About this guide: I'm 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 News Feed Setup, TradingView Alert Fixes, TradingView Price Scale Settings). The most-repeated reader question across that TradingView archive is exactly how to set up a premarket scanner to catch top gainers before the open, which is why I'm publishing this standardized guide instead of answering one-off.
Finding active stocks before the market opens is the difference between a profitable day and a dead one. If you are waiting for the bell to ring before looking at the charts, you are already late. The best setups—breakouts, gap-and-go trades, and reversal plays—form in the premarket window between 4:00 AM and 9:30 AM ET.
TradingView provides the tools to catch these moves, but its default interface hides the most powerful premarket filters behind a few clicks. In this guide, I will walk you through the exact scanner configuration to find top gainers, volatile hotlists, and premarket movers using TradingView's built-in screener.
Why Premarket Scanning Matters
The premarket session (4:00 AM – 9:30 AM ET) is where institutional investors and high-frequency algorithms set the tone for the day. Earnings reports, FDA approvals, and macroeconomic data drop during this window.
By 9:30 AM, the initial volatility spike has often already occurred. Retail traders who wake up at the open are chasing moves that have already exhausted their momentum. Premarket scanning allows you to:
- Identify the catalyst: Know *why* a stock is moving before you trade it.
- Set up alerts: Place price alerts at key levels while you are still getting ready for the day.
- Avoid false breakouts: See if a stock is holding its gains or fading into the open.
Step 1: Accessing the Stock Screener
TradingView's stock screener is the engine behind your premarket workflow.
- Open your TradingView chart.
- Click the Screener icon on the left-hand toolbar (or press
Ctrl + E/Cmd + E). - Ensure the Stocks tab is selected at the top of the screener panel.
Step 2: Configuring the Premarket Filters
The default screener shows you everything. We need to narrow it down to the most volatile, high-volume stocks that are moving right now.
Here is the exact filter configuration I use for premarket scanning:
1. Filter by Market Cap
You want stocks with enough liquidity to absorb your order without slippage, but small enough to move fast. * Market Cap: Set between $200M and $10B. * *Why?* Stocks under $200M are often penny stocks prone to manipulation and halts. Stocks over $10B (like Apple or Microsoft) rarely have the 5-10% intraday moves that day traders need unless there is a massive macro event.2. Filter by Relative Volume (RVOL)
Volume is the fuel for price movement. A stock can gap up on a catalyst, but if the volume is low, it will likely fade back down. * Relative Volume: Set to Greater than 1.5. * *Why?* This ensures you are only looking at stocks trading at 1.5x their average volume for this time of day.3. Filter by Change % (The Top Gainers Filter)
This is the core of the "hotlist" filter. We want stocks that are already showing strength. * Change %: Set to Greater than 2%. * *Why?* Anything moving less than 2% premarket is likely going to be boring by the open. If you are looking for extreme volatility, you can push this to 5% or 10%, but 2% catches the early momentum plays.4. Filter by Price
* Price: Set between $5 and $200. * *Why?* Sub-$5 stocks are often penny stock traps. Stocks over $200 require too much capital to trade 100 shares profitably for most retail traders.5. Filter by Float (Optional but Recommended)
If you want to find stocks that will run hard, you need a low float. * Float: Set to Less than 50M. * *Why?* A lower float means fewer shares are available to trade. When demand spikes, the price moves up aggressively.Step 3: Customizing the Screener Columns
The default columns in the TradingView screener (Symbol, Name, Change %, Market Cap) are not enough. You need to see the data that matters for premarket trading.
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Try TradingView →- Click the Settings (gear icon) inside the screener panel.
- Go to the Columns tab.
- Search for and add the following columns:
- Arrange them in this order: Symbol | Volume | Relative Volume | Change % | Float | Price.
Step 4: Adding the Catalyst (The News Filter)
A stock moving 5% premarket without a catalyst is a trap. It could be a short squeeze that is about to unwind, or an algorithmic glitch.
TradingView integrates news directly into the screener.
- In the screener settings, go to the Filters tab.
- Under the News section, you can filter for stocks that have News in the last 24 hours.
- *Pro Tip*: Don't just rely on the filter. When a stock hits your screener, click the news icon next to the symbol. If there is no clear catalyst (earnings, FDA, merger), be extremely cautious about buying the breakout.
Step 5: Setting Up Alerts for the Open
Once you have identified 2-3 stocks on your premarket hotlist, you don't want to stare at them all day. You want to be alerted when they hit your entry levels.
- Right-click the symbol in the screener and select Add to Watchlist.
- Open the chart for that symbol.
- Identify your entry level (e.g., the premarket high, or a key moving average).
- Click the Alarm Clock icon on the top toolbar.
- Set the alert for Price crosses above [Your Entry Level].
- *Crucial*: Under "Conditions," select Once per bar close. This prevents you from getting spammed by alerts on every tick if the stock is choppy.
TradingView Hotlists: The Built-in Alternative
If you don't want to build a custom screener every morning, TradingView has built-in hotlists.
- Click the Watchlist icon on the left toolbar.
- Click the Create button (or the
+icon) at the bottom. - Select Create Watchlist from Hotlist.
- Choose Top Gainers, Top Losers, or Most Active.
Common Premarket Scanning Mistakes
1. Chasing the "Gap and Go" at 9:30 AM
The biggest mistake new traders make is buying a stock exactly at 9:30 AM just because it is on the top gainers list. The first 5-15 minutes of the open are incredibly volatile and often feature "stop hunts"—where price spikes up to trigger buy stops, then immediately reverses. The Fix: Wait for the 9:45 AM or 10:00 AM candle to close. If the stock is holding its premarket gains after the initial volatility settles, it is a much higher-probability trade.2. Ignoring the Pre-Open Volume
A stock might be up 4% at 8:00 AM, but if the volume is drying up, the move is likely dead. Always check the volume column in your screener. If the volume is declining as the time approaches 9:30 AM, the stock is losing momentum.3. Not Using the "Once Per Bar Close" Alert Setting
If you set alerts for "Once per bar" (tick-based), you will get dozens of alerts as the price whipsaws around your entry level. This leads to alert fatigue, and you will stop paying attention. Always use "Once per bar close" for your entry and exit alerts.TradingView Free vs. Paid for Premarket Scanning
Can you do this on a free TradingView account? Yes, but with limitations.
* Free Plan: You can use the Stock Screener with all the filters mentioned above. You can set up to 3 alerts per chart. You can only have 1 chart open at a time.
* Essential Plan: Unlocks unlimited alerts, multiple charts, and the ability to add more custom columns to the screener. * Plus/Premium Plans: Adds even more screener columns and faster data refresh rates. My recommendation: If you are serious about premarket scanning, the Essential plan is worth the upgrade. The ability to have multiple charts open and set unlimited alerts is a game-changer when you are tracking 3-4 different premarket movers simultaneously. Try TradingView to test the Essential plan.Risk Warning
Crypto trading involves substantial risk of loss. Never invest more than you can afford to lose. This is not financial advice. Premarket trading is highly volatile. Stocks can gap up 10% and then drop 15% at the open. Always use stop-loss orders and manage your position size.