Technical analysis

Gap

Defined in 2 lessons · Updated October 17, 2026

Definition

A gap is a jump between one candle's close and the next candle's open, most often between yesterday's close and today's open after news or earnings. Say a stock closes at $100 and opens at $104: that is a $4 gap up.

Example

Say a stock closes at $80.00 and opens at $76.00 the next morning after weak earnings: a $4.00 gap down, or 5%. On an intraday chart, that shows as empty space between yesterday’s last candle and today’s first. If price climbs back to $80.00 later, traders say the gap has filled, because the stock has now traded through the whole jump.

Hypothetical numbers, for illustration only.

A 5-minute chart labeled with this section's terms: yesterday's last candle closes at $100 and today opens at $104, a gap; a dashed box around today's first three candles marks the opening range; volume bars sit underneath; and a magnifier zooms into one candle with a long upper wick to label the wick and the body. A note at the top: each candle is 5 minutes.

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