When you’re learning to trade, you’ll often come across two terms that can be quite confusing – SMC and ICT. Many traders think they are the same, while others believe they are completely different.
In this article, we’ll clear up the confusion and explain everything in the simplest way.
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ICT vs SMC – The Difference Every Trader Should Know
Think of SMC as the entire “fruits” category, while ICT-SMC is like “mangoes” – a specific type within that bigger group.
Just like a mango is definitely a fruit, but you wouldn’t call every fruit a mango, ICT-SMC falls under the broader SMC umbrella, but SMC includes much more than just ICT’s approach.
Here’s the thing – although the idea is somewhat controversial, the Smart Money Concept existed long before ICT (Inner Circle Trader) came along.
Traders have been studying institutional behavior, market structure, and how ‘smart money’ moves for decades. They’ve analyzed things like accumulation zones, distribution patterns, and how big players manipulate retail traders.
Then ICT took these foundational ideas and created his own specific framework around them. He developed particular ways of identifying order blocks, fair value gaps, liquidity grabs, and market structure shifts. His methods became so popular that many people started calling his entire approach “SMC” – but that’s not quite accurate.
ICT-SMC is ICT’s specific interpretation and methodology for trading smart money concepts. It’s his unique blend of concepts, terminology, and strategies.
Meanwhile, traditional SMC includes all the various ways traders study institutional behavior – including ICT’s methods, but also Wyckoff analysis, Volume Spread Analysis, and other institutional trading approaches.
So when someone says they trade “SMC,” they might mean ICT’s specific approach, or they could be using any number of smart money strategies.
It’s like saying you eat “fruit” – you could mean mangoes, but you could also mean apples, oranges, or anything else in that category.
What is SMC?
SMC stands for Smart Money Concept.
It is a style of trading that focuses on how big players like banks, hedge funds, and institutions trade in the market. These big players are called smart money because they have more money, more information, and better tools than regular traders.
What is ICT?
ICT stands for Inner Circle Trader, which is the name of a trading mentor – Michael J. Huddleston.
He created and taught SMC concepts that are popular today. His detailed teachings are called ICT-SMC because they are his version of the Smart Money Concept.
He teaches through YouTube, mentorships, and free content. Many advanced traders follow his strategies, and some other educators even teach his concepts under different names.
Also Read – ICT (Michael J. Huddleston)-Biography, Net Worth, YouTube Channel, Family & Trading Success
The Bottom Line
| Point | SMC (Smart Money Concept) | ICT-SMC (By Inner Circle Trader) |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A trading concept or method | A style of SMC taught by Michael J. Huddleston |
| Creator | Not specific – used by many educators | Michael J. Huddleston (ICT) |
| Depth of Learning | General idea of smart money behavior | More detailed with logic, rules, and framework |
| Learning Style | Simple and easy to learn | Detailed, long-term learning approach |
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