Create and manage chart drawings

Keep annotations tied to the instrument they describe

Drawings are manual annotations saved for the exact instrument, separate from market observations and chart appearance. The same dated futures contract can share its drawing document across matching charts, while a different expiry has a different identity. Exact option contracts also require matching expiration, strike and right. A line on one instrument does not automatically belong on a related micro, an ETF or another expiry. Confirm the chart identity before drawing a level you intend to reuse, especially when several linked and unlinked widgets are open.

Create and edit a drawing

The native drawing catalog is organized into tool groups. Use the drawing's own controls rather than a whole-chart settings change when your goal is to modify one annotation.

1. Open the desired chart and verify its instrument and axes.
2. Choose a drawing from the native drawing toolbar and place its required points on the plot.
3. Select the resulting object to open its available style, text or geometry settings.
4. Adjust colors, line presentation or text using the selected-object controls.
5. Finish the edit and allow the drawing save state to settle before switching accounts or closing the view.

Use snapping and placement modes intentionally

The drawing controls provide weak and strong magnet snapping where supported, along with favorites and stay-in-mode preferences. Snapping helps align points with eligible chart observations; it is a placement aid rather than evidence that your level is a calculated market signal. Stay-in-mode is useful when placing several related annotations, but can also explain why another click creates a new object instead of moving the chart. Return to the appropriate selection or navigation mode before panning. Tools requiring known volume or captured execution-at-price inputs remain unavailable when those inputs are absent.

Manage objects without altering the data series

Selected-object controls support operations such as cloning, stacking order, locking and hiding. Locking protects an annotation from accidental movement; hiding removes it from the current presentation without changing the underlying market bars. Delete an object only when you no longer need it. Undo and redo support the drawing workflow, but they should not be confused with restoring an earlier saved Map document. Position or forecast-style drawing tools remain annotations and measurements. They do not place orders, reserve capital or instruct the market connection to execute anything.

Understand saving and concurrent changes

Drawing documents are account-owned and saved with revision checks. Changes broadcast to matching mounted charts, and concurrent additions or deletions are merged where the workflow supports it. This allows the same exact instrument to show consistent annotations without making every widget's viewport identical. A chart theme does not contain another instrument's drawings, and duplicating a layout does not change the instrument identity to which those objects belong. If a conflict or save error is visible, review it before assuming an immediately drawn object has safely reached every other browser.

Use templates and import or export with identity awareness

The drawing system offers templates or defaults and instrument-checked JSON import and export. A style template is useful for repeating a visual convention, while an export can carry drawing objects for an explicit instrument. Check the target chart before importing, and do not treat a rejected instrument mismatch as a reason to relabel objects indiscriminately. Coordinates meaningful on one price scale can be nonsensical on another. Keep manual drawing levels distinct from mapped options levels, whose reference calculations and availability are maintained by the corresponding market indicator.

Troubleshoot disappearing or misplaced annotations

Verify exact instrument identity first, including the dated future or complete option contract. Check whether an object is hidden, outside the current viewport or behind another object in stacking order. Reset the chart view if you only need to find an offscreen drawing, then restore your desired navigation. If dragging moves the floating favorites or selected-object toolbar, use its left handle deliberately and keep it inside the chart. For support, include the drawing type, instrument, whether the object was saved, and whether another matching chart shows it. A screenshot with both axes is essential for diagnosing coordinate placement.