Bear Flag Chart Pattern — How to Spot and Trade It
7/6/2026
A sharp drop (pole) then a small upward-sloping consolidation (flag).
In plain words
A flag on an upside-down pole: a sharp fall, a weak bounce, then more downside.
What the classic books say
The Bear Flag is a continuation pattern with reference reliability Medium and illustrative behaviour of ~60-68% on breakdown (the kind of statistics catalogued in Bulkowski's encyclopedic pattern studies and Murphy's technical-analysis classic). Reliable continuation in strong downtrends.
Level by level
Beginner
After a sharp fall, price bounces weakly before likely continuing down.
Intermediate
A shallow counter-trend bounce on lower volume signals sellers are just pausing.
Advanced
Continuation bias; tight flags with declining volume and a clean breakdown are best.
Trade plan (educational template)
- Entry: On a breakdown below the flag.
- Stop-loss: Above the flag high.
- Target: Pole height projected down from the breakdown.
- Check the numbers with the Risk-Reward calculator before any entry.
Common beginner mistakes
- Buying the bounce
- Misjudging the pole
Practise it now
_Educational content only — not financial advice. Historical behaviour never guarantees future results._
Keep learning — free tools