Liquidity sweep or plain breakout? The test I use before I touch a chart
Posted: Sun Oct 25, 2026 8:47 am
Most arguments about sweeps come from people labeling the same candle differently. Here is the filter I use. A breakout is accepted: price pushes through a level, closes beyond it, and then holds or retests it from the other side. A sweep is rejected: price pokes through, grabs the resting orders, and closes back inside the range, usually within one to three candles. The difference is what happens after the break, not the break itself. That means you cannot label it in real time on the breakout candle. You label it when the close back inside confirms it. Before that, you are guessing. I only mark a sweep after a full candle closes back beyond the level on the timeframe I trade. If I am on M15, an M1 wick that returns does not count. This one rule cut my early entries by about half and removed most of my false reversal calls. Ask yourself: what would have to happen for this to be a breakout instead? If you can answer that, you are not ready to call it a sweep yet.