Volume profile row size: how many rows to use (VPVR rows guide)
How to choose the volume profile row size: number of rows vs ticks per row, starting values for NIFTY and stocks, and what more rows change on the chart.
The row size of a volume profile decides how finely the price range is sliced. Fewer rows give a smooth outline with one clear point of control (POC); more rows show detail such as thin gaps between two busy areas, but they also add noise. A good default is 24 rows for a quick read of where volume sits, and 50 to 100 rows, or a fixed number of ticks per row, when you trade off exact levels.
What a row is
A volume profile is a sideways histogram. The script takes the highest and lowest price of the bars it covers, cuts that range into horizontal rows, and adds up the volume traded inside each row. The longest row is the POC; the value area grows out from it until it holds 70% of the volume by default, and its edges are the value area high (VAH) and value area low (VAL). The volume profile guide explains every profile type in SuperCharting.
So the row count is not a cosmetic setting. It changes which row wins the POC and where the VAH and VAL land, because a wide row can merge two separate busy prices into one, and a very thin row can split one busy area into several small peaks.
The two ways to set rows in SuperCharting
The Session, Fixed range, Visible range, Periodic and Auto anchored volume profiles share a Rows layout input with two choices:
| Rows layout | What Row size means | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Number of rows | The price range is always split into this many equal rows, whatever the range | 24 |
| Ticks per row | Every row is this many price ticks tall, so the row count follows the range | — |
With Number of rows, a quiet day and a wild day both get 24 rows, so a row on the wild day covers far more price. With Ticks per row, a row always covers the same price distance, so profiles from different days line up level for level. In Ticks per row mode the indicator caps a profile at 240 rows, widening the rows if the range would need more.
Two other profile tools handle rows on their own:
- Session volume profile HD has no row setting. It sizes rows from the data: one row per average candle range, between 10 and 240 rows per session.
- Volume Profile (VPVR), the simpler study, uses a Rows input of 40 (10 to 120) over the latest Bars in range bars (200 by default).
Good starting values
These are starting points, not rules; adjust them until the profile shows the levels you actually trade from.
| Use | Setting to start with |
|---|---|
| Quick overview of the day, any symbol | Number of rows, 24 |
Intraday levels on NSE:NIFTY or NSE:BANKNIFTY 5m to 15m | Number of rows, 50 to 70 |
| Swing profile over weeks on a daily chart | Number of rows, 30 to 50 |
| Comparing levels across several days | Ticks per row, so every row is the same price height |
| Very liquid symbol where single prices matter | Session volume profile HD, which sizes rows for you |
How to turn ticks into a price height: a row covers Row size × the symbol's tick size. For example, on a symbol that moves in 0.05 steps, a Row size of 100 ticks makes rows 5.00 tall, and 20 ticks makes rows 1.00 tall. On a ₹2,500 stock, 1.00-rupee rows are fine detail; on an index near 25,000 points, 5-point rows are closer to the usual tick-by-tick noise.
How more rows change the picture
- The POC can move. With few rows the POC sits in the middle of the busiest broad zone. With more rows it lands on the single busiest price inside that zone, which may be near its top or bottom.
- Low-volume gaps appear. Thin areas between two busy zones (often called low-volume nodes) only show when rows are thinner than the gap. If you look for these, use more rows or Ticks per row.
- The value area tightens slightly. The 70% value area is built two rows at a time, so finer rows let its edges stop closer to where the volume really ends.
- Older profiles may drop off. Each row is drawn as a box, and a script can keep at most 500 boxes on the chart. With many rows per session, fewer past sessions stay visible. If yesterday's profile disappears, lower the Row size or switch to Session volume profile HD.
The volume itself also depends on the chart: the profiles read 1-minute candles inside each bar on charts up to 15 minutes, 5-minute candles up to 2 hours, 15-minute candles on 4-hour and daily charts and hourly candles above that. A row can never be more precise than those candles.
How to set the row size in SuperCharting
- Open a chart, for example
NSE:NIFTYon the 15m interval. - Click Indicators, choose Technicals, open the Profiles chip and add Session volume profile.
- Open the indicator's Settings from the gear in the chart legend.
- In Rows layout, choose Number of rows or Ticks per row.
- Type the Row size, for example 60 rows, and click Ok.
- Compare the POC and value area lines before and after. If the profile looks jagged, lower the number; if two busy areas merge into one, raise it.
To compare two settings side by side, add the indicator twice with different row sizes and turn one off and on from the legend eye.
A practical example
On NSE:BANKNIFTY 5m, a session profile with 24 rows often shows one fat POC zone in the middle of the day's range. Switching to 70 rows can split that zone into two separate peaks with a thin gap between them. That gap is a level where price moved through quickly. Whether to treat it as support, resistance or nothing is your own decision; the profile only shows where volume traded. For fixed swings rather than whole sessions, the fixed range vs visible range guide shows how to set the range, and volume profile shapes explains how to read the outline.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best number of rows for a volume profile?
There is no single best value. 24 rows is a sensible default for an overview; 50 to 100 rows suit intraday level work on liquid symbols. Ticks per row is best when you compare profiles across days.
What does VPVR number of rows mean?
It is how many horizontal price rows the visible range volume profile is split into. In SuperCharting's simple VPVR study the input is called Rows and defaults to 40; the Visible range volume profile indicator uses Rows layout and Row size, 24 by default.
Why did my older volume profiles disappear?
Each row is drawn as a box and the chart keeps at most 500 boxes per script. More rows per profile means fewer profiles fit. Lower the Row size or use Session volume profile HD.
Do more rows make the profile more accurate?
Only up to the detail in the data. The profile is built from intraday candles, not from every trade, so rows thinner than the price moves inside those candles add noise rather than accuracy.