If you trade equities, futures, or options, you know that the most volatile price action often happens outside the regular trading hours. The regular session (9:30 AM to 4:00 PM ET for US equities) is just one part of the story. Pre-market and after-hours sessions—collectively known as extended hours—can see massive volume spikes, earnings-driven gaps, and macro-level reactions.
To trade these periods effectively, you need to see the data. But TradingView's default chart settings often hide extended hours data entirely, leaving you with a blank canvas from 4:00 PM to 9:30 AM. Worse, if you just turn on "extended hours" without customizing the session times, you might get messy data from overnight futures that bleed into your equity charts.
This guide will walk you through how to set up custom sessions and extended hours chart settings on TradingView in 2026. Whether you want to see continuous 24-hour data, isolate specific pre-market windows, or create a custom session for a niche market, we'll cover the exact steps.
> About this guide: I'm Lawrence, the writer behind supa.is. Between February and May 2026 I've published 150+ articles on supa.is across crypto and brokerage tooling — including 20+ TradingView-specific guides (recent examples: TradingView Alert: Once Per Bar vs Once Per Bar Close, TradingView Free Plan Indicator Limit, TradingView Free Trial 2026). The most-repeated reader question across that TradingView archive is exactly how to configure custom sessions and extended hours without breaking chart indicators, which is why I'm publishing this standardized guide instead of answering one-off.
> Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you if you sign up for TradingView through our links.
Why Extended Hours and Custom Sessions Matter
Extended hours trading (pre-market and after-hours) is where retail traders often get caught off guard. If you only look at the regular session, you might think a stock is trading at $100. But if it opened at $105 in the pre-market and dropped to $95 after hours, your regular-session chart will show a massive gap down at the open, with no context for *why* it happened.
Custom sessions take this a step further. Some traders only want to see data from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM ET. Others want to exclude the first 15 minutes of the open because of the "opening auction" volatility. Or maybe you trade a specific futures contract that runs 23 hours a day, and you want to set a custom session that ignores the 1-hour daily reset.
Without custom session settings, TradingView's default regular-session view will either:
1. Hide the data entirely (leaving you blind to overnight moves). 2. Show messy, overlapping data (where futures data bleeds into equity charts).Setting up custom sessions ensures your charts, indicators, and alerts align with your specific trading strategy.
Step 1: Enable Extended Hours Data on TradingView
The first step is simply turning on extended hours data. TradingView hides this by default for most equity symbols.
1. Open your TradingView chart and load any equity symbol (e.g., AAPL or SPY).
Your chart will now show data before 9:30 AM ET and after 4:00 PM ET. You'll notice the chart background changes slightly (often to a lighter or darker shade depending on your theme) to indicate extended hours data.
Note: If you don't see extended hours data after turning this on, your TradingView plan might be restricting it. The Free plan includes extended hours data for equities, but some obscure symbols or specific broker data feeds might require a Plus or Premium plan. If you're on the Free plan and it's not showing, try a major ETF likeSPY or QQQ to verify the feature is working.
Step 2: Configure Custom Sessions
Enabling extended hours is just the baseline. To truly customize your view, you need to use TradingView's Custom Sessions feature. This allows you to define exactly what hours you want to see, and what hours you want to hide.
1. With the Settings gear open, navigate to the Symbol tab again.
2. Look for the Sessions dropdown menu. By default, it's set to "Regular". 3. Click the dropdown and select Custom. 4. You will now see a 24-hour timeline with two colored bars: one for "Regular" and one for "Extended". 5. To customize your session: - Click and drag the edges of the colored bars to extend or shrink them. - You can create gaps. For example, if you want to see pre-market (8:00 AM - 9:30 AM) but *hide* after-hours, you can shrink the extended hours bar on the right side of the chart so it ends at 4:00 PM. - You can also shift the sessions. If you trade a European market and want to shift your "regular" session to 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM ET, you can drag the entire regular session bar to the left or right. 6. Click OK to apply.Once you set a custom session, TradingView will only render candlesticks and indicators for the hours you specified. Any data outside those hours will be hidden from the chart entirely.
Step 3: Adjust the Chart Timezone
A common pitfall when setting up extended hours is having the wrong timezone. If your chart is set to your local time, but you're trading US equities, the extended hours will look completely wrong.
For example, if you are in London (GMT+1), 9:30 AM ET is 2:30 PM GMT. If your chart is set to GMT, the pre-market data will be in the middle of your day, and the after-hours data will be in the middle of the night.
To fix this:
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Try TradingView →This ensures that the 9:30 AM - 4:00 PM regular session aligns with the US market hours, making it much easier to visually identify pre-market and after-hours data.
Step 4: Handling Indicator Lag in Extended Hours
Indicators do not calculate the same way in extended hours as they do in regular hours.When you enable extended hours, TradingView includes the pre-market and after-hours data in the calculation of moving averages, RSI, MACD, etc. This means your 50-period EMA will be different at 9:30 AM ET than it was at 4:00 PM ET the previous day, simply because it's now factoring in 15 extra hours of data.
If you want your indicators to "pause" during extended hours and only calculate during regular market hours, you need to use a custom session for the indicator itself.
