MT: Mean Threshold
Also known as: MT, order block mean threshold, 50% of the order block, order block midpoint
What is it?
The mean threshold is the 50% level of an order block - the midpoint between the block's open and its extreme. It is the precise line inside the zone that ICT traders use as the entry, instead of treating the whole block as one wide area. The reason for a line rather than a zone is risk. A bullish order block running from 1.0880 down to 1.0850 is 30 pips deep; entering at the top edge means a 34-pip stop below the block, while entering at the 1.0865 mean threshold halves it to 19 pips for the same target.
Entering at the 1.0865 midpoint instead of the 1.0880 edge takes the stop from 35 pips to 19 for the same 1.0940 target - the whole reason the mean threshold is marked.
The mean threshold is to an order block what consequent encroachment is to a fair value gap: the midpoint that separates the shallow half from the discount half of the array. On EUR/USD 1-hour, the bullish order block spanned 1.0880 to 1.0850, putting the mean threshold at 1.0865. Price retraced to 1.0864, held, and ran to 1.0940 - 75 pips of reward against a 19-pip stop below 1.0845, where entering at the block's top edge would have given 60 pips against 35. The trade-off is real and worth stating plainly.
A limit order at the mean threshold produces a better reward-to-risk ratio when it fills, and no trade at all when price turns from the top edge of the block without reaching the midpoint. Neither choice is free, and neither removes the risk to your capital. See /risk-warning.
Why it matters: Entering at an order block's 50% level rather than its edge roughly halves the stop distance for the same target, which changes the reward-to-risk on every block trade.
Mean Threshold = (order block open + order block extreme) / 2
It decides where inside the block your entry and therefore your stop sits, which is the single biggest lever on the reward-to-risk of an order block trade.
Real-world example
On EUR/USD 1H, a 1.0880-1.0850 bullish order block put the mean threshold at 1.0865; price tapped 1.0864 and ran to 1.0940, giving 75 pips against a 19-pip stop.
How SignalBots handles it
SignalBots signals ship a specific entry price rather than a zone, so the level you are asked to trade is already the precise one - and the published stop is measured from it. See /risk-warning.
Pro tip
Split the entry: take half at the block's edge and leave a limit at the mean threshold, so a shallow reaction still pays and a deep one improves your average price.
Common pitfalls
Waiting for the exact mean threshold on every block and missing the trades that reverse from the top edge, which on strong legs is most of them.
Frequently asked questions
Do I measure the mean threshold from the body or the wick?
From the block candle's open to its extreme wick, which is the full array. Some traders use open to close instead for a tighter line; be consistent, because the two give different entries on a long-wicked candle.
How is it different from consequent encroachment?
They are the same idea applied to different arrays. Consequent encroachment is the 50% of a fair value gap; the mean threshold is the 50% of an order block. Both mark the midpoint that splits the array into a premium and a discount half.
What if price only reaches the block's edge and reverses?
Then a mean-threshold-only entry misses the move. That is the accepted cost of the tighter stop, which is why many traders scale in rather than committing the whole position to the midpoint.
Where does the stop sit for a mean threshold entry?
Beyond the block's extreme, not just beyond the midpoint. The invalidation is still the block being overrun - the midpoint only improves where you got in, not what proves you wrong.
Does the mean threshold work on breakers too?
Traders apply the same 50% measurement to breakers and mitigation blocks. The logic carries over, but the evidence behind those arrays is different, so treat the midpoint as an entry refinement rather than a reason to take the trade.
Trading involves substantial risk of loss. Historical and backtested results do not guarantee future performance. Read the full risk warning.
