Studies · Trend
Simple Moving Average (SMA)
sma · Simple moving average
Drawn over priceReads one column (close here)
Hover the chart to read values · practice data: a seeded random walk with no overnight gaps
What it measures
The plain average of the last N closes, recomputed every bar. Each bar in the window counts equally, so the line is smooth but slow: it turns only after the price has already turned.
How traders use it
- Trend direction: price above a rising SMA is read as an uptrend, below a falling one as a downtrend.
- Crossovers: a short SMA crossing above a long one (the 50-day over the 200-day is the famous "golden cross") is a classic buy signal; the reverse is a sell.
- Dynamic support and resistance: in a steady trend, pullbacks often stall near a widely watched average such as the 20, 50 or 200-day.
- A building block: many other studies smooth with it, and in Tidal you can take an SMA of any other study.
Parameters
| Name | Value | Default | Allowed | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| period | 20 | 2 … 5000 usual 5–200 | How many bars to average. Shorter follows price closely; longer is smoother and lags more. |