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Pine Script Tutorial: A Quick Start Guide for Beginners

· 4 min read
Pineify Team
Pineify Team

So you want to learn Pine Script? Cool! I remember when I first heard about it - I thought it was some weird tree programming language or something. Turns out, it's actually TradingView's built-in coding language that lets you create your own indicators and trading strategies right in your browser.

What Is Pine Script?​

Think of Pine Script as your personal toolkit for TradingView. You know how sometimes you look at a chart and think "I wish I could see this data differently" or "I wonder what would happen if I combined these two indicators"? That's exactly what Pine Script is for.

With it, you can:

  • Create indicators that actually make sense for how you trade
  • Build strategies and see how they would've performed historically
  • Draw stuff on charts that helps you spot patterns

Getting Started with Pine Script​

Setting Up​

First things first - you'll need a TradingView account. The free one works fine for learning, so don't worry about paying anything yet. Once you're in:

  1. Open any chart (doesn't matter which one)
  2. Look at the bottom of the screen - see that "Pine Editor" tab? Click it

That's it! You're now staring at a blank code editor. Don't panic.

The Best Pine Script Generator

Your First Pine Script​

Let's write something super simple to get you started:

//@version=5
indicator("My Script", overlay=true)
plot(close)

Okay, what's happening here?

  • //@version=5: This just tells Pine Script which version you're using. Always put this at the top - trust me on this one.
  • indicator("My Script", overlay=true): This says "hey, I'm making an indicator, call it 'My Script', and put it right on the price chart."
  • plot(close): This draws a line showing the closing price. Pretty boring, but it works!

Key Concepts​

Here's the stuff you'll use all the time:

  • Comments: Use // to leave yourself notes. Future you will thank present you for this. Like // This calculates the 20-day moving average
  • Variables: Think of these as containers for your calculations. Like ma = ta.sma(close, 14) stores a 14-period moving average
  • Plotting: plot() is how you actually draw things on the chart
  • Script types: Use indicator() for indicators, strategy() for backtesting strategies

Tips for Pine Script Beginners​

Here's what I wish someone told me when I started:

  • The TradingView docs are actually pretty good. When you're stuck, search for the function you're trying to use.
  • Start ridiculously simple. Like, embarrassingly simple. Change colors, tweak a moving average period, stuff like that.
  • The Pine Editor will yell at you when something's wrong. Don't ignore those red error messages - they're usually pretty helpful.

Next Steps and Learning Resources​

Once you've got the basics down:

  • Dive into TradingView's Pine Script docs - they have tons of examples you can copy and modify
  • Check out r/pinescript on Reddit. The community is pretty helpful and you'll see what others are building
  • YouTube has some solid Pine Script tutorials if you're more of a visual learner

Why Learn Pine Script?​

Honestly? Because it's pretty cool to build your own trading tools. Plus:

  • You can test crazy ideas without risking real money
  • No more settling for indicators that almost do what you want
  • You'll understand your trading system way better when you build it yourself

So go ahead, open up that Pine Editor and start messing around. The worst thing that can happen is you'll learn something new.