GDTOP
▼ Bearish
Streaming Alert (Scanner)
Double Top Alert (GDTOP)
By Daniel Mirkin, CEO, Trade Ideas. Updated October 2026.
Find stocks forming a double top pattern in real time with Trade Ideas Streaming Alerts (Scanner). A double top pattern is when a stock has made two or more highs at about the same price, with significant time and volume between them.
Know when the pattern finishes.
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Streaming Alerts show a double top the moment it completes, not on the next refresh.
How Trade Ideas finds it: by default, the 'Double Top' alert will appear when there are two highs at approximately the same price, with significant time and volume between them. See Trade Ideas plans and pricing to run it live.
What is a double top?
A double top is two highs at about the same price with a dip in between. Drawn on a chart, the shape is an M. It tells you buyers pushed the stock up to one price twice and could not get through.
Key point
Until price falls below the low between the two highs, it is only two highs. That low is the neckline, and the break below it is what finishes the pattern.
Parts of a double top
First high
The stock runs up and stalls. At this point it is a normal high, and most stocks make plenty of them.
Neckline
Sellers push the stock down from the first high. The low of that dip becomes the neckline, the level that has to give way later.
Second high
Buyers try again and run out at roughly the same price. Trade Ideas looks for real time and volume between the two highs, so a quick double tap does not count.
Breakdown
Price drops through the neckline. That is the point where traders call it a double top.
How traders use it
Step 1: Let the Trade Ideas alert find it
Key point
Turn on the Double Top alert (GDTOP). Trade Ideas watches every stock for two highs at about the same level with enough trading in between. A price or average volume filter keeps out names you would never short or sell. See it live in the Web Dashboard.
Step 2: Wait for the trigger
Most traders do not act at the second high. They wait for the neckline to break, since plenty of stocks make two highs and then keep going up.
Step 3: Entry
Key point
Short sellers often enter on the break below the neckline. People who own the stock may use the same break as a reason to sell or tighten up. Some wait for a bounce back to the neckline that fails.
Step 4: Exit
Shorts commonly put a stop above the second high, or just above the neckline after a retest. A rough first target is the height of the pattern, highs to neckline, measured down from the break. That is a common way to frame it, not advice, and shorting carries its own risks.
Tips
- Look at volume on the second high. Lighter buying on the second push is what many traders want to see.
- A double top right under a round number or a prior high is easier to read.
- Hard-to-borrow stocks are tough to short even with a clean pattern.
- The Double Bottom alert (GDBOT) is the same pattern flipped.
Past results, including backtests, are not indicative of future results.
How the Double Top alert works
A double top is a common long-term technical analysis pattern. A double top is defined by at least two highs at approximately the same price level. Significant time and volume must exist between the two highs, making them distinct.
Key point
This alert can also report triple tops, quadruple tops, etc. In these cases, the alert description states the number of highs. We do not require as much time or volume between the individual highs in a triple or quadruple top as we do in a double top, as long as the first and last high are spread sufficiently far apart.
Default settings
By default, the 'Double Top' alert will appear when there are two highs at approximately the same price, with significant time and volume between them.
Custom settings
Settings
For 'Double Top' alerts, you have the option to use an alert specific filter. This filter is located immediately to the right of the corresponding alert and is always optional. You can decide to leave it blank if you want to receive more alerts, or you can fill it in to restrict the number of alerts you receive. This filter allows you to specify the quality of the alert. When you set a higher number for this filter, you are telling the alerts server to display only alerts that meet a higher quality standard, resulting in fewer alerts being shown.
When setting an alert for 'Double Top', the user can filter the alert by hours traded.
Key point
If I see a pattern that lasted from noon yesterday to noon today, is that any better than a pattern that lasted from the open this morning to the close this afternoon? How much better? We weight the pre and post market according to volume. On an average day an average NASDAQ 100 stock will trade roughly 1 hour's worth of volume between the close and the following open. If you want to see stock patterns that lasted for a whole day, a good estimate is 7.5 hours, 6.5 for normal hours plus 1 for the pre and post market.
The same rules apply during the day. If a chart pattern lasts for one hour starting from the open, it will almost always be considered a stronger pattern than if it lasted one hour starting from the beginning of lunch. Hours are just an estimate. Volume is the major factor in this filter. Stocks trading on higher than average volume will satisfy this filter faster than stocks trading on lower than average volume.
What the alert shows you
Key point
The description of each alert lists the prices that formed the pattern. It also includes the times of when the pattern started and ended.
The quality value on a scan using the 'Double Top' alert defines the number of hours since the measured pattern has been established.
Related alerts
Filters to pair with the Double Top alert
Categories
FAQ
Which stocks are forming a double top pattern right now?
Turn on the Double Top alert (GDTOP) in Trade Ideas Streaming Alerts. By default, the 'Double Top' alert will appear when there are two highs at approximately the same price, with significant time and volume between them.
What is the Double Top alert?
A double top pattern is when a stock has made two or more highs at about the same price, with significant time and volume between them.
How do I see fewer, higher-quality Double Top alerts?
Use the optional alert-specific filter immediately to the right of the alert. A higher number tells the alerts server to show only higher-quality alerts, so fewer appear. Leave it blank to see more.
What is the opposite of the Double Top alert?
Is a double top bearish?
Usually, yes. It shows a stock failing at the same price twice. It is only confirmed when price breaks below the neckline.
What is the difference between a double top and a triple top?
A triple top has three highs at about the same price instead of two. The Trade Ideas alert reports both and says how many highs it found.
Can I trade a double top without shorting?
Yes. Many traders use it as a reason to sell a stock they own or to stay out of a long trade.
How long does a double top take to form?
It depends on the chart. Trade Ideas requires real time and volume between the highs, so it ignores two highs a few minutes apart.