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Liquidity Heatmap
Order Book ViewResting size at every price, over time — where liquidity has been sitting, not just where it is now.
What it answers
Where has liquidity been sitting, and did price respect it? Open it from the order book toolbar with View → Liquidity Heatmap, or from Settings → . The , bar and order entry stay in place; only the book pane changes.
Anatomy
How to read it
- Look for bands that persist across many — those are that stayed put.
- Follow the mid line into a : if it stops or reverses there, the liquidity was real.
- Watch for a bright that disappears just as price approaches it — a (often spoofed) wall.
- Clusters of bubbles at one price with an unchanged mean the level absorbed — an iceberg or a defended level.
How it is computed
- On every book update the current levels are appended as a column of (price, size) .
- The is centred on the current mid and spans the widest side of the current book.
- Brightness is normalised to the largest size anywhere in the visible , so a wall dims older, smaller .
- are placed by timestamp between the first and last column and by price on the shared .
// One column per update
heat.push({ t: snapshot.timestamp, mid: snapshot.midPrice,
bids: snapshot.bids.map(l => [l.price, l.quantity]),
asks: snapshot.asks.map(l => [l.price, l.quantity]) });
if (heat.length > 240) heat.shift();
// Cell intensity
const maxQty = Math.max(...heat.flatMap(c => [...c.bids, ...c.asks].map(([, q]) => q)));
const intensity = (qty: number) => Math.sqrt(qty / maxQty); // 0..1
const alpha = 0.08 + intensity(qty) * 0.85;Trading signals
Defended level
A that price touches repeatedly while it stays bright and cluster on it: a buyer or seller is absorbing. Expect a or a sharp break once it is exhausted.
Spoofing
A bright appears ahead of price, holds while price is far away and vanishes as price gets close. Treat the level as fake.
Vacuum
Dark gaps between bands are thin liquidity; price tends to move fast through them.
Iceberg
Heavy at a price where the never dims: displayed size is being refilled from hidden size.
Settings that affect this view
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.
1<!doctype html>2<html lang="en">3<head>4<meta charset="utf-8">5<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width,initial-scale=1">6<title>Liquidity heatmap — order book view</title>7<style>8 html, body { margin: 0; height: 100%; background: #0b0e14; overflow: hidden; }9 canvas { display: block; width: 100%; height: 100%; }10 #status { position: fixed; left: 8px; bottom: 6px; font: 600 10px ui-monospace, Menlo, monospace;11 color: #cbd5e1; background: rgba(15,23,42,.85); border: 1px solid rgba(148,163,184,.3);12 border-radius: 4px; padding: 2px 6px; pointer-events: none; }13 #status i { display: inline-block; width: 6px; height: 6px; border-radius: 50%; margin-right: 5px; background: #f59e0b; }14</style>15</head>16<body>17<canvas id="c"></canvas>18<div id="status"><i></i>connecting…</div>19<script>20// ─── Canvas + palette ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────21const C = document.getElementById('c'), X = C.getContext('2d');22let W = 0, H = 0;23function fit() {24 const r = C.getBoundingClientRect(), d = Math.min(devicePixelRatio || 1, 2);25 W = r.width; H = r.height; C.width = W * d; C.height = H * d; X.setTransform(d, 0, 0, d, 0, 0);26}27addEventListener('resize', fit); fit();28const BID = '#0ecb81', ASK = '#f6465d', GRID = 'rgba(148,163,184,.16)';29const TEXT = '#e2e8f0', MUTED = '#64748b', ACCENT = '#8b5cf6', WARN = '#f59e0b';3031// ─── Feed settings ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────32// Real-time Binance spot book. Change SYMBOL / GROUP for another market33// (e.g. 'ETHUSDT' with GROUP 0.1). If the exchange cannot be reached the page34// falls back to a synthetic book and says so in the status badge.35const SYMBOL = 'BTCUSDT';36const GROUP = 1; // aggregation step (price bucket)37const LEVELS = 30; // levels per side after grouping38const TICK = GROUP; // views size cells / buckets by the grouped step3940// ─── Real-time Binance book: REST snapshot + 100ms diff stream ──────────────41// Binance's documented procedure: buffer the diff stream, fetch a snapshot,42// drop events with u <= lastUpdateId, then apply in order; a gap43// (U != previous u + 1) means resnapshot. qty 0 deletes a level.44const live = { bids: new Map(), asks: new Map(), lastU: 0, lastE: 