Chart Patterns Cheat Sheet: Confirmation and Invalidation for Every Pattern
Twenty chart patterns in three tables (shape, confirmation, invalidation, measured target), plus Bulkowski's failure rates and a six-step chart check.
A chart patterns cheat sheet is a one-page reference: each common pattern, what it looks like, what confirms it, what kills it and where it points. Most stop at the picture. This one gives every row an invalidation column, because the event that kills a pattern is what sets your stop. Twenty patterns in three tables, a shape grid to match against, and Thomas Bulkowski's failure rates for the ones he measured.
Looking for candlestick patterns (doji, hammer, engulfing)? Location matters more than shape there, so a lookup table misleads. The candlestick patterns guide covers them in context.
Quick Answer
Every row gives the shape, the confirmation trigger, the invalidation trigger and the measured target. Patterns come in three families: continuation (the trend resumes), reversal (it turns) and bilateral (either way). A pattern confirms only when a candle closes through its defining line, ideally on rising volume. A wick or a touch does not count. Print it with Ctrl+P (Cmd+P on a Mac).
What Are the 3 Types of Chart Patterns?
Chart patterns sort into three families by what they usually do to the trend before them. A bull flag needs a run to be a flag, and a double bottom needs a decline to be a bottom. With no trend before it, a continuation or reversal shape means little.
| Family | What it signals | Rows on this sheet |
|---|---|---|
| Continuation | The prior trend pauses, then resumes. | Bull flag, bear flag, pennant, ascending and descending triangle, rectangle, cup and handle |
| Reversal | The prior trend ends and turns. | Head and shoulders and its inverse, double and triple tops and bottoms, rounding bottom, both wedges |
| Bilateral (two-way) | No built-in direction. The breakout decides. | Symmetrical triangle, broadening formation, plus the bull and bear traps (failed breakouts) |
Wedges are the disputed pair: sources file them as continuation, reversal or bilateral depending on the trend. This sheet keeps them with the reversals, and the complete chart patterns guide goes deeper on each family.
Nineteen silhouettes in table order: green bullish, red bearish, grey two-way
Which Chart Patterns Continue the Trend?
Continuation patterns are pauses in a trend: price consolidates, then usually breaks the way it was already going. Seven rows, each with its trigger and kill line.
| Pattern | Shape | Confirmation trigger | Invalidation trigger | Measured target |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bull Flag Bullish, after a sharp run up | Near-vertical pole, then a tight channel drifting lower on fading volume. | A close above the flag's upper line on above-average volume. | The pullback gives back over half the pole, or drags on until it looks like a range. | Pole height added to the breakout. |
| Bear Flag Bearish, after a sharp drop | Near-vertical pole down, then a tight channel drifting higher on fading volume. | A close below the flag's lower line on above-average volume. | The bounce gives back over half the pole, or drags on until it looks like a range. | Pole height subtracted from the breakdown. |
| Pennant With the pole, either way | A pole, then a small triangle of converging lines, volume drying up. | A close through the side in the pole's direction, on rising volume. | A close through the other side, or price drifting into the tip. | Pole height projected from the breakout. |
| Ascending Triangle Usually bullish, in an uptrend | Flat ceiling over a rising line of higher lows. | A close through the ceiling on expanding volume. | A close below the rising line, or a break of the last higher low. | Triangle height added to the breakout. |
| Descending Triangle Usually read as bearish, in a downtrend | Flat floor under a falling line of lower highs. | A close through the floor on expanding volume, or above the falling line for the upside break. | A close back inside the triangle after either break: back above the floor after a breakdown, back under the falling line after an upside break. | Triangle height projected from the break, either way. |
| Rectangle Usually continuation, breaks either way | Flat support and flat resistance, two or more touches each. | A close outside either line on expanding volume. The break sets the direction. | A close back inside the range. | Range height projected from the broken line. |
| Cup and Handle Bullish, in an uptrend | Rounded U-shaped base, then a short drift lower (the handle) that forms in the upper half of the cup. | A close above the rim on a volume surge. | The handle sinks into the lower half of the cup, or the break closes back under the rim. | Cup depth added to the rim. |
The row people misread is the bull flag: they buy the pullback before the flag has broken anything. The bull flag guide covers the bear flag mirror, the pennant breakdown its triangle-shaped cousin, and a rectangle is a horizontal channel by another name. The descending triangle walkthrough covers when that "bearish" shape breaks up instead, and the failure table below shows how often it does.
