How to Find the Runners (Without Drowning in Alerts)
Hundreds of alerts fire every day. That firehose is the signal source, not your watchlist. Here's which tool to reach for, how to filter it down to the big moves, and honestly what a scanner can and can't do for you.
Start With the Ranked List, Not the Firehose
The most common mistake new users make is trying to watch the raw Live Alerts feed all day. It scans 11,000+ stocks and fires every time one crosses a threshold, so on a busy day it's hundreds of alerts. That feed is where the signals come from. It is not meant to be read top to bottom.
To find the runners, start with the tools that have already done the ranking for you, then drop into the live feed only for the names you care about.
Which Tool Answers Which Question
"What’s moving right now, ranked?"
Start here. Your first look every session.
"What’s about to move?"
Unusual volume is the earliest tell, often before the % move is obvious.
"Who’s up the most today?"
The plain leaderboard, gainers and losers.
"Show me stocks matching MY criteria"
You have a specific setup (price, volume, % change) in mind.
"What’s being quietly bought over days?"
You want slower, multi-day building rather than today’s spike.
"Tell me the moment something crosses a line"
Real time, once you’ve filtered it (below). Powerful, but noisy raw.
Filter the Alerts So Only the Big Ones Reach You
You don't have to read every alert. On the Live Alerts page you can set filters so it only shows what clears your bar:
Minimum % move (e.g. only stocks up 10%+), minimum RVOL, a price range, minimum dollar volume (to skip the illiquid names), direction (up only), and session (premarket / regular / after-hours). Set “min % move” to 10 and the wall of small movers disappears, leaving the ones actually running.
Your filters save to your account, so they follow you across devices. For exactly when each alert type fires, cooldowns, and the STALE/LATE labels, see the Alert Thresholds reference.
A Simple Daily Workflow
- 1. Scan the board. Open Top Stocks Today and Biggest Gainers to see what's already in play.
- 2. Look earlier with RVOL. Check the RVOL Scanner for names trading on unusual volume that haven't fully moved yet.
- 3. Filter your alerts. Set a min % move and min RVOL so the live feed only pings you on real moves.
- 4. Confirm on the chart. Before you act, open its chart, check the trend, the 200 EMA, and whether there's a real catalyst.
What a Scanner Can and Can't Do (Read This)
A scanner tells you where to look, not what will happen next. That distinction is the difference between using these tools well and being frustrated by them.
High relative volume signals unusual interest, not a guaranteed direction. In our own data, stocks with high pre-market RVOL travel further both up and down after the open (about 3.1% average max up versus 2.8% max down), but they are no more likely to finish higher than a quiet stock (47% versus 49%). The volume tells you something is happening; the catalyst and the price action decide the side.
No tool reliably alerts you before a move, because the alert is the move starting, the moment volume or price crosses the line. And if you didn't get an alert on a stock that ran, it usually means it never crossed a threshold you'd set, or your filters screened it out, not that anything is broken.
None of this is financial advice. The tools surface candidates; the decision is always yours.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which scanner should I use, RVOL or Top Stocks or the Screener?
Top Stocks Today for "what’s moving now," the RVOL Scanner for "what’s about to move," and the Screener when you have your own criteria. Most people start on Top Stocks and use RVOL to catch things earlier.
Will I get alerts before a stock runs?
The alert fires the moment a stock crosses a volume or price threshold, which is the start of the move, not before it. Use RVOL to catch unusual volume early, but treat any "get in before it moves" promise with suspicion. No scanner can see the future.
How do I only see stocks moving more than 10%?
On the Live Alerts page, set the minimum % move filter to 10. You can stack it with a minimum RVOL and a minimum dollar-volume filter to cut the noise further.
Can I filter by float?
Not yet. A float filter is a requested feature we are tracking. Today you can filter by % move, RVOL, price, dollar volume, direction and session.
Why didn’t I get an alert on a stock that spiked?
Almost always because it did not cross the threshold for an alert type, or your filters excluded it (too low a price, too little dollar volume, wrong session). Loosen your filters if you want wider coverage.
Do I need Premium to use the scanners?
The public RVOL and top-mover pages are open to everyone. Browsing the live alerts feed is free for 5 days, then Premium at $24.99/month. You can always add any ticker to a watchlist for personal alerts.
Find Today's Movers Now
Start with the ranked board, then catch the next one early with RVOL.
Discussion
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