0, synced: false, buffer: [], ok: false, ups: [] };45const prints = [];46let source = 'connecting';47const statusEl = document.getElementById('status');48function setStatus(text, color) { statusEl.innerHTML = '<i style="background:' + color + '"></i>' + text; }4950function applyDiff(e) {51 for (const [p, q] of e.b) { const v = +q; v === 0 ? live.bids.delete(+p) : live.bids.set(+p, v); }52 for (const [p, q] of e.a) { const v = +q; v === 0 ? live.asks.delete(+p) : live.asks.set(+p, v); }53 live.lastU = e.u; live.lastE = e.E;54 const now = Date.now(); live.ups.push(now); while (now - live.ups[0] > 1000) live.ups.shift();55}56async function resnapshot() {57 live.synced = false;58 const r = await fetch('https://api.binance.com/api/v3/depth?symbol=' + SYMBOL + '&limit=1000');59 if (!r.ok) throw new Error('HTTP ' + r.status);60 const s = await r.json();61 live.bids = new Map(s.bids.map(([p, q]) => [+p, +q]));62 live.asks = new Map(s.asks.map(([p, q]) => [+p, +q]));63 live.lastU = s.lastUpdateId;64 const pending = live.buffer.filter(e => e.u > s.lastUpdateId); live.buffer = [];65 let first = true;66 for (const e of pending) {67 if (first && !(e.U <= live.lastU + 1 && e.u >= live.lastU + 1)) continue;68 first = false; applyDiff(e);69 }70 live.synced = true; live.ok = true; source = 'live';71}72// Snapshot failures fall back to the synthetic book and keep retrying; the page73// switches back to live as soon as a snapshot lands.74function trySnapshot() {75 resnapshot().catch(() => { fallback(); setTimeout(trySnapshot, 5000); });76}77function connect() {78 const s = SYMBOL.toLowerCase();79 let ws;80 try { ws = new WebSocket('wss://stream.binance.com:9443/stream?streams=' + s + '@depth@100ms/' + s + '@aggTrade'); }81 catch (e) { fallback(); return; }82 ws.onopen = () => trySnapshot();83 ws.onmessage = m => {84 const { stream, data } = JSON.parse(m.data);85 if (stream.endsWith('@aggTrade')) {86 // m = buyer is maker → the aggressor sold87 prints.push({ t: data.T, side: data.m ? 'sell' : 'buy', qty: +data.q, price: +data.p });88 if (prints.length > 400) prints.shift();89 return;90 }91 if (!live.synced) { live.buffer.push(data); if (live.buffer.length > 600) live.buffer.shift(); return; }92 if (data.u <= live.lastU) return;93 if (data.U > live.lastU + 1) { live.buffer = [data]; trySnapshot(); return; }94 applyDiff(data);95 };96 ws.onerror = () => { if (!live.ok) fallback(); };97 ws.onclose = () => { live.synced = false; setTimeout(connect, live.ok ? 2000 : 8000); };98}99setTimeout(() => { if (!live.ok) fallback(); }, 15000);100connect();101102// ─── Synthetic fallback (same shape as the live book) ───────────────────────103let center = 76500;104const base = { bid: [], ask: [] };105for (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); }106function fallback() {107 if (source === 'synthetic' || live.ok) return;108 source = 'synthetic';109 setStatus('SYNTHETIC · live feed unreachable, retrying', '#94a3b8');110}111function tickSynthetic() {112 if (Math.random() < 0.35) center += (Math.random() < 0.5 ? -1 : 1) * GROUP;113 for (const s of ['bid', 'ask']) for (let i = 0; i < LEVELS; i++) {114 let q = base[s][i] * (0.92 + Math.random() * 0.16);115 if (Math.random() < 0.003) q *= 5;116 if (q > 40) q *= 0.7;117 base[s][i] = q;118 }119 if (Math.random() < 0.6) {120 const side = Math.random() < 0.5 ? 'buy' : 'sell';121 prints.push({ t: Date.now(), side, qty: +(Math.random() ** 3 * 8 + 0.01).toFixed(3), price: side === 'buy' ? center + GROUP : center });122 if (prints.length > 400) prints.shift();123 }124}125function tick() { if (source === 'synthetic') tickSynthetic(); }126127// ─── Snapshot: group raw levels into LEVELS buckets per side ────────────────128let prev = new Map();129const r8 = v => Math.round(v * 1e8) / 1e8;130function group(map, side) {131 const out = new Map();132 for (const [p, q] of map) {133 const k = r8((side === 'bid' ? Math.floor(p / GROUP + 1e-9) : Math.ceil(p / GROUP - 1e-9)) * GROUP);134 out.set(k, (out.get(k) || 0) + q);135 }136 return [...out.entries()].sort((a, b) => (side === 'bid' ? b[0] - a[0] : a[0] - b[0])).slice(0, LEVELS);137}138function rawSynthetic(side) {139 const out = [];140 for (let i = 0; i < LEVELS; i++) {141 if ((i === 7 || i === 13) && Math.random() < 0.45) continue; // two flickering levels142 out.push([side === 'bid' ? center - i * GROUP : center + GROUP + i * GROUP, base[side][i]]);143 }144 return out;145}146function snapshot() {147 let rb, ra;148 if (source === 