ICT Decoded · Broadening Formations
What Is an ICT Broadening Formation?
By Steve H — reads every firm’s official rulebook, checks prices and codes daily, and maintains the Enigma Score · Methodology · Editorial policy · Last updated November 1, 2026
ICT concepts were created and are taught by Michael J. Huddleston, The Inner Circle Trader (X · YouTube). This lesson is FundedEnigma’s own summary, not affiliated with or endorsed by ICT.
In short: An ICT broadening formation (an expanding range, sometimes called a megaphone) is a range that keeps getting wider: a higher high and a lower low, as price takes one side, fails to break out and takes the other. On 2020-2026 NQ data, the other edge came first about as often as a coin flip.
ICT Broadening Formations: Does Price Really Go Edge to Edge? (Tested on Real NQ Data) · 8:08 · published November 1, 2026 · part of the ICT Concepts Decoded playlist
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Key facts: broadening formations at a glance
| Part | How we define it |
|---|---|
| Swings | Fifteen-minute internal swings: a high or low with two candles on each side that do not go beyond it |
| Formation | Alternating highs and lows where the later high is above the earlier high and the later low is below the earlier low |
| Edges | The two outer swings (the later high and the later low), both still untouched when the fourth swing is confirmed |
| Measure | After an edge is taken: does price reach the other edge first, or go one more full range beyond the edge it took? |
| Daily version | An outside day: a day that takes both the previous day's high and its low |
| Session version | Seek and destroy: New York takes both sides of London's 2-5 AM range, then closes back inside it |
| Result (our data) | Other edge first about 39 in 100, one more range about 43, neither within a day about 18: about a coin flip |
Last verified 2026-11-01. All charts below are real historical CME NQ futures data, shown in New York time.
Here is the idea on a real chart. On May 11, 2026, before the 9:30 stock open, the fifteen-minute chart made a higher high and then a lower low. At 9:32 AM price ran the top and could not stay above it. At 10:31 it traded the bottom, failed there too, and at 11:30 it was back at the new top.
What is a broadening formation in ICT trading?
A broadening formation is a range that keeps expanding: price takes one side, fails to break out, travels back through the range and takes the other side. Each swing reaches further than the last. The name comes from an older, classical chart pattern; here we use it the way ICT (Michael J. Huddleston) teaches it inside his seek and destroy profile, a market that runs the liquidity on both sides instead of trending.
How do you identify and draw a broadening formation?
Mark the swings in the order they form and look for a higher high plus a lower low; the edges are the two outer swings.
- On the fifteen-minute chart, take the internal swings: a high or low with two candles on each side that do not go beyond it (our market structure lesson).
- Read them in order, alternating highs and lows.
- When the later high is above the earlier high and the later low is below the earlier low, that is a broadening formation.
- Draw the edges as horizontal levels at the later high and the later low. Slanted lines through the swings are a picture only, not a level.
What does a broadening formation look like on real charts?
Example 1: edge to edge, May 11, 2026
- The highs: 29,366.00 at 5:45 AM, then 29,389.00 at 7:30. The lows: 29,289.25, then 29,259.25 at 8:45. Higher high, lower low; the formation is known at 9:30.
- At 9:32 price takes the top and reaches 29,434.75. The 9:45 candle closes back inside, at 29,310.25.
- At 10:31 price trades the bottom edge. The other side was reached first.
- By 10:15 a wider formation was already known, with 29,434.75 as its top and the same low as its bottom. The 10:31 trade runs its bottom, the 10:30 candle closes back inside, and at 11:30 price trades the new top. The old formation sits inside the new one.
Example 2: the break that held, September 3, 2026
- The lows: 29,105.50, then 29,101.00. The highs: 29,186.75, then 29,258.75. The formation is known at 9:30 AM.
- The 9:30 candle takes the top straight away, and this time the fifteen-minute candles keep closing above it.
- At 11:03 price reaches one full range above the top, 29,416.50. The bottom edge is not touched that day.
What is an outside day, and how does it relate?
On the daily chart, the same idea fits on one candle: an outside day, a day that takes both the previous day's high and its low. "Outside day" is another classical chart term. It is the one-candle version of an expanding range, not our four-swing rule (our reading candles lesson covers outside candles).
