The definition, and the confirmation without which nothing exists
A double bottom is made of two bottoms at a comparable level, separated by a rally. Price falls, bounces, falls back to the same place, and bounces again.
The point most presentations forget: the pattern is only confirmed once price exceeds the peak between the two bottoms. Before that break, there is no double bottom, there are two bottoms. The distinction is not academic, it is the difference between a pattern and a hope.
It is also what makes the pattern honest to trade: confirmation is a precise level, known in advance, that everybody can see in the same place. Unlike the triangle, there is nothing to draw and therefore nothing to interpret.
The bullish version is the double bottom, the bearish version the double top. They work as mirrors.
The four shapes, and the one that wins
The studies separate bottoms by their shape, and that is the most useful distinction in this lesson. A narrow, pointed bottom is called Adam. A wide, rounded bottom is called Eve.
Four combinations follow: Adam and Adam, Adam and Eve, Eve and Adam, Eve and Eve.
The Eve and Eve combination performs best, with the highest average rise of the four. And on the bearish side, the Eve and Eve double top carries the lowest failure rate of the four.
In other words, two wide rounded bottoms are worth more than two spikes. That is counter-intuitive, because a double spike is far more spectacular on screen. A rounded bottom describes long absorption, a spike describes a panic low followed by a mechanical bounce.
The general failure rate of the pattern is recorded at 4% or 5% depending on the variant, which places it among the good patterns in the catalogue.
Honesty about the source: Thomas Bulkowski's public pages give the relative ranking of the four combinations and the failure rate, but do not publish the detailed figures for each variant, which live in his book. Consulted in September 2026. What is written here is what is published, nothing more.
How to trade it
The entry is at confirmation, meaning on the break of the intermediate peak, never on the second bottom. Entering on the second bottom means betting the pattern will form, which is a different trade and it does not carry these numbers.
The stop goes below the lower of the two bottoms. And here is the practical constraint: the taller the pattern, the further that stop sits from the entry, so the smaller the position must be. A beautiful wide pattern is an expensive pattern, like a hammer with a long shadow.
The target is the height of the pattern, from the bottom to the intermediate peak, projected from the breakout point.
One simple filter follows from the shapes: if you have to choose between two double bottoms, take the one whose bottoms are wide and rounded rather than pointed.
What it gives in your own journal
The measurement specific to this pattern is obvious and almost nobody does it: tag the shape of your two bottoms, rounded or pointed, at the moment you take the position. Three trades per category will say nothing, thirty will start to speak.
If the announced gap shows up for you, you have just turned a decent pattern into a selection criterion, and it is free: it needs no indicator and no tool, just a label at the time of the trade.
The second measurement is the timing of your entry. Record whether you entered at confirmation or before it. If your early entries show a markedly lower win rate, you have the answer to a question many traders ask themselves without ever measuring it.
Tradoshi lets you combine two labels in the journal filter, so shape and entry timing read together.
Frequently asked questions
Must the two bottoms be at exactly the same price? No, at a comparable level. A gap of a few per cent is still a double bottom; a large difference describes something else.
When is the pattern confirmed? On the break of the peak between the two bottoms. Before that, there is no pattern.
Adam or Eve, how do you decide? Narrow and pointed for Adam, wide and rounded for Eve. Eve and Eve is the best performing combination.
What about the triple bottom? Same logic with one more bottom. It is rarer, therefore more selective by nature, but it is also far less documented.
Is there a minimum time gap between the two bottoms? The public pages consulted do not quantify it. Treat it as unestablished rather than applying an invented rule.
Key takeaways
- Two bottoms at a comparable level, and no pattern until the peak between them is exceeded. Before that, they are two bottoms.
- Failure rate recorded between 4% and 5%, in the same range as the cup and handle. It is one of the good patterns in the catalogue.
- Four shape combinations, and it is Eve and Eve, two wide rounded bottoms, that performs best. The spectacular double spike is the weakest.
- The stop goes below the lower of the two bottoms, so a tall pattern forces a smaller position.
- In your journal, tag the shape of the bottoms and the timing of your entry. Both are measured without any tool.
Going further
These blog articles dig into this lesson's ideas, one subject per article.