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    MT4: Trading guide

    • Updated

    MetaTrader 4 (MT4) is available for Windows desktop, Android, and iOS mobile devices. This article demonstrates how to use MT4 with your preferred device.

    Before installing MT4, you must know where to find your trading account login and server in your Personal Area (PA).
    Note: For Pro accounts, market execution will be available only in these account currencies USD, JPY, THB, CNY, IDR, VND.

    If you’d like to explore other available trading platforms, get to know which trading platforms to use such as Exness Trade, a mobile trading platform, or the Exness Terminal, a browser-based platform exclusively for MT5 trading accounts.

    • Desktop
    • Android
    • iOS

    How to use MetaTrader 4 (Windows)

    Install MT4:

    1. Download the MT4 app from the Exness website.
    2. Tap Accept on the welcome message then hit X to Open a demo account message.
    3. The Login to an existing account page will be displayed.
    4. In the Find Broker bar, enter “Exness Technologies Ltd” and then select the trading server appropriate for your trading account.
      1. For clients registered with our Kenyan entity, please enter “Exness (KE) Limited”.
    5. Enter your trading account number and trading account password, then tap Sign In.

    The trading account is added to the Accounts tab.

    Install MT4 for Mac OS:

    1. Download the MT4 from the Exness website.
    2. Double-click on the downloaded file to launch the MT4 installation.
    3. Follow the prompts provided to install MT4 on your desktop device.
    4. Enter the “Exness Technologies Ltd” and select the trading server appropriate for your trading account. Click Next.
      1. For clients registered with our Kenyan entity, please enter “Exness (KE)Limited”
    5. Next, select Exisiting trade account and enter your trading account number and trading account password, then click Finish.
    6. The trading account is added to the Accounts tab.

    Log in

    1. Click File > Login to Trade Account.
    2. Enter your trading account’s Login, Password, and Server, then click Login.
      • This information is in your Exness Personal Area (PA). Under “My Accounts”, click the 3-dot icon next to the trading account of choice, and select Account Information for the MT4 Login and Server. Your password is the password that you initially set upon creating the trading account.
    3. If successful, you will hear a confirmation chime which means you are now logged into MT4 with your trading account.

    Switching accounts

    1. While logged into your trading account, click File > Login to Trade Account.
    2. Sign in with your other trading account’s number, password, and corresponding server; then click OK. You can make switching for next time quicker by ticking Save account information.

    Quick switching

    You can switch between active trading accounts by going to File > Login to Trade Account - use the drop-down menu in the Login entry to choose any previously logged-in trading accounts.

    Note: You cannot manage multiple MT4 accounts at once with MT4; if you wish to do this, we recommend MT4 MultiTerminal which is tailored to meet this need.

    Add and remove instruments

    To add:

    1. Right-click on the Market Watch window.
    2. Select Symbols.
    3. Select from the list of symbol groups displayed.
    4. Click on an instrument to add them to Market Watch and click Close.

    To remove:

    1. Right-click on an instrument in the Market Watch.
    2. Click Hide.

    Opening orders

    There are 4 ways to open a new order:

    • Click New Order in the toolbar.
    • Press F9 on your keyboard.
    • Right-click on the trading instrument in the Market Watch window, then click New Order.
    • Double-click the trading instrument in the Market Watch window.

    These methods open the New Order window.

    1. From the New Order window, select your preferred symbol, transaction size, Stop Loss (SL), and Take Profit (TP) levels.
    2. The execution type is found under Type and is auto-detected by the instrument chosen and trading account type.
    3. Click Sell By Market or Buy By Market to place the order.

    Closing orders

    There are multiple ways to close an order:

    • Double-click the order you want to close in the Trade tab (in the Terminal area), then click the yellow Close By Market button.
    • Right-click your order in the Trade tab, select Close Order, and confirm it. With One-Click Trading active, the order closes when Close Order is selected.
    • Click the X on the right of the order in the Trade tab; this closes the order instantly with One-Click Trading active.

    Use any of these methods to close orders.

    Pending orders

    There are 4 pending order types to choose from in MT4 (Buy Limit, Sell Limit, Buy Stop, and Sell Stop); Stop Loss and Take Profit can be set to automatically close these orders.

    1. Open the New Order window (F9).
    2. Select the Symbol, set the order Volume, and choose Pending Order from the Type dropdown menu.
    3. Pending Order settings will appear. Select your pending order choice from the Type dropdown, then set your desired Price and Expiry date.
    4. Optionally, set Stop Loss (SL) and Take Profit (TP) levels above as normal.
    5. Click Place to set up your pending order.
    Note: Expiry dates that fall during a weekend will see the order expire at market close at the end of the current week (excluding cryptocurrency instruments).

    Modify or delete orders

    1. Right-click the order in the Trade tab (in the Terminal area).
    2. Click Modify or Delete Order.
    3. To modify: amend the fields available for modification, including Price, Stop Loss, Take Profit, and Expiry. Click Modify once done.
    4. To delete: click the Delete option.
    Note: Please follow Stop Levels when setting pending orders (including SL and TP).

