As mentioned, swing traders aim to capture price swings that happen from a few days to several weeks. As such, swing traders will hold positions for more time than day traders, but less than buy and hold investors.

Swing traders will typically use technical analysis to generate trade ideas, though not necessarily to the same extent as day traders would do. As fundamental events can play out over weeks, swing traders may also use fundamental analysis in their trading framework. 

Swing traders will typically look at medium to high time frame charts. Why? A strong uptrend or downtrend has to be confirmed on a higher time frame. But, they may also look at intraday time frames, such as the 1-hour, 4-hour, 12-hour chart, to look for specific entry and exit points. These triggers can be a breakout or a pullback on a lower time frame, for example. 

However, the most important time frame for swing trading is likely the daily chart. Even so, trading and investment strategies can differ substantially between different traders. Note that what we’ve discussed here aren’t strict rules, but just common examples.