MidasHow much does gold move in a day: XAUUSD average daily range
Gold’s average daily range in 2026 (2 Jan 2026 – 22 Oct 2026) is about $122 (2.66% of price); the median day is $101 (2.21%). In 2025 the average was $61 (1.74%). Source: our XAUUSD tick data (Dukascopy bid), 2 Jan 2025 – 22 Oct 2026; UTC days, Monday to Friday; range = the day’s high minus low.
Reviewed
Over 462 trading days from 2 Jan 2025 to 26 Oct 2026, the daily range of gold (XAUUSD, high minus low) had a median of $70.90 and a mean of $88.15, about 1.79% of price; one day in ten was wider than $152.45. In the last three months the median was $88.29 (1.97%). In dollars the typical day is about 3.0 times wider than in January 2025 ($29.30), mostly because price rose from about $2,703 to $4,147–$4,400; in percent of price the range grew about 1.8 times.
Average and median daily range of gold by month
One row per calendar month from our XAUUSD tick data (2 Jan 2025 – 22 Oct 2026), UTC days Monday to Friday (Monday includes the Sunday-evening reopen). Range is the day’s high minus low; the percent is the range divided by the day’s opening price. These numbers describe past prices; they are not a forecast.
| Month | Days | Average range | Median range | Average, % of price | Median, % of price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2025 | 22 | $29.8 | $29.3 | 1.10% | 1.09% |
| Feb 2025 | 20 | $44.4 | $41.1 | 1.54% | 1.44% |
| Mar 2025 | 21 | $36.2 | $35.6 | 1.22% | 1.22% |
| Apr 2025 | 21 | $88.0 | $85.1 | 2.73% | 2.56% |
| May 2025 | 22 | $75.6 | $75.0 | 2.30% | 2.28% |
| Jun 2025 | 21 | $53.7 | $55.2 | 1.60% | 1.63% |
| Jul 2025 | 23 | $43.1 | $45.2 | 1.29% | 1.36% |
| Aug 2025 | 21 | $38.9 | $38.6 | 1.16% | 1.14% |
| Sep 2025 | 22 | $53.7 | $53.8 | 1.47% | 1.50% |
| Oct 2025 | 23 | $114.2 | $100.5 | 2.79% | 2.44% |
| Nov 2025 | 20 | $78.8 | $74.3 | 1.93% | 1.82% |
| Dec 2025 | 22 | $75.8 | $65.5 | 1.75% | 1.52% |
| Jan 2026 | 21 | $164.7 | $92.3 | 3.30% | 2.12% |
| Feb 2026 | 20 | $170.2 | $138.5 | 3.44% | 2.73% |
| Mar 2026 | 22 | $181.5 | $160.8 | 3.76% | 3.24% |
| Apr 2026 | 21 | $116.0 | $102.9 | 2.46% | 2.18% |
| May 2026 | 21 | $99.3 | $100.0 | 2.16% | 2.22% |
| Jun 2026 | 22 | $113.9 | $104.0 | 2.69% | 2.37% |
| Jul 2026 | 22 | $84.9 | $85.2 | 2.08% | 2.09% |
| Aug 2026 | 21 | $104.5 | $88.8 | 2.38% | 1.96% |
| Sep 2026 | 22 | $97.0 | $96.3 | 2.24% | 2.19% |
| Oct 2026 | 12 | $70.3 | $59.9 | 1.69% | 1.44% |
| Year 2025 | 258 | $61.3 | $51.8 | 1.74% | 1.51% |
| Year 2026 | 204 | $122.2 | $100.5 | 2.66% | 2.21% |
| Whole period | 462 | $88.2 | $70.9 | 2.15% | 1.79% |
Gold daily range: median, mean and percentiles
The range is high minus low of each trading day. Percentiles show how wide the wider days are: 90% of days were no wider than the 90th percentile value.
| Period | Days | Median | Mean | 75th percentile | 90th percentile | Widest |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whole period | 462 | $70.90 | $88.15 | $106.86 | $152.45 | $771.02 |
| Last 3 months | 60 | $88.29 | $93.05 | $109.46 | $132.55 | $211.58 |
| Period | Days | Median | Mean | 75th percentile | 90th percentile | Widest |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whole period | 462 | 1.79% | 2.15% | 2.55% | 3.51% | 14.18% |
| Last 3 months | 60 | 1.97% | 2.16% | 2.55% | 3.08% | 5.20% |
The absolute move from the day's first price to its last had a median of $30.43 and a mean of $45.16 (90th percentile $102.22): a typical day travels well beyond where it ends.