Which Chart Patterns Signal a Reversal?
Reversal patterns mark a trend running out: one side stops pushing, a key line breaks and price turns. Nine rows, each with its trigger and kill line.
| Pattern | Shape | Confirmation trigger | Invalidation trigger | Measured target |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Head and Shoulders Bearish, ends an uptrend | Three peaks, the middle highest, the right shoulder short of the head. | A close below the neckline on expanding volume. | Price reclaims the right shoulder's high, or closes back above the neckline. | Head-to-neckline distance projected down. |
| Inverse Head and Shoulders Bullish, ends a downtrend | Three troughs, the middle deepest, the outer two roughly level. | A close above the neckline, volume spiking on the break. | A close back below the right shoulder's low, or a break on flat volume that fades. | Head-to-neckline distance projected up. |
| Double Top Bearish, ends an uptrend | Two rejections from about the same resistance, the second often on lighter volume. | A close below the swing low between the peaks. | A close above the higher peak. A third rejection just under it instead turns the pair into a triple top. | Peak-to-neckline distance subtracted from the neckline. |
| Double Bottom Bullish, ends a downtrend | Two lows at about the same price, split by one swing high. In Bulkowski's Eve and Eve bottoms they usually sit 0% to 6% apart. | A close above the swing high between the lows, on rising volume. | A third low under the pair, or a break that closes back below the neckline. | Lows-to-neckline distance added to the neckline. |
| Triple Top Bearish, ends an uptrend | Three rejections from about the same resistance, two swing lows between them. | A close below the lower swing low. | A close above the highest peak, which makes it a breakout. | Peak-to-support distance subtracted from the break. |
| Triple Bottom Bullish, ends a downtrend | Three tests of about the same support, two swing highs between them. | A close above the higher swing high, on rising volume. | A close below the lowest low. | Low-to-resistance distance added to the break. |
| Rounding Bottom (Saucer) Bullish, a slow turn off a low | Slow U-shaped base, no handle, volume quiet at the bottom and building on the right side. | A close above the rim on rising volume. | Price rolls back under the midpoint of the right side, or never clears the rim. | Rim-to-low depth added to the rim. |
| Rising Wedge Usually bearish, in either trend | Two up-sloping lines converging, the lower one steeper, each push shorter than the last. | A close below the lower line on expanding volume. | A close back above the upper line, or a breakdown that gets fully reclaimed. | Widest height projected down from the break. |
| Falling Wedge Usually bullish, in either trend | Two down-sloping lines converging, the upper one steeper. | A close above the upper line as volume expands. | A close below the lower line, or a break that loses the line on the retest. | Widest height projected up from the break. |
A double top after a small drift up is just two touches of resistance. The triple rows add one more test, and the triple top section covers which low has to break to confirm it. A rising wedge still makes higher highs the whole way up, which is why it catches people. The wedge guide explains the tell.
Which Patterns Can Break Either Way?
The symmetrical triangle and the broadening formation can break either way, and the bull and bear traps are breakouts that failed. Four rows, same columns.
| Pattern | Shape | Confirmation trigger | Invalidation trigger | Measured target |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Symmetrical Triangle Two-way, often breaks with the prior trend | Lower highs and higher lows converging toward a point, volume drying up. | A close outside either line on expanding volume, before the tip. | A close back inside the triangle. | Widest height projected from the break. |
| Broadening Formation Two-way, volatile | Diverging lines: higher highs and lower lows at once, each swing wider. | A close beyond the latest swing extreme on clearly expanding volume. Context sets the direction. | Price snaps back inside within a bar or two. That snap-back is the trap here. | Widest width projected from the break. Treat it loosely. |
| Bull Trap Bearish, a failed breakout | A poke above obvious resistance on weak volume that closes back inside the range, often with an upper wick. | A close back below the broken level, not while price is still above it. | A second push closes above the level and holds on rising volume: a real breakout. | No standard measured move. Use the other side of the range. |
| Bear Trap Bullish, a failed breakdown | A poke below obvious support on weak volume that closes back inside the range, often with a long lower wick. | A close back above the broken support, ideally above the trap candle's high. | A follow-through close below the level on expanding volume: a real breakdown. | No standard measured move. Use the top of the range or the prior swing high. |
False breakouts are common. The traps are the only rows where the trigger fires against the move price just made. The poke through the level is the bait, not the event. The full breakdown of both traps covers spotting it live. A symmetrical triangle gives no direction until it breaks, and the broadening formation is the one row where standing aside is a fair answer.
