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Understanding Metatrader 5 Backtesting

Metatrader 5 is not just a trading platform; it’s a gateway to testing and refining your trading strategies. This section will introduce you to the basics of Metatrader 5 Backtesting. We’ll explore how to set it up, choose your trading instruments, and select the right strategies and timeframes. It’s a process that allows you to simulate your strategy against historical market data, offering invaluable insights.

Metatrader 5 Backtesting: Leveraging Historical Data for Effective Strategy Analysis

Backtesting trading strategies in Metatrader 5 heavily relies on historical data. This data is crucial as it encompasses detailed bar information, including open, high, low, and close prices. Such comprehensive data allows traders to meticulously analyze how a strategy would have performed in the past, spanning months or even years. Historical data in Metatrader 5 provides an indispensable foundation for backtesting. It acts as a lens through which traders can view and understand market behaviors during different periods.

This historical perspective is vital for traders to evaluate the profitability and feasibility of their strategies based on how they would have fared in past market conditions. However, it’s essential to bear in mind that past profitability does not necessarily predict future outcomes. Therefore, continuous evaluation and adaptation of strategies are crucial for sustained success in trading. Metatrader 5’s advanced backtesting tools, combined with extensive historical data, empower traders to refine their strategies with a higher degree of precision and confidence.

In Metatrader 5, accessing extensive historical data is key for a thorough backtest. To achieve this, simply press the HOME key on your keyboard. This action prompts Metatrader 5 to load additional bars, effectively extending the range of your backtesting data. The more data you have, the longer and more comprehensive your backtest can

EA Studio, which will be discussed later in this post, includes vast amounts of historical data from several reliable brokers, and is customisable to your broker’s fees, spreads, commissions and swaps. Getting adequate historical data from your broker has always been one of the biggest challenges when backtesting or creating strategies. This is why we created our FREE Historical Data App.

Enhancing Metatrader 5 Backtesting with Comprehensive Historical Data App

Complete and Reliable Forex Historical Data

For traders using Metatrader 5, the availability of quality Forex historical data is crucial for accurate backtesting. This proprietary Historical Data App offers data sourced from DukasCopy Europe, renowned for its precision. The data is collected from accurate tick data and then compiled into bar data, ensuring no gaps or missing bars. This completeness is vital for traders who rely on thorough backtesting in Metatrader 5.

Versatile Data Formats for Diverse Needs

The Forex Historical Data in this app is tailored to suit various platforms, including Metatrader 5, EA Studio, and FSB Pro. This versatility means that traders can choose the format that best fits their specific backtesting needs. Additionally, there’s an option to export this DukasCopy Europe Historical data into Excel, offering flexibility and convenience for data analysis.

Rapid Download Capability

Recognized as the fastest data app on the market, the Forex Historical Data App ensures efficiency in backtesting preparation. It allows for the swift download of historical data, with the capability to download up to 200,000 bars for each asset in mere seconds. This speed is a significant advantage for Metatrader 5 users who require quick access to extensive historical data.

Regularly Updated Data for Up-to-Date Analysis

One of the unique features of this app is its regular updates. The historical data is refreshed every 24 hours, ensuring that traders have access to the most recent information. This feature is particularly beneficial as it eliminates the need to rely on MetaTrader or other trading platforms for the latest data updates. Traders using Metatrader 5 can confidently backtest their strategies with the assurance that they are using the most current and comprehensive data available.

Setting Up Your Backtest

Setting up a backtest in Metatrader 5 is simpler than you might think. We’ll walk through the steps of selecting your trading instrument, the specific strategy you want to test, and the appropriate timeframe. This setup is crucial as it lays the foundation for accurate backtesting results. For the purposes of this blog post, we’ll focus on Stocks, specifically, Tesla.

Setting Up the Expert Advisor

Now we will walk you through placing an Expert Advisor on MetaTrader for backtesting. The first step in this process is to navigate to the ‘File’ menu and select ‘Open Data Folder’.

Navigating to the Right Folder

Once you’re in the ‘Open Data Folder’, proceed to the ‘MQL4’ folder and then to the ‘Experts’ folder. This is where you’ll paste your Expert Advisor. After doing so, close the folder to move on to the next step.

Compiling the Expert Advisor

The next crucial step involves going to the ‘Navigator’ tab. Here, right-click on the Expert Advisor and select ‘Modify’. This opens the MetaEditor, where you can compile the Expert Advisor and check for any errors or warnings that might affect your trading strategy backtest.

Setting Up the Expert Advisor on the Chart

After compiling the Expert Advisor, drag it over to the chart and drop it. A small menu will pop up, displaying the inputs of the Expert Advisor, the parameters of the indicators, and the strategy properties. At the bottom of this menu, you’ll find the ‘magic number’. This number is essential as it helps you track the performance of multiple Expert Advisors on a single account.

