Original schematic · For learning, not a market forecast.

A range midpoint uses two extremes. A simple moving average uses every closing price in its window. They can look similar during a smooth trend but behave differently in consolidation.

Why midpoints stay flat

If the highest high and lowest low remain unchanged, the midpoint remains unchanged—even when the closes fluctuate. It moves when a relevant extreme changes. That can happen because a new high or low arrives, or because an old extreme leaves the window.

A five bar experiment

Suppose every bar has a high of 120 and a low of 100. The closes are 106, 108, 110, 112 and 114. The midpoint is 110 and the SMA is also 110. Replace the oldest bar with another 120/100 bar closing at 118: the midpoint stays 110, while the SMA becomes 112.4.

Neither calculation is universally better. Choose the one whose information fits your question, and examine which bar caused a change before attributing it to a new breakout.

Further reading: Kojiro’s Japanese Ichimoku lesson 12. This English lesson and its diagram were independently written and created by Ichimoku Master.