Daily range by month: dollars and percent
The median daily range was $29.3 in Jan 2025 and $160.8 in Mar 2026, the highest month. Price rose over the same period, so the percent column grows less than the dollar one: 1.09% in Jan 2025 against 3.24% in Mar 2026.
| Month | Trading days | Average price | Median range | Mean range | Widest day | Median, % of price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2025 | 22 | $2,703 | $29.3 | $29.8 | $43.1 | 1.09% |
| Feb 2025 | 20 | $2,894 | $41.1 | $44.4 | $67.0 | 1.44% |
| Mar 2025 | 21 | $2,974 | $35.6 | $36.2 | $57.0 | 1.22% |
| Apr 2025 | 21 | $3,216 | $85.1 | $88.0 | $187.3 | 2.56% |
| May 2025 | 22 | $3,286 | $75.0 | $75.6 | $131.6 | 2.28% |
| Jun 2025 | 21 | $3,356 | $55.2 | $53.7 | $96.7 | 1.63% |
| Jul 2025 | 23 | $3,341 | $45.2 | $43.1 | $65.9 | 1.36% |
| Aug 2025 | 21 | $3,360 | $38.6 | $38.9 | $82.0 | 1.14% |
| Sep 2025 | 22 | $3,650 | $53.8 | $53.7 | $78.6 | 1.50% |
| Oct 2025 | 23 | $4,053 | $100.5 | $114.2 | $293.8 | 2.44% |
| Nov 2025 | 20 | $4,078 | $74.3 | $78.8 | $179.1 | 1.82% |
| Dec 2025 | 22 | $4,309 | $65.5 | $75.8 | $248.6 | 1.52% |
| Jan 2026 | 21 | $4,738 | $92.3 | $164.7 | $771.0 | 2.12% |
| Feb 2026 | 20 | $5,000 | $138.5 | $170.2 | $483.2 | 2.73% |
| Mar 2026 | 22 | $4,896 | $160.8 | $181.5 | $384.3 | 3.24% |
| Apr 2026 | 21 | $4,726 | $102.9 | $116.0 | $245.4 | 2.18% |
| May 2026 | 21 | $4,597 | $100.0 | $99.3 | $150.3 | 2.22% |
| Jun 2026 | 22 | $4,249 | $104.0 | $113.9 | $210.6 | 2.37% |
| Jul 2026 | 22 | $4,074 | $85.2 | $84.9 | $120.4 | 2.09% |
| Aug 2026 | 21 | $4,400 | $88.8 | $104.5 | $211.6 | 1.96% |
| Sep 2026 | 22 | $4,333 | $96.3 | $97.0 | $169.6 | 2.19% |
| Oct 2026 | 12 | $4,147 | $59.9 | $70.3 | $105.1 | 1.44% |
The last month (Oct 2026) is partial: 12 trading days up to 26 Oct 2026. The average price is the mean of the daily opening prices.
Daily range by weekday
Over the whole period the weekdays are close to each other. In the last three months each weekday has only a dozen days, so its numbers move easily and should not be read as a weekday effect.
| Weekday | Days, all | Median, all | Mean, all | 90th pct, all | Days, 3 mo | Median, 3 mo | Mean, 3 mo | 90th pct, 3 mo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | 92 | $70.93 | $89.00 | $137.45 | 11 | $63.02 | $78.49 | $101.84 |
| Tuesday | 94 | $66.25 | $87.18 | $152.44 | 13 | $78.64 | $79.62 | $106.87 |
| Wednesday | 92 | $72.65 | $86.09 | $153.24 | 12 | $100.36 | $117.20 | $196.38 |
| Thursday | 92 | $74.51 | $90.71 | $149.64 | 12 | $91.22 | $89.43 | $123.18 |
| Friday | 92 | $66.23 | $87.78 | $141.33 | 12 | $93.60 | $100.39 | $140.61 |
The 10 widest days
9 of the 10 widest days fall between 28 Jan 2026 and 23 Mar 2026; the widest, 30 Jan 2026, ran $771.0 (14.18% of price). The hours of that stretch are on the biggest 1-hour moves page.