Enabling Algo Trading and Testing on a Demo Account

Remember to enable Algo Trading if you intend to trade with the Expert Advisor. However, if you’re conducting a trading strategy backtest, Algo Trading can be turned off. It’s also recommended to test any Expert Advisor on a Demo account before using it on a real account. This step is crucial for adjusting trading quantities, Stop Loss, and Take Profit settings without risking real money.

So right-click and go to Expert Advisors and then click on Strategy Tester.

Fine-Tuning Your Metatrader 5 Backtesting: Selecting the Right Period and Model

Choosing the Right Timeframe for Backtesting

In Metatrader 5 Backtesting, setting the right symbol is just the beginning. You have the flexibility to use the entire historical data available or opt for a custom period. This choice is crucial as it determines the scope of your backtest. To begin the backtest, right click on your chart, select Expert Advisors and then Strategy Tester. Next, select a custom period, simply access the ‘Date’ dropdown menu. Here, you’ll find two boxes that become editable, allowing you to specify the exact timeframe you wish to analyse. This feature is particularly useful if you’re looking to focus on a specific period in history for your backtest.

Understanding Modeling Options in Metatrader 5

The ‘Modelling’ section in Metatrader 5 is where you choose how your strategy will be tested. If your strategy is based on the opening prices of bars, like the Tesla stock trading strategy mentioned here, then ‘Open prices only’ is the ideal choice. This option ensures that the strategy checks for entry and exit conditions precisely at the opening of each new bar. It’s a straightforward and efficient method, especially suited for strategies that rely on the opening market conditions.

Tailoring the Model to Different Strategies

However, Metatrader 5 Backtesting is versatile enough to accommodate various types of strategies. If you’re working with a strategy that involves stick patterns or complex mathematical calculations, you might need to select a different modelling option. Each option caters to different strategy requirements, ensuring that you can backtest a wide range of strategies effectively. For the purpose of this guide, though, the focus remains on ‘Open prices only’, which is a widely applicable and efficient method for many trading strategies.

Optimizing Strategies in Metatrader 5 Backtesting

Setting the Initial Balance and Leverage

In Metatrader 5 Backtesting, the ‘Optimizing the strategy’ section follows ‘Modelling’. Here, you first encounter the option to set your initial balance. This balance can be any amount, ranging from 10,000 to 100,000 or more, depending on your preference. Next, you have the flexibility to adjust the leverage. Leverage is a critical aspect as it can amplify both gains and losses in trading.

To Optimize or Not to Optimize

The crucial decision in this section is whether to use optimization. Optimization in Metatrader 5 Backtesting involves the software automatically finding the most suitable parameters for your strategy. However, a word of caution is necessary here. Over-optimization is a real risk. It means making your strategy too perfect, based on past data, which might not always translate well into future market conditions. Therefore, unless you are experienced in handling such tools, it might be safer to avoid optimization in your backtesting process.

Visual Mode in Metatrader 5 Backtesting

Engaging the Visual Mode

After setting up your strategy, Metatrader 5 Backtesting offers a ‘Visual mode’. This mode allows you to see the backtesting process in action. By checking this option and clicking the ‘Start’ button, a new tab opens up, displaying the results of your strategy’s performance. One of the advantages of this mode is the ability to adjust the speed of the simulation, giving you control over how quickly you view the backtesting results.

Analyzing Trade History and Operations

In the ‘History’ tab, you can clearly see important details like where the Stop Loss was set for each position. This tab provides a historical view, showing data availability from the selected broker, sometimes going back as far as 2010. To access more historical data, you can use the ‘Home’ key on your chart in Metatrader 5. This action loads as much data as available, which is especially useful before starting your backtesting.

Understanding the Strategy Tester Visualization

Operations Tab for Detailed Trade Analysis

Adjacent to the ‘History’ tab is the ‘Operations’ tab. This section is where you can see where each trade was opened and at what price. For instance, if you are analyzing a strategy involving Tesla stocks, you can observe how the stock price has evolved since 2010. These tabs display all trades executed with the chosen Expert Advisor.

Navigating Between History and Operations Tabs

A notable aspect of Metatrader 5, which differs from Metatrader 4, is the separation of the ‘History’ and ‘Operations’ tabs. In Metatrader 5, these tabs are distinct, with one showing the Stop Loss and the other displaying the open price and Stop Loss. This separation can be slightly confusing for new users. If you need to compare specific trades, you might find yourself switching between these two tabs, which can be less convenient compared to the more integrated approach in Metatrader 4.

