📊 Morning Star & Evening Star Candlestick Patterns Explained

Learn Morning Star & Evening Star candlestick patterns with examples. Spot reversals, improve trading decisions, and manage risk smartly.

Two of the most reliable three-candle reversals. Learn where they form, how to read the psychology, and what confirmation to wait for before taking a trade.

Table of Contents

1. How These Patterns Work
2. Morning Star (Bullish)
3. Evening Star (Bearish)
4. Quick Comparison
5. Rules, Entries & Risk
6. FAQs
7. What’s Next

📌 How These Patterns Work

Both patterns capture control shifting between sellers and buyers across three candles. A strong first candle continues the trend, the middle candle shows hesitation/indecision, and the third candle flips control in the opposite direction. Location is critical: morning stars after downtrends (bullish), evening stars after uptrends (bearish).

Confirmations: look for follow-through on candle 3 closing into prior candle 1’s body, supportive volume, and confluence with support/resistance or moving averages.

🌅 Morning Star (Bullish)

Where it appears

At/near support after a downtrend or prolonged sell-off.

Structure

• Candle 1: Long red (bears in control).
• Candle 2: Small body (gap down often) — indecision / exhaustion.
• Candle 3: Strong green closing well into Candle 1’s body.

Psychology

Sell momentum fades on Candle 2; buyers step back in and dominate Candle 3 → bullish reversal potential.

Confirmation

Close of Candle 3 above the midpoint (50%) of Candle 1, ideally with rising volume.

🌆 Evening Star (Bearish)

Where it appears

At/near resistance after an uptrend or extended rally.

Structure

• Candle 1: Long green (bulls in control).
• Candle 2: Small body (gap up often) — hesitation / distribution.
• Candle 3: Strong red closing well into Candle 1’s body.

Psychology

Buy momentum stalls on Candle 2; sellers take over on Candle 3 → bearish reversal potential.

Confirmation

Close of Candle 3 below the midpoint (50%) of Candle 1, with expanding volume preferred.

🔎 Quick Comparison

Pattern	Trend Context	Middle Candle	Final Candle	Confirmation
Morning Star	Downtrend	Small body (indecision), often gapped down	Strong green into Candle 1 body	Close > 50% of Candle 1, rising volume
Evening Star	Uptrend	Small body (indecision), often gapped up	Strong red into Candle 1 body	Close < 50% of Candle 1, rising volume

📏 Rules, Entries & Risk

Entry

• Conservative: Enter on close of Candle 3 (after confirmation).
• Aggressive: Enter on minor pullback toward Candle 3’s 50% retrace.

Invalidation (Stops)

• Morning Star: Below Candle 2 (or pattern low).
• Evening Star: Above Candle 2 (or pattern high).

Targets

• Next S/R levels, gaps, or moving averages.
• Scale out near prior swing levels; trail remainder.

Confluence

• Horizontal S/R, trendlines, Fibs (38.2–61.8%), VWAP/MA clusters.
• Volume expansion on Candle 3 strengthens the signal.

❓ FAQs

Does candle color of the middle candle matter?

Not much. It’s the small body/indecision that matters. Gaps add emphasis but are not mandatory on crypto/FX.

Best timeframes?

All timeframes work; reliability improves on higher timeframes (4H, Daily, Weekly). Align multiple timeframes when possible.

Can I trade without volume?

You can, but confirmation is stronger with volume. If volume is unavailable, lean more on level confluence and trend context.

📈 What’s Next?

Next in the series: Continuation vs. Reversal — how to avoid false signals and time entries with moving averages & RSI.
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