How to Use MT4 and MT5: MetaTrader Tutorial for Beginners

How do you use MT4 and MT5 as a beginner?

To use MT4 or MT5, install the platform from your broker, log in to a demo account, open a chart from the Market Watch list and press F9 to open the New Order window. Enter a lot size, a stop-loss and a take-profit, then choose buy or sell. Open trades appear in the Trade tab.

MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 look almost the same, so one tutorial covers both. If you have not picked a version yet, read MT4 vs MT5 first. Follow every step on a demo account, which uses virtual money.

How to install MetaTrader and log in to a demo account

• Step 1: download from your broker. The broker’s installer already contains its server list. MetaTrader itself is free, but you need a broker that supports it. Our independent broker comparison shows which ones do.
• Step 2: open a demo account. Go to File, then Open an Account, pick the broker’s demo server and fill in the form. Many brokers create the demo in their client area instead and email you the details.
• Step 3: log in. Go to File, then Login to Trade Account, and enter the login number, the password and the exact server name. Moving numbers in the bottom-right corner mean you are connected. “No connection” or “Invalid account” means the server or password is wrong.

Choose a demo balance close to what you would really deposit. Our demo account guide explains how to practise properly.

The four MetaTrader windows explained

• Market Watch (Ctrl+M) – the list of instruments with two prices. Bid is the price you sell at and ask is the price you buy at. Right-click and choose Show All if a pair is missing, or Specification to see a symbol’s contract size, overnight fees (swap) and trading hours.
• Navigator (Ctrl+N) – your accounts, indicators, Expert Advisors (trading robots) and scripts.
• Chart – the large price window. You can open several at once.
• Terminal in MT4, Toolbox in MT5 (Ctrl+T) – the panel at the bottom. Its Trade tab shows open positions, the history tab shows closed ones, and the Journal tab records every action and error.

How to open a chart and change the timeframe and chart type

• Open a chart: right-click a symbol in Market Watch and choose Chart Window, or drag the symbol onto an open chart.
• Change the timeframe: click the toolbar buttons from M1 (one minute) to MN (monthly). On H1 each candle covers one hour.
• Change the chart type: press Alt+1 for bars, Alt+2 for candlesticks or Alt+3 for a line, or use the toolbar buttons.
• Zoom and colours: press the + and − keys to zoom, and F8 to change the chart colours.

New to candles? How to read a forex chart covers them from zero.

How to add an indicator and draw a line

• Add an indicator: an indicator is a calculation drawn on the chart. Open the Insert menu, choose Indicators, then a group such as Trend, then Moving Average.
• Set it up: in the box that opens, choose the period, method and colour of the moving average, then press OK.
• Edit or remove it: right-click the chart, open the indicators list (Ctrl+I), select the indicator, then edit or delete it.
• Draw a line: click the horizontal line or trendline button on the toolbar, then click on the chart. For a trendline, click the first point, hold and drag to the second.
• Move or delete a line: double-click to select it, then drag it or press Delete.

For what to draw, see trend lines and channels.

How to place a trade on MT4 and MT5

Press F9, or click New Order on the toolbar. The same window opens on both platforms.

• Volume: this is the lot size. 1.00 is a standard lot of 100,000 units, about $10 per pip on EUR/USD. A pip is the smallest standard price step. 0.01 is a micro lot, about $0.10 per pip. Work out the right figure first with the position size calculator.
• Stop Loss and Take Profit: a stop-loss closes the trade at a set loss and a take-profit closes it at a set gain. Type both as prices, not as pips. Suppose you buy EUR/USD at 1.1000 with a 20-pip stop and a 40-pip target. Stop Loss is 1.0980 and Take Profit is 1.1040. For a sell, the stop goes above the price and the target below.
• Type: leave it on market or instant execution to trade at the current price.
• Send: click Buy or Sell. A buy is filled at the ask price and a sell at the bid price.

The trade now appears in the Trade tab and as a line on the chart. It starts with a small loss. That is the spread, the gap between the bid and ask prices, and it is normal.

How to place a pending order

A pending order waits until the price reaches a level you choose. In the New Order window, change Type to Pending Order, pick a kind, enter the price and press Place.

• Buy Limit – buy below the current price.
• Sell Limit – sell above the current price.
• Buy Stop – buy above the current price, to join a move up.
• Sell Stop – sell below the current price, to join a move down.

MT5 adds Buy Stop Limit and Sell Stop Limit, which combine the two ideas. You can set an expiry so that an unused order deletes itself. Our guide to lot sizes and order types explains when each one makes sense.

How to modify or close a trade and read the Trade tab

• Modify: right-click the trade in the Trade tab and choose the Modify or Delete option. Type new Stop Loss or Take Profit prices and confirm. You can also drag the stop or target line on the chart.
• Close: click the small × at the right end of the trade’s row, or double-click the trade and press the yellow Close button.
• Close part: open the trade’s order window, lower the volume, then press Close. The rest stays open.
• Review: closed trades move to the Account History tab in MT4 or the History tab in MT5.

The summary line under your open trades matters most. Balance counts closed trades only. Equity is balance plus or minus open profit and loss. Margin is the deposit locked against open trades. Free margin is equity minus margin. Margin level is equity ÷ margin × 100. If it falls towards 100%, you are close to the events described in margin call and stop out.

How to use the MT4 and MT5 mobile app

The phone app has the same parts on a smaller screen: Quotes (the Market Watch), Chart, Trade and History. Log in with the same number, password and server.

• Place a trade: tap a symbol in Quotes and choose the new order option. Set the volume, stop-loss and take-profit, then tap buy or sell.
• Manage a trade: in the Trade tab, press and hold a position to modify or close it.
• Be careful with one-tap trading. This setting, called One Click Trading on desktop, sends an order the moment you touch the button, with no confirmation and no stop-loss. A slip of the thumb becomes a live trade. Leave it off while you learn.

Common MT4 and MT5 errors beginners make

• Wrong lot size. Typing 1.00 instead of 0.01 makes the trade 100 times bigger: $10 per pip instead of $0.10. Read the Volume box every time.
• “Invalid stops” or “Invalid S/L or T/P”. The stop is on the wrong side of the price, or too close to it. Brokers set a minimum distance, shown as Stops level in the symbol’s Specification.
• “Trade is disabled” or “Market is closed”. The market is shut for the weekend or a daily break, or the symbol is not tradable on your account type. Check opening times with the market hours tool.
• Logged in with the investor password. This second, read-only password comes with your account details and lets you watch but not trade. Log in again with the main password.
• “Not enough money”. The lot size needs more margin than you have free. Reduce the volume.

Knowing the buttons does not make a trade a good one. MetaTrader will carry out a bad idea as fast as a good one, and a demo cannot copy the pressure of real money. Forex and CFDs are leveraged and carry a high risk of loss. Only trade with money you can afford to lose.