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Pine Scrip Average: A Practical Guide for TradingView

· 4 min read
Pineify Team
Pineify Team

If you're working with Pine Script on TradingView, averages are one of those tools you'll use constantly. They help smooth out price action, spot trends, and build trading strategies. Whether you're just starting out or looking to level up your indicator game, understanding averages is key.

What Are Pine Script Averages?​

Think of averages in Pine Script as your market smoothing tools. They come in different flavors - some simple, some more advanced - each handy for different situations when you're analyzing charts or building strategies.

The Different Types of Averages in Pine Script​

Simple Moving Average (SMA) - Your Go-To Baseline​

The SMA is the bread and butter of averages - simple but super useful. It just takes the average closing price over whatever period you choose. Here's how you'd set up a basic 200-period SMA:

//@version=5
indicator("Simple Moving Average", shorttitle="SMA", overlay=true)

length = input.int(200, minval=1, title="Length")
smaValue = ta.sma(close, length)
plot(smaValue, title="SMA", color=color.blue)

Why SMAs rock:

  • They help cut through market noise to see the real trend
  • Great for spotting when markets change direction
  • Act like magnets for price - often becoming support/resistance
  • Super simple to add to any script

Working with Array Averages​

When you need to average a bunch of stored values, array.avg() has your back. Say you're tracking closing prices in an array:

// Calculate average of array values
myArray = array.new_float()
array.push(myArray, close)
arrayAverage = array.avg(myArray)
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Quick Math Averages​

For those times when you just need to average a few values on the fly, math.avg() is your friend:

// Get the average of high, low, and close
avgValue = math.avg(high, low, close)

Leveling Up Your Average Game​

Conditional Averages - Smarter Calculations​

Sometimes you only want to average prices when certain conditions are true, like:

  • Only counting up moves in an uptrend
  • Averaging prices during London session hours
  • Filtering for high-volume bars only

Building Running Averages​

Need an average that updates on the fly? Here's how to roll your own:

var float runningSum = 0
var int count = 0

if condition
    runningSum += value
    count += 1
    
runningAverage = runningSum / count

This is great for tracking averages of custom conditions that built-in functions don't cover.

Pro Tips for Working with Averages​

Keeping Things Fast​

  • Stick to built-in functions when you can - they're optimized
  • Pine Script already runs in a loop, so extra loops can slow things down
  • Pick the right average for what you're trying to do

Handy Implementation Tricks​

  1. Always validate inputs - set minimums for your periods
  2. Remember overlay=true to show averages on your price chart
  3. Color-code your averages to make them easier to read
  4. Handle cases where there might not be enough data

Putting Averages to Work​

Building Trading Strategies​

Averages are clutch for:

  • Spotting trends (are prices above/below the average?)
  • Generating signals (like when a fast MA crosses a slow one)
  • Setting stops (maybe at some multiple of an average)

Making Sense of Markets​

Averages help you:

  • See through market noise to the real trend
  • Track average volume to spot unusual activity
  • Find key levels where price might bounce

Watch Out For These Mistakes​

  • Making things more complicated than needed (use built-ins!)
  • Forgetting that extra loops can slow down your script
  • Not testing enough - always check how your averages behave
  • Picking timeframes that don't match your trading style