How to Know When a Chart Pattern Is Confirmed
A pattern confirms when a candle closes through its defining line, with volume expanding on that candle. A wick through the line does not count. Neither does a touch, or price above the line with four minutes left in the candle, which is where most early entries happen. ChartSchool's double top reference makes the case for waiting on the neckline close, and its page on flags and pennants wants the breakout to expand volume after the pattern contracted it.
Waiting for price to come back to the broken line and hold it gives a tighter stop and a worse fill, and misses the breaks that never look back. Both entries are fine. Buying before the close and calling it confirmed afterwards is not.
Set the stop before you enter. The invalidation column is the event that ends the pattern, not a stop price, so the stop goes a little past it, outside the noise. A stop parked exactly on a head and shoulders neckline sits inside that noise. Size the position from the stop, then hold the target up against it. The live-chart check:
- Name the trend. Higher highs and higher lows, lower ones, or neither, and which side of the moving averages price is on.
- Match the shape to a row. Check it formed after the trend that row needs.
- Draw the line the row is defined by. The flag's trendline, the neckline, the flat side. Note the next support or resistance level past it.
- Mark the trigger, the invalidation and the measured target. All three, before any order.
- Check the target against the distance to your stop. If the reward-to-risk misses your minimum, skip it.
- Wait for the candle to close through the line. Then read that candle: rising volume confirms, a long wick back inside warns.
How Often Do Chart Patterns Fail?
In Thomas Bulkowski's bull-market results from daily and weekly stock charts, the nine patterns below fail to move 5% past the breakout between 5% (cup with handle) and 54% (pennants) of the time, and reach their full measured target between 32% and 79% of the time across up and down breakouts. He has logged thousands of these patterns at thepatternsite.com, the most thorough public numbers I have found. Two measures, both in his glossary: a pattern fails when price does not move at least 5% past the breakout before reversing, and reaches its target when it covers the full measured move.
| Pattern (Bulkowski page) | Breakout direction | Failed to move 5% | Reached full target |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flag | Up 60% of the time | 44% up, 45% down | 46% up, 46% down |
| Pennant | Up 57% | 54% up, 54% down | 35% up, 32% down |
| Ascending triangle | Up 63% | 17% up, 38% down | 70% up, 44% down |
| Descending triangle | Up 53% | 22% up, 23% down | 64% up, 50% down |
| Symmetrical triangle | Up 60% | 25% up, 37% down | 58% up, 36% down |
| Rectangle bottom | Up 59% | 15% up, 24% down | 79% up, 55% down |
| Cup with handle | Up, no split published | 5% | 61% |
| Head-and-shoulders top | Down, no split published | 19% | 51% |
| Rising wedge | Down 60% | 19% up, 51% down | 63% up, 32% down |
Know the limits. The samples are US stocks, counted as "perfect trades" with no commissions or fees. They are not win rates or intraday statistics. The "95% success rate" quoted around the web for the cup and handle is 100 minus its 5% failure rate: price got 5% past the breakout at some point, which says nothing about where your stop was.
For a day trader, the useful read: flags reach the full measured target 46% of the time and pennants 35% (up) and 32% (down), so treat those targets as a best case. Bulkowski's measure rule page suggests scaling the height by these hit rates. And direction is a probability: the descending triangle most sheets call bearish broke upward 53% of the time.
