Forex traders use different trading platforms to analyze markets and manage trades, and the majority of brokers offer at least several software options to choose from. However, MetaTrader 4 remains the most widely used trading platform. It’s favored by many novice traders for its user-friendly design and a broad range of useful features. By the way, you are not limited by the built-in features: MT4 is pretty flexible and customizable. In this article, we explain how to install additional indicators for the platform.
MetaTrader4 overview
Created in 2005, MT4 still remains arguably the most commonly used trading platform, especially for Forex trading. The platform is easy to learn and very convenient even without any add-ons. It has an impressive variety of built-in indicators that can be used for technical analysis, and you can add them to charts by simply dragging and dropping a desired option. The indicators featured in MT4 are highly customizable, and you can choose their settings right when you add them.
While the range of indicators available in MT4 by default is truly impressive, you may want to install a certain option your software doesn’t have. MetaTrader 4 allows you to do that, and the entire process is quite simple. However, you need to download MT4 indicators before you can install them. Just visit the official MT4 website or the website of your broker to browse available add-ons. Then, just find the indicator you want to install and download it to your device.
Installing indicators
Once you’ve downloaded the file, you can start the installation process. If the downloaded file is a Zip or RAR archive, copy its contents to a new folder on your PC. Launch the program, go to the File tab in the main menu, and select the Open Data Folder option. Then, choose the MQL4 file and click on the Indicators folder. Once the installation process is finished, restart the program. If you did it right, you should see your new indicator in the list. If you don’t see it, try downloading it again.
It’s important to note that you can install custom indicators only in the desktop version of MT4. If you use a mobile version, you won’t be able to install any add-ons, and that is true for both Android and iOS devices. However, you can have several versions of MT4 installed, so it’s quite possible to use your PC for analysis and then manage your positions on the go using a smartphone.