Markets rarely move on one thing. The full Titan suite reads them together: momentum, volume, trend structure and flow, combined into one plain-English read.

Questions

Is it free?

Yes. [TP] Fair Value Gaps - Mentor will be free on TradingView from 11 November 2026. Add it from the Indicators menu. Nothing is locked.

What is a fair value gap, in plain words?

Three candles in a row where the middle one moved so fast that the first and third do not overlap. The price range between them was crossed in one candle, and that range is drawn as a box. It describes a past move. It does not say who moved price, and it does not say price has to come back.

Does it repaint?

No. A gap is drawn only when its third candle closes, and returns, results, marks, counts and alerts all wait for finished candles. Once drawn, a gap never moves and a result never changes. Higher timeframe gaps, when switched on, use finished higher timeframe candles only, so they appear after that candle closes and do not change either.

Do gaps get filled?

Some do, many do not, and "filled" means different things in different tools. Here a first return is any finished candle whose range reaches into the gap, and what happens next is judged on closes over ten candles. Gaps that are never revisited are not counted, and they stay on the chart as faded outlines once they expire.

When does the header lean?

Only while a named play's zone holds on closes. After "Gap below held" or "Gap above went through" it reads "Leans up"; after "Gap above held" or "Gap below went through" it reads "Leans down". Inside a gap's test, after a no-clear-move return, or once a play ends, it reads "No clear lean". The history count never sets it: one chart holds too few returns to tell a habit from chance.

Why does this chart's count need 8 returns?

Because a few returns can line up by chance. Under 8 the panel says "Too few here to count yet (n)." From 8 it shows "Here: h held, t went through." and how many had no clear move. Even then it never sets the header: one chart is still a small sample.

Can it show higher timeframe gaps?

Yes, off by default. Set "Higher timeframe gaps" to One step up or Custom. They are drawn from finished higher timeframe candles as dashed outlines with no fill, and they are never counted. With Panel detail on Full, one row says whether the newest one agrees with the side being read, for example "Agrees: higher timeframe gap same side."

Does it tell me when to act?

No. It names the play the chart has made, shows the zone, the next open gap and the close that would end it, and describes what price did at past gaps. It cannot see what comes next, and a named play is a pattern, not a promise. Decisions stay with you.

The chart looks busy. What can I do?

Raise "Minimum gap size", lower "Zones drawn" or "Untouched zones emphasized per side", turn off "Show past gaps (faded)" (the counts stay the same), raise "Fill transparency", or lower "Settled marks shown". Keep "Panel detail" on Compact, and pick a spot under "Panel position".

[TP] Fair Value Gaps - Mentor is educational interpretation only and is not financial advice. It draws gaps from candles that already closed, names the play a settled first return made, and counts what happened at past first returns on this chart. Those counts are history, not promises, and make no claim about future results. Chart images on this page are examples, not recommendations.

Educational interpretation only. Not financial advice.

Indicators · Foundry · Journal (coming soon)

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