Momentum on TradingView — Pine Script v5 Source

Pine has ta.mom for the Momentum indicator, so it’s a one-liner — with a couple of useful additions. See the explainer for the concept.

What you’ll need

• A TradingView account (free tier is fine)
• The Pine Editor

The source

//@version=5
indicator("AlgoGen Momentum", shorttitle="AG MOM", overlay=false)

length = input.int(10, "Length", minval=1)
smooth = input.int(1,  "Smoothing (1 = raw)")

momVal  = ta.mom(close, length)          // close - close[length]
momLine = ta.sma(momVal, smooth)

col = momLine >= 0 ? #0ca30c : #d03b3b
plot(momLine, "Momentum", style=plot.style_columns, color=col)
hline(0, "Zero", color=color.gray)

alertcondition(ta.crossover(momLine, 0),  "MOM up",   "Momentum crossed above zero")
alertcondition(ta.crossunder(momLine, 0), "MOM down", "Momentum crossed below zero")

ta.mom(close, length) is the difference form (close − close[length]), oscillating around zero. Colouring the histogram by sign makes the momentum regime obvious, and a short smoothing tames the noise — matching the output chart.

The ratio form

If you want the 100-centered ratio version instead:

momRatio = 100 * close / close[length]
plot(momRatio, "MOM ratio", color=#2a78d6)
hline(100, "Base", color=color.gray)

A trend-filtered strategy

Momentum zero-crosses whipsaw in ranges, so gate them with a trend filter:

//@version=5
strategy("AlgoGen Momentum System", overlay=true)
momVal = ta.mom(close, 10)
uptrend = close > ta.sma(close, 200)
if ta.crossover(momVal, 0) and uptrend
    strategy.entry("Long", strategy.long)
if ta.crossunder(momVal, 0)
    strategy.close("Long")

Only take the up-cross while price is above its 200-SMA — the Strategy Tester will show how much the filter cuts the range-bound noise.

Gotchas

• ta.mom is the difference form (around 0); the ratio form (around 100) you build yourself. Don’t mix the two scales.
• No fixed levels. Momentum is unbounded; judge extremes relative to recent range, not a fixed threshold.
• ta.mom vs ta.roc. ta.mom is absolute points; ta.roc is percent — pick the one that matches how you’re comparing.

Same indicator elsewhere: Python, MQL5, EasyLanguage, NinjaScript. Then test a Momentum rule in AlgoGen.

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This post is educational, not financial advice. Indicators describe the past; they don’t predict the future. Backtest anything before you risk real money on it.