Overview
Scalping aims for small moves inside the active session. Spreads and commissions are a large share of each target, so only liquid instruments and the most active hours are suitable.
Objectives
- Capture short moves with tight, defined risk
- Trade only in high-liquidity hours
- Keep costs below a fixed share of the target
Suitable market conditions
- Tight spreads
- Active session
- Clear intraday direction
Tools and indicators
- Market structure
- Fair value gaps
- Session high and low
Market bias
Follow the M15 structure; never scalp against it.
Entry rules
- Wait for an M15 pullback into a zone
- Enter on an M1 break of structure in the M15 direction
Confirmation
- Momentum candle away from the zone
- No major level directly in the way
Stop loss and take profit
- Stop beyond the M1 swing
- Target the nearest liquidity pool
Risk management
- Lower risk per trade than swing approaches
- Hard daily trade limit
- Stop after two consecutive losses
Valid example
M15 bullish. Price pulls back into an M15 fair value gap, M1 breaks structure upward, entry with a stop below the M1 low.
Invalid example
Spread widens before a release while price is in the zone. Skip the trade.
Common mistakes
- Overtrading
- Ignoring costs
- Scalping in thin markets
Advantages
- Many opportunities
- Short exposure to the market
Limitations
- Costs matter a lot
- Mentally demanding
- Sensitive to execution quality
No strategy guarantees profit or a particular win rate. Test any approach on a demo account and size every trade from a fixed risk.