Appearance

Personalize your experience

Mode
Accent Color
Direction
Depth City

Depth City

Order Book View

An isometric 3-D skyline of resting size along the price axis — towers are walls.

What it answers

Where are the of liquidity, at a glance? Open it from the order book toolbar with View → Depth City, or from Settings → . The , bar and order entry stay in place; only the book pane changes.

Connecting to Binance BTC/USDT…
Connecting to Binance BTC/USDT…
Real time: the production Depth City renderer on the live Binance spot book (REST snapshot + 100ms diff stream + trades). Switch symbol or source above; hover for a readout, click to pick a price.

Anatomy

Tower
One level. Height is √(size ÷ largest size).
Colour
Bid left of the mid, ask towers .
Glowing tower
A wall, labelled with its size.
Dashed line
The mid, with its price.

How to read it

  1. Scan for the tallest : those are the levels a move must chew through.
  2. close to the mid line matter now; distant towers matter only if price travels there.
  3. An even skyline means a uniform book with no obvious barrier.

How it is computed

  • Levels are laid out by rank along the x , reversed so the meets the mid.
  • Each tower is a front face with a gradient, a lighter top face and a darker side face.
Core calculation
const height = Math.max(2, Math.sqrt(l.quantity / maxQ) * maxHeight);
// front, top (lighter) and side (darker) faces give the isometric look
const top = shade(color, 1.25), side = shade(color, 0.45);

Trading signals

Barrier

A glowing tower near the mid is a likely stall for price.

Open sky

Low between the mid and the next tower: a thin that price can move through quickly.

!
Caution: are spaced by rank, not by price. Use the when distance in price matters.

Settings that affect this view

Liquidity walls
Glow and labels on walls.
Glow
Tower glow.

Standalone HTML implementation

A complete, dependency-free page that implements this view on a canvas against the real-time book. It runs below exactly as written. The harness keeps a full local book from the REST snapshot and the 100ms diff stream (resyncing on any sequence gap) and reads from aggTrade. Change SYMBOL / GROUP for another market, or replace snapshot() with your own feed, and the draw() function works unchanged.

