summary: the ORB report shows how price behaves after breaking the opening range. this is the trade-it layer: the number to read, what to do with it, a worked example, setup, and what to check when it looks off. for the full breakdown of all 9 variants, see which ORB report should I use?
what it measures
the opening range is the first 15 minutes of your session (customizable). the report answers: after that range is set, how often does price break out, in which direction, and how far does it run?
ORB is the faster cousin of the IB. the range is shorter (15 minutes vs the IB's 60), so it breaks more often and earlier, but each break carries a smaller initial range.
the number that matters
start with the standard view: the overall breakout rate and the direction lean. look for 65% or higher before you lean on it, ideally 70%+. a strong directional skew is a read you can trade. a near-even split is a day to sit out.
what to do with it
if the range breaks consistently with a clear lean, trade the break in the direction the data favors. then layer two reads to build the full trade:
by-levels for your take-profit. each extension shows a fill rate that drops as you go higher. find the level where it falls off a cliff and set your primary target before it. use the "first break" setting for initial breakout trades.
by-retracement if you'd rather enter on the pullback. this is entering with the breakout direction after a retest, not fading the break.
if standard shows a strong breakout rate but by-close shows most breaks fade back inside by the close, that's a scalp, not a swing into the close. let the data pick the hold time.
a worked example
say you're on ES, NY session. standard shows a solid breakout rate, by-levels shows price reaches the 50% extension a high share of the time on "first break," and by-close shows breakouts tend to hold.
the plan: trade the first clean break, target the 50% extension, and because closes tend to hold, you can give a runner room into the session. invalidate on a close back inside the range.
the edge is in the data. the result still takes customizing it to your instrument and managing the trade with discipline.
set it up right (session and timezone)
the opening range is defined by your session. an ORB on NY (9:30 to 9:45 AM ET) is a different range than London or Asia. set the session you trade, then match your TradingView timezone to it so the levels line up.
one gotcha for the 9:30 open: don't use a 60-minute candle to capture it. a 60-minute candle starts on the hour and skips the 9:30 open entirely. use a 15-minute candle for the ORB window.
why your numbers don't match
before assuming the report is wrong, check these in order:
TradingView timezone set to match the session?
same session window on the report and your chart?
same contract, no rollover gap? futures roll at 6:00 PM ET, so "previous day" is the previous session, not the calendar day.
"first break" vs "all breaks" set the same way you're reading it?
full walkthrough in why your edgeful data doesn't match TradingView. if it all matches and the number is still off, report it.
the limits
check the sample size in any bucket before trading it, and trust stats that hold across multiple lookback windows over ones that only appear on a single range.
related articles
→ which ORB report should I use? the full reference for all 9 ORB variants