The five conditions
- A level worth trading. The level must have been touched at least twice before the break. A single touch is a line, not a level.
- A decisive break. A candle body closing beyond the level, not a wick poking through it.
- A genuine return. Price comes back to the level rather than running away — no chasing.
- A reaction. Rejection wick, small consolidation, or a lower-timeframe reversal pattern at the level.
- Room to the next level. At least twice your stop distance of clean space before the next major structure.
Placing the entry, stop and target
- Mark the broken level as a zone, not a line — use the wick range around it.
- Enter when a candle closes back in the direction of the break after touching the zone.
- Place the stop on the far side of the zone plus a small volatility buffer.
- Set the first target at the next structural level; scale out or trail from there.
- Skip the trade entirely if the resulting risk-reward is below 1:2.
How to tell a real break from a fake one
A real break usually arrives with expanding range and above-average volume, and the candles after it hold above the level rather than immediately closing back inside. A fake break spikes through on one long wick, closes back inside the range within a candle or two, and is often followed by a fast move to the opposite side of the range. If you missed the distinction live, the retest itself answers it: a level that fails to hold on the retest was never broken in substance.
The common mistakes
- Trading unproven levels. Drawing a level after the fact so the break looks clean is the most common form of self-deception.
- Entering mid-air. Buying halfway between the level and the last high because you are afraid to miss the move.
- Stops inside the zone. A stop inside the noise band of the level will be taken out by the retest you are waiting for.
- No time limit. Sitting in a retest entry for hours while price does nothing ties up risk in a setup that already failed to work.
Getting the levels marked for you
Most break-and-retest errors are level-marking errors. Upload a screenshot and Trade Eyes marks the levels that price has actually respected, states whether the most recent break closed through or wicked through, and gives you the retest zone with entry, stop and target already calculated.
Break and retest checklist
| Condition | Pass looks like | Fail looks like |
|---|---|---|
| Level quality | Two or more prior touches | Freshly drawn after the move |
| The break | Body closes beyond the level | Long wick, close back inside |
| The retest | Rejection wick or tight consolidation | Price slices straight through |
| Risk-reward | 1:2 or better to the next level | Next level sits right above entry |
Find the retest zone on your chart
Upload a screenshot and get the proven levels, the break quality, and the retest entry with stop and target.
Analyze a chart freeFrequently asked questions
What is the break and retest strategy?
You wait for price to break a marked level, then wait again for it to come back and test that level from the other side. If the level holds as new support or resistance, you enter in the direction of the break with a stop just beyond the level.
Why wait for the retest instead of entering on the break?
Most breaks fail. Entering on the retest filters out a large share of false breaks and gives you a far tighter stop, because your invalidation sits just on the other side of the level rather than at the far end of the range.
How long should you wait for a retest?
On intraday charts, the retest usually arrives within a handful of candles. If price runs away without returning, the trade is gone — chasing it means entering with a wide stop into an extended move, which is the mistake the strategy exists to avoid.
What makes a retest valid?
A valid retest reacts: price approaches the level and is rejected with a wick or a small consolidation, then closes back in the direction of the break. Price slicing straight through the level without reacting means the break was false.
Does break and retest work on all markets?
Yes, because it is based on structure rather than instrument behaviour. It is most reliable on liquid markets with clean levels — large-cap stocks, index futures, major forex pairs and major crypto — and least reliable on thin, gappy instruments.