MACD Cheat Sheet
Quick MACD reference — signals, settings, and when to ignore the crossover.
Quick reference table
| Standard settings | 12, 26, 9 |
| Day trading settings | 5, 13, 6 or 8, 17, 9 |
| Bullish crossover | MACD line crosses above signal line |
| Bearish crossover | MACD line crosses below signal line |
| Bullish divergence | Price lower low + MACD higher low |
| Bearish divergence | Price higher high + MACD lower high |
| Histogram interpretation | Positive growing = momentum building. Negative growing = downward momentum building. |
| Best paired with | ADX > 25 (avoid choppy market false signals) |
| Trend confirmation | MACD above zero = uptrend, below zero = downtrend |
| Where MACD fails | Range-bound markets (whipsaws constantly) |
Quick setups
- Long: MACD bullish crossover + price above 50-EMA + ADX > 25 = take entry.
- Short: MACD bearish crossover + price below 50-EMA + ADX > 25 = take entry.
- Divergence: Most reliable signal. Bullish divergence at oversold = high-conviction long setup with confirmation.