Order flow trading
Order flow analysis generally shows the following
Order flow analysis generally shows the following
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* Large buy or sell orders being executed
* who is in control, buyers or sellers
* volume
* VPOC: (volume point of control) the point at which the traded volume is the highest in the candle
* how big each buy or sell order is
* limit orders, available on DOM (depth of market) or order book.

Order Flow analysis shows the **volume** of Buyers and Sellers at a specific price point and at a given time, it can also show the accumulation of orders waiting to be executed at different price levels. On candlestick charts this is shown more broadly by individual *candlesticks***,** however, Order Books and footprint charts show the individual buy and sell orders placed within these candlesticks and therefore give a deeper view on the micro price movements. Order Flow traders can see both [Limit orders](/wiki/Limit_order "Limit order") and [Market orders](/wiki/Market_order "Market order") being placed, **footprint charts** show only **executed market orders** and therefore show the actual volume of buyers and sellers. **limit orders** are price points where traders have ordered to buy or sell a stock, these orders will not get executed unless the price of the market hits their limit order price point. These orders are not shown on candlesticks charts and can only be seen on Order Books, once these orders have been executed they turn to Market orders which are then displayed on the chart.
[alt\=This shows the size of buy and sell limit order at each price point. Known as order book or DOM\|thumb\|Order Book/ Depth of Market](/wiki/File:Order_Book%2C_depth_of_market.jpg "Order Book, depth of market.jpg")

Order Flow Traders can see levels of support and resistance by the size of buy and sell orders. On a footprint chart these are shown by **buy and sell imbalances.** A buy imbalance tells us that there are much more buyers than sellers at that price point, indicating potential support levels. A sell imbalance shows that there are a lot more sellers than buyers at that price point and this can indicate a potential resistance point. The volume of buyers and sellers is also used to indicate potential trend reversals and is a strategy that some order flow traders will apply to footprint charts.
[alt\=Image credit: [https://www.jumpstarttrading.com/footprint\-chart/\|thumb\|Shows](https://www.jumpstarttrading.com/footprint-chart/|thumb|Shows) the Individual buy and sell orders executed at each price](/wiki/File:Footprint_chart_.webp "Footprint chart .webp")


Can order flow analysis be combined with other trading strategies for better results?