'live') {149 if (!live.synced) return null;150 rb = group(live.bids, 'bid'); ra = group(live.asks, 'ask');151 setStatus('LIVE · Binance ' + SYMBOL + ' · ' + live.ups.length + ' upd/s · ' + Math.max(0, Date.now() - live.lastE) + 'ms', '#22c55e');152 } else if (source === 'synthetic') {153 rb = rawSynthetic('bid'); ra = rawSynthetic('ask');154 } else return null;155 if (!rb.length || !ra.length) return null;156 const build = (levels, s) => {157 let tot = 0, notl = 0;158 return levels.map(([price, q]) => {159 const key = s + price;160 tot += q; notl += q * price;161 return { price, qty: q, total: tot, notional: q * price, cumNotional: notl,162 delta: prev.has(key) ? q - prev.get(key) : q, isNew: !prev.has(key) };163 });164 };165 const bids = build(rb, 'bid'), asks = build(ra, 'ask');166 const next = new Map();167 bids.forEach(l => next.set('bid' + l.price, l.qty));168 asks.forEach(l => next.set('ask' + l.price, l.qty));169 prev = next;170 const all = [...bids, ...asks], avg = all.reduce((s, l) => s + l.qty, 0) / all.length;171 all.forEach(l => { l.isWall = l.qty > avg * 3; });172 return { bids, asks, bestBid: bids[0].price, bestAsk: asks[0].price,173 mid: (bids[0].price + asks[0].price) / 2, t: Date.now(), prints };174}175176// ─── Helpers ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────177function txt(s, x, y, a = 'left', c = TEXT) { X.fillStyle = c; X.textAlign = a; X.textBaseline = 'middle'; X.fillText(s, x, y); }178function fmt(v, d = 2) { return Math.abs(v) >= 1e4 ? v.toLocaleString('en-US', { minimumFractionDigits: 1, maximumFractionDigits: 1 }) : v.toFixed(d); }179function alpha(hex, a) { return hex + Math.round(Math.max(0, Math.min(1, a)) * 255).toString(16).padStart(2, '0'); }180function clamp(v, a, b) { return Math.max(a, Math.min(b, v)); }181182// ─── View ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────183// Every update becomes one column; each cell's brightness is the resting size184// at that price at that moment. Persistent bands are liquidity that stayed;185// bubbles are trades at their time and price.186const hist = [];187function draw(X, W, H, b) {188 hist.push({ t: b.t, mid: b.mid, cells: [...b.bids, ...b.asks].map(l => [l.price, l.qty, l.price < b.mid]) });189 if (hist.length > 240) hist.shift();190 const axis = 70, lo = b.mid - 20 * TICK, hi = b.mid + 20 * TICK;191 const yOf = p => H - ((p - lo) / (hi - lo)) * H, cell = (H * TICK) / (hi - lo);192 let maxQ = 1e-9; for (const c of hist) for (const [, q] of c.cells) maxQ = Math.max(maxQ, q);193 const cw = (W - axis) / 240, x0 = W - axis - hist.length * cw;194 hist.forEach((col, i) => {195 for (const [p, q, isBid] of col.cells) {196 if (p < lo || p > hi) continue;197 X.fillStyle = alpha(isBid ? BID : ASK, 0.08 + Math.sqrt(q / maxQ) * 0.85);198 X.fillRect(x0 + i * cw, yOf(p) - cell / 2, Math.ceil(cw) + 0.5, cell);199 }200 });201 X.beginPath(); hist.forEach((c, i) => (i ? X.lineTo : X.moveTo).call(X, x0 + i * cw, yOf(c.mid)));202 X.strokeStyle = '#fff'; X.lineWidth = 1.3; X.stroke();203 const t0 = hist[0].t, span = Math.max(1, b.t - t0);204 for (const p of b.prints) {205 if (p.t < t0) continue;206 X.beginPath(); X.arc(x0 + ((p.t - t0) / span) * hist.length * cw, yOf(p.price), 2 + Math.sqrt(p.qty) * 2.5, 0, 7);207 X.fillStyle = alpha(p.side === 'buy' ? BID : ASK, 0.4); X.fill();208 }209 for (let i = 0; i <= 8; i++) { const p = lo + ((hi - lo) * i) / 8; txt(fmt(p), W - 4, yOf(p), 'right', MUTED); }210}211212// ─── Loop: redraw 4× a second (the live book updates every 100ms) ───────────213let last = 0;214(function loop(now) {215 requestAnimationFrame(loop);216 if (now - last < 250) return;217 last = now; tick();218 const b = snapshot();219 if (!b) return;220 X.clearRect(0, 0, W, H);221 X.font = '11px ui-monospace, Menlo, monospace';222 draw(X, W, H, b);223})(0);224</script>225</body>226</html>See also
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Related to Liquidity Heatmap
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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What is resting at each price beside what has actually traded there — intent against action.
- Butterfly
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Bid level N against ask level N, fanned out from a central spine — a level-by-level comparison of the two sides.
- Concentration
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Liquidity within 5 / 10 / 25 / 50 / 100 bp of mid, over time — how much depth is actually close.