This type of indicator that was invented by Bill Williams uses 3 x simple moving average (SMA) indicators calculated over predefined timeframes taking into account the median price of each one (H+L/2). All of the indicators offer customised values to work best with different trading symbols and timeframes.
The calculations are as follows:
- Green Aligator Lips: 5-period simple moving average shifted 3 bars
- Red Aligator Lips: 9-period simple moving average shifted 5 bars
- Blue Aligator Lips: 13-period simple moving average shifted 8 bars
Technical Analysis
The Gator Oscillator Indicator plots 2 histograms on each side of the zero line, the Alligator indicator will plot the lines on the actual chart, you will need to download the alligator indicator separately. The bars above the zero line are the differences between the Alligators jaws and its teeth, the negative bars are calculated showing the difference between the teeth and lips (red and green) below the zero line.
How to Trade Using this Indicator
To trade using this indicator by Bill Williams is based on the principle of trends like an alligator's daily life, the Green bars indicate strength and the Red bars show weakness.
- Sleeping (tired).
- Waking up (pattern forming).
- Eating (getting stronger).
- Fills Out (running out of momentum).
Enter a trade when the gator wakes up
You will normally look for a trade opportunity when the gator wakes up and also the Alligator Indicator 3 lines cross to show a bullish or bearish signal, the idea is also to close your trade when the Gator is filling out and before it goes back to sleep.
The Gator Oscillator will only show you a strong or weak trend, it will not tell you the direction of the trend, this is why you use the Alligator indicator to help you.
We recommend that you use 1-hour + timeframes.
Indicator Settings
This Gator indicator provides settings to help you tailor it for all symbols and timeframes, we suggest that you experiment until you find the best values for the traded symbol, you can also change the colour and thickness of each bar.
MA Method
- Simple
- Exponential
- Weighted
How To Install & Open
First, make sure you have the cTrader trading platform installed and then simply unzip the file and double-click on it to automatically install it onto the platform.
Remember, this is an Indicator.
Any Questions?
If you have any questions, please first search our product help forum for the answer, if you cannot find it, post a new question.
Join Telegram Community
You can join a Telegram community and chat with other traders to discuss, share and ask for help.