Analyzing Backtesting Results in MetaTrader 5

Understanding the Strategy Tester Visualization

In MetaTrader 5, backtesting a strategy using the Strategy Tester visualization is a straightforward process. This feature allows you to get a visual representation of how your strategy performs. However, to delve deeper into the performance of your strategy, you need to navigate to the ‘Backtest’ section. This is where MetaTrader 5 showcases its robust analytical capabilities.

Key Metrics in Backtest Results

In the ‘Backtest’ section, you will encounter several crucial statistics that provide insights into your strategy’s performance. These include the overall balance, the drawdown, and the expected payoff. One of the key metrics here is the ‘Profit factor’, which in this instance is above 1.81. This figure is significant as it represents the ratio of all profits to all losses. A Profit factor greater than 1 indicates that the strategy is profitable, as it means the profits exceed the losses.

Comparing MetaTrader 5 and MetaTrader 4 Backtesting

When it comes to backtesting statistics, MetaTrader 5 offers a more comprehensive set compared to its predecessor, MetaTrader 4. This enhanced capability allows for a more detailed analysis of the strategy’s performance.

The Graph Tab: Visualizing Strategy Performance

Another notable feature in MetaTrader 5 backtesting is the ‘Graph’ tab. This tab presents a graphical representation of the trading strategy’s performance over time. It becomes particularly useful in understanding how a strategy fares in different market conditions. For example, in recent months, the market for Tesla stocks has been quite volatile. The ‘Graph’ tab clearly shows the strategy’s performance during these periods, highlighting significant movements and results. In this case, it demonstrates that the strategy achieved impressive profits amidst the market’s volatility.

Advancing with EA Studio

While Metatrader 5 offers a solid foundation for backtesting, EA Studio takes it to the next level. This advanced tool provides detailed analysis and rapid results, making it a favourite among professional traders.

MetaTrader 5 vs EA Studio: A Comparative Analysis of Backtesting Tools

Instant Feedback and Detailed Analysis

EA Studio’s standout feature is its ability to provide immediate feedback on strategy adjustments. This means you can tweak your strategy and see how it performs instantly, saving you valuable time. The detailed analysis offered by EA Studio helps you understand the nuances of your strategy, ensuring you’re well-equipped to make informed trading decisions.

Ease of Use: EA Studio’s Advantage

When it comes to backtesting trading strategies, many prefer using Expert Advisor Studio over MetaTrader 5. The primary reason for this preference is the ease of use offered by EA Studio. Unlike MetaTrader 5, where you might find yourself switching between multiple tabs, EA Studio streamlines the process. Its user-friendly interface and professional-grade software make it a preferred choice for many traders.

Note, this is in the context of backtesting strategies. This is just one of the many features of EA Studio, not least of which is it’s ability to automatically create strategies, based on backtesting over historical data. You can select and adjust these dates as needed when using the Generator. We’ll look at this in more detail in the Data Horizon section below. You can also create your Expert Advisors from scratch with no programming or coding experience required. Let’s discuss this in more detail.

Benefits of EA Studio for Backtesting in Trading

While MetaTrader 5 is a powerful tool for backtesting, EA Studio offers additional advantages, particularly for traders who need deeper statistical insights and faster testing capabilities.

Comparison: MetaTrader 5 vs. EA Studio for Backtesting

Feature	MetaTrader 5	EA Studio
Backtesting Speed	Moderate	Extremely Fast
Customization	Limited	Extensive
Strategy Optimization	Basic	Advanced with Auto-Optimization
Graphical Analysis	Standard	More Comprehensive
User-Friendliness	Requires manual setup	Intuitive interface

Why EA Studio Stands Out:

• Allows traders to instantly modify strategies and see the results without re-running the entire backtest.
• Provides a more pessimistic outlook to help traders prepare for real-world market conditions.
• Supports multi-strategy portfolio testing, enabling traders to run different Expert Advisors simultaneously.

While MetaTrader 5 remains a robust choice, combining it with EA Studio enhances the accuracy and efficiency of backtesting for traders.

Strategy Editor in Expert Advisor Studio

Clear Layout of Trading Strategies

In the Expert Advisor Studio Strategy Editor, every aspect of your trading strategy is displayed in a clear and straightforward manner. This layout makes it easy for traders, even those who are not native English speakers, to understand and analyze their strategies.

Understanding Entry Indicators

One of the key features of this editor is the visibility and customisation of essential entry indicators. These tools are crucial for traders to identify potential entry points in the market. The Moving Averages, in particular, are used to detect trends, while the Alligator indicator helps in confirming the trend’s direction and strength. It’s important t note that these are just 2 of the many available indicators, and each indicator has an infinite number of parameters that can be set. The beauty of using EA Studio’s strategy editor is you can immediately see the backtest output as soon as any changes are, without the need to go through the process of backtesting your strategy after every adjustment, like you would in MetaTrader 4

Example Strategy

Let’s take a look at a strategy created in EA Studio. This strategy uses the Bollinger Bands and William’s Percent Range as it’s entry indicators, and The Envelopes as it’s exit strategy, all with custom settings.

