NQ Signals: How To Trade Free Nasdaq Futures Alerts On The 1-Minute Chart
What an NQ alert tells you, what it leaves to you, and a simple plan for the stop, the exit and the size on every one.
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NQ is the futures symbol for the E-mini Nasdaq-100. It moves fast, it trades almost around the clock on weekdays, and a few points can matter a lot. That is why so many traders look for NQ signals: a quick heads-up that the market is leaning one way.
A signal is only half the job. This guide shows what a ProvenSignals NQ alert contains, what it leaves for you to decide, and the plan we use on every alert: open the named chart, set the stop at recent support or resistance, exit after a 3-5 candle move and size from the stop. If you are new to the alert format, start with how to read trading signals.
What An NQ Signal Looks Like
Every alert in the free Telegram channel has the same three parts: the market, the direction and the chart timeframe.
NQ Buy Signal | Chart 1-minute
That is the whole message. There is no entry price, no stop and no target. This is on purpose. On a 1-minute NQ chart, price can move several points between the moment an alert is sent and the moment you read it, so a fixed entry or stop written into the message would often be out of date. You read the alert, open the chart and set your own levels from what is on the screen.
Many NQ signal channels post exact entries, stops and several targets. That format looks precise, but you still have to judge whether those levels make sense when you arrive. Our format makes that judgement the first step instead of the last.
How To Trade An NQ Signal, Step By Step
Use the same routine on every NQ alert. It takes less than a minute once you have done it a few times.
- Open NQ (or MNQ) on the 1-minute chart, the timeframe the alert names.
- Find the most recent swing low (on a buy) or swing high (on a sell) that price has reacted to.
- Put the stop just beyond it: below recent support on a buy, above recent resistance on a sell.
- Size the trade from that stop with the position size calculator, so a stop-out costs only the amount you chose to risk.
- Plan the exit before you enter: close after a 3-5 candle move in the trade's direction.
- If the stop you need is far bigger than a normal 3-5 candle move on that chart, skip the alert.
NQ Or MNQ: Sizing From Your Stop
NQ is large. One full contract is worth $20 per index point, so a 10-point stop is $200 of risk on a single contract. The micro contract, MNQ, is worth $2 per point, a tenth of that. For most small accounts, MNQ is the only way to keep a sensible stop and a sensible risk at the same time.
Work it out in this order: decide the dollar amount you accept to lose, measure the stop in points, then divide. The position size calculator does this for NQ and switches to MNQ automatically when one full contract would risk too much. If even one MNQ is over your budget at that stop, the honest answer is no trade.
| Contract | Value per point | Smallest price step |
|---|---|---|
| NQ | $20 | 0.25 point ($5) |
| MNQ | $2 | 0.25 point ($0.50) |
When To Skip An NQ Alert
Not every alert has to be traded. Skipping is part of the plan, not a failure to follow it.
- The alert is several minutes old and price has already made the 3-5 candle move you would be aiming for.
- There is no clear recent high or low to put a stop behind.
- The stop you need is so wide that even one MNQ is over your risk budget.
- Major scheduled US economic news is due within the next few minutes and you do not want to hold through it.
- You have already hit your own daily loss limit.
What To Look For In Free NQ Signal Channels
Searching for free NQ signals brings up Telegram channels, Discord servers and live streams. A few checks save a lot of money:
Every alert has the same format. You should know in two seconds what market, side and chart it refers to.
No promises. Channels that talk about guaranteed wins or never losing are describing marketing, not trading.
No private payment requests. A signal channel never needs you to send money to a private account to see the next trade.
A plan comes with the alert. If you cannot say where the stop goes and when you would exit, the alert is not tradable yet. For the exit side, read when to exit a trade.
Related guides: ES futures signals, how many trades per day to take and how to use Telegram trading signals.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. NQ alerts are posted in the free ProvenSignals Telegram channel together with ES, XAUUSD, EURUSD and BTC alerts.
No. Each alert names the market, the direction and the chart timeframe, for example NQ Buy Signal, Chart 1-minute. You set the stop at recent support or resistance and plan the exit on your own chart.
It depends on your stop and your account. NQ is $20 per point and MNQ is $2 per point. If one NQ contract would lose more than your budget at the stop, use MNQ. If one MNQ is still too much, skip the trade.
The alerts are for the 1-minute chart, so they are quick trades. The usual plan is to close after a 3-5 candle move in the trade's direction.
Yes. The routine is identical. Only the contract values differ: ES is $50 per point and MES is $5 per point.
Get The Signals
Get free NQ alerts together with ES, XAUUSD, EURUSD and BTC. Open the 1-minute chart, set your stop, and size every trade from it.
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