Top Sources for OHLC Candlestick Data in the Crypto Market
Understanding OHLC chart
OHLC stands for Open-High-Low-Close chart. It is a concept commonly used in trading the financial market (forex, crypto, stocks etc).
The OHLC chart can be likened to a Japanese candlestick chart as both of them show trading data during a particular time frame.
In a typical OHLC chart as shown in the image above, the y-axis is used to show the price scale, while the x-axis is used to show the time scale. At every period of time, an OHLC chart plots a symbol that represents two ranges: the highest and lowest prices traded, and the opening and closing price on that particular period of time. A colour can be assigned to each symbol(bar) to distinguish between an uptrend or downtrend.
Defining the points in an OHLC chart
- Open (O) : This is regarded as the opening price of an asset or crypto token at the beginning of a particular period of time or time frame.
- High (H) : This is the highest price an asset was traded during the given timeframe
- Low (L): This is the lowest traded price of the asset during the specified period of time.
- Close (C): This is the last traded price of the asset at the end of the specified time.
Here’s a quick understanding to have at the back of your mind:
The Open is the price at the beginning of a specified time frame.
The High is the highest price reached in the specified time frame.
The Low is the lowest price reached in the specified time frame.
The Close is the price at the end of the specified time frame.
Image showing the Open, High, Low, Close points in an OHLC candlestick
Formation of a candlestick
A candlestick is formed upwards and downwards movement in the price. This forms a pattern which a crypto trader can use for technical analysis. The patterns can further be separated into two categories, namely; bullish(uptrend) and bearish(downtrend)
Significance of OHLC Candlestick data in crypto trading
By studying OHLC Candlesticks, a trader can gain insights on market trends and asset volatility. Let us take for instance, we are trading the $MATIC token on Polygon and visualizing the OHLC chart which shows the asset price movement at a particular time frame, this can help us to make a buy or sell decision as we study the patterns to know if market conditions are favourable (uptrending) or unfavourable (downtrending).
Both conditions are practical as they are applicable in making a buy or sell decision.
A typical OHLC chart showing the price movement of $MATIC between 26th Jan — 1st Feb
Due to the high volatility existent in cryptocurrencies, it is very important to consider using an effective analysis tool in order to manage risks, identify opportunities and make informed decisions.
Using the OHLC Candlestick chart in technical analysis of an asset, crypto traders can leverage the tool to gain an edge over the market. Some of the benefits of using OHLC data in crypto trading includes, but not limited to the following:
- Risk Management: With high volatility comes great risk, an OHLC chart can help a crypto trader to set a very much realistic stop-loss and take-profit level, sizing their position and managing risk efficiently.
- Awareness of rapid change in asset price: OHLC charts provide a visual representation of an asset’s price movement over a specified time frame. A crypto trader can easily spot market trends due to the candlestick pattern, helping to identify price levels that can impact their buy or sell decision.
- Identification of market trends, which can be either upwards trend(bullish), or downwards trend(bearish) and patterns. This is very crucial in order to make strategic entry and exit positions.
- Indication of key support and resistance levels, to anticipate potential price reversals or breakouts.
Top Sources for OHLC Candlestick Data in the Crypto Market
1. Bitquery
Bitquery is used for getting real-time and historical blockchain data across 40+ chains, as well as APIs for OHLC data on crypto assets.
The queries return trade stats for any asset or particular asset pair with filters which you can specify according to the information you want, retrieving information about the assets Liquidity Providers, Trading Volume, Fees and transaction logs on any blockchain network.
The Bitquery OHLC API provides vital trading information for specific assets or asset pairs, delivering minute-by-minute, half-hourly, hourly, or custom interval OHLC data including the details of the DEX and protocol.
The Bitquery’s Crypto Coin Ticker API which can be built using the DEX APIs is also used to retrieve OHLC data points by aggregating different DEXs. It fetches the last trade details on time intervals which you can change either in seconds, mins or days or weeks.
Here is a sample query for WETH-USDT trade on Uniswap where we can can see the OHLC data for the pairs using DEX Trades By Tokens
You can also build TradingView charting for crypto data with Bitquery APIs easily.
2. DexTools
DexTools is a DeFi-focused trading app that shows charts, transactions, cryptocurrency pairs and price alerts. DexTools allows you to view historical data of any given asset while leveraging from their API.
The API gives you different endpoints like PairMetrics, TokenMetrics, TokenAudit and so on for information on token pairs.
3. Dune Analytics
Dune Analytics provides blockchain ecosystem analytics and data which can be used for cryptocurrency trading. It equally lets anyone create and publish crypto dashboards with blockchain data. Dune allows users to query data via SQL, this data comes with a lot of metrics which include the volume, transaction fees, and current and historical data on asset price (OHLC). All these can be visualized through its unique data visualization tools and interactive user interface even for non-technical folks.
4. DeBank
DeBank is a Web3-native messenger and a portfolio tracker that covers tokens, DeFi protocols and NFTs across all EVM chains, providing data for crypto assets trading. DeBank paid features allow users to analyze an asset’s current and historical data which includes the opening, high, low and closing price of any asset and also compare asset changes between any two dates. This is only available on the paid plan.
5. The Graph
The Graph is an indexing protocol for organizing blockchain data and making it easily accessible with GraphQL. Its data provides information on DEX trading pairs, token liquidity, and market metrics. The data provided also includes the OHLC price of any asset requested through an API call.
6. GeckoTerminal (by Coingecko)
This is a DeFi tracker tool where you can view crypto prices, live charts, and transaction details on decentralized exchanges across different blockchain networks. With its API data it provides investors and traders with a comprehensive and user-friendly platform to make informed investment decisions in the cryptocurrency market.
7. Kaiko Smart Data
Kaiko provides consolidated sources for information on swaps of different liquidity pools across various blockchain networks. It covers the leading DEXs on Ethereum, BNB, and Avalanche with real-time streaming.
8. Token Terminal
Token Terminal is a full-stack on-chain data platform focused on standardizing financial and alternative data for blockchains and decentralized applications, empowering both institutional and retail investors with on-chain data that serves as the foundation for informed decision-making.
9. Polygon API
Polygon’s crypto API provides data which comes directly from institutional-level banks and liquidity providers. It offers Restful and WebSocket APIs which provide flexibility for either accessing historical or real-time data.
10. DexScreener
DEX Screener is a price analysis platform with data streams updating as quickly as 5 minutes apart and across multiple decentralized exchanges and chains. It allows users to track activity on different DEXs across a large number of blockchain networks with an intuitive user interface. All DEX Screener data comes directly from the blockchains it tracks, without the use of any external APIs or data sources.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) on OHLC Data Sources
Some frequently asked questions on OHLC data sources can include the following:
- How does an OHLC chart differ from a line chart or bar chart?
An OHLC chart shows just the Open, High, Low and Close prices at a given time frame which provides detail about an asset price movement, while a line chart shows overall trends via the connection of closing prices whereas the bar chart gives more detail about the opening, high, low and closing prices.
2. Are there free sources of OHLC data, and how do they compare to paid services?
Free sources of OHLC data provide basic historical price information on a given asset, while a paid service can offer comprehensive datasets, and advanced tooling which you can use to get a more in-depth analysis.
3. Can I access real-time OHLC data for cryptocurrency pairs?
This depends on the platform or service that you use. Bitquery APIs provide real-time data for any crypto asset on supported blockchains, whereas some other sources may provide delayed data.