    Opening the Journal

    1. Click File and click on Open Data Folder.
    2. Click on the Logs folder.

    For data about actions performed by Expert Advisors, it is stored in a separate log file. To find it:

    1. Click File and click on Open Data Folder.
    2. Click on MQL4 then Logs.

    If you need to send one or more lines from your terminal logs, you can copy them directly from MT4. To do so:

    1. Go to the Experts tab or Journal tab (depending on the type of logs you need: Experts for Expert Advisors log files, or Journal for normal log files).
    2. Right-click on the desired line and click Copy. You can select several lines by pressing Ctrl+Shift on the keyboard.
    3. Once copied, you can send that information to our Support Team via Live chat or email support@exness.com

    Opening News

    1. In the toolbar, click Tools > Options.
    2. In the Server tab select Enable News.
    Note: If using Demo accounts or Standard Cent accounts, you will only be able to see the header of the news, not the entire article.

    How to use MT4 (Android)

    Download and log into MT4

    1. Download the MT4 app from the Exness website.
    2. Tap Accept on the welcome message then hit X to Open a demo account message.
    3. The Login to an existing account page will be displayed.
    4. In the Find Broker bar, enter “Exness Technologies Ltd” and then select the trading server appropriate for your trading account.
      1. For clients registered with our Kenyan entity, please enter “Exness (KE)Limited”.
    5. Enter your trading account number and trading account password, then tap Sign In.
    6. The trading account is added to the Accounts tab.

    Switching accounts

    1. Open MT4 and select Manage Accounts from the main menu.
    2. Tap the trading account you want active in the Accounts tab, enter the trading account’s credentials if prompted, and then Sign In.
    3. That trading account is now active in MT4.

    Add or remove trading instruments

    Tap on the Quotes icon on the bottom-left of the screen to bring up the default list of instruments.

    Tap the + icon in the top-right corner.

    1. To add: Select a group of symbols.
    2. Tap the instrument(s) you want to add.
    3. Tap the Back button until you’ve returned to the Quotes tab.

    To remove:

    1. Tap the pencil icon (top right), then the bin icon.
    2. Select the symbol(s) to be deleted by ticking the boxes.
    3. Tap the bin icon again to confirm the removal.
    4. Tap the Back button once done.

    Opening orders

    1. Go to Quotes.
    2. Tap the instrument you want to trade, then New Order.
    3. Set your order parameters (Stop Loss, Take Profit, Deviation, etc.)
    4. To execute a market order now, tap Buy by Market or Sell by Market.
    5. Tap Place. You will then receive a notification that the order has been opened successfully.

    Pending orders

    1. Locate the New Order option.
    2. Tap on the execution type displayed and select a pending order.
    3. Set the following parameters:
      1. Order Volume
      2. Price for the pending order (you will need to set up an additional price for Buy Stop Limit and Sell Stop Limit)
      3. Stop Loss (optional)
      4. Take Profit (optional)
      5. Expiration
    Note: Expiry dates that fall during a weekend will see the order expire at market close at the end of the current week (excluding cryptocurrency instruments).
    Note: In the New Order window, the dropdown menu on the icon at the top-right corner will list all the instruments added to your Quotes tab; pick an instrument to place a pending order.

    Close or modify orders

    1. Tap on the Trade icon.
    2. Tap an order to see its details (Price, S/L, T/P, order ID, etc.).
    3. Tap and hold the order, then tap Close or Modify an order.
      1. Tap Close Order to close the order.
      2. Change any settings presented, then Tap Modify.
    4. You will receive a notification confirming the action.

    Open instrument charts

    1. Go to Quotes.
    2. Tap the instruments, then select Open chart.

    Changing chart types

    1. Tap Menu, then tap Settings.
    2. Tap Line type.
    3. Choose from three types of real-time charts: Bar chart, Candlestick, and Line chart.

    Changing timeframe

    1. Tap on the chart.
    2. Select a timeframe from the pop-up. 9 timeframes are supported: M1, M5, M15, M30, H1, H4, D1, W1, and MN.

    Adding indicators

    1. When in a graph, tap the ƒ icon in the top menu.
    2. Tap ƒ+ next to the Main Chart.
    3. Select an indicator from those presented.
    4. Set your preferences for the selected indicator.
    5. Tap Done.

    Opening the Journal

    1. Go to Journal (top-left menu).
    2. Select the dates and tap the letter icon to send it by email to your preferred email address.

    Opening News

    1. Go to News (top-left menu).
    2. Tap any entry to view economic news from FXStreet in detail.
    Note: If using Demo accounts or Standard Cent accounts, you will only be able to see the header of the news, not the entire article.

    Notifications

    1. Select Messages and tap on the MQID button.
    2. Copy or save the ID.
    3. Next, log in to MT4 on your desktop device.
    4. Open the Tools menu, and select Options.
    5. Select the Notifications tab and click Enable Push Notifications.
    6. Enter the MQID when prompted and click Test.
    7. You should receive a push notification sent to your Messages area on MT4 on your Android device.