Comprehensive Strategy Analysis in EA Studio

In EA Studio’s Strategy Editor, traders can view their entire strategy with remarkable clarity. This tool displays crucial components like entry indicators, including popular ones like Moving Averages and the Alligator indicator. This level of detail is essential for traders to understand the mechanics of their strategy.

Enhanced Visibility with Balance Chart

The balance chart in EA Studio, similar to Metatrader 5, is presented in a differently sized window. This variation in size enhances clarity, making it easier for traders to analyze the performance of their strategy over time. The balance chart effectively illustrates the strategy’s profitability, providing a visual representation of gains and losses.

Entry and Exit Indicators in EA Studio

EA Studio’s Strategy Editor also includes detailed entry and exit rules. For instance, the Williams’ Percent Range is used as an entry indicator, with specific conditions like crossing the level line upward. For exits, the Envelopes indicator is employed, with conditions such as the bar opening above the Upper Band after opening below it. These indicators and conditions are crucial for defining the strategy’s operational parameters.

Indicator Chart for Precise Trade Analysis

One of the standout features of EA Studio is the Indicator chart. This chart allows traders to see exactly where trades were opened and closed, including short and long positions. For example, red bars or small lines below the chart indicate short positions, while green lines represent Take Profit points. This level of detail is invaluable for traders to understand the nuances of their strategy.

Comprehensive Statistics in EA Studio

EA Studio offers a wealth of statistics, providing a deeper understanding of the strategy. The backtest outputs include vital information like profit per day, maximum drawdown, return to drawdown ratio, and the count of trades. These statistics are crucial for evaluating the strategy’s performance and making informed adjustments.

Data Horizon Feature in EA Studio for Metatrader 5 Backtesting

In EA Studio, a key feature for backtesting is the ‘Data Horizon‘ function. This feature allows traders to select the range of historical data they wish to use for backtesting their strategies. With the ability to adjust the data horizon, traders can extend their analysis up to 200,000 bars for each asset. This extensive range is particularly beneficial for gaining a comprehensive understanding of a strategy’s performance over various market conditions. By utilizing this feature, traders can ensure that their backtesting is based on a broad and representative sample of historical data, enhancing the accuracy and reliability of their strategy evaluations. The Data Horizon function in EA Studio thus stands out as a crucial tool for traders aiming to refine their strategies with precision and depth in Metatrader 5.

Risk Diversification and Historical Data Usage

EA Studio also emphasizes the importance of risk diversification. By trading a portfolio of strategies, traders can balance out periods of losses with profitable trades. The use of historical data is key in this process, with EA Studio allowing the use of up to 200,000 bars for each asset. This extensive data range enables traders to backtest strategies over longer periods, providing a more comprehensive view of their effectiveness.

Analyzing Trades in EA Studio

The Journal in EA Studio is particularly useful for analyzing trades. It consolidates all trade data in one place, unlike MetaTrader 5, where data is spread across different tabs. For instance, you can easily review the most recent trades by navigating to the last page of the Journal. This feature allows for a quick and comprehensive analysis of trade performance.

Comparing Trades Between Platforms

A direct comparison of trades between MetaTrader 5 and EA Studio will reveal their similarities. There may be slight difference due to live speeds, missing bars in historical data from the broker and other fees including swaps. However, if set up correctly, the overall backtest balance line and equity figures should be very similar.

MetaTrader 5 Strategy Tester Visualization

While MetaTrader 5 includes a feature known as the Strategy Tester Visualization, which is a useful tool for traders, it does come with certain limitations, especially when compared to the capabilities of EA Studio. One notable limitation in MetaTrader 5 is observed when users switch between the ‘History’ and ‘Operations’ tabs. Unlike EA Studio, where a seamless transition between different data points is possible, MetaTrader 5 does not display the backtesting results in these tabs. This lack of visibility can be a significant drawback for traders who rely on these results to gauge the effectiveness of their trading strategies. The backtesting results are essential for a comprehensive analysis of how a strategy performs under various market conditions, and not having them readily available in the same tab can hinder the efficiency of the strategy evaluation process in MetaTrader 5.

Advantages and Disadvantages of MetaTrader 5

While MetaTrader 5 provides a good backtest to ensure consistency with EA Studio, it has some disadvantages. For those accustomed to EA Studio or MetaTrader 4, following trades in MetaTrader 5 can be challenging due to the separation of data into different tabs. However, MetaTrader 5 does offer more data and backtesting statistics compared to MetaTrader 4, which is a significant advantage.

