Concept
Pyramiding
Pyramiding, also known as turtle units, scale-in plans, is a Risk, Sizing & Exits concept. The Library holds 2 implementations, each one a working definition you can pull into Quant.
Top Pyramiding indicators
2 total
![PYRAMIDING BTCUSDTPERP1H [ALERTS VERSION] preview](/_next/image/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fs3.tradingview.com%2Fv%2FvyqGT2kv_mid.webp%3Fv%3D1638867393&w=3840&q=75)
What is Pyramiding?
Pyramiding is scaling into a winning position: the trade opens with an initial unit, and further units are added only as price moves favorably and the idea keeps confirming. The name comes from the recommended size profile, largest tranche first and each add the same size or smaller, so the position resembles a pyramid rather than an inverted one. Because every add drags the average entry toward the current price, pyramiding converts open profit into fresh risk; disciplined versions therefore trail the stop for the whole position each time a new unit fills.
Trend-following systems formalized the idea. The Turtle rules, the best-known example, sized positions in volatility units derived from ATR and added a unit at fixed intervals of favorable movement up to a hard cap, tightening the aggregate stop with each add. The same skeleton appears in breakout systems generally: add on strength, cap total units, and let a trailed exit decide when the sequence ends.
How traders use it
- In trend-following entries: a starter unit at the signal, further units at predefined intervals of favorable movement (often measured in ATR multiples), with the maximum unit count fixed before entry.
- In tiered entry plans that split one setup into several fills, pairing each add with an updated trailing stop so the combined position's worst case stays inside the original risk budget.
- As a risk-shaping tool: because adds only happen when the market pays the position, pyramiding concentrates size in trades that trend and keeps size minimal in trades that fail immediately, at the cost of a worse average entry and more give-back on reversals.
Pyramiding vs related concepts
Averaging Down: Averaging down adds to losers to improve the break-even price; pyramiding adds to winners as confirmation arrives, financed by open profit and paired with trailed stops. The two sit at opposite ends of the risk-expansion spectrum.
Scaling Out: Scaling out is the exit-side mirror: reducing a winning position in tranches at successive targets. Pyramiding increases exposure as a trend develops; scaling out decreases it. Systems often combine both, building early and unwinding into strength.
Related concepts · Position sizing
Concept family
Risk, Sizing & Exits
37 concepts mapped · 19 in the Library
Pyramiding FAQ
Why is pyramiding sized largest-first?
Because each add fills at a worse price with a smaller cushion to the trailed stop. If the final add is the largest (an inverted pyramid), an ordinary pullback can erase the whole sequence's open profit, since the biggest tranche has the least room. Front-loading size keeps the average entry closer to the original signal and shrinks the give-back when a reversal comes.
How many times should you pyramid into a trade?
There is no universal number, but formalized systems cap it explicitly; the Turtle rules stopped at four units in a single market. What matters is that the cap, the add spacing, and the stop adjustment are fixed before entry, so total exposure is known at every step. Uncapped adding turns a trend trade into an oversized bet that the move never pauses.
Build Pyramiding your way.
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