Exponential Moving Average (EMA) and Simple Moving Average (SMA) are similar in that they each measure trends. The two averages are also similar because they are interpreted in the same manner and are both commonly used by technical traders to smooth out price fluctuations.

There are some differences between the two measurements, however. The primary difference between an EMA and an SMA is the sensitivity each one shows to changes in the data used in its calculation.

SMA calculates the average of price data, while EMA gives more weight to current data. The newest price data will impact the moving average more, with older price data having a lesser impact.

More specifically, the exponential moving average gives a higher weighting to recent prices, while the simple moving average assigns equal weighting to all values.