Ichimoku Signals Cloud Indicator: Crosses Graded By Cloud

Written by Dominic Walsh · Published 10 Jun 2026 · Last updated 9 Sep 2026

The ichimoku signals cloud indicator marks every Tenkan and Kijun cross rather than filtering any out. What changes is the grade. A cross with price clear of the cloud gets a full arrow. A cross inside the cloud gets a gold dot instead, which is a visible warning.

This build ships as a compiled .ex4 for MT4 and .ex5 for MT5; the screenshots below come from EURUSD H1.

Platforms	MT4 (.ex4) + MT5 (.ex5)
Chart window	Main price chart
Plots	8: Tenkan, Kijun, SenkouA, SenkouB, Chikou, BuyStrong, BuyWeak, SellStrong
Alerts	popup, push notification, email, sound
Inputs	10

What the Ichimoku Signals Cloud Indicator draws on the chart

Tenkan, Kijun, SenkouA, SenkouB and Chikou make up the standard five lines.

BuyStrong is the lime arrow for a cross with price above both cloud edges.

SellStrong is the red arrow for the mirror case below the cloud.

BuyWeak is a gold dot, used whenever the cross lacks that clearance.

• Tenkan: line, dodger blue, width 1
• Kijun: line, crimson, width 1
• SenkouA: line, sea green, width 1
• SenkouB: line, fire brick, width 1
• Chikou: line, dark orange, width 1
• BuyStrong: arrow, lime, width 2, arrow code 233
• BuyWeak: arrow, gold, width 2, arrow code 159
• SellStrong: arrow, red, width 2, arrow code 234

How the Ichimoku Signals Cloud Indicator calculates its values

Building the system

iIchimoku supplies all five components at `TenkanPeriod` `9`, `KijunPeriod` `26` and `SenkouBPeriod` `52`. Every line comes from the same call, so the plot matches any other Ichimoku on the chart.

Spotting the cross

crossUp needs Tenkan below Kijun on the previous bar and above it now. crossDown mirrors that. Every cross is recorded, whatever the cloud is doing at the time.

Grading it

cloudTop takes the higher span and cloudBot the lower. A close above cloudTop grades the buy as strong. A close inside the cloud, or on the wrong side of it, downgrades the mark to the gold dot.

How to read the signals

A full arrow means the cross and the cloud position agreed.

A gold dot means the cross happened without that support.

Grading beats filtering when you want to see what the system rejected.

Cloud thickness gives a rough sense of how far price would need to travel.

Alert channels in this build: popup, push notification, email and sound, one message per closed bar.

Alerts sit under `EnableAlerts`, which starts on, and `EnablePopup` carries the message. `EnablePushNotify`, `EnableEmail` and `EnableSound` all begin false. `SoundFile` picks the clip. The cross test reads two completed bars, one message per bar.

Every Ichimoku Signals Cloud Indicator input

Core settings

Setting	What it does	Default
TenkanPeriod	Conversion line length, default `9`.	9
KijunPeriod	Base line length, default `26`.	26
SenkouBPeriod	Length behind the second span, default `52`.	52

Display settings

Setting	What it does	Default
ArrowOffsetPt	Mark distance from the bar in points, default `12.0`.	12.0

Alert settings

Setting	What it does	Default
EnableAlerts	Master switch for the graded cross alerts, default `true`.	on
EnablePopup	Terminal dialog on a graded cross, default `true`.	on
EnablePushNotify	Phone push on a graded cross, default `false`.	off
EnableEmail	Mail delivery on a graded cross, default `false`.	off
EnableSound	Sound playback on a graded cross, default `false`.	off
SoundFile	Wav clip for the cross alert, default `alert.wav`.	alert.wav

Settings that fit your chart

The 9, 26 and 52 numbers come from daily charts. EURUSD H1 is the reference chart, where `SenkouBPeriod` at `52` spans two days. On M5 the crosses come thick and most grade as weak. On H4 and daily the grading separates cleanly and strong marks are worth waiting for.

When the Ichimoku Signals Cloud Indicator fails

Marking every cross means a busy chart, even with the grading to guide you.

The cloud sits ahead of price by design, so the grade compares against an older level.

A strong grade usually arrives once price has already travelled clear of the cloud.

Copy the compiled Ichimoku Signals Cloud Indicator file into your MQL4/Indicators folder, and the MT5 build into MQL5/Indicators, then restart the terminal and drag it onto a chart. The step-by-step guide with screenshots is at how to install MT4 and MT5 indicators.

Related on forexmt4systems.com: Ichimoku Trend Strategy.

Background reading on the method behind the Ichimoku Signals Cloud Indicator: Cadre (company) on Wikipedia, investor resources at the NFA.

Download the Ichimoku Signals Cloud Indicator for MT4 and MT5

The zip holds the compiled Ichimoku Signals Cloud Indicator build for MT4 and MT5, plus a short README. Compiled files only, no source. Enter your email below and the download link arrives in your inbox.

FAQ

What separates BuyStrong from BuyWeak?

Where price sat when the cross happened. A close above both cloud edges grades the cross as strong and prints the lime arrow. Anything else, including a close inside the cloud, downgrades it to the gold dot.

Why does the BuyWeak plot exist at all?

So a rejected cross still shows up. A filtered chart hides what the system threw away. The gold dot keeps every cross visible while telling you which ones lacked cloud support, which makes the filter easy to judge.

Does SenkouBPeriod at 52 change the grade?

Yes, indirectly. It sets the slower cloud edge, and the cloud is what the grading compares against. A longer setting gives a slower, wider cloud, which usually means more crosses grade as weak.

Is ArrowOffsetPt at 12.0 enough on H1?

Just over a pip on a five-digit feed, which is tight. Five lines already crowd the candles, so a small offset keeps the marks close to the bars they belong to. Raise it on instruments with large candles.

Are results guaranteed?

No. Trading involves risk. Results are not guaranteed; past performance is not indicative of future results. Use the Ichimoku Signals Cloud Indicator as one input. Always backtest before trading live.