Avoiding Backtesting Bias and Look-Ahead Bias

One of the biggest challenges in backtesting is bias, which can mislead traders into believing a strategy is more successful than it actually is.

Types of Backtesting Bias:

1. Selection Bias: Occurs when traders pick only favorable time periods for testing.
2. Survivorship Bias: Happens when only successful assets are considered while ignoring failed ones.
3. Look-Ahead Bias: Involves mistakenly using future data that would not have been available during the actual period tested.

Ways to Avoid Bias:

• Use diverse historical data sets to test a strategy under multiple conditions.
• Conduct out-of-sample testing by leaving a portion of data unseen during strategy development.
• Ensure backtests replicate real-world trading conditions, including spreads and slippage.

Free 15 Day Trial

In EA Studio, a standout feature for Metatrader 5 backtesting is the 15-day free trial. This trial is a game-changer, especially when comparing EA Studio with MetaTrader backtesting. For 15 days, you can make use of this unlimited use license, and create thousands of your own robots. I often demonstrate MetaTrader backtesting in my courses to highlight the significant differences. EA Studio is professional software, offering a more streamlined and efficient backtesting experience.

The beauty of EA Studio lies in its simplicity and power. You don’t need programming skills or the need to hire developers. With just one click, you can export numerous Expert Advisors. This ease of use is why I initially chose EA Studio and why it’s now an integral part of our Academy. Our entire team, along with hundreds of our traders, use it regularly.

Final Thoughts on Backtesting with MetaTrader 5

To perform strategy backtesting in MetaTrader 5, the process is straightforward. You need to set up the Expert, Symbol, Timeframe, and Modeling, with ‘Open prices only’ being a common choice for EA Studio strategies. Starting the backtest will reveal if the strategy was profitable up to the current moment. However, it’s important to remember that past performance in backtesting doesn’t guarantee future profitability.

MetaTrader 5’s Strategy Tester and EA Studio each have their strengths, and choosing between them depends on your specific needs and familiarity with the platforms. EA Studio is however, undoubtedly more powerful and feature-rich.

Tips for Successful Backtesting

Successful backtesting requires more than just the right tools; it needs the right approach. Here, we’ll share tips and best practices for backtesting in both Metatrader 5 and EA Studio. From setting up your test correctly in Metatrader 5 to leveraging the instant feedback in EA Studio, these tips will help you make the most of your backtesting experience.

Conclusion: Your Path to Trading Success

In conclusion, Metatrader 5 Backtesting is a powerful starting point for any trader. Coupled with the advanced capabilities of EA Studio, it forms a robust toolkit for any trader’s arsenal. Remember, the key to success in trading lies in well-tested strategies. So embrace these tools, refine your strategies, and step confidently into the trading arena!

In this lecture, I’m going to make a brief MetaTrader 5 tutorial for beginners. MT5 is the platform that we’ll be using for our automated trading, and we will be putting our Expert Advisors on it. And I’m just going to run you through some of the features and the basic layout and some of the options that you have with MetaTrader 5.

If you look for a MetaTrader 5 tutorial in PDF, scroll to the bottom of the page and leave your email to download the guide. This guide will help you to get familiar with the basic terminology and the most common settings of the platform.

Timeframes

So let’s start this MetaTrader 5 tutorial with the timeframes. Now, the timeframes is this bar you can see here on the taskbar.

We have M1, M5, M15, M30, H1, H4, D1, W1, and MN. And basically what it is, is it’s the 1-minute chart, the 5-minute, the 15, the 30, the 1 hour, the 4 hours, the 1 day, the 1 week, and the 1 month.

I’m just going to expand the chart, this is the Apple (AAPL). What you can see is that currently, it is on M15. So this is the 15-minute chart.

And each one of these candlesticks, each one of these bars represents a 15 minute time period. I’m going to zoom in a little bit, so you can see it a little bit better.

And you can see exactly what the high and the low were simply by putting your mouse over it and the movement in that timeframe in the candlestick itself. There is the information there, if we put our mouse over it, it will give us the information to the open, the high, the low, and the close at that time.

So that is a brief tutorial of the 15 minute chart in MetaTrader 5.

If we click on M30, the chart changes to 30 minutes. And now each one of these candlesticks represents a 30 minute time period and the same for the rest of them. Just put it back on M15. And what I’m going to do is zoom out a little bit simply by clicking on the zoom out. We can get a much better idea of what’s going on.

Market Watch

The next thing that we will cover in this MetaTrader 5 tutorial for beginners is the Market Watch window. This is the window that is located just under the timeframes.

