ICT Decoded · Draw on Liquidity
What Is the ICT Draw on Liquidity and How Do You Find It?
By Steve H — reads every firm’s official rulebook, checks prices and codes daily, and maintains the Enigma Score · Methodology · Editorial policy · Last updated October 28, 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: The ICT draw on liquidity (DOL) is the pool of liquidity price is most likely to reach next, usually the previous candle's high or low. Unless price is consolidating, it tends to reach for one of them. Pick the side with two reads, trend and displacement, then use the draw as a target or a reversal level.
How to Find the Draw on Liquidity Like a Pro (ICT DOL Explained) · 6:30 · published October 29, 2026 · part of the ICT Concepts Decoded playlist
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Key facts: the draw on liquidity at a glance
| Term | What it is | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Draw on liquidity (DOL) | The pool price is most likely to reach next | At a prior high (buy stops) or prior low (sell stops) |
| Inside candle | A candle that takes neither the previous high nor the previous low | Inside the previous candle's range |
| One-sided candle | Takes the previous high or the previous low, not both | Beyond one edge of the previous range |
| Outside candle | Takes both the previous high and the previous low | Beyond both edges |
| PMH / PML | Previous month's high and low | At last month's extremes |
| PWH / PWL | Previous week's high and low | At last week's extremes |
| PDH / PDL | Previous day's high and low | At the prior trading day's extremes |
| Displacement | A strong move that closes beyond a level | Above the PDH (bullish) or below the PDL (bearish) |
| Failure | A run through a level that closes back inside | Back below the PDH, or back above the PDL |
Last verified 2026-10-28. All charts below are real historical CME NQ futures data, shown in New York time.
Here is the idea on one chart: the daily Nasdaq futures chart from late March to mid-April 2026.
- From April 8 to April 17, every session trades above the previous day's high (PDH). The note on the chart counts them: eight in a row.
- Each previous day's high is a pool of buy stops. Price reaches for it, takes it, and the next one becomes the target.
- The last candle shown closes at 26,840.75.
That is a draw on liquidity in action: price keeps reaching for the nearest pool on one side.
What can a candle do compared with the one before it?
Only three things: stay inside, take one side, or take both sides. Compare any candle with the candle before it and it always falls into one of these.
How to read this diagram, left to right:
- Inside. The second candle stays between the first candle's high and low (the dashed lines). Price is consolidating.
- One side. The second candle runs the first candle's high but not its low. That is a directional candle.
- Both sides. The second candle runs the high and the low. That is an outside candle.
How often does price stay inside the previous day?
Rarely. We compared 4,201 NQ futures daily sessions with the session before, June 2010 to September 2026. About 12%, roughly one session in eight, stayed inside the previous day. About 88% took the previous day's high, its low, or both. It is one reason the prior high and low are the first levels to mark. The figure only says that one side usually gets taken, not which one, so on its own it is not a trading edge.
What is an inside day?
An inside day is a session whose high is no higher and whose low is no lower than the previous session's. It takes neither pool, so it signals consolidation rather than a draw.
What is a draw on liquidity in ICT?
A draw on liquidity is the pool of stops price is most likely to reach next. Highs and lows are pools of liquidity: buy stops rest above highs and sell stops rest below lows (see our liquidity guide for how they form).
On this chart, the last daily candle of the run has a high (buy stops, PDH) and a low (sell stops, PDL). Whichever one is the more likely next target is the draw. It gives you two things:
- A target. Where price is likely headed.
- A level to frame a reversal. Once that pool is taken, it is a place to watch for price to turn.
Which levels act as a draw on every timeframe?
The previous candle's high and low on the monthly, weekly and daily charts. The same idea works at every scale:
- Monthly: the previous month's high and low (PMH / PML).
- Weekly: the previous week's high and low (PWH / PWL).
- Daily: the previous day's high and low (PDH / PDL).
On the daily, we mark the highs and lows of the last three sessions. Older levels still matter, but the nearest ones are usually the first in price's path.
How do you find the draw on liquidity on a chart?
Weigh the previous high against the previous low and decide which one price is heading for. Two reads do most of the work: the trend, and displacement. They are also the core of a daily bias.
Read 1: what does the trend say?
Here, trend just means which side price has been taking. A string of sessions that each take the previous day's high is a bullish trend; a string that each take the previous day's low is bearish. Until that rhythm breaks, expect more of it.
The highlighted candles are the April 2026 run from the first chart. Each one took the previous day's high, so while that rhythm held, the previous day's high stayed the more likely draw.
Read 2: what is displacement in ICT?
Displacement is a strong move that closes decisively beyond a level. A strong close beyond the previous day's high points to more upside. A run through the high that closes back below it is a failure, and the low becomes the more likely draw.
How to read this diagram:
- Left pair. The second candle runs the previous day's high and closes strongly above it. That is displacement: look for more upside.
- Right pair. The second candle runs the previous day's high but closes back below it. That is a failure. The previous day's low (the yellow line) becomes the next draw.