| # | Date | Weekday | Range | % of price | Open to close | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 30 Jan 2026 | Fri | $771.0 | 14.18% | −$542.9 | down |
| 2 | 29 Jan 2026 | Thu | $496.5 | 9.01% | −$74.8 | down |
| 3 | 2 Feb 2026 | Mon | $483.2 | 10.03% | −$43.7 | down |
| 4 | 28 Jan 2026 | Wed | $439.7 | 8.50% | +$340.3 | up |
| 5 | 3 Mar 2026 | Tue | $384.3 | 7.19% | −$220.7 | down |
| 6 | 23 Mar 2026 | Mon | $373.4 | 8.35% | −$29.8 | down |
| 7 | 19 Mar 2026 | Thu | $364.9 | 7.54% | −$193.2 | down |
| 8 | 5 Feb 2026 | Thu | $317.3 | 6.33% | −$308.4 | down |
| 9 | 6 Feb 2026 | Fri | $316.5 | 6.73% | +$261.0 | up |
| 10 | 21 Oct 2025 | Tue | $293.8 | 6.74% | −$267.4 | down |
What this means for a grid and for a stop
A grid and a stop live inside the day's range. A median day went $70.90 from low to high, one day in ten went more than $152.45, and in the last three months the median was $88.29. Example arithmetic, not a setting: with a grid step of $5, a day of $88.29 is about 17.7 steps from low to high (price can visit the same levels several times).
To see what a particular grid does on these ranges, use the grid calculator (deposit, step and number of orders) and the Midas Grid emulator, which replays real ticks. This page is descriptive: past movement does not predict future movement, and it is not advice to trade.
How we measured
- Source. Dukascopy XAUUSD bid tick data, aggregated by us into hourly open, high, low and close. Prices are US dollars per ounce; all times are UTC. Bid only: no spread, commission or swap, and no trading results of any strategy.
- Period. 2 Jan 2025 to 26 Oct 2026: 462 trading days, 10,418 full hours and 2,283 four-hour blocks. “Last 3 months” means days from 27 Jul 2026. Numbers were generated on 29 Oct 2026.
- Day. A trading day is one Monday to Friday UTC day file; the day's open is its first tick. Monday's file also holds the Sunday-evening reopen. The weekend gap itself is not part of any day: see the weekend gap page.
- Range and reach. Range is high minus low inside the window. Reach is the larger of (high minus open) and (open minus low): how far price got from where the window opened, in one direction. Reach is at least half of the range. The percentages of price use the window's opening price.
- The numbers file. All figures on this page come from one file, gold_moves.json; there are no other sources and no estimates.
Frequently asked questions
What is the average daily range of gold (XAUUSD)?
From 2 Jan 2025 to 26 Oct 2026 the mean daily range (high minus low) was $88.15 and the median $70.90 over 462 trading days. In the last three months the mean was $93.05 and the median $88.29. In percent of price the median was 1.79% for the whole period and 1.97% for the last three months.
How often is a gold day wider than $100 or $150?
One day in four was wider than $106.86 (75th percentile) and one day in ten wider than $152.45 (90th percentile). The widest day in the data was $771.02 on 30 Jan 2026. For exact shares of days above a given distance see the move odds page.
Why is the daily range in dollars about three times bigger than in early 2025?
In January 2025 the median daily range was $29.30 at an average price of $2,703. In the last three months it was $88.29 at an average price of about $4,293. The dollar range grew 3.0 times, the price 1.6 times and the range in percent of price 1.8 times. This page describes the change; it does not explain its causes.
Does gold move more on certain weekdays?
Over the whole period the median daily range by weekday stays between $66.23 and $74.51, so the differences are small. In the last three months Wednesday had the highest median ($100.36), but each weekday has only 11–13 days there, which is a small sample.
Is the daily range the same as the move from open to close?
No. The range is high minus low of the day. The absolute move from the day's first price to its last price had a median of $30.43 and a mean of $45.16, against a median range of $70.90: on a typical day price travels well beyond where it ends.
Can the daily range predict tomorrow's move?
No. These are descriptive statistics of past prices, and the range changes a lot from month to month: the monthly median was as low as $29.30 and as high as $160.80. Past movement does not predict future movement.
These are the ranges a grid Expert Advisor works inside.Midas Grid is a grid EA for gold on MT5; its panel shows the room to stop-out for your account and settings.