Smart Money Concept / ICT
Break of Structure (BOS)
The break of a prior swing that confirms trend continuation or a shift.
What is Break of Structure (BOS)?
A Break of Structure (BOS) is a core Smart Money Concept and ICT idea: price breaking a previous swing high or low, confirming the market structure. A BOS in the trend direction signals continuation; a break against it (often called a change of character, CHoCH) warns of a possible reversal.
How it works
Market structure is a sequence of swing highs and lows. In an uptrend, price makes higher highs and higher lows; breaking the most recent higher high is a bullish BOS (continuation). When price instead breaks the last higher low, structure shifts (CHoCH), the first sign the trend may be turning. Traders use BOS to define bias and to validate order blocks and fair value gaps.
How traders use it
- ▸Bias: BOS confirms the prevailing trend direction.
- ▸CHoCH: a structure shift flags potential reversals.
- ▸Confluence: validate order blocks / FVGs formed at the break.
- ▸Entries: trade pullbacks after a BOS in the trend direction.
Build Break of Structure (BOS) without code in Algovex
Algovex detects market structure and break-of-structure / shift events as nodes, tracked across bars and drawn on the chart. Wire BOS or CHoCH events into entries, backtest, and export, without coding the swing logic yourself.
Key parameters
| Parameter | What it does |
|---|---|
| swingStrength | How many bars define a confirmed swing high/low. |
| lookbackBars | How far back the structure scanner looks. |
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between BOS and CHoCH?
A Break of Structure (BOS) is a break in the trend's direction (continuation); a Change of Character (CHoCH) is a break against the trend (potential reversal). Algovex can detect both and use them in a strategy.