Volume Footprint Indicator for MT5
Every candle becomes a two-sided order-flow map: bid volume on the left, ask volume on the right, at every price row — with delta, session CVD, 300% imbalances, stacked zones, absorption/exhaustion/divergence patterns and a BUY / SELL / WAIT signal with SL and TP in pips.
The Indicator on GBPJPY (H4)
What It Measures
| Feature | What It Tells You |
|---|---|
| Bid/Ask per row | Seller volume (left, red) vs buyer volume (right, blue) at every price level of every candle |
| Delta (per level + per bar) | Ask minus Bid — who is winning at that exact price, and across the bar |
| Session CVD | Cumulative delta of the session (daily reset) — the market running vote |
| Diagonal imbalances | 300% default: buy row vs sell row below (or vice versa) — blue/red lines marking overpowered levels |
| Stacked imbalances | 3+ consecutive same-side imbalances — committed aggressive volume zones that defend on retests |
| Patterns | ABS+/- (absorption), EXH-H/L (exhaustion), DIV+/- (3-bar delta divergence) in the table panel |
| Signal engine | Prints BUY / SELL / WAIT to the Experts tab with SL and TP in pips (SL = VAL for buys / VAH for sells) |
| TRUE / ESTIMATED label | Honest data-mode banner: real trade tape vs tick-direction estimation, per bar |
Input Parameters — How to Set Them
| Input | What It Does | Recommended |
|---|---|---|
| Row Size (Auto/Manual) | Auto = 0.2×ATR row height; Manual = fixed ticks | Auto |
| ATR Length / Ticks Per Row | Smoothing for auto rows; manual row size | 14 / 1 |
| Data Mode | Auto / Force Estimated / Force True — controls tick classification | Auto |
| Footprint Type | BuySell / Delta / Total / Ladder cell modes | BuySell |
| Show Numbers / Level Delta | Per-row bid|ask text and ±delta | On |
| Max Bars / Max Levels | History depth and displayed rows (display-only limit) | 150 / 100 |
| Value Area % / POC | Per-bar value area and Point of Control | 70 / On |
| Imbalance % | Diagonal dominance ratio for imbalance detection | 300 |
| Min Dominant / Min Ref Vol | Volume floors so tiny rows cannot fake an imbalance | 0 (off) / 0 |
| Stacked Count | Consecutive imbalance rows needed for a stacked zone | 3 |
| Signal (Experts print) | BUY/SELL/WAIT line with SL/TP/R:R | On |
| Alerts | New/stacked imbalance, absorption, exhaustion, divergence alerts | Stacked on, rest off |
How to Use It
- At the current price: read the row — Ask > Bid = buyers in control, Bid > Ask = sellers. Check the delta sign in the info line.
- Triggers: blue imbalance line near price = long trigger; red = short. Stacked zones act as targets and reaction levels.
- The signal line prints BUY/SELL/WAIT with SL and TP in pips — follow it for execution discipline.
- ESTIMATED mode (brokers without trade tape): halve position size — the [EST%] tag tells you how much of the bar is estimated.
- Combine with the Volume Profile indicator for the macro bias before taking footprint triggers.
Complete usage: read the footprint guide and the 25 confluence setups article.
FAQ
Is the volume footprint indicator free?
Yes — the ex5 is free. Source code is available through the contact page.
What is delta in a footprint chart?
Ask volume minus Bid volume. Positive delta means aggressive buyers dominated that row or bar; negative means aggressive sellers did.
What is a 300% imbalance?
A price row where one side of volume is at least 3 times the opposing side of the neighboring row, measured diagonally — the classical footprint imbalance threshold.
What does ESTIMATED mode mean?
Your broker does not publish real trade tape, so the indicator estimates buy/sell from tick direction — honestly labeled per bar with the [EST%] tag. TRUE mode appears automatically on brokers with real flags.
How accurate are the BUY/SELL signals?
They reflect order-flow context at the current price — row delta, bar delta, CVD and value-area position. They are decision support, not a guarantee; always keep the printed SL/TP discipline.
Complete the Order-Flow Pair
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