Intraday charts and thin, low-volume names are noisier: a few thousand shares can push a candle through a line nobody was defending. Test a pattern on your own market and timeframe, and journal it, before trusting any number, his included.
Where AI Fits
SnapPChart's AI chart analysis grades one chart screenshot you upload. It does not scan the market, and it has no classifier for flags, triangles, wedges or head and shoulders. Cup and handle is the exception: it is in the grader's signal list, and a paid grade can name it as a matched signal.
It reads the parts the rows are built from: trend, swing structure, recent volume, price against the EMAs and VWAP, and support and resistance as ranges. A strong pole with a small flag on lower volume is one of its direction cues. It is built for with-trend pullbacks, so continuation rows fit best, and a reversal row is read against the trend it is trying to end: a fresh inverse head and shoulders at the bottom of a downtrend is graded on that downtrend, not as a new long. The AI trading guide covers the rest.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a chart patterns cheat sheet PDF?
Not as a hosted file. This page is the cheat sheet: press Ctrl+P (Cmd+P on a Mac) and pick Save as PDF. A print stylesheet drops the navigation, sidebar and buttons, so you keep all five tables and the shape grid. Set landscape, since five columns do not fit portrait.
Which chart pattern is the most reliable?
None has a fixed win rate, and a page that quotes one owes you a source. In Bulkowski's bull-market sample of daily and weekly stock charts, the cup with handle failed to move 5% past its breakout 5% of the time, pennants 54%. Those are failure rates, not win rates. Read the limits under the failure table first.
What is the difference between a chart pattern and a candlestick pattern?
Scale. A chart pattern is multi-bar structure, so the shape says something about who has been winning at a level. A candlestick pattern is one to three candles, too small for the shape alone to mean much. A hammer at support after a real drop and the same hammer mid-range are different trades.
Does the measured-move target actually get hit?
Less often than the formula suggests. In Bulkowski's bull-market results from daily and weekly stock charts, flags reach the full measured move 46% of the time, head-and-shoulders tops 51% and rectangle bottoms with upward breakouts 79%. So use the target as a filter before entry: if even the full move barely clears your reward-to-risk minimum, skip the setup.
Do chart patterns work on every timeframe and market?
They form on every timeframe, and in stocks, forex, crypto and futures alike. Higher timeframes carry more weight because more trading stands behind each line. Intraday charts are noisier, and the published statistics, Bulkowski's included, come from daily and weekly stock charts. Test a pattern on your own market and timeframe, and journal it, before trusting anyone's numbers.
Can AI tell me which chart pattern is on my screenshot?
Mostly not by name. SnapPChart's grader has no classifier for flags, triangles, wedges or head and shoulders. Cup and handle is in its signal list, so a paid grade can name it. For the rest it grades the with-trend setup A+ to F from trend, structure, volume and levels.
This article is for educational purposes only and is not financial advice. The failure and target figures are Thomas Bulkowski's published results, not win rates and not results we measured. No chart pattern works every time. Day trading carries a substantial risk of loss. SnapPChart's AI grades a single uploaded screenshot. It does not classify most chart patterns by name, does not scan the market and does not guarantee trade outcomes.
- Stock Chart Patterns: The Complete Guide
- Bull Flag and Bear Flag
- Pennant Pattern
- Ascending Triangle Pattern
- Descending and Symmetrical Triangles
- Price Channels and Rectangles
- Cup and Handle Pattern
- Head and Shoulders Pattern
- Double and Triple Tops and Bottoms
- Rounding Bottom (Saucer)
- Rising and Falling Wedge Patterns
- Broadening Formation (Megaphone)
- Bull Trap and Bear Trap
Writes about AI-assisted day trading, technical analysis, and the systems traders actually use to stay disciplined.
The sheet gives the rule. Your chart decides if it applies
Upload your chart and SnapPChart grades that setup A+ to F and makes one call: take the trade, wait for a pullback, or skip it. It reads every chart as a with-trend setup, so a bounce off a downtrend's low is graded on that downtrend, not as a new long. Your first grade is free: a summarized analysis of your chart and a graded second opinion on whether to take it, wait or pass. Entry, stop, targets and the trade plan come with a paid plan.