Markets & Instruments
Pivot point calculator
“From the previous session's high, low and close — where do the classic pivot levels fall?”
Four methods take the same three numbers and produce very different levels. This calculator runs all of them at once, which is the only way to see that they are not interchangeable: Camarilla clusters near the close while Standard's outer bands sit several dollars away.
Free to use, nothing to sign up for, and nothing you type here is sent anywhere — the arithmetic runs in your browser.
What it computes
Standard P = (H + L + C) / 3
R1 = 2P - L, S1 = 2P - H
R2 = P + range, S2 = P - range
R3 = H + 2(P - L), S3 = L - 2(H - P)
Fibonacci same pivot; R/S at 38.2%, 61.8% and 100% of the range
Camarilla levels clustered near the CLOSE via 1.1/12, 1.1/6 and 1.1/4 of the range
Woodie close-weighted pivot P = (H + L + 2C) / 4, then Floor-style bandsWhat you type in
| Field | What it means | Example |
|---|---|---|
| High / Low / Close | The prior period's range and close. | 152.40 / 146.10 / 150.20 |
| Method | Standard, Fibonacci, Camarilla or Woodie. | Standard |
Reading the result
- The pivot and three support and resistance levels for the chosen method.
- All four methods side by side, so the difference between them is visible on one screen.
Worked example
High 152.40, low 146.10, close 150.20 — a range of 6.30.
- Standard: pivot 149.57, R1 153.03, S1 146.73, R3 159.33, S3 140.43
- Fibonacci: pivot 149.57, R1 151.97, S1 147.16, R3 155.87, S3 143.27
- Camarilla: pivot 149.57, R1 150.78, S1 149.62, R3 151.93, S3 148.47
- Woodie: pivot 149.73, R1 153.35, S1 147.05, R3 159.65, S3 140.75
Same three inputs, and Camarilla's levels sit within a dollar of the close while Standard's R3 is nearly ten dollars away. The methods answer different questions and are not interchangeable.
What trips people up
- Pivots are derived from one prior session. They are arithmetic on three numbers and carry no predictive claim.
- Which prior session is used — the cash day, the full 24-hour session — changes every level.
- Woodie's pivot differs from Standard's because it weights the close twice. The support and resistance bands are otherwise the same formula.
Questions
- Which pivot method is the right one?
- They are different formulas over the same three inputs, not competing predictions, and the calculator shows all four rather than picking one. Which set of levels a chart is drawn with is a convention, and conventions differ by market and by desk.
- Which session's high, low and close do I use?
- Whichever your chart uses, consistently. A cash-session range and a 24-hour range produce different pivots from the same day, so mixing them silently changes every level.
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