DOM (Depth of Market)
The DOM (Depth of Market) is a real-time display of all resting limit orders on both sides of the market at each price level. It shows the quantity of buy and sell orders waiting to be filled, giving traders a view into the immediate supply and demand structure around the current price.
The DOM (Depth of Market) is the live order book: a vertical display of resting limit orders at each price level above and below the current market. It shows how many contracts are queued to buy at each bid level and how many are queued to sell at each ask level.
DOM structure
Price Ask Size
5,250.50 142
5,250.25 287
5,250.00 418 ← Best Ask
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5,249.75 356 ← Best Bid
5,249.50 201
5,249.25 98
Bid SizeThe best ask is the lowest price at which someone is willing to sell. The best bid is the highest price at which someone is willing to buy. The spread between them is the bid-ask spread: on ES, typically 1 tick ($12.50).
What the DOM reveals
Depth: how much size sits at each level. A 1,000-lot bid at 5,249.75 represents significant passive buying interest.
Imbalance: when one side has substantially more size than the other across the visible levels, it signals which direction has stronger passive support.
Order flow: watching numbers change in real time reveals pulling, adding, and consuming of orders, all of which carry information about participant intent.
DOM vs Time and Sales
The DOM shows pending orders (the future). Time and Sales shows completed trades (the past). Together they form the complete picture of market activity at any moment.
Limitations
The DOM is easily manipulated. Large orders can be placed and pulled faster than human reaction. What appears to be a strong bid wall may vanish the moment price approaches it. DOM analysis is most reliable when confirmed by actual prints in Time and Sales.