Trading on Metatrader 5 Android mobile app

About Metatrader 5

Metatrader 5 is one of the most sought-after and widely used trading platforms in the world. It is the successor to Metatrader 4 which is currently being phased out by most trading providers in favor of the more powerful and highly customizable Metatrader 5.

The popularity of mobile trading remains on the rise as technology evolves and with more people on the go looking for a way to keep track of the global financial markets, along with the ability to manage their accounts, place trades, follow the news, and much more.

Installing Metatrader 5 mobile app

Whether you own an Android or an iPhone with iOS, the first thing you need to do is head over to the respective store where you can download the Metatrader 5 mobile app. In this guide, we will focus on Android, but most functionalities are similar across both operating systems.

For iOS:

‎MetaTrader 5 on the App Store (apple.com)

For Android:

MetaTrader 5 — Forex & Stock trading - Apps on Google Play

You can also access the App Store or Play Store from your phone directly and search for Metatrader 5 (Figure 1) then click on install. Depending on your internet speed, you should be ready very shortly.

Figure 1

Connecting to your broker

First of all, you need to make sure that your broker, and more specifically, your account, supports MetaTrader 5. After downloading the platform, open it and once inside, click on the menu represented by three horizontal bars. Then click on “Get started”. 

To add an account (Figure 2), click the “+” at the top right of the screen. From there, you can look for your broker if you are familiar and sure of the name. In this case, you will search for “CFI” and click on “CFI Global Management Limited”.

Figure 2

From there, you will enter your login and password and select the appropriate server, depending on whether you have a demo or live account. You can also choose to save your password.

Navigating the app

Watch list

Once logged in, you will be able to navigate the bottom menu starting with the two diagonal arrows at the bottom left. Clicking on this will show you your watch list, where you can have all the instruments you would like to keep track of, or trade on one page.

The default view should already have a few instruments listed and adding more is simple. Click on the “+” at the top right and choose from the different asset classes available. Once inside the specific asset class, click the product of your choice and it will automatically be added to your watch list.

Back to the watchlist (Figure 3), the pen symbol right next to the “+” will let you edit the watchlist and rearrange instruments according to your needs.

Figure 3

Charts

There are different ways you can access charts. You can start by clicking a symbol in the watchlist where you will see a menu. Then just click on “Chart”. You can also navigate to the chart function found in the bottom menu and symbolized as three candlesticks.

Once on the charts (Figure 4), you can customize and perform different functions such as:

• Adding indicators (symbolized by the letter “f”)
• Change the instrument (symbolized by the “$” with signs around it)
• Add another window (symbolized by the two back to back windows)
• Place a trade or order (symbolized by the page with a plus in the middle)

Figure 4

Clicking on the chart will bring up a circular quick menu that allows you to change timeframes, add objects and indicators and access the settings of the chart where you can change different functions such as using candlestick or bar charts. Also, this allows you to customize the colors of your chart to suit your visual needs.

Trade function

The trade function is symbolized by a rising diagonal arrow. Clicking on it will display a few key elements including balance, equity, and free margin.

Also, the trade function will show you your trades as well as their current profit/loss. You can click and hold for a list of options such as closing your position, modifying the stop loss or take profit, or simply accessing the chart again.

History

The fourth icon in the bottom menu shows you the history (Figure 5) of your account including closed positions, deposits, withdrawals, and transfers. This page includes a few features at the top such as the ability to filter based on instrument, the ability to sort by time, profit, symbol, and others, as well as a calendar view that allows you to look at the history of your account over a specific period.

Figure 5

News

The fifth icon that looks like a newspaper is the news function of MetaTrader 5. If your broker allows it, this icon will show you any news coming in from specific news feeds. This is beneficial as it keeps you updated with the latest happenings across the markets.

Placing trades on Metatrader 5 Android app

Now that we are familiar with the functionalities of the chart including placing trades, it’s time to place a trade from the watchlist. 

Go to the watchlist and click on the instrument of choice. Then, click on “New Order”. This will bring up the order screen where you can place a variety of orders including instant execution and pending buy and sell orders.

After you decide on the order type, you will enter the lot size of your choice.

Below the size, you can add the price of your stop loss and take profit if you choose to have one or both of them.

Once ready, click on buy or sell, depending on your decision, and your trade or order should be active.

Final thoughts

Whether you are using iOS or Android, the mobile app from MetaTrader 5 is very easy to use and highly intuitive, allowing for a very short learning curve. You can always open a demo account and practice first if you feel you are not ready to use your live account on the mobile app.