What is a liquidity void in trading?

A liquidity void is a large gap in price where very little trading activity occurred. It appears as a cluster of large-bodied candles with minimal overlap or wicks. Price moved so fast through this area that no meaningful volume was transacted, creating a void that price often returns to fill later.

What is the difference between a liquidity void and a Fair Value Gap?

A Fair Value Gap is a specific three-candle pattern where the wicks of candle 1 and candle 3 don't overlap. A liquidity void is broader — it's an entire range of rapid price movement (multiple candles) with minimal volume. An FVG can exist within a liquidity void, but a void covers a larger area than a single FVG.

Does price always fill a liquidity void?

Not always, but price has a strong tendency to retrace into voids because the market seeks efficiency. In trending markets, voids may only get partially filled (to the 50% level) before continuation. In ranging markets, full fills are more common.

How do you trade a liquidity void?

Wait for price to retrace into the void. Enter at the 50% level of the void (or at an FVG/OB within it) with stop loss beyond the void's extreme. Target the next liquidity pool in the original direction of the move that created the void.

Liquidity Void in Trading (Complete Guide)

You see those massive candles on the chart. The ones that blast through multiple levels in seconds. Big bodies, tiny wicks, zero respect for anything in between.

The area they left behind? That's a liquidity void.

And the market hates leaving voids unfilled. Price almost always comes back to these areas. The question is: when it does, how do you trade it?

Liquidity Void in Trading - Featured image

In this guide, I'll explain what liquidity voids are, why they form, how they differ from Fair Value Gaps, and exactly how to trade them.

What is a Liquidity Void?

A liquidity void is a price range where almost no trading occurred. Price moved through it so fast that meaningful volume didn't transact. It's essentially a hole in the order book that the market will likely come back to fill.

Visually, a liquidity void looks like:

Multiple large-bodied candles in a row
Minimal wicks (no price rejection within the range)
Very little overlap between candle bodies
Created during displacement or news events

The difference from normal price movement: in normal moves, candles overlap. Buyers and sellers negotiate at each level. In a liquidity void, one side dominated so completely that the other side simply wasn't there. No negotiation happened.

This creates an imbalance. And markets seek balance. So price tends to retrace into voids to "fill" them with proper two-sided trading activity.

Liquidity Void vs Fair Value Gap

These are related but not identical:

Fair Value Gap (FVG):

Specific three-candle pattern
Defined by Candle 1 high not reaching Candle 3 low (bullish) or vice versa
Precise zone you can mark exactly
One FVG = one specific area

Liquidity Void:

Broader concept covering an entire range
Can span 5, 10, or 20+ candles
May contain multiple FVGs within it
Defined by the overall lack of volume/overlap in the range

Think of it this way: an FVG is a specific imbalance. A liquidity void is an entire zone of imbalance. FVGs are precision points within the larger void.

When trading, you can enter at specific FVGs WITHIN the liquidity void. This gives you the precision of an FVG entry with the context of the larger void.

Why Liquidity Voids Get Filled

The market is an auction. Its job is to facilitate trading between buyers and sellers at fair prices. When price races through an area without two-sided activity, the market hasn't done its job in that range.

Reasons voids fill:

Unfilled orders: Institutions who missed the initial move place orders inside the void, pulling price back
Profit-taking: Traders who rode the move take profits, causing a pullback into the void
Market efficiency: The auction process naturally seeks to trade at all price levels
Rebalancing: The one-sided flow that created the void becomes exhausted, allowing the other side to participate

Do ALL voids fill?

No. In extremely strong trends, some voids only partially fill (to the 50% level) before price continues. And some voids in monthly/weekly displacement moves take weeks or months to fill.

But on intraday and daily timeframes, most voids get at least partially filled within a few sessions.

How to Mark Liquidity Voids

Step 1: Find a cluster of large-bodied candles that moved in one direction rapidly.

Step 2: Mark the range from the first candle's open (where the void starts) to the last candle's close (where the void ends).

Step 3: Identify the 50% level of the void (this is the most important level for entries).

Step 4: Within the void, mark any specific FVGs that formed (these are your precision entry points).

Most charting platforms like TradingView let you draw rectangles to shade the void area. I shade the full void lightly and mark the 50% level with a horizontal line.

