Psychology & Plan
Swing trading
Holding trades for days to weeks to capture a larger price swing. Low daily time commitment and wider stops, but positions carry overnight swap and weekend gap risk.
Also called: swing trader
In practice
A swing trader spots a bullish setup on the daily GBP/USD chart with a 60-pip stop and 180-pip target, holds the trade for nine days across two weekends, and exits at target. Total screen time is a few minutes a day checking the daily close.
Why it matters for traders
Swing trading suits people with day jobs, because a few minutes a day is enough to manage daily-chart setups with large, reliable moves. The price of that low time commitment is exposure to swaps and weekend gaps, which must be planned into the risk from the start rather than discovered later.
Common pitfall
The mistake is opening swing trades on a daily chart but then checking the 15-minute obsessively and managing out of the trade on noise it was never meant to react to. A swing setup lives on the daily; intraday wiggles are expected. Plan the swing, set the orders, and review at the daily close. Trading a swing position like a scalp guarantees you exit at the worst moments and miss the move you planned to capture.
Lessons that use this term
- Trading styles overview
Scalping, day trading, swing trading and position trading — the time commitment and risk profile of each.
Related terms
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