Depth city — standalone HTML, live Binance feed, no dependencies
orderbook-city.html
<!doctype html><html lang="en"><head><meta charset="utf-8"><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width,initial-scale=1"><title>Depth city — order book view</title><style>  html, body { margin: 0; height: 100%; background: #0b0e14; overflow: hidden; }  canvas { display: block; width: 100%; height: 100%; }  #status { position: fixed; left: 8px; bottom: 6px; font: 600 10px ui-monospace, Menlo, monospace;            color: #cbd5e1; background: rgba(15,23,42,.85); border: 1px solid rgba(148,163,184,.3);            border-radius: 4px; padding: 2px 6px; pointer-events: none; }  #status i { display: inline-block; width: 6px; height: 6px; border-radius: 50%; margin-right: 5px; background: #f59e0b; }</style></head><body><canvas id="c"></canvas><div id="status"><i></i>connecting…</div><script>// ─── Canvas + palette ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────const C = document.getElementById('c'), X = C.getContext('2d');let W = 0, H = 0;function fit() {  const r = C.getBoundingClientRect(), d = Math.min(devicePixelRatio || 1, 2);  W = r.width; H = r.height; C.width = W * d; C.height = H * d; X.setTransform(d, 0, 0, d, 0, 0);}addEventListener('resize', fit); fit();const BID = '#0ecb81', ASK = '#f6465d', GRID = 'rgba(148,163,184,.16)';const TEXT = '#e2e8f0', MUTED = '#64748b', ACCENT = '#8b5cf6', WARN = '#f59e0b';// ─── Feed settings ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────// Real-time Binance spot book. Change SYMBOL / GROUP for another market// (e.g. 'ETHUSDT' with GROUP 0.1). If the exchange cannot be reached the page// falls back to a synthetic book and says so in the status badge.const SYMBOL = 'BTCUSDT';const GROUP = 1;            // aggregation step (price bucket)const LEVELS = 30;          // levels per side after groupingconst TICK = GROUP;         // views size cells / buckets by the grouped step// ─── Real-time Binance book: REST snapshot + 100ms diff stream ──────────────// Binance's documented procedure: buffer the diff stream, fetch a snapshot,// drop events with u <= lastUpdateId, then apply in order; a gap// (U != previous u + 1) means resnapshot. qty 0 deletes a level.const live = { bids: new Map(), asks: new Map(), lastU: 0, lastE: 0, synced: false, buffer: [], ok: false, ups: [] };const prints = [];let source = 'connecting';const statusEl = document.getElementById('status');function setStatus(text, color) { statusEl.innerHTML = '<i style="background:' + color + '"></i>' + text; }function applyDiff(e) {  for (const [p, q] of e.b) { const v = +q; v === 0 ? live.bids.delete(+p) : live.bids.set(+p, v); }  for (const [p, q] of e.a) { const v = +q; v === 0 ? live.asks.delete(+p) : live.asks.set(+p, v); }  live.lastU = e.u; live.lastE = e.E;  const now = Date.now(); live.ups.push(now); while (now - live.ups[0] > 1000) live.ups.shift();}async function resnapshot() {  live.synced = false;  const r = await fetch('https://api.binance.com/api/v3/depth?symbol=' + SYMBOL + '&limit=1000');  if (!r.ok) throw new Error('HTTP ' + r.status);  const s = await r.json();  live.bids = new Map(s.bids.map(([p, q]) => [+p, +q]));  live.asks = new Map(s.asks.map(([p, q]) => [+p, +q]));  live.lastU = s.lastUpdateId;  const pending = live.buffer.filter(e => e.u > s.lastUpdateId); live.buffer = [];  let first = true;  for (const e of pending) {    if (first && !(e.U <= live.lastU + 1 && e.u >= live.lastU + 1)) continue;    first = false; applyDiff(e);  }  live.synced = true; live.ok = true; source = 'live';}// Snapshot failures fall back to the synthetic book and keep retrying; the page// switches back to live as soon as a snapshot lands.function trySnapshot() {  resnapshot().catch(() => { fallback(); setTimeout(trySnapshot, 5000); });}function connect() {  const s = SYMBOL.toLowerCase();  let ws;  try { ws = new WebSocket('wss://stream.binance.com:9443/stream?streams=' + s + '@depth@100ms/' + s + '@aggTrade'); }  catch (e) { fallback(); return; }  ws.onopen = () => trySnapshot();  ws.onmessage = m => {    const { stream, data } = JSON.parse(m.data);    if (stream.endsWith('@aggTrade')) {      // m = buyer is maker → the aggressor sold      prints.push({ t: data.T, side: data.m ? 'sell' : 'buy', qty: +data.q, price: +data.p });      if (prints.length > 400) prints.shift();      return;    }    if (!live.synced) { live.buffer.push(data); if (live.buffer.length > 600) live.buffer.shift(); return; }    if (data.u <= live.lastU) return;    if (data.U > live.lastU + 1) { live.buffer = [data]; trySnapshot(); return; }    applyDiff(data);  };  ws.onerror = () => { if (!live.ok) fallback(); };  ws.onclose = () => { live.synced = false; setTimeout(connect, live.ok ? 