Trading Liquidity Voids: The Strategy

Here's my approach to trading voids:

Setup 1: Enter at 50% of the Void (Conservative)

A strong bullish move creates a liquidity void below current price
Price continues higher to sweep buyside liquidity
After the sweep, price retraces into the void
Enter buy at the 50% level of the void
Stop loss below the void's bottom
Target: next liquidity pool above (or the high that was just made)

Setup 2: Enter at FVG Within the Void (Aggressive)

Same void scenario
When price retraces, don't wait for 50%
Enter at the first FVG within the void that price taps
Stop loss below that specific FVG
Tighter stop = better R:R but more likely to get stopped on deeper pullbacks

Setup 3: Enter at OB Within the Void (Highest Probability)

Within the void, identify any order blocks that formed during the displacement
Enter at the OB within the void
This combines void context + OB precision + FVG imbalance
Triple confluence = highest probability

Use the position size calculator to determine proper lot size based on your stop distance from the void entry.

Full Fill vs Partial Fill

Understanding whether a void will fully fill or partially fill helps with trade management:

Voids that tend to fully fill:

Created during ranging/consolidating markets
Created by news spikes that quickly reverse
On higher timeframes where the trend changes direction
When the move that created the void loses momentum quickly

Voids that tend to partially fill (50% then continue):

Created during strong trending conditions
When the void forms during killzone displacement
When higher timeframe bias strongly supports the original move
When the void was created after a major liquidity sweep

If you're trading a void in a strong trend, expect a partial fill. Set your entry at 50% or shallower. If you're trading a void in a ranging market, price might fill it completely, so be prepared for deeper retracement.

Liquidity Void + Draw on Liquidity

Combine voids with DOL analysis:

A liquidity void below current price can itself become a Draw on Liquidity. The void pulls price back toward it because the market wants to trade in that area.

But you also need to consider: what's the DOL BEYOND the void? After the void fills, where is price heading next?

The trade becomes: "Price will retrace into the void (internal DOL), fill/partially fill it, then continue toward the external DOL (next liquidity pool)."

This gives you both your entry zone (the void) and your target (the external DOL beyond).

When NOT to Trade Liquidity Voids

Skip void trades when:

The void is from a major trend shift: If the void was created by a market structure shift, the trend changed. Trading a pullback into the void expecting continuation of the OLD trend is counter-trend now.
The void is very old: Voids from weeks ago on intraday charts may have been filled already on lower timeframes. Always check lower TFs to see if the void was already rebalanced.
Multiple voids stacked: If there are 3 voids above each other, price might not reach the deepest one. Trade the first void it encounters, not the furthest.
Against higher TF trend: If the daily is strongly bearish and you're trying to buy a bullish void on the 15M expecting it to hold, the higher TF will likely push through it.

Liquidity Void on Different Timeframes

1-Minute/5-Minute Voids: Form during killzone displacement. Fill within the same session. Good for scalping entries with 10-20 pip targets.

15-Minute/1-Hour Voids: Form during session displacement. Fill within 1-3 days. Good for intraday swing entries with 30-80 pip targets.

4-Hour/Daily Voids: Form during major events or trend starts. Fill within 1-4 weeks. Good for swing trade entries with 100-300 pip targets.

Weekly/Monthly Voids: Form during major market shifts (COVID crash, rate decisions). May take months to fill. Position trade targets.

Match the void timeframe to your trading style. Scalpers use 1M-5M voids. Day traders use 15M-1H voids. Swing traders use 4H-Daily voids.

Backtesting Liquidity Voids

To verify voids work in your market:

Open FX Replay on your preferred pair
Identify 30+ liquidity voids on your trading timeframe
Track: how many got filled? To what level (50%, 75%, full)?
How long did the fill take?
What was the reaction after the fill (continuation or reversal)?

This data tells you exactly how to trade voids on YOUR pair during YOUR session. Don't assume every pair behaves the same.

Final Thoughts

Liquidity voids are the market's unfinished business. Price moved too fast, skipped proper auction, and now there's a gravitational pull back to that range.

Your job is simple: identify the void, wait for the retrace into it, enter at a precise level (50%, FVG, or OB within the void), and target the next liquidity pool.

The concept is straightforward. The execution requires patience. Wait for the void to form, then wait for price to come back. No chasing. No forcing. Let the market come to you.