Guide · measured
Crude oil levels explained: previous day, sessions, VWAP and POC
The levels oil traders mark every day are the previous day's high, low and close, the week's open, each session's high and low, VWAP and the volume point of control. Over 41 trading days to 10 November 2026, oil traded above the previous day's high on 44 % of days and below its low on 44 %, and the New York session broke the overnight range on 85 % of days. They are reference prices, not predictions; here is how often each one actually came into play.
How often the levels came into play
Oil moved the most of all our markets: an average daily range of 4.51 %. Measured on the oil perpetual's hourly candles; the same counts for gold are shown for comparison.
| Over 41 trading days | Crude oil | Gold |
|---|---|---|
| Traded above the previous day's high | 44 % | 41 % |
| Traded below the previous day's low | 44 % | 54 % |
| Broke both | 10 % | 7 % |
| Closed inside the previous day's range | 63 % | 61 % |
| New York broke the overnight (Asia + London) high or low | 85 % | 73 % |
| Average daily range | 4.51 % | 1.90 % |
The levels, one by one
Previous day high and low. The range of the last full trading day. Breaking one is common; breaking both on the same day is not (10 % of days). A break that fails and closes back inside the range is often more useful information than the break itself.
Week open. The first price of the trading week. It splits the week into above and below and is often revisited early in the week.
Session highs and lows. Asia, London and New York each leave a high and a low. New York breaking the overnight range is the norm (85 % of days), so the more useful question is whether the break holds.
VWAP and POC. The volume-weighted average price since 7:00 PM ET (00:00 UTC) and the price where most volume traded. Price far from VWAP often drifts back toward it during quiet hours; the POC is where buyers and sellers agreed most.
Inventory days. On EIA report days (normally Wednesday 10:30 New York time) the report hour moved 1.61 times the other Wednesday hours; levels near the price before the report are more likely to be run through. How to read crude oil order flow has the numbers.
Where to see them live
Crude oil levels today lists every one of these levels with the largest order book walls, updated every two minutes, and Crude oil trading sessions gives the session times in your time zone.
Common questions
What are the most important oil levels?
The previous day's high and low, the week's open, the session highs and lows, VWAP and the POC; on Swiftedge they sit next to the largest order book walls on Crude oil levels today.
How often does oil break the previous day's high?
On 44 % of 41 trading days to 10 November 2026; it broke the previous day's low on 44 % and both on 10 %.
Are levels predictions?
No. They are prices where trading or resting size was; how price behaves there is what matters.