2000 : 8000); };}setTimeout(() => { if (!live.ok) fallback(); }, 15000);connect();// ─── Synthetic fallback (same shape as the live book) ───────────────────────let center = 76500;const base = { bid: [], ask: [] };for (let i = 0; i < LEVELS; i++) { base.bid.push(0.4 + i * 0.5 + Math.random() * 3); base.ask.push(0.4 + i * 0.5 + Math.random() * 3); }function fallback() {  if (source === 'synthetic' || live.ok) return;  source = 'synthetic';  setStatus('SYNTHETIC · live feed unreachable, retrying', '#94a3b8');}function tickSynthetic() {  if (Math.random() < 0.35) center += (Math.random() < 0.5 ? -1 : 1) * GROUP;  for (const s of ['bid', 'ask']) for (let i = 0; i < LEVELS; i++) {    let q = base[s][i] * (0.92 + Math.random() * 0.16);    if (Math.random() < 0.003) q *= 5;    if (q > 40) q *= 0.7;    base[s][i] = q;  }  if (Math.random() < 0.6) {    const side = Math.random() < 0.5 ? 'buy' : 'sell';    prints.push({ t: Date.now(), side, qty: +(Math.random() ** 3 * 8 + 0.01).toFixed(3), price: side === 'buy' ? center + GROUP : center });    if (prints.length > 400) prints.shift();  }}function tick() { if (source === 'synthetic') tickSynthetic(); }// ─── Snapshot: group raw levels into LEVELS buckets per side ────────────────let prev = new Map();const r8 = v => Math.round(v * 1e8) / 1e8;function group(map, side) {  const out = new Map();  for (const [p, q] of map) {    const k = r8((side === 'bid' ? Math.floor(p / GROUP + 1e-9) : Math.ceil(p / GROUP - 1e-9)) * GROUP);    out.set(k, (out.get(k) || 0) + q);  }  return [...out.entries()].sort((a, b) => (side === 'bid' ? b[0] - a[0] : a[0] - b[0])).slice(0, LEVELS);}function rawSynthetic(side) {  const out = [];  for (let i = 0; i < LEVELS; i++) {    if ((i === 7 || i === 13) && Math.random() < 0.45) continue;     // two flickering levels    out.push([side === 'bid' ? center - i * GROUP : center + GROUP + i * GROUP, base[side][i]]);  }  return out;}function snapshot() {  let rb, ra;  if (source === 'live') {    if (!live.synced) return null;    rb = group(live.bids, 'bid'); ra = group(live.asks, 'ask');    setStatus('LIVE · Binance ' + SYMBOL + ' · ' + live.ups.length + ' upd/s · ' + Math.max(0, Date.now() - live.lastE) + 'ms', '#22c55e');  } else if (source === 'synthetic') {    rb = rawSynthetic('bid'); ra = rawSynthetic('ask');  } else return null;  if (!rb.length || !ra.length) return null;  const build = (levels, s) => {    let tot = 0, notl = 0;    return levels.map(([price, q]) => {      const key = s + price;      tot += q; notl += q * price;      return { price, qty: q, total: tot, notional: q * price, cumNotional: notl,               delta: prev.has(key) ? q - prev.get(key) : q, isNew: !prev.has(key) };    });  };  const bids = build(rb, 'bid'), asks = build(ra, 'ask');  const next = new Map();  bids.forEach(l => next.set('bid' + l.price, l.qty));  asks.forEach(l => next.set('ask' + l.price, l.qty));  prev = next;  const all = [...bids, ...asks], avg = all.reduce((s, l) => s + l.qty, 0) / all.length;  all.forEach(l => { l.isWall = l.qty > avg * 3; });  return { bids, asks, bestBid: bids[0].price, bestAsk: asks[0].price,           mid: (bids[0].price + asks[0].price) / 2, t: Date.now(), prints };}// ─── Helpers ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────function txt(s, x, y, a = 'left', c = TEXT) { X.fillStyle = c; X.textAlign = a; X.textBaseline = 'middle'; X.fillText(s, x, y); }function fmt(v, d = 2) { return Math.abs(v) >= 1e4 ? v.toLocaleString('en-US', { minimumFractionDigits: 1, maximumFractionDigits: 1 }) : v.toFixed(d); }function alpha(hex, a) { return hex + Math.round(Math.max(0, Math.min(1, a)) * 255).toString(16).padStart(2, '0'); }function clamp(v, a, b) { return Math.max(a, Math.min(b, v)); }// ─── View ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────// An isometric skyline along the price axis: each tower's height is the resting// size at that level (√ scale), walls glow. Bids left of the mid, asks right.function shade(hex, k) {  const n = parseInt(hex.slice(1), 16), c = v => clamp(Math.round(v * k), 0, 255).toString(16).padStart(2, '0');  return '#' + c((n >> 16) & 255) + c((n >> 8) & 255) + c(n & 255);}function draw(X, W, H, b) {  const lv = [...[...b.bids].reverse().map(l => [l, BID]), ...b.asks.map(l => [l, ASK])];  const dx = 22, dy = 12, base = H - 22, cw = (W - 16 - dx) / lv.length, maxQ = Math.max(...lv.map(([l]) => l.qty));  lv.forEach(([l, col], i) => {    const h = Math.max(2, Math.sqrt(l.qty / maxQ) * (base - 30)), x = 8 + i * cw, w = cw * 0.78, y = base - h;    X.fillStyle = shade(col, 0.45);    X.beginPath(); X.moveTo(x + w, y); X.lineTo(x + w + dx / 2, y - dy / 2); X.lineTo(x + w + dx / 2, base - dy / 2); X.lineTo(x + w, base); X.fill();    X.fillStyle = shade(col, 1.25);    X.beginPath(); X.moveTo(x, y); X.lineTo(x + dx / 2, y - dy / 2); X.lineTo(x + w + dx / 2, y - dy / 2); X.lineTo(x + w, y); X.fill();    const g = X.createLinearGradient(0, y, 0, base); g.addColorStop(0, col); g.addColorStop(1, shade(col, 0.6));    if (l.isWall) { X.shadowColor = col; X.shadowBlur = 14; }    X.fillStyle = g; X.fillRect(x, y, w, h); X.shadowBlur = 0;  });  txt(fmt(b.mid), 8 + b.bids.length * cw, 10, 'center');}// ─── Loop: redraw 4× a second (the live book updates every 100ms) ───────────let last = 0;(function loop(now) {  requestAnimationFrame(loop);  if (now - last < 250) return;  last = now; tick();  const b = snapshot();  if (!b) return;  X.clearRect(0, 0, W, H);  X.font = '11px ui-monospace, Menlo, monospace';  draw(X, W, H, b);})(0);</script></body></html>

