BOS (break of structure)
A break of structure (BOS) is price breaking the last significant high in an uptrend or the last significant low in a downtrend. It confirms the trend is continuing.
How it works
The term comes from Smart Money Concepts. In an uptrend price makes higher highs and higher lows. When it closes above the last significant swing high, that is a bullish BOS: the structure has updated and the trend is alive. In a downtrend a BOS is a close below the last swing low.
Despite the word 'break', a BOS signals continuation, not reversal. The first break against the trend is called a CHoCH (change of character). Mixing them up is costly: one confirms the trend, the other questions it.
Traders use a BOS to know where to look for an entry. After a bullish break they wait for a pullback into the zone the impulse started from (such as an order block or imbalance) and look to buy there with a stop below the last low.
BTC is in an uptrend: last high $65,000, then a pullback to $62,500. An hourly candle closes at $65,400, a bullish BOS. The trader waits for a pullback to $63,500–$64,000 and buys with a stop below $62,500.
A common mistake is counting a break by the wick instead of the close and entering right on the breakout. Many 'breaks' are liquidity grabs: price pokes above the high and comes back. Wait for a candle close beyond the level and a pullback instead of chasing the impulse.
Questions and answers
What is a BOS in simple terms?
It is price breaking the last important high in a rally or the last important low in a decline. It shows the trend is carrying on.
What is the difference between BOS and CHoCH?
A BOS breaks in the direction of the trend, so it means continuation. A CHoCH is the first break against the trend, an early hint of a reversal.
Does a BOS need a candle close?
Most traders require a candle close beyond the level. A break by a wick alone often turns out false.
Related terms
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Updated: 2026-10-19