Colouring the background of price bands and price bars in TradingView

TL;DR
Blend price zones and bar states with bgcolor() and fill() to make trends instantly recognisable.

At a Glance


Difficulty	Beginner
Time to implement	10-15 min
Category	Visual Effects

Quick Actions

Quick Start

//@version=5
indicator("Background on trend", overlay=true)

bgColor = close > close[1] ? color.new(color.green, 80) : color.new(color.red, 80)
bgcolor(bgColor)

Tip. Keep transparency high (70–90) so price bars stay readable through the background colour.

Why It Matters

Colour cues let the eye pick out trends faster than raw numbers. bgcolor() and fill() allow you to shade price zones, highlight breakouts, and keep the price series legible. Done right, background accents show whether price sits inside a balanced range or breaking into a new regime without cluttering the chart.

What You’ll Learn

Build dynamic upper and lower bands around a baseline
Shade the band interior to reveal compression or expansion
Recolour the chart background when price leaves the band
Combine bar colours and transparency to keep price readable

Quick Reference

Call	Purpose
`bgcolor(color)`	Paints the entire plotting pane per bar.
`fill(plot1, plot2, color)`	Shades the area between two plotted series.
`color.new(color, transparency)`	Produces translucent hues (0 opaque → 100 invisible).
`plot(series)`	Draws the baseline and band edges used by `fill()`.
`barcolor(color)`	Optionally matches candle bodies to the current background story.

Implementation Blueprint

Define a baseline with envelopes
Start with a smoothing function, then add and subtract a deviation to form band edges.

length = 20
mult   = 2.0

basis = ta.sma(hl2, length)
dev   = mult * ta.stdev(hl2, length)
upper = basis + dev
lower = basis - dev

 plot(basis, "Basis", color=color.orange, linewidth=2)
 plotUpper = plot(upper, "Upper band", color=color.new(color.blue, 0))
 plotLower = plot(lower, "Lower band", color=color.new(color.blue, 0))

Shade the interior of the band
Use the plot references returned above and fill the space with a muted colour.
```
fill(plotUpper, plotLower, color.new(color.blue, 88))
```

Signal breakouts with background and bar colour
When price crosses outside the band, change the background (and optionally the bars) to draw attention.

isAbove = close > upper
isBelow = close < lower

bgcolor(
     isAbove ? color.new(color.green, 80) :
     isBelow ? color.new(color.red, 80) : na
)

barcolor(
     isAbove ? color.new(color.green, 20) :
     isBelow ? color.new(color.red, 20) : na
)

Example Playbook

//@version=5
indicator("Dynamic bands + breakout background", overlay=true)

length      = input.int(34, "Basis length")
mult        = input.float(2.2, "Deviation multiplier", step=0.1)
bgStrength  = input.int(75, "Background transparency", minval=0, maxval=100)
matchBars   = input.bool(true, "Recolour bars outside band")

basis = ta.ema(hl2, length)
dev   = mult * ta.stdev(hl2, length)
upper = basis + dev
lower = basis - dev

plotUpper = plot(upper, "Upper", color=color.new(color.blue, 0))
plotLower = plot(lower, "Lower", color=color.new(color.blue, 0))
plot(basis, "Basis", color=color.orange, linewidth=2)

fill(plotUpper, plotLower, color.new(color.blue, 88))

isAbove = close > upper
isBelow = close < lower

bgcolor(
     isAbove ? color.new(color.green, bgStrength) :
     isBelow ? color.new(color.red, bgStrength) : na
)

if matchBars
    barcolor(
        isAbove ? color.new(color.green, 25) :
        isBelow ? color.new(color.red, 25) : na
    )

Why this works.

The shaded band conveys volatility range without masking candles.
Breakout colours only appear when price escapes the band, keeping emphasis rare.
Optional bar tinting adds redundancy while retaining the underlying candle structure.

Pro Tips & Pitfalls

Persist plot handles in variables; fill() only accepts references returned by plot() or hline().
Combine bgcolor() with barcolor() sparingly—too many colours dilute meaning.
If multiple indicators use bgcolor(), order matters. Draw the most important background last.
Use overlay=true so backgrounds and fills paint on top of price instead of in a detached pane.

Troubleshooting & FAQ

The fill between my bands is missing

Ensure both band edges are plotted and you pass those plot references to fill(). Calling fill(upper, lower, …) on raw series does nothing.

The background hides my candles

Transparency is inverted: 0 is solid and 100 is invisible. Aim for 70–90, and consider resetting barcolor(na) when price returns inside the band.

Key Takeaways

fill() and bgcolor() together show where price sits relative to volatility envelopes.
color.new() keeps overlays translucent so the underlying price remains readable.
Signal only the events that matter (band breakouts, regime shifts) to preserve colour meaning.
Layer backgrounds carefully when multiple scripts share the same chart.

Keep Going

Open AI Editor to apply the pattern with guided assistance
Browse Strategy Examples for ready-to-run templates
Connect to Live Trading when you are ready to automate

Adapted from tradingcode.net, optimised for Algo Trade Analytics users.