How to Install Indicators on MT5

Installing new MetaTrader 5 indicators allows you to expand your analysis and trade any indicator-based trading strategy.

But adding new MT5 indicators isn’t as easy as it should be. So if you are wondering how to do it, don’t worry…you’re not alone.

Others find it a little confusing too.

This post will teach you how to add indicators to MT5 and will also provide answers to commonly asked questions about installing custom MT5 indicators.

We also provide resources on where to get free MT5 indicators and how to find reliable programmers to have custom indicators created for you.

You can either watch the video tutorial, or the written version is provided below the video.

MT5 Indicator Installation Video Tutorial

How to Install a MT5 Indicator

Adding a MT5 indicator to the platform is a simple 3-step process.

Step 1: Download the Indicator

First, download the indicator to your computer. The indicator can be in either .mq5 or .ex5 format.

Both will work.

For this example, I selected a random free indicator from the MQL5 library. If you don’t have an indicator at the moment and you want to follow along with this tutorial, feel free to download one from here.

To be clear, I don’t recommend that you actually use any of the indicators in the MQL5 library for live trading, unless you know how to code in MQL5 and understand the source code 100%. 

You don’t know who created these indicators and how well the indicators actually work.

Using one of these indicators is like asking any random person off the street to fix your car. 

That said, I chose to download the Pip Chart indicator. I don’t know what this indicator does, but I’m just going to use it to show you how to install a MT5 indicator.

In this example, I clicked on the link circled above to download the indicator in .mq5 format.

Locate the download in and keep that window open for the next step.

Step 2: Launch MetaTrader 5 and Install the Indicator

Open MT5 and go to: File > Open Data Folder

Then go to: MQL5 > Indicators

Now to back to the window with your downloaded file and click and drag the file to your MT5 Indicators folder.

Step 3: Setup and Test the Indicator

Once the indicator is installed, close and restart MT5. If you downloaded a .mq5 file, MT5 will automatically convert it into a .ex5 file when you restart MT5.

Once MT5 has restarted, go to: Insert > Indicators > Custom > Your indicator name (should be at the bottom of the list)

If you want to add the indicator to multiple charts, setup a chart template and include the indicator in the template. To do this, right-click on the chart, then click on Save Template.

Test the indicator to be sure that it works.

Once you are finished testing, that’s it!

You have just installed your first MT5 indicator!

Uninstalling an Indicator

We aren’t quite done yet…

What if you want to uninstall an indicator?

It’s easy…

Just go to: Files > Open Data Folder again and delete the indicator files that you added to the folder. If you downloaded a .mq5 file, be sure to delete both the .mq5 and the .ex5 files.

Then restart MT5 and the indicator will be gone.

Frequently Asked Questions About MT5 Indicators

Here are some frequently asked questions about installing and working with MT5 indicators.

If you don’t see your question listed below, feel free to ask your question in the comments at the bottom of this page.

Where Can I Download Free MT5 Indicators?

There are a ton of sites out there that provide free MT5 indicators.

However, if you don’t know who programmed these indicators, it’s almost impossible to tell if they are 100% accurate. It also takes a lot of time to download free indicators and test them throughly.

From my experience, it’s best to pay for a ready-made indicator or have one custom-made for you.

This saves a lot of time and headache.

…and I mean A LOT of time!

If you don’t know how to code then it’s best to hire a programmer. You can see our list of programmers here (including who we recommend).

That said, here are a couple of places that you can you can find free MT5 indicators:

• Forex Factory
• MQL5 CodeBase

Warning: Again, remember to test free indicators extensively. You usually get what you pay for. 

What’s the Difference Between .ex5 and .mq5 Files?

• .mq5 files contain the programming code that humans understand
• .ex5 files contain the programming code that MT5 understands

So MT5 developers write indicators in .mq5 format, using MetaEditor.

But when it’s time for MT5 to actually use the indicator, it has to be “translated” to .ex5 format.

MetaTrader 5 does this automatically.

When you add a .mq5 file to MT5 and restart the terminal, a .ex5 file will automatically be created from your .mq5 file and your indicator will be ready to use.

Can I Edit an .ex5 File Before I Install It?

No.

There are services/software out there that claim to be able to decompile or convert .ex5 files to mq5 files.

But I haven’t seen one that actually works.

If you want to change how a custom indicator works and you don’t have the .mq5 file, then it’s best to have an entirely new indicator custom made for you. This will ensure that you are getting an indicator that actually works.

…and since you are in control of this file, you can make any changes you want in the future.

To get our list of MT5 programmers, go here.

Can I Use MT4 Indicators in MT5?

No.

MT4 and MT5 use completely different programming languages, so you cannot install a MT4 indicator in MT5.

The indicator would have to be rewritten for MT5, or you would have to find a similar indicator that is designed for MT5.

Can Custom Indicators be Installed on the Mobile Version of MT5?

No.

The next best thing is to use alert indicators on a desktop computer and send the alerts to your mobile phone. You can learn how to do that in this blog post.

You can also push out MT4/MT5 alerts to multiple devices by using this method.

Of course, an alert won’t be useful with all indicators. But if you have a trading strategy that uses something like a RSI overbought/oversold condition, then an alert works really well for that.

Conclusion

So that’s how you install new MT5 indicators. It’s not the most user-friendly process, but it’s easy once you go through it.

Installing new MT5 indicators allows you to expand your analysis and trade any strategy that uses indicators. This is one of the most powerful features of Metatrader 5.

If you have any questions about this process, leave a comment below.