1. Click on the Indicator (e.g., Moving Average) on the chart.
2. Click the Settings (gear icon) for that specific indicator. 3. Look for the Calculation or Session settings (this varies by indicator, but is available on most built-in TradingView indicators). 4. Set the indicator to calculate only during Regular sessions. 5. Click OK.Now, when you look at your chart, the indicator line will remain flat during pre-market and after-hours, and will only update when the regular session opens. This is crucial for traders who use indicators to set entry/exit signals and don't want false signals generated by overnight volume.
Step 5: Using Custom Sessions for Alerts
If you trade extended hours, you probably want alerts. But if you set an alert for a price level, you need to make sure it triggers during the hours you actually care about.
1. Right-click on the chart and select Add Alert.
2. Set your condition (e.g., Price crosses above $150). 3. Look for the Alert Time or Session setting in the alert dialog. 4. By default, alerts trigger 24/7. If you only want alerts during regular hours, you can set the alert to trigger only during the Regular session. 5. If you want alerts during extended hours, make sure the session is set to Extended or All.This prevents you from waking up in the middle of the night because a stock gapped up in the pre-market, only to gap back down at the open.
Common Pitfalls When Using Extended Hours on TradingView
Extended hours charts can be misleading. Here are the most common pitfalls:
1. Volume Spikes in After-Hours
After-hours volume is typically much lower than regular session volume. A small order can cause a massive candle and a huge volume spike. Don't mistake a low-volume after-hours move for a high-conviction trend. Always check the volume bars at the bottom of the chart.2. Data Feed Delays
Extended hours data is often delayed by 15 minutes on the Free plan. If you're trying to trade pre-market in real-time, you might be looking at data that's 15 minutes old. This is especially dangerous if you're trying to front-run the open. If real-time data is critical, you'll need at least a Plus plan.3. Indicator Whipsaws
Because extended hours have lower liquidity and wider spreads, indicators like RSI and MACD can whipsaw wildly. A stock might drop 2% in the pre-market, causing the RSI to hit oversold, only to bounce back 3% at the open. If you're using indicators for signals, be extremely cautious about acting on extended-hours readings.4. The "Opening Auction" Gap
The first 15 minutes of the regular session (9:30 AM - 9:45 AM ET) are notoriously volatile. If you set your custom session to start at 9:30 AM, you'll see this volatility. Some traders prefer to set their custom session to start at 9:45 AM to avoid the opening auction noise.Extended Hours vs. Continuous Futures Data
If you trade futures (like the S&P 500 E-mini, ES), you have a different problem: continuous data. Futures trade nearly 24 hours a day, 5 days a week. TradingView handles this by creating "continuous" contracts that stitch together the daily contracts.
However, the daily reset (usually at 5:00 PM ET) can cause a gap on the chart. If you're trading extended hours, you might see a massive gap between the daily close and the next day's open, which is just an artifact of the contract roll, not a real price move.
To fix this:
1. Open Settings (gear icon). 2. Go to the Symbol tab. 3. Look for the Continuous setting. 4. Change it from "Default" to Back-adjusted or Front-adjusted. 5. Click OK.This will smooth out the chart by adjusting the historical prices to account for the contract roll, giving you a much cleaner view of the true price action across extended hours.
Conclusion
Setting up custom sessions and extended hours on TradingView lets you visualize pre-market and after-hours data, isolate specific trading windows, and align your indicators with your strategy.
By enabling extended hours, configuring custom sessions, adjusting your timezone, and handling indicator lag, you can create a chart that works for *you*, not just the default setup. These settings will give you the edge you need.
If you're ready to start charting with extended hours, you can Try TradingView and start setting up your custom sessions today.
FAQ
Can I use custom sessions on the TradingView Free plan?
Yes, the Free plan includes extended hours data and custom session settings for most major symbols. However, real-time data for extended hours might be delayed by 15 minutes. If you need real-time pre-market data, you'll need a Plus or Premium plan.Why does my indicator line look different when I enable extended hours?
When you enable extended hours, TradingView includes the pre-market and after-hours data in the calculation of your indicators. This means your moving averages and oscillators will reflect the full 24-hour data set, not just the regular session. To fix this, you can set your indicator to calculate only during regular sessions in the indicator settings.How do I hide after-hours data but keep pre-market data?
You can do this using the Custom Sessions feature. Open the Symbol settings, select "Custom" from the Sessions dropdown, and drag the extended hours bar so it only covers the pre-market window (e.g., 8:00 AM - 9:30 AM ET). This will hide the after-hours data entirely.Why is there a gap on my futures chart at 5:00 PM ET?
This is likely due to the daily contract roll. Futures contracts expire and roll over to the next month, which can cause a gap on the chart. To fix this, go to Symbol settings and change the "Continuous" setting to "Back-adjusted" or "Front-adjusted" to smooth out the historical data.Can I set alerts for extended hours?
Yes, you can set alerts for extended hours. When creating an alert, make sure to check the session settings. By default, alerts trigger 24/7, but you can set them to trigger only during regular hours, extended hours, or custom sessions.Risk Warning
> Risk Warning: Crypto trading involves substantial risk of loss. Never invest more than you can afford to lose. This is not financial advice.