See also

Related articles

  • 3D Book Towers

    Trading / Order Book / Views

    The book as a city of towers: one tower per price level for the latest fourteen slices of the book, older slices fading back.

  • 3D Depth Canyon

    Trading / Order Book / Views

    The depth chart extruded through time. Cumulative bid and ask depth form two valley walls, and the mid runs along the valley floor.

  • 3D Liquidity Terrain

    Trading / Order Book / Views

    The recorded book as a lit landscape: time across, price in depth, resting size as height. Walls are mountains, thin books are plains.

  • 3D Ridgeline

    Trading / Order Book / Views

    Every price level as its own ridge of resting size through time, as in the book terrain chart: far ridges behind, near ridges in front, newest on the right.

  • 3D Trade Cloud

    Trading / Order Book / Views

    Every print as a pillar at its time and price, its height the trade size, coloured by the aggressor, over the mid path.

  • Book vs Tape Profile

    Trading / Order Book / Views

    What is resting at each price beside what has actually traded there — intent against action.

  • Butterfly

    Trading / Order Book / Views

    Bid level N against ask level N, fanned out from a central spine — a level-by-level comparison of the two sides.

  • Concentration

    Trading / Order Book / Views

    Lorenz curve and Gini coefficient of each side — how few levels hold the liquidity.

  • Depth Bands

    Trading / Order Book / Views

    Liquidity within 5 / 10 / 25 / 50 / 100 bp of mid, over time — how much depth is actually close.

Browse all knowledge base articles →