MT4(5)® Indicators: Step-by-Step Installation

How to Install Additional Indicators in MetaTrader 4(5)®

Do you need to install the MetaTrader 4(5)® trading terminal? First of all, download it from the official website of your broker.

*We assume that our reader understands what a technical indicator is and, possibly, has personal experience in using the MT4(5)® programming service.

Installation of Indicators in The MetaTrader 4® Software

 In the MetaTrader 5®, indicators installation works similarly:

Installation of Indicators in the MetaTrader 5® Software

The MetaTrader 4(5)® software offers dozens of standard tools ин вуафгде. However, if they cannot fully realize your ideas, read on.

Step 1

Usually, MQL4® (MQL5®) program scripts and custom indicators are offered as an archive (for example, *.zip). You need to unzip it because you need *.ex4, *.mq4 files (or *.ex5, *.mq5). Let’s look at it in detail.

The process proceeds as indicated in the screenshots below:

Installing Indicator Files in the MetaTrader 4® Interface

In MetaTrader 5®, we work only through the data directory in the program interface:

Installing MT5® Indicator Files in the MetaTrader 5® Interface

Step 2

After the necessary files are placed in the appropriate folders, select the "Refresh" option from the additional menu (right-click on “Indicators”). The list of available indicators and scripts will be updated.

Restarting the trading terminal is not required. Let's go on.

Step 3

You can enable the required indicator in the trading terminal in two ways:

Way №1. Use the "Navigator" option. Open the toolbar. Select the "Custom Indicators" option. Find the installed indicator and move it to the price chart of a trading asset:

Connecting an Indicator in the MetaTrader 4® Interface: Option 1

There are similar actions in the MetaTrader 5® software:

Way 2. Use the «Indicators» option on the main toolbar and then proceed as usual:

Connecting an Indicator in the MetaTrader 4® Interface: Option 2

The same scheme is in the MetaTrader 5® software:

You can use the first or second method. There is absolutely no difference.

Following the indicator algorithm, the necessary lines and elements appear on the price chart:

It means the indicator can already be used to analyze the market and make trading decisions.

Most often, the indicator requires more fine-tuning. Let's read on.

Step 4

Note! Each indicator has a personal set of parameters grouped into several standard tabs in the settings window. The indicator can be optimized during initial installation or later (at any time during operation).

A similar process in MetaTrader 5® looks like this:

In the first tab of the settings ("Common"), the "Allow DLL imports" and "Allow external experts imports" parameters require special attention: It is recommended to "enable" them by default.

The second tab is the most important. Here you can see all the calculated parameters of the indicator (variables and constants).

The graphical chart of the indicator uses the parameters of the settings window third tab. The "Visualization" tab suggests turning on the display mode of the indicator on different timeframes.

You can save the settings in a separate file for some custom indicators.

After you have specified the necessary settings, click on the "Save" button and enter the name of the saved template. To load the previously saved settings, click the "Load" button and select the required template.

There is another option for installing technical indicators: You can download them (for free or buy MT4® indicator) from the tools store available on the trading platform.

Step 5

In the "Tools" window, select the "Market" option. Go to the «Indicators» section and choose an indicator. After this, a page with its full description will open. Study it carefully.

Next, we follow the standard scheme:

You can find the scheme for MetaTrader 5® below:

As a result, a non-standard indicator will be installed on your price chart:

What Is the Result?

We hope that our step-by-step instructions will help you set the MT4(5)® indicator.

If you have questions, please ask them in the comments under the article.

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