On September 23, 2026, the futures day started at 6:00 PM the evening before, and the previous day's high of 31,065.50 was taken that same evening. The previous day's low of 30,670.00 was taken at 10:20 AM. The day closed at 30,776.00, back inside the previous day's range: both sides run, and no breakout. Only about a third of outside days in our data closed back inside like this.
How does a broadening formation fit the seek and destroy profile?
ICT's seek and destroy day takes both sides of the London range (2 to 5 AM) during New York, then closes back inside it. The broadening idea is that when London has already run both sides of Asia, New York may do the same to London (see our New York daily profiles and killzones lessons).
On August 19, 2026, London took the Asia low at 2:06 AM and the Asia high at 4:01. New York took London's high at 8:37 and London's low at 9:51. At the close, price was back inside London's range at 29,522.00: a seek and destroy day.
Does a broadening formation work?
On our data, after an edge was taken, the other edge came first about as often as a coin flip. We ran the rule on Nasdaq futures from January 2020 to September 2026, leaving out the days around contract rolls.
- Price took an edge of a fifteen-minute broadening formation 5,831 times. About 39 in 100 came back to the other edge first, about 43 went one more full range, and about 18 did neither within a day.
- Both are the same distance away, so a coin flip splits the finished ones 50/50. The formations split about 47 to 53.
- A failed break (the candle that took the edge, or one of the next two, closes back inside): from that close, about 20 in 100 reached the other edge before price went back beyond the break's extreme. A coin flip with the same distances gets about 22.
- Daily: about 13 days in 100 are outside days, and only about a third of them closed back inside the previous day's range. The next day was outside again only 11 times out of 215, fewer than after an ordinary day.
- Session: after London ran both sides of Asia, New York's seek and destroy came up about 16 times in 100, against about 14 on other days. About the same.
How do you use a broadening formation in your own charting?
Use it to describe a market that is running liquidity on both sides, not as a forecast.
- The edges: mark them at the two outer swings; that is where the stops sit.
- An edge taken: a fact, not a signal. In our data, it went either way about as often as a coin flip. ICT pairs the edges with other tools, such as SMT or premium and discount); we did not test those here.
- What it tells you: the size of the range and where the liquidity on each side sits. A failed break of a range edge is also the idea behind the box setup.
More concepts in the series are on the ICT Concepts Decoded hub. If you trade futures with a prop firm, you can look up a firm's rules on the challenges page or set two firms side by side on the compare page. Affiliate disclosure: FundedEnigma earns a commission from some of the firms on this site when you sign up through our links or codes, at no extra cost to you.
Frequently asked questions
Is a broadening formation the same as a megaphone pattern?
Yes, the same expanding shape: a higher high and a lower low. This page uses the name the way ICT teaches it in his seek and destroy profile, with edges at the two outer swings.
What happens after a broadening formation edge is taken?
On 5,831 NQ cases, about 39 in 100 reached the other edge first, about 43 went one more full range and about 18 did neither within a day. Of those that finished, the split was about 47 to 53, close to the 50 / 50 a coin flip with the same distances gives.
Does a failed breakout of a broadening formation reach the other side?
When the candle that took the edge, or one of the next two, closed back inside, about 20 in 100 reached the other edge first, against about 22 for a coin flip with the same distances.
How often is the next day an outside day too?
Rarely in our data: after an outside day, the next day was outside again only 11 times out of 215, fewer than after an ordinary day.
Which timeframe do you use for broadening formations?
The fifteen-minute chart for the swing rule, the daily chart for outside days, and the Asia, London and New York sessions for the seek and destroy version.
Sources
- Concept: the broadening formation as ICT (The Inner Circle Trader, Michael J. Huddleston) teaches it in his seek and destroy profile. "Broadening formation" and "outside day" are older classical chart terms. The rules, examples and charts on this page are our own.
- Data: every chart and count are real historical CME Nasdaq-100 E-mini (NQ) futures data, shown in New York time.
- Video: ICT Broadening Formations: Does Price Really Go Edge to Edge? (Tested on Real NQ Data), FundedEnigma.
Last verified: 2026-11-01. Written by Steve H.
Disclaimer: This page is for education only and is not financial advice. Trading futures involves substantial risk of loss. Past price behaviour does not guarantee future results.
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