Pine Script Introduction

Welcome to Pine Script! This introduction will guide you through the fundamentals of building trading indicators and strategies on TradingView.

What is Pine Script?

Pine Script is TradingView’s programming language designed specifically for:

Technical Analysis - Build custom indicators
Trading Strategies - Test and automate trading ideas
Alerts - Get notified of market opportunities
Visual Analysis - Create custom chart overlays

Why Use Pine Script?

Feature	Benefit
Free Platform	No additional software needed
Easy to Learn	Python-like syntax
Large Community	Access thousands of scripts
Real-time Data	Test on live markets
Built-in Functions	100+ technical indicators

Your First Script

Hello World

//@version=6
indicator("Hello World")
plot(close)

This script plots the closing price on your chart.

Step by Step

// 1. Version declaration
//@version=6
 
// 2. Script type and name
indicator("My First Indicator")
 
// 3. Calculate a Simple Moving Average
sma20 = ta.sma(close, 20)
 
// 4. Plot it on the chart
plot(sma20, color=color.blue, title="20 SMA")

Understanding the Structure

Every Pine Script follows this pattern:

1. Version:     //@version=6
2. Type:        indicator() or strategy()
3. Inputs:      input.*()
4. Logic:       Calculations
5. Output:      plot(), shapes, lines

Key Concepts

Series Data

Unlike most programming languages, Pine Script works with series - arrays of values where each value corresponds to a bar:

// Each bar has its own value
currentClose = close      // Current bar's close
previousClose = close[1]  // Previous bar's close

Overlay

Indicators can overlay the price chart or appear in separate panes:

// Overlay = true (on price chart)
indicator("On Chart", overlay=true)
 
// Overlay = false (separate pane)
indicator("Separate Pane", overlay=false)

Common Functions

Moving Averages

ta.sma(close, 20)   // Simple MA
ta.ema(close, 20)   // Exponential MA
ta.wma(close, 20)   // Weighted MA

Oscillators

ta.rsi(close, 14)   // RSI
ta.macd(close, 12, 26, 9)  // MACD
ta.stoch(14, 3, 3)  // Stochastic

Volatility

ta.atr(14)          // ATR
ta.bb(close, 20, 2) // Bollinger Bands

Example: Complete Indicator

//@version=6
indicator("Complete Example", overlay=true)
 
// --- INPUTS ---
maLength = input.int(20, "MA Length")
showSignals = input.bool(true, "Show Signals")
 
// --- CALCULATIONS ---
ma = ta.sma(close, maLength)
rsi = ta.rsi(close, 14)
 
// --- PLOTTING ---
plot(ma, color=color.blue, title="Moving Average")
 
// --- SIGNALS ---
buySignal = ta.crossover(close, ma) and rsi < 30
sellSignal = ta.crossunder(close, ma) and rsi > 70
 
plotshape(buySignal, location=location.belowbar, style=shape.labelup, color=color.green, text="BUY")
plotshape(sellSignal, location=location.abovebar, style=shape.labeldown, color=color.red, text="SELL")

Next Steps

Continue learning with:

variables - Data types and variables
operators - Math and logic
functions - Using functions
inputs - User inputs

Quick Tips

Start simple - build one feature at a time
Use the Pine Editor’s autocomplete
Check the Pine Script reference manual
Test on different timeframes
Use “Add to Chart” to see results

Start coding! Your first indicator is just a few lines away.

Trading Tools

Explorer

Pine Script Introduction - Getting Started