# What you see on the DOM

This is a **short map** of the panel. Names on your screen may match the **DOM** header and columns in the app.

***

### Header

| Area              | Meaning                                                                       |
| ----------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Title / DOM**   | Confirms you are in the Depth of Market ladder.                               |
| **Tick − / +**    | Change **price step** per row (see Opening & layout).                         |
| **Markets count** | How many exchanges are **contributing** to the merged book (when shown).      |
| **Status dot**    | **Live** vs **disconnected** — if red, treat data as stale until it recovers. |

***

### Main ladder

| Column / side              | Typical meaning                                         |
| -------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Bid side** (often green) | **Resting buy** liquidity — size waiting on the bid.    |
| **Price**                  | The **price level** for that row.                       |
| **Ask side** (often red)   | **Resting sell** liquidity — size waiting on the offer. |

Larger **bars** or **fills** usually mean **more size** at that price compared to nearby rows (exact drawing depends on theme).

***

### Middle band — spread

Between bid and ask, you often see a **spread** row or band:

* **Absolute spread** (price distance between best bid and best ask).
* Sometimes **spread in basis points** or similar — how “wide” the market is **relative** to price.

A very **wide** spread can mean a **thin** book or fast market; a **tight** spread usually means a **liquid** top of book.

***

### Imbalance

A bar or readout may show **bid % vs ask %** (or one-sided dominance) near the **inside** of the book. That is a **snapshot** of whether **more size** is stacked on bids or asks **at that depth**, not a guarantee of direction.

***

### Signal badges (compact strip)

Depending on your **plan** and **data**, a row of **small colored badges** can appear under or beside the header. They summarize things like:

* **Book imbalance (OBI)** — tilt of depth near the touch.
* **Flow / delta-style** summaries — aggression vs resting change.
* **Risk/microstructure flags** — e.g., spoofing score, absorption, walls, gaps, VPIN-style readouts, **where enabled**.

Each badge is meant as a **heads-up**, not a standalone trade signal. Tap or hover if the UI opens a **larger explanation panel**.

For **every badge name, threshold, and trading ideas**, use the long guide: DOM Ladder (detailed).

***

### Footer

The bottom strip may show **session stats**, **last update**, or **alerts** depending on version — read the labels on your build.

***

### DOM vs chart footprint

|                       | **DOM ladder**                                     | **Footprint** (chart type)                         |
| --------------------- | -------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------- |
| **Shows**             | **Limit orders** waiting in the book (aggregated). | **Trades that already printed** inside the candle. |
| **Question it helps** | “Where is liquidity **now**?”                      | “Where did we **trade** and who was aggressive?”   |

Use **both** together when you want the **book context** plus the **tape context**.

***

← DOM help home


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