Bearish Candlestick Patterns
downward reversal signals · 19 patterns · average reliability 4.0/5 · 7 top-rated
Bearish patterns signal a build-up of selling pressure or exhaustion of an uptrend — a warning to close long positions or a short signal. The 19 patterns below are grouped by candle count and ordered by reliability within each group.
A bearish candlestick pattern is a single- or multi-candle shape that signals a shift in market sentiment from buying pressure to selling pressure. The typical scenario: after a sustained uptrend, buyers exhaust themselves, sellers take control, and the next candle confirms the reversal. For a long position, a bearish pattern is first of all an exit warning — not an automatic call to go short.
Context decides the value here too. A bearish pattern is only reliable near a resistance level, in an overbought RSI region (typically above 70) or on above-average volume. On its own, a shooting star in a sideways market is noise — the same shooting star at the top of a long rally is a strong reversal signal.
One-candle patterns
Shooting Star
A bearish single-candle reversal pattern at the end of an uptrend, with a small lower body and a long upper wick.
1 candle · reliability 4/5
Bearish Marubozu
A large red candlestick with virtually no wicks, showing clear seller dominance throughout the entire period.
1 candle · reliability 4/5
Hanging Man
Visually identical to the Hammer, but appears after an uptrend; it warns that buying pressure is weakening.
1 candle · reliability 3/5
Gravestone Doji
A doji with a long upper wick: buyers pushed price higher, but sellers drove it back to the open by the close.
1 candle · reliability 3/5
Bearish Belt Hold
A large red candle with no upper wick: it opens at the high, then price sells off through the session.
1 candle · reliability 3/5
Two-candle patterns
Bearish Engulfing
A two-candle bearish reversal pattern where a large red body fully engulfs the prior small green body after an uptrend.
2 candles · reliability 5/5
Bearish Kicking
A bullish marubozu is followed by a gap down and a bearish marubozu, marking a sharp sentiment shift from buyers to sellers.
2 candles · reliability 5/5
Dark Cloud Cover
A large green candle is followed by a large red candle that closes below the midpoint of the first body, warning of a reversal.
2 candles · reliability 4/5
Bearish Harami
A large green candle followed by a small red body contained within the first body, signaling a possible stall in an uptrend.
2 candles · reliability 3/5
Bearish Harami Cross
A large green candle followed by a doji inside the first real body, signaling heightened indecision after an uptrend.
2 candles · reliability 3/5
Tweezer Top
Two consecutive candles with matching highs, showing two failed attempts to break higher through the same level.
2 candles · reliability 3/5
Three-candle patterns
Evening Star
A three-candle bearish reversal pattern: large green candle, small indecision candle, then large red candle as sentiment deteriorates.
3 candles · reliability 5/5
Three Black Crows
Three consecutive large red candles, each closing lower and leaving only a small lower wick.
3 candles · reliability 5/5
Evening Doji Star
A stronger version of the Evening Star: the middle candle is a full doji, making the market’s indecision even clearer.
3 candles · reliability 5/5
Bearish Abandoned Baby
A three-candle pattern where the middle doji is fully isolated by gaps, creating a rare but strong bearish reversal signal.
3 candles · reliability 5/5
Three Outside Down
Bearish engulfing confirmed by a third bearish candle, forming a three-candle reversal pattern at the end of an uptrend.
3 candles · reliability 5/5
Three Inside Down
A bearish harami confirmed by a third bearish candle, signaling a gradual reversal after an uptrend loses momentum.
3 candles · reliability 4/5
Advance Block
Three green candles with shrinking bodies and longer upper wicks warn that an uptrend is losing momentum.
3 candles · reliability 3/5
Multi-candle patterns
Falling Three Methods
A bearish continuation pattern: a large red candle, three small green pullback candles inside its range, then another large red candle.
5 candles · reliability 4/5
How to trade bearish patterns
The same four factors that strengthen bullish signals apply here in mirror image: multi-candle patterns, higher volume on the key candle, a confirming red candle in the next period, and a technical level nearby (resistance, Fibonacci, moving average).
Trend context. Bearish reversal patterns are only meaningful at the end of an uptrend — not in sideways markets and not in an existing downtrend. A bearish engulfing at the top of a sharp rally is a strong signal; the same shape in the middle of a two-week range is noise.
Confirmation and volume. Wait for the next period to confirm with a red candle, ideally on above-average volume (especially on the key candle, e.g. the third candle of an evening star). Entering immediately on the close of the pattern's last candle is the single biggest source of false signals.
Time frame. Daily (D1) and weekly (W1) charts deliver the highest hit rate, 4-hour (H4) is acceptable. On 1-minute or 5-minute charts the noise-to-signal ratio makes bearish reversals statistically unreliable.
Entry and stop loss. Enter on the open or close of the confirmation candle. The stop loss belongs above the highest point of the pattern — above the upper wick, not at the body's top. Take profit at a minimum 1:2 risk/reward ratio — if the next support level is closer than twice the stop distance, skip the setup.
Shorting is optional. A bearish pattern is a signal, not an instruction. In an existing long position it is primarily an exit signal: close the position or tighten the stop and protect the profit. Only open a short if you understand its elevated risk — shorts typically run through leveraged CFDs or futures — and the position size and stop distance are calculated realistically.
Combine with other tools. A bearish engulfing at major resistance, with overbought RSI and negative MACD divergence — that is a setup. Candlestick patterns alone are not.
The most reliable bearish patterns
By the reliability rating, the strongest bearish patterns are Bearish Engulfing, Evening Star, Three Black Crows, Bearish Kicking, Evening Doji Star, Bearish Abandoned Baby, Three Outside Down. Each is either multi-candle or shows strong downward momentum — reliability is still decided by context (trend, resistance level, volume).
The three-candle evening star is the mirror image of the morning star and one of the most reliable bearish reversal signals: a large green candle continuing the uptrend, a small-bodied middle candle marking indecision, and a large red candle closing below the midpoint of the first candle's body.
The shooting star and the inverted hammer are visually identical — small body at the bottom, long upper wick. The difference is the trend context: a shooting star at the top of an uptrend is a bearish signal, an inverted hammer at the bottom of a downtrend is bullish. Same shape, opposite role.
The opposite direction is covered in bullish candlestick patterns. The full, filterable list lives in the catalog of 41 Japanese candlestick patterns, and candle basics are explained in the catalog's anatomy section.