And what the Market Watch window gives us is the symbols that we have selected to have in our Market Watch, the Bid price, and the Ask price.

The Spread

Now, if you right-click anywhere, you get the menu, and then we’re going to select Columns. And then for the purpose of this MetaTrader 5 beginners tutorial what we will do from Columns is to select the Spread.

Now, what you’ll see is that we have an additional column that’s open on the right.

And this is giving us the spread, which is the difference between the Bid and the Ask price. This is the amount that the broker will take as a fee for trading on this particular asset or any one of these assets. Each one has a different spread.

Navigator

Below the Market Watch, we have our navigator window.

And what you’ll see in the Navigator window is that we have our account information, the various indicators that are available to us. So if you had to put a custom indicator, it would appear here.

Next, we have the Expert Advisors and we will, of course, get into that a little bit more detail in another lecture, where I will show you a tutorial on how to put the Expert Advisors into MetaTrader 5 and how to then attach them to your chart. And then below that, we have scripts and services and that’s about it.

Where can we see the different asset specifications?

One more thing I wanted to show you in this MetaTrader 5 tutorial, actually, guys, is that if you right-click anywhere on Market Watch, what you’ll see is that this menu pops up and we can then select Symbols.

And now under Symbols, these are the various symbols that are available to us.

As you can see, we have Forex, Commodities, Index, and Stocks. And under Stocks, we have a few sub-items. In the US, this is what we’ll be using.

So we’ve got the Dow, the New York Stock Exchange, and the Nasdaq. There is the Crypto, which gives you the various cryptocurrencies that you can trade using MetaTrader 5 platform with this particular broker. And then Custom, nothing in Custom at the moment. If you want to add one, it’s very easy. Let’s go to Stocks. I go to the Dow, for example. Let’s say that we wanted to add Chevron. All we do is double-click it.

And what you’ll see is that the icon has gone gold. And what you’ll see is on the left in the Market Watch window, CVX, there it is now available for us.

So we can now open a chart, we can add an Expert Advisor and we can actually use this top chart to trade this Stock.

Below the symbol, you’ll see that there is an information window and this gives you all of the various specifications on the assets.

It’ll give you the digits, the contract size, the spread, the margin currency, etc.

All of the various specifications for this currency. This is quite important to know when we are generating and trading with Expert Advisors because we’ll put this information into Expert Advisor Studio. I’m just going to close that for a second.

Chart window

The next important thing to cover in this MetaTrader 5 tutorial for beginners is, of course, the main chart window.

Now, the chart I show you below is an AAPL, it’s an Apple chart. However, I do have 4 other charts open, so I have 5 charts. Each one is for a different asset. And if I want to see them all on the screen at the same time, I would simply go to Arrange windows button at the top, click on that and you’ll see MT5 will auto-arrange them.

If you double-click on the actual tab, so let’s say, for example, the Tesla, if I double-click on that, it opens up Tesla and if I double-click on it again, it’ll go back to the auto arranged view.

MetaTrader 5 chart types tutorial

The next thing is the types of charts. What we have and we had discussed it briefly, is the candlestick.

We can, however, change this. I’m just going to make it a little bit bigger so you can see what I’m doing. So let’s just maximize it. On the top, we can make a bar chart by clicking on that and we still have the body and open, high, low, and close but not as visible as it is in the candlesticks.

And then we have a line chart which we never use, this just gives you a good overall view of what the price action was during a certain period.

But generally speaking, we’ll always keep it on candlesticks.

So let’s zoom out there and change the chart again.

Chart properties

The next thing we will cover in this MetaTrader 5 tutorial for beginners, is the chart property. So once you have a chart in front of you, you simply right-click anywhere on the chart and we can go down to Properties.

From here, you can change various aspects of your chart. So, for example, we can go to the colors and make this bar up and bar down to the same color. So let’s make the bar up, let’s keep that green, and let’s make the bar down red, for example.

And our bull candle, let’s make it green and the bear candle, let’s make that red as well. Then we’re going to go to Common. There is currently a grid. I don’t want that grid there. So what I’m going to do is, I’m going to remove it and we’re going to do that by going to Show. And from here, we’re going to unselect Show the grid. I click on OK.

And what you see is now my chart looks very different, I have customized it to the way that I want to do it.

So very cool. You can really customize it and make it look like whatever you want, whatever you’re comfortable with, whatever will be easier for you.

Trading Terminal

Next, we have the Trading Terminal and that is this window that is below our chart.

And on the Trading Terminal, what we have is the first tab, which is Trade. This will show you all of our trades that are currently open. We don’t have any trade, so that’s why there’s nothing here. Then we have Exposure but we haven’t made any trades on this MetaTrader 5 tutorial, so we don’t have any exposure at this point.

