Guide

Relative Volume Scanner: How to Use RVOL to Find Runners (2026)

Price tells you where a stock is. Relative volume tells you whether anyone actually cares. A relative volume scanner ranks the market by how much more each stock is trading than it normally does — the fastest way to spot the day's real runners before they move.

What relative volume (RVOL) actually measures

RVOL is a ratio: current cumulative volume divided by the average cumulative volume at the same time of day, over a lookback window (usually 30 or 50 sessions). An RVOL of 1.0 is normal. An RVOL of 5.0 means the stock is trading at five times its usual pace for this point in the session. That kind of imbalance almost never happens without a reason — earnings, news, an offering, a squeeze setup, or aggressive institutional flow.

RVOL thresholds that matter

• 2× RVOL — minimum bar. Below this, moves are usually noise.
• 5× RVOL — genuine unusual activity. Worth a look.
• 10× RVOL and higher — a catalyst almost certainly exists. Read the news before entering.

Why a scanner beats manual checks

You cannot eyeball RVOL across thousands of tickers. A relative volume scanner pre-computes the ratio for the whole market and sorts by it, so the top of the list is always the day's most unusual activity. Pair that with a price ceiling (so results fit a small account) and a catalyst reason on each card, and you have a morning routine that takes minutes instead of hours.

A free relative volume scanner

A 3-minute morning routine using RVOL

1. Open Momentum Scan 15 minutes before the open. Set your max share price.
2. Sort by RVOL. Take the top 5 results.
3. For each, read the catalyst badge. Skip anything without a reason.
4. Mark 2–3 tickers as your focus list. Set alerts near the pre-market high.

Not investment advice. Do your own research.