You establish the 5-minute opening range. You mark the high and low of that first 5-minute candle. These levels dictate your entry and stop. I trade futures and ETFs with this method. ES, NQ, SPY, AAPL, TSLA, CL, GC all respond to this setup.
Entry Rules for 5-Minute ORB
You enter when price breaks the 5-minute opening range high or low. A break means a 1-tick penetration beyond the range. You buy on a break above the high. You sell short on a break below the low. This is a momentum play. You seek immediate follow-through. A false break often signals a reversal.
Consider an ES example. The 9:30 AM EST 5-minute candle forms. Its high is 4500.00. Its low is 4495.00. The range is 5.00 points. You place a buy stop at 4500.25. You place a sell stop at 4494.75. Price moves to 4500.50. Your buy order triggers. You are long 1 ES contract at 4500.50.
NQ shows similar action. The 9:30 AM EST 5-minute candle prints a high of 15200.00. Its low is 15150.00. The range is 50.00 points. You set a buy stop at 15200.25. You set a sell stop at 15149.75. Price drops to 15149.50. Your sell order triggers. You are short 1 NQ contract at 15149.50.
SPY exhibits this pattern. The 9:30 AM EST candle marks a high of $450.20. Its low is $449.80. The range is $0.40. You place a buy stop at $450.21. You place a sell stop at $449.79. Price moves to $450.25. Your buy order triggers. You are long 100 shares of SPY at $450.25.
AAPL can also show this. The 9:30 AM EST candle has a high of $175.50. Its low is $175.00. The range is $0.50. You set a buy stop at $175.51. You set a sell stop at $174.99. Price falls to $174.95. Your sell order triggers. You are short 100 shares of AAPL at $174.95.
TSLA often provides larger ranges. The 9:30 AM EST candle prints a high of $250.75. Its low is $248.50. The range is $2.25. You place a buy stop at $250.76. You place a sell stop at $248.49. Price rises to $250.80. Your buy order triggers. You are long 100 shares of TSLA at $250.80.
CL, crude oil futures, also works. The 9:00 AM EST 5-minute candle high is $75.20. Its low is $74.90. The range is $0.30. You place a buy stop at $75.21. You place a sell stop at $74.89. Price moves to $75.25. Your buy order triggers. You are long 1 CL contract at $75.25.
GC, gold futures, applies. The 8:20 AM EST 5-minute candle high is $1950.00. Its low is $1945.00. The range is $5.00. You place a buy stop at $1950.10. You place a sell stop at $1944.90. Price drops to $1944.80. Your sell order triggers. You are short 1 GC contract at $1944.80.
This strategy works best with a clear opening range. A tight, narrow range often fails. A wide range offers more room for movement. I filter for ranges between 0.1% and 0.5% of the instrument's prior day close. For ES, this means 4.5 points to 22.5 points based on a 4500 index. For NQ, 15 points to 75 points on a 15000 index. For SPY, $0.45 to $2.25 on a $450 price. For AAPL, $0.17 to $0.87 on a $175 price. For TSLA, $0.25 to $1.25 on a $250 price. For CL, $0.07 to $0.37 on a $75 price. For GC, $1.95 to $9.75 on a $1950 price. Ranges outside these parameters produce lower win rates.
Stop Rules for 5-Minute ORB
You place your stop immediately after entry. If you buy above the high, your stop rests below the low of the 5-minute opening range. If you sell short below the low, your stop rests above the high of the 5-minute opening range. This provides a fixed risk. You know your maximum loss before the trade develops.
Let's revisit the ES example. You are long 1 ES contract at 4500.50. The 5-minute opening range low was 4495.00. Your stop loss is 4494.75. Your risk is 4500.50 - 4494.75 = 5.75 points. Each point on ES is $50. Your maximum loss is $287.50.
For the NQ short example. You are short 1 NQ contract at 15149.50. The 5-minute opening range high was 15200.00. Your stop loss is 15200.25. Your risk is 15200.25 - 15149.50 = 50.75 points. Each point on NQ is $20. Your maximum loss is $1015.00.
The SPY long example. You are long 100 shares of SPY at $450.25. The 5-minute opening range low was $449.80. Your stop loss is $449.79. Your risk is $450.25 - $449.79 = $0.46 per share. Your maximum loss is $46.00.
The AAPL short example. You are short 100 shares of AAPL at $174.95. The 5-minute opening range high was $175.50. Your stop loss is $175.51. Your risk is $175.51 - $174.95 = $0.56 per share. Your maximum loss is $56.00.
The TSLA long example. You are long 100 shares of TSLA at $250.80. The 5-minute opening range low was $248.50. Your stop loss is $248.49. Your risk is $250.80 - $248.49 = $2.31 per share. Your maximum loss is $231.00.
The CL long example. You are long 1 CL contract at $75.25. The 5-minute opening range low was $74.90. Your stop loss is $74.89. Your risk is $75.25 - $74.89 = $0.36. Each tick on CL is $10. Each full point is $1000. Your maximum loss is $360.00.
The GC short example. You are short 1 GC contract at $1944.80. The 5-minute opening range high was $1950.00. Your stop loss is $1950.10. Your risk is $1950.10 - $1944.80 = $5.30. Each tick on GC is $10. Each full point is $100. Your maximum loss is $530.00.
This stop placement is mechanical. It removes emotion. You accept the risk. You do not move your stop