Journal

Then we have History, News, Mailbox, Calendar, and Company. This is all stuff that comes from the broker. Alerts, if you’ve set up alerts, and Signals, if you set up signals. But importantly, the one that we can also look at a little bit later is the Journal.

The Journal will show you everything that has happened, not just the trades that have opened and closed, but everything that has happened in your chart.

So every action that you have performed from opening your chart to maximizing it. Basically, this is a log file but this will also show you the trades that have opened and closed. And we will compare the results to Expert Advisor Studio.

So let’s go back to Trade. No trades are open.

Drawing tools

The next thing we have is the drawing tools. As Algo traders, we don’t use these because the Expert Advisors do all of the work for us.

But just so you get an idea of what they are, let’s say, for example, we have the vertical tool. So let’s say there was a point on the chart that I wanted to mark, let’s say, for example, where we have quite a big bull candle. So we’re going to click on that. You can see it’s not quite there. So what we’re going to do, because these little squares are at the top and the bottom, we are able to move it and edit it.

So what we’re going to do is just put our mouse on it and just drag it to where we want it.

And that gives us a break or it gives us a marker if we want to use it. We also have the diagonal tool, which is very similar, but this is really used more for drawing trends. So, for example, we had an uptrend.

So if you wanted to do that and maybe if you wanted to enter a trade, for example, where this candle broke, then this is what you would use. This shows you a tradeline, it’s used for trade lines. And then various other tools.

MetaTrader 5 tutorial – the crosshairs

We have the crosshairs. And this isn’t a drawing tool, but this is a marking tool.

So wherever you put the crosshairs, if you look on the bottom, it’ll show you the dates and the time, and on the right, it will show you the price of the asset at that exact time.

Algo Trading in MetaTrader 5

We continue this MetaTrader 5 beginners tutorial with the Algo Trading button. This is obviously very, very important for us but we will discuss it when we place our Expert Advisors onto our chart.

Now, Algo Trading has to be enabled. Currently, it’s in red, so it’s disabled, but this has to be in green before we put our Expert Advisors onto the chart.

But like I said, I will show that in much more detail in another lecture, where I’ll show you how we place the Expert Advisors onto the charts.

Final words

So, guys, that is MetaTrader 5 tutorial for beginners in a nutshell. Don’t worry too much about the drawing tools and the vertical tools because you’re not really going to be using that with your algo trading.

What is important is to understand the Market Watch, to understand what your Spread is, to understand how to add an asset. And again, what we’re going to do is just right-click. We’re going to go to Symbols. And from there you’ve got all the various symbols.

So I hope you found this MetaTrader 5 tutorial informative. As always, if you have any questions, please feel free to ask me in the comments below and I’ll be happy to answer you.

Thank you for reading. I’ll see you in the next lecture.

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Before we actually start trading on the stock market, it is very important to choose the best broker for our needs.

Like with every other business, there are scamming websites, scamming stock trading brokers that are ready to take your money. And usually, these are the brokers that will start calling you on the phone. They will ask you to deposit money, will tell you what is the upcoming IPO, what is the best opportunity to invest at the moment. All they want is to take your money.

And what usually happens is the people never see their money again. These are the so-called scam brokers, which you need to stay away from when trading. You should always be very careful when you are choosing your stock trading broker.

Is your stock trading broker regulated?

In many of my courses and videos, I show that I usually deposit some money with the broker. A small amount, let’s say $100 or $200. Then I withdraw them back to make sure that the website is trusty.

So the first important thing is for the stock trading broker to be regulated. There are different regulatory companies in different countries. We collected some trusted and regulated stock trading brokers. So always make sure that your broker is regulated.

Don’t take the brokers we use or review as a recommendation

And secondly, always test the stock trading broker with a small amount before you fund an account with a huge amount and then find out that actually, that was the wrong broker.

Now, the next important thing is to find a stock trading broker with low commissions. I usually avoid suggesting any brokers in my courses, and quite often I ask my video editor to hide the broker name in my videos.

I don’t want anyone to accept any broker as a recommendation. Because if I tell you I’m using that broker right now, it’s a very trusty one. By the time you’re watching that video, this broker could be gone, no more on the market. Or they can change their commissions. And actually, it happens all the time. The brokers change their trading fees, commissions, all their conditions.

The best thing to do is every 3 or 6 months to look around for a new, better stock trading broker that you can use. And of course, if you are looking into stock trading or stock investing, seriously, you better keep your stocks and funds in a few different places. Same thing with cryptocurrencies. I always keep them on few different crypto wallets so I don’t put all of the risks in one basket.