    Custom Notifications

    1. Log in to MT4 on your desktop device.
    2. Open the Alerts tab in the Terminal window.
    3. Right-click anywhere and select Create.
    4. Select Enable and choose Notification from the Action dropdown menu.
    5. Customize your preferred notification, then click Test.
    6. You should receive the custom push notification sent to your Messages area on MT4 on your Android device.
    7. Click OK to complete setting up the custom notification.

    How to use MetaTrader 4 (iOS)

    Download and log into MT4

    1. Download the MT4 app from the Exness website.
    2. Open MT4 and select Settings.
    3. Tap New Account and select Login to an existing account.
    4. Enter “Exness Technologies Ltd” and then select the trading server appropriate for your trading account.
    5. Enter your trading account’s number and trading account password, then tap Sign In.

    Switching accounts

    1. Open MT4 and go to Settings.
    2. Tap the arrow next to the account displayed at the top of the page. You will see the account you are currently trading on under Current Account. Below that, under Trade Accounts you will find the other accounts added to the app.
    3. Tap on any trading account to log in.
    4. That trading account is now active.

    Add or remove instruments

    To add:

    1. Go to Quotes.
    2. Tap the + icon in the top right corner.
    3. Select a group of symbols.
    4. Tap the green + to add the instrument(s), then tap Done.

    To remove:

    1. Tap the pencil icon (top left corner) then select the symbol(s).
    2. Tap the red basket icon (top right corner).
    3. Tap the Edit icon to go back to the Quotes tab.

    Opening orders

    1. Go to Quotes.
    2. Tap the symbol you want to trade and then tap Trade.
    3. Enter the trading volume.
      • Optionally set Stop Loss, and Take Profit as well.
    4. Tap Sell by Market to sell or Buy by Market to buy.
    5. A notification that the order has been opened successfully is sent.

    Pending orders

    1. Open the Trade option.
    2. Tap on the execution type displayed and select a pending order.
    3. Set the following parameters:
      1. Order Volume
      2. Price for the pending order (additional prices required for Buy Stop Limit and Sell Stop Limit)
      3. Stop Loss (optional)
      4. Take Profit (optional)
      5. Expiration
    Note: Expiry dates that fall during a weekend will see the order expire at market close at the end of the current week (excluding cryptocurrency instruments).
    Note: In the New Order window, the dropdown menu on the icon at the top-right corner will list all the instruments added to your Quotes tab; pick an instrument to place a pending order.

    Close or modify orders

    1. Go to Trade.
    2. Tap an order to see its details (S/L, T/P, order ID, swap, etc.).
    3. Press and hold the order, then tap Close or Modify an order.
      1. To close: Tap Close to close the order.
      2. To modify: Change the Stop Loss and/or Take Profit parameters, then tap Modify to confirm.
    4. A notification is sent confirming the action.

    Open instrument charts

    1. Go to Quotes.
    2. Tap the instruments and then tap Chart.

    Changing chart types

    1. Tap anywhere on the chart, then tap Settings.
    2. Choose a chart type. You can use three types of real-time charts in the mobile terminal: Bar Chart, Candlestick, and Line Chart.
    3. Tap the Back button.

    Changing the timeframe

    1. Tap the current timeframe in the top left corner of the screen.
    2. Select a timeframe. 9 timeframes are supported: M1, M5, M15, M30, H1, H4, D1, W1, and MN.

    Adding indicators

    1. Tap on the ƒ symbol on any chart.
    2. Select either the Main window or Indicator window 1 and tap +.
    3. Select an indicator. You have access to thirty technical indicators.
    4. Specify settings for the selected indicator.
    5. Tap Done.

    Opening the Journal

    1. Go to Settings and select Journal.
    2. Select the dates to be shown a log of your session’s activities. You can send it to your preferred email address.

    Opening News

    1. Navigate to Settings.
    2. Select News to be presented with a selection of articles from FXStreet. Tap each individual item to open the full article.
    Note: If using Demo accounts or Standard Cent accounts, you will only be able to see the header of the news, not the entire article.

    Notifications

    1. Navigate to Settings.
    2. Select Chats and Messages.
    3. Copy or save the MetaQuotes ID at the bottom of the screen.
    4. Next, log in to MT4 on your desktop device.
    5. Open the Tools menu, and select Options.
    6. Select the Notifications tab and click Enable Push Notifications.
    7. Enter the MetaQuotes ID when prompted and click Test.
    8. You should receive a push notification sent to your Messages area on MT4 on your iOS device.

    Custom Notifications

    1. Log in to MT4 on your desktop device.
    2. Open the Alerts tab in the Terminal window.
    3. Right-click anywhere and select Create.
    4. Select Enable and choose Notification from the Action dropdown menu.
    5. Customize your preferred notification, then click Test.
    6. You should receive the custom push notification sent to your Messages area on MT4 on your iOS device.
    7. Click OK to complete setting up the custom notification.

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