TradingView is the most widely used charting platform in trading, covering crypto, stocks, forex and commodities. The free tier includes real time crypto data, hundreds of indicators and drawing tools, and is genuinely sufficient for a long time. Paid tiers add more indicators per chart, multiple charts per layout and remove ads.
TradingView
Start with TradingView and learn to read charts on the platform most traders use.
Get TradingViewReferral disclosure. The link above is a referral link. If you sign up through it, Orca Crypto may receive a commission at no additional cost to you, and in some cases you receive a bonus as well. This does not change what we write. We list the drawbacks of every platform on this page, and we would tell you the same things over a coffee.
Why it became the standard
TradingView solved charting well enough that almost every other platform now embeds it. Learning here means the skills transfer everywhere, and every chart you see posted online is almost certainly from it.
For crypto specifically it covers hundreds of exchanges, so you can chart the same asset on different venues, compare pairs, and build custom indices.
What the free tier actually gives you
| Feature | Free | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Real time crypto data | Yes | Yes |
| Indicators per chart | Limited | More, increasing by tier |
| Charts per layout | One | Up to eight |
| Saved layouts | Limited | Many |
| Alerts | A small number | More, with additional conditions |
| Ads | Yes | No |
| All drawing tools | Yes | Yes |
Setting it up for crypto
Chart the pair, not just the coin
BTCUSD from a specific exchange gives you that venue’s actual traded prices. An index averages across venues and is smoother.
Add one moving average
Start with a 50 period and a 200 period. Two lines, and most of what people discuss about trend.
Add volume
It is usually on by default. Price moves without volume are less reliable, and this is the fastest way to see that.
Learn to draw support and resistance
Horizontal lines where price repeatedly reacted. This is more useful than any indicator.
Set an alert instead of watching
Alerts are the feature that gives you your life back. Set the level, close the tab.
Honest assessment
Strengths
Why it is worth learning
- Free tier genuinely usable for a long time
- Skills and layouts transfer to every other platform
- Excellent mobile app that mirrors the desktop experience
- Huge library of community indicators, many of them free
Weaknesses
What to keep in mind
- Overwhelming at first. Start with two indicators, not twenty
- The social feed rewards confident predictions rather than accurate ones
- Paid tiers add up if you subscribe to the higher plans
- Charting can create false confidence. It shows what happened, not what will
Common questions
Do I need TradingView to trade crypto?
No. Every exchange includes a chart. TradingView is better, and free to start, which is why most people end up there anyway.
Is the free version enough?
For learning and for most casual trading, yes. The limits that push people to upgrade are alert counts and wanting multiple charts in one layout.
Can I trade directly from TradingView?
For some connected brokers and exchanges, yes. For most crypto users it is a charting tool and the trade happens on the exchange.
Where to go next
Want a hand setting it up?
We do this on a screen share, in about an hour, including two factor authentication, a first purchase and moving funds to a wallet you control.