The Formula for RVI
The RVI indicator is based on an idea that the price action has a tendency to close higher compared to the opening prices in an uptrend, and have lower closing prices than opening in a downtrend.
A formula to measure the RVI is as follows:
NUMERATOR = a+(2×b)+(2×c)+d
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DENOMINATOR = e+(2×f)+(2×g)+h
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RVI = SMA of NUMERATOR for N periods
SMA of DENOMINATOR for N periods
Signal Line = RVI+(2×i)+(2×j)+k
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Where:
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a=Close−Open
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b=Close−Open One Bar Prior to a
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c=Close−Open One Bar Prior to b
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d=Close−Open One Bar Prior to c
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e=High−Low of Bar a
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f=High−Low of Bar b
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g=High−Low of Bar c
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h=High−Low of Bar d
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i=RVI Value One Bar Prior
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j=RVI Value One Bar Prior to i
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k=RVI Value One Bar Prior to j
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N=Minutes/Hours/Days/Weeks/Months
As you can see from the formula the RVI also has a signal line that interacts with the indicator. Based on the crossovers and divergences between these two, we extract the trading signals.
As many other trading platforms, MetaTrader 5 has a built-in RVI indicator. You simply choose the indicator from a drop-down menu and it will show up automatically on your chart. The default setting is based on 10 periods, in addition to a green color for the RVI oscillator, and red for the signal line.

The RVI indicator fluctuates around the center line and it travels from above to below zero, and vice versa. As you can see from the photo below, the values are rising as the price trades in a bullish environment and vice versa. The indicator is classified as a centered oscillator, since it oscillates around the center line rather than a banded oscillator.
