Time Markers

Accessing the tool

Time Marker is a drawing tool. Access it in one of the following ways:

From the Drawing Tools menu:

1. Open the Drawing Tools menu.
2. Select Time Marker.

Quick access methods:

• Add the tool to the Drawing Tools Tile indicator for one-click access.
• Assign a hot key for instant activation via keyboard shortcut:
  1. Open the NinjaTrader Control Center.
  2. Go to Tools -> Hot keys.
  3. Assign your preferred key combination.

Understanding the tool Properties

The screenshot below shows all available parameters for the Time Marker drawing tool. Refer to the following sections for detailed explanations of each parameter.

General

Attach to

By default, Time Marker drawings are attached only to the chart they were drawn on, making them visible only on that specific chart (local drawing object). This parameter allows you to change the Time Marker to a global drawing object by selecting the instrument name followed by “(All charts)” from the dropdown menu.

Local: The Time Marker is visible only on the specific chart where it was drawn. Local Time Markers are lost when the chart is closed.

Global: The Time Marker is visible on all charts of the same instrument, including any new charts opened for that instrument. Global Time Markers are stored persistently—even if you close all charts of that instrument, the Time Marker will reappear when you open a new chart for the same instrument.

Example: Changing “Attach to” from “MES 03-26 5 Minute” to “MES 03-26 (All charts)” makes the Time Marker visible on all MES 03-26 charts, regardless of the time frame.

Note: Additionally, a Time Marker can be attached to an indicator so that it will be associated with the indicator and its scale.

Auto scale

When enabled, the Time Marker is included to the auto-scaling of the chart so the vertical axis of the chart will be adjusted such that the Time Marker drawing will always be visible.

Locked

Enable this parameter to automatically lock Time Markers after drawing them, preventing accidental repositioning when scrolling your chart. To apply this parameter to all new Time Markers, save it as your Default Template (Template > Save > Save as Default). You can also lock/unlock a drawing by left clicking the drawing to select it, then right clicking the drawing to view the right click menu, then selecting Lock.

Tag

A custom identifier that can be assigned to the Time Marker for organizational purposes or for use with automated trading strategies.

Interval visibility

Controls on which chart intervals the drawing is visible. Choose from the following options:

All

The drawing is visible on all chart intervals.

Draw_on_and_below

The drawing is visible on the chart interval where it was drawn and all lower (shorter) intervals.

Example: Drawing on 60-minute chart makes it visible on 60-minute, 15-minute, 5-minute, etc., but hidden on daily charts. Use this to avoid clutter when viewing higher chart intervals.

Draw_on_and_above

The drawing is visible on the chart interval where it was drawn and all higher (longer) intervals.

Example: A Time Marker drawn on a 60-minute chart is visible on 60-minute, daily, weekly, etc., but hidden on 15-minute charts.

Text position

Aligns the text above or below the anchor point. The Auto option automatically positions the text above the anchor when the anchor is above the chart bar, or below the anchor when the anchor is below the chart bar.

Line

Configures the line that represents the selected time. You can set the line color, dash style, opacity and width. Click the expand arrow to access detailed line settings.

Text font

Configures the font family, size, and style options (bold, italic) for the time value text. Click the expand arrow to access detailed font settings.

Text background color

Defines the background color displayed behind the time text. This creates a filled box behind the text to improve readability against busy chart backgrounds.

When set to Transparent, the chart’s background color is automatically used as the text background color. To achieve a truly transparent background instead, leave this parameter set to Transparent and set Text background color opacity to 0%.

Text background color opacity

Controls the transparency level of the text background color. Values range from 0 (fully transparent) to 100 (fully opaque). Lower values allow chart bars and indicators to show through the text background.

Visible

Controls whether the Time Marker drawing is displayed on the chart. Unchecking this parameter hides the Time Marker without deleting it, allowing you to temporarily remove it from the chart view and restore it later.

Visible data

Show date & time long format

Displays both the date and time in long format according to your system’s regional settings.

Example: 2/12/2026 2:30:45 PM

Note: When this option is active, it takes precedence over other visibility options and displays the complete timestamp.

Show date

Displays the date in short format according to your system’s regional settings.

Example: 2/12/2026

Note: This parameter is ignored when “Show date & time long format” is active.

Show week number

Displays the week number of the year according to your system’s regional calendar settings.

Example: 7 (for the 7th week of the year)

Note: The week number calculation uses the calendar week rule and first day of week defined in your system’s regional settings.

Show day of month

Displays the numerical day of the month.

Example: 12 (for the 12th day of the month)

Show day of week

Displays the name of the day of the week.

Example: Thursday

Show day of year

Displays the numerical day of the year (1-365 or 1-366 for leap years).

Example: 43 (for the 43rd day of the year)

Show time (HH:MM)

Displays the time in short format (hours and minutes) according to your system’s regional settings.

Example: 2:30 PM or 14:30 (depending on your regional settings)

Show time (HH:MM:SS)

Displays the time in long format (hours, minutes, and seconds) according to your system’s regional settings.

Example: 2:30:45 PM or 14:30:45 (depending on your regional settings)

Show hour of the day

Displays only the hour component in 24-hour format.

Example: 14 (for 2:00 PM)

Multiple Parameter Behavior

When multiple visibility parameters are enabled simultaneously, the information is displayed on separate lines in the following order:

1. Date & time long format (if enabled, overrides all others)
2. Date
3. Week number
4. Day of month
5. Day of week
6. Day of year
7. Time (short format)
8. Time (long format)
9. Hour

Example with multiple parameters enabled:

2/12/2026
Thursday
14:30

Important: If only one parameter is enabled (excluding “Show date & time long format”), only that single piece of information will be displayed without additional formatting.

Help

User guide

Displays the URL link to this user guide. Copy and paste the link into your web browser to access the complete user guide and get the most out of this tool — including how to use it effectively and how to configure each available parameter.

Version

Displays the version number of the Time Marker drawing tool. This is a read-only parameter that shows which version of the tool is currently installed.