MetaTrader 5 (MT5) Indicators and Add-Ons: Enhance Your Trading Experience

MetaTrader 5 (MT5) is one of the most powerful online trading platforms in the world. The brainchild of MetaQuotes, who designed and built the hugely successful forex trading platform, MetaTrader 4, MT5 allows you to trade directly on exchanges and with futures contracts. So, although the MetaTrader brand is historically associated with forex, its latest version is designed for retail traders to broaden the asset classes they trade.

The MT5 trading platform is an industry-leading piece of trading kit out of the box, but there are many ways to fine-tune the software to your benefit.

Within this page, we'll briefly explain the types of trading indicators and add-ons you can adopt to identify potential opportunities that suit your trading strategies.

MetaTrader 5 (MT5) Indicators

MT5 indicators are some of the most important tools for those who prefer to trade based on technical analysis rather than fundamental analysis. Instead of basing your trading angles on news and data from statements and press releases, technical analysis focuses solely on the recent (and past) behaviour of the markets you wish to trade.

There are several types of indicators you can overlay onto your MT5 trading charts. Below, we'll explore the most popular in-built indicators at your fingertips within the MT5 trading platform:

Volume Profile

MT5's Volume Profile indicator gives you important data on the prices at which lower or higher trading volumes were experienced in the market. By looking at real volume (rather than tick volume, which is the most MT4 offers), it can help you to determine a key support or resistance levels to help pinpoint areas for potential price reversals.

Fractal Adaptive Moving Average

This moving average indicator is designed to be more responsive than its predecessors. The Fractal Adaptive Moving Average (FRAMA) indicator works dynamically, underpinned by market fractal geometry. The theory is that this type of moving average filters out short-term volatility and improves general trend direction.

Half Trend Buy and Sell

If you're someone who likes the idea of taking a fraction of profit from an overall trend, the Half Trend Buy and Sell indicator is worth a look. This indicator uses an average line. Whenever an asset trades above an average line, it is a bullish indicator that the price will rise. If it trades below the average line, it is a bearish indicator that the price will continue to fall.

Bollinger Bands

Named after a man named Daniel Bollinger, Bollinger Bands feature a moving average and two lines set at two standard deviations above and below the moving average. When the bands are wide apart from the moving average, you can expect price volatility. When the bands are narrowed, it means an asset's price is often more stable.

Ichimoku Cloud

If you want to use MT5 trading software to spot current and future price trends, an Ichimoku Cloud, also known as an Ichimoku Kinko Hyo, is a suitable trading indicator. It's a multifaceted indicator, capable of displaying likely levels of support and resistance, price momentum and trend direction. A “cloud” is formed when there is a convergence between the various levels and trends.

MetaTrader 5 Add-Ons

The open-source nature of MT5 means that developers are always releasing new add-ons and plugins to add an extra dimension to the platform's capabilities. Once you're familiar with MT5's standard functionality and indicators, you may want the software to work harder for you beyond the built-in features.

Below, we'll explain the types of add-ons you can get your hands on within the MT5 community:

Algorithmic Trading Bots

Automate your trades by enacting trading “bots” which execute trades on the forex and exchange markets based on various real-time indicators and signals. You can purchase trading bots as add-ons to maintain your trading activity and risk management, even when you're away from your trading screens.

Bots are effective add-ons for MT5 as they remove the effects of human emotion from your trading.

Advanced Order Management

Advanced order management tools can also prove highly effective as you gain experience and confidence with trading the markets. These plugins can provide a top-down view of all your active trades and even allow you to manage your positions within a couple of slicks or taps of a screen. It could be a partial take-profit order or even a partial stop-loss order to curb your potential losses – anything you need to mitigate the risk to your trading bank.

Platform Customisation

The MT5 trading platform gives you a multitude of settings to help you customise your trading experience. A quick glance at the “Options” tab within the Tools menu shows several settings at your disposal to tweak.

You can set the common settings of trading charts, enable and disable Expert Advisors (automated bots) and import external bot functions, send push notifications to your mobile device about open positions while trading and so much more. With MT5, you can trade the markets your way.

Analytical Objects

Within MT5's trading platform, you can access upwards of 46 analytical objects to help spot trends and support/resistance levels. Whether it's geometric shapes, Fibonacci tools or arrows to mark important areas on a trading chart, you can choose your preferred analytical objects within the “Insert” tab of the MT5 platform.

Market Sentiment Packs

You can also download and install external plugins which will provide dedicated indicators on market sentiment using real-time market data. There are free and paid-for add-ons available. You've got the freedom to test all kinds of plugins and products to find one that makes your trading angles as clear as possible.

How Indicators and Add-Ons Can Benefit You

1. Intelligent market analysis

   Using industry-leading technical indicators and charting tools puts the power in your hands. You get the opportunity to make informed decisions by analysing recent and historical price data to anticipate future market movements.

2. Trading efficiency

   Thanks to algorithmic trading add-ons and Expert Advisors, you can automate much or all of your trading strategies. Let the MT5 platform execute your trades based on predetermined criteria, without the need for constant monitoring. You can also set custom alerts and notifications when a market experiences specific conditions.

3. 360-degree risk management

   Advanced order management tools give you a real-time overview of every open position in the market. You can also manage your positions to minimise losses and secure profits without the need for manual intervention.

4. 100% personalisation

   The open-source nature of the MT5 platform means you can create or install bespoke trading indicators and scripts to suit your trading strategies. The ability to fine-tune how you engage with MT5 software makes your overall trading more personal and effective.

Choosing the Right Tools for Your Trading Style

It's no use taking a scattergun approach to trading indicators and add-ons for your MT5 platform. You must take the time to hand-pick those that fit your preferred trading style and strategies.

Begin by identifying your trading approach – are you a scalper, a day trader or a swing trader? Choose the indicators, signals and tools that complement these styles.

Start by only using two or three at a time. Don't complicate your trading view. Ultimately, you should use these indicators and add-ons to enhance your MT5 trading experience, not muddy the waters.

As your confidence and know-how grows, you can then incorporate more advanced tools over time. Once you've clearly defined your trading strategy, you may be able to scale up your trading by looking towards Expert Advisors to handle the grunt work of your trading execution.

It's also important to decide which trading platform best suits your style and the assets you wish to trade. MetaTrader 4 (MT4) was the precursor to MT5 and is still just as popular among certain retail traders today. Check out the differences and similarities between MT4 and MT5 to make an informed choice with your trading software.

Trade Smarter, Not Harder

Becoming a successful trader is about putting in the hard yards before letting your strategies do the talking. By leveraging the right indicators and add-ons within your MT5 setup, you can make smarter trading decisions over the long-term.

The technology is there to optimise the amount of time you need to sit staring at your trading charts. It also exists to remove the human emotion from trading, which can so often cause traders to take profits too early and let losing positions grow further.

By exploring the available options and mastering those which fit your trading criteria best you can remove the guesswork and emotional trading that can lead to irrational trades and losses.

As one of the leading MT5 brokers, at TMGM you can open a live trading account and trade with a small bank to get to grips with the MT5 tools and indicators which suit your trading style. Once you're familiar with the platform, your live TMGM account allows you to scale up your trading and put your hard-earned capital to work in the markets.

Trading doesn't have to be a grind. These tools help to keep things simple for MT5 traders.