What the Aroon indicator measures
The Aroon indicator does not measure how far price moved. It measures how long ago the highest high and the lowest low happened inside a fixed lookback window. If a new high was made recently, the market may be starting or continuing an upward trend. If the last high is far back, upward pressure has faded.
It has two lines:
- Aroon Up tracks the time since the highest high.
- Aroon Down tracks the time since the lowest low.
The Aroon oscillator is Aroon Up minus Aroon Down. It is shown as a single line around a centre line.
Ready to try it on a real or demo account?
Partner link · trading carries a high risk of loss
Formula and settings
For a lookback of N bars:
- Aroon Up = (N − bars since the highest high in the window) ÷ N, shown as a percentage
- Aroon Down = (N − bars since the lowest low in the window) ÷ N, shown as a percentage
A line is at its maximum when the extreme is on the current bar. It falls step by step with each bar that passes without a new extreme, and it reaches its minimum when the extreme is the oldest bar in the window.
The default lookback is different from one version of the indicator to another. Check the Inputs tab of the version you use. A shorter lookback reacts faster and flips more often. A longer lookback is slower and filters out more noise.
Adding it in MT4 and MT5
Aroon is not in the standard indicator list of every MetaTrader build. Look first in Navigator → Indicators. If it is not there, a version can be installed through the Market or Code Base sections built into the terminal. After that, drag it onto the chart and set the period. See MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 for general platform guidance.
How to read it: a drawn example
- A: price stops making new highs. Aroon Up starts to decline, and Down rises as new lows appear.
- B: Down stays high while lows keep forming. This is a persistent downward phase.
- C: Up crosses above Down and stays near the top. New highs are recent again.
Common readings:
- One line near the top and the other near the bottom points to a clear directional phase.
- A crossover means the more recent extreme has switched sides.
- Both lines low and drifting means neither highs nor lows are being refreshed. This is often a range.
Using Aroon in a strategy
An "Aroon indicator strategy" usually treats the lines as a filter, not a trigger. For example, a trader may study pullbacks only while Up stays dominant, then confirm with market structure or ADX. The indicator describes timing. It does not predict the next move.
Where it misleads
- Ranges: lines cross repeatedly as price touches both edges of the range.
- Single spikes: one wick can set an extreme that holds a line high for the whole window, even after the move has reversed.
- Window drop-off: a line can jump when an old extreme leaves the window, even though nothing happened on the current bar.
- Lag: it is built from past bars, so it reacts after price. See leading vs lagging.
- Gaps and thin sessions create extremes that do not reflect normal trading.
Leveraged forex and CFD trading can lose money quickly. No indicator removes that risk. Read risk management before you trade.
Frequent questions
What is the difference between the Aroon indicator and the Aroon oscillator?
The indicator shows the Up and Down lines separately. The oscillator subtracts Down from Up and shows the result as one line.
How do I use Aroon on different timeframes?
Read it on a higher timeframe to see the broad phase. Then use a lower timeframe for detail. See multiple timeframes.
Does Aroon repaint?
The standard calculation uses closed bars and does not repaint. The value on the open bar still changes until that bar closes.
Is Aroon similar to Donchian Channels?
Both use the highest high and lowest low of a window. Donchian Channels plot the price levels, while Aroon plots how much time has passed since those levels were set.