- The same read works in reverse below the previous day's low.
- One practical note on the chart: if the draw is already hit in the first hours of Asia, the job for that day is done. A bias is not a trade, and some days you simply wait.
How do you read the draw on a daily chart?
Track which side each session takes, and watch for failures. Here is NQ daily from October 30 to November 18, 2025.
Step by step:
- From November 4 to November 7, four sessions in a row take the previous day's low. That is a bearish rhythm.
- Then a bounce: November 10, 11 and 12 each take the previous day's high.
- On November 12, price trades above the previous day's high of 25,768.75, up to 25,830.00, but closes back below it at 25,625.00. That is a failure.
- So for the next session, the draw is the previous day's low: 25,488.75.
- November 13 takes it and keeps falling. The session closes at 25,087.50.
- November 17 repeats the pattern. It runs the previous day's high of 25,293.25, then closes back below it at 24,905.50. The next session takes the previous day's low of 24,731.75 during Asia, before New York opens. The last candle shown closes at 24,531.25.
How does the draw on liquidity play out intraday?
Often as a stop run on the opposite side first, then a delivery into the draw. Two real sessions follow, one bearish and one bullish.
Example 1: NQ 5-minute, November 13, 2025
The daily read gave the draw: the previous day's low at 25,488.75.
- Asia builds a range, topping out at 25,720.00. Price touches that Asia high at 01:44 and pokes above it at 01:45, to 25,721.50, the high of the day.
- Those buy stops were the fuel. Around 04:00, price displaces lower and leaves a large 5-minute fair value gap, between 25,614.75 and 25,653.75.
- At 05:30, price retraces into the gap and rolls over.
- The sell-side pools fall one by one. The Asia low already went during the drop. The London low goes at 08:33.
- At 09:00, half an hour before New York opens, the draw itself is taken: the previous day's low.
- Price keeps delivering lower into the afternoon, down to 25,002.50 at 14:55. The last price shown on this chart is 25,073.00.
Example 2: NQ 5-minute, April 9, 2026
This session sits early in the April 2026 run. The day before closed strongly above its previous high, so the draw is above: the previous day's high at 25,257.00.
- First, London goes the other way. At 03:42 it runs the sell stops under the Asia low, and at 04:15 it prints the low of the day at 24,953.00.
- There is no follow-through below. Price chops through the morning while the draw sits overhead.
- At 11:10, displacement up leaves a 5-minute fair value gap of about 36 points, between 25,036.75 and 25,072.75.
- Price dips back into the gap and holds above its bottom.
- At 12:03, the previous day's high is taken. The draw is delivered. The last price shown on this chart is 25,169.75.
How do you use the draw on liquidity in your own charting?
Use the draw as your map for the day, not as an entry signal. It tells you where price is likely to go; the session's stop run and displacement tell you when.
- Write the bias before the session. "Draw: PDL" or "Draw: PDH", with the reason: trend, displacement or failure.
- Watch for the other side first. In both examples, price ran the opposite pool before delivering into the draw.
- Accept no-trade days. Some days the draw is obvious and there is still nothing to do.
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.
Frequently asked questions
What does DOL mean in trading?
DOL stands for draw on liquidity. In ICT's teaching it is the pool of resting orders, above a high or below a low, that price is most likely to reach next.
How do you find daily bias with the draw on liquidity?
Ask whether price is more likely to take the previous day's high or low. Use the trend (which side it has been taking) and displacement (a strong close beyond a level, or a failure back inside). Your answer is the draw, and the draw is your daily bias.
Will price take the previous day's high or low today?
Usually one of them: in 4,201 NQ daily sessions from 2010 to 2026, about 88% took the previous day's high, low or both. That figure does not say which side. The trend and displacement reads help you judge which side is more likely, but nothing guarantees it.
How many days back should you look for highs and lows?
We mark the last three sessions on the daily. Older highs and lows still matter, but the nearest ones are usually the first in price's path.
Is the draw on liquidity the same as a liquidity sweep?
No. The draw is the target price is heading for. A sweep is what happens when price runs through a pool. In both examples above, price swept the opposite pool first and then delivered into the draw.
Does the draw on liquidity work on the weekly and monthly charts?
Yes. The previous week's and previous month's highs and lows act as draws in the same way. Mark them, then use the daily and the sessions to see how price reaches for them.
Sources
- Concept: the draw on liquidity, previous month, week and day highs and lows, displacement and session liquidity come from the teachings of ICT (The Inner Circle Trader, Michael J. Huddleston), who originated these terms. The explanation, examples and charts on this page are our own.
- Data: every chart is real historical CME Nasdaq-100 E-mini (NQ) futures data, shown in New York time. The inside-day figure counts 4,201 NQ daily sessions from June 2010 to September 2026.
- Video: How to Find the Draw on Liquidity Like a Pro (ICT DOL Explained), FundedEnigma.
Last verified: 2026-10-28. 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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