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Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →On a crypto exchange, a “money flow” chart can refer to several different things. This guide uses it to mean an order-book depth chart: a visual of pending buy and sell orders for a specific exchange and trading pair. It does not track coins moving between wallets or exchanges, and it is not the Chaikin Money Flow indicator.
What a crypto depth chart shows
An exchange order book is a list of pending orders for a particular asset and market. A bid is an offer to buy; an ask is an offer to sell. The displayed size is the quantity available at a given price. The book is specific to the venue and instrument, and can update as orders are entered, changed, filled, or canceled. Binance explains the order-book components in its order book and market depth guide.
A depth chart turns those orders into a visual, typically plotting price points horizontally and cumulative available quantity vertically. In Coinbase’s example, bids appear in green and asks in red; the center marks the mid-market area and the spread. The curves represent displayed resting orders, not completed trades. See Coinbase’s depth-chart explanation.
Depth charts, price charts, and volume are different
These views answer different questions, so do not read one as a substitute for another.
| View | What it represents | What it can help you understand |
|---|---|---|
| Order book or depth chart | Pending bids and asks, often shown as cumulative size across price levels. | Displayed liquidity near the current market and the gap between the best visible buy and sell prices. |
| Price chart | Historical prices over a selected period. A candlestick summarizes open, high, low, and close for its interval. | How the traded price changed over time. |
| Trading volume | The quantity traded over a selected period. | How much trading activity occurred during that period. |
Coinbase’s Advanced dashboard overview describes price charts, candlesticks, order-book information, live trade history, and volume as separate parts of the trading interface.
How to read the buy and sell sides
1. Check the venue, pair, and product
First confirm which exchange and market you are viewing—for example, a spot BTC/USD pair or a futures contract. Order books are instrument-specific. A spot book and a futures book are not interchangeable views of the same orders.
2. Find the best bid, best ask, and spread
The best bid is the highest visible buy price; the best ask is the lowest visible sell price. The spread is the difference between them. OKX notes that a smaller spread usually indicates greater liquidity on that exchange, though it is only one part of the picture. Its order-book guide explains these terms and their limitations.
3. Compare displayed depth on both sides
Below or around the market, the bid side shows cumulative buy interest; above or around it, the ask side shows cumulative sell interest. A curve that rises more quickly indicates more displayed order size across the prices included in the chart. It does not prove that price will stop at that level.
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4. Read depth as a current snapshot
Deeper visible books generally suggest more capacity to absorb larger market orders, but the depth can change before an order is executed. Binance Futures describes depth views as cumulative bids and asks at selected distances from the mid price. Its liquidity-analysis guide also distinguishes quantities by denomination, such as base quantity, contract quantity, and notional amount.
5. Compare with trades and price history
Use the price chart and volume for the period you care about to see what actually traded. Pending orders show current intentions, not completed transactions; an order may be canceled or changed before it fills. Live trade history, where available, can help distinguish executed activity from resting orders.
What a large order “wall” can—and cannot—tell you
A large cluster of bids or asks may look like potential support or resistance because it represents substantial displayed size at nearby prices. Treat it as a clue about the visible book, not a promise that price will hold or reverse there. Orders can disappear or move, and one exchange’s book may not represent the wider market. Depth charts also provide limited historical context, so a striking shape alone is not a reliable forecast.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How to compare two depth charts fairly
Before drawing a conclusion from two charts, align the details that determine what is being counted:
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- Venue: use the same exchange, or remember that different exchanges show different books.
- Trading pair and product: compare the same pair and the same product type, such as spot with spot rather than spot with futures.
- Capture time: books change, so charts taken at different times may reflect different orders.
- Price range: use comparable ranges around the market price.
- Size denomination: check whether quantities mean units of the base asset, contracts, or notional value.
If these differ, apparent differences in curve size may reflect the display or instrument rather than a meaningful difference in comparable liquidity.
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