Let us know if you need assistance finding a stock trading broker

Now, the thing with these no commission brokers is, usually, they offer stock trading or investing via mobile app, and I do that as well. I have a few accounts with different brokers from where I buy and sell stocks from the phone. Probably I’ll be recording some more courses in the future about that as well.

But when we are talking about trading with Expert Advisors and robots, algorithmic trading, you need to have the MetaTrader platform. So when you are choosing your stock trading broker, make sure they offer stocks on the MetaTrader platform so you will be able to trade with the robots. And if you have really hard times finding a stock trading broker, let us know in the comments below. We will give you always some names, but one more time, that’s a personal choice.

The broker you use is a personal choice

Always do your diligence, do your research, talk with some experts in the field, so you can choose a trusty and regulated stock trading broker. And most importantly, the broker that will make you feel comfortable while you are trading or investing with that broker. If you would like to know which are the brokers that we currently use, we have a page on our Academy’s website called Brokers.

And there, we keep like the top brokers we use at the moment. So my team always does the research for the brokers and we do detailed reviews about the brokers. But one more time, not a recommendation. This page is just for the people who have no idea from which broker to start. So we have listed a few brokers that you can choose from.

But at the end of the day, it’s your decision and you should make the choice of the right and trusted stock trading broker for yourself.

Today I’ll be showing you how you can stake Tezos using the Ledger Live app, and I will demonstrate the process step by step.

Is Tezos staking worth it?

Ledger is one of the safest wallets and more and more people are using it. But not everyone knows that actually, they can earn passive income from keeping their tokens in their hardware wallet.

So if I am a token holder of Tezos, I can delegate the validation rights to other token holders that are known as validators. But I won’t be transferring ownership of my tokens. The good thing is that while I am delegating,
my Tezos is completely liquid. This means that there is no locking period, I can move my Tezos at any moment. As well, it is said that there is no risk of delegating the Tezos when using the Ledger Live device. The only risk is that I won’t be getting my rewards. This is why choosing carefully the validator is essential.

And I’ll suggest you always go with the validator that offers the highest rewards, because if too many people choose him, then he might not be able to do it.

How to stake Tezos?

So let me open the Ledger Live app now and I will show you how it works. What I have here are different accounts where I store Bitcoin, Ethereum, Stellar, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, Tezos.

Now if I tap on my Tezos account, I have a total of 255.37 Tezos, which equals $887 based on the current price of Tezos.

Earning rewards

And on the top you see that I have the option to earn rewards. You can earn rewards by delegating your account. I will tap on that and here we have 3 important things to note, delegated accounts remain yours.

And if we compare the information from the official website, you can see that the token holders can delegate their validation rights to other token holders called validators without transferring ownership.

And the second important thing is that we remain with liquid assets.

In other words, we don’t have freezing periods or locking periods like what we have with the Earn section on Crypto.com. At any moment we can exchange, move or transfer the tokens. And the last thing is they state that there is no risk when you are delegating the tokens, the only risk is not to get your rewards.

Now I will tap on Delegate to earn rewards and you will see that it will give me automatically a delegator called Figment, that offers 5.69% yearly reward.

But the better thing you should do, is to choose a delegator by yourself. So I will tap on the Pencil.

I will see all of the delegators.

And here we see estimated yield or this is the reward.

Its risky to go with a baker that has run out of capacity

I never aim at the lowest fees. Anything between 5 and 6 works well for me. And if the fee is that low, probably there is a reason for it.

So I usually go with bakers that have a fee somewhere 5-6% and are at least for a year on the market. Then I look at the staking yield. Again, not a good idea to look always for the highest yields. But of course, anything above 5 would work great. Then we have the efficiency, then we have the capacity.

And if you go with a baker that has run out of capacity then you take the risk, they might not be able to complete and pay you back the promised rewards.

The purpose of staking Tezos with Ledger

So what you need to do is to make your own research. You can visit their Twitter profiles or other social media, look for reviews and see which are the ones that you can trust. I will go now for the purpose of this lecture and for the purpose of staking this Tezos account with the Steak and Bake. They have a 5% fee which is just fine for me, they’ve been on the market since November 2019.

And they have staking yield of 5.92, which is very close to the maximum and we have good efficiency, they’re from Switzerland, and you can see that they have some available capacity, so I will go with them.

Now, let me open the same website on the phone. And I will look for Steak and Bake, here it is, 5%.

You can see the same information, it’s the very same thing.

It’s the same website, just looking at it from the computer, it’s much easier and I can see the bigger picture. I will tap on it and when opening, you will see that I have their address.

Starts with TZ and ends on 9M, and below I have some more information about that baker. But what I need to do right here is to copy the address. So I will have the address where I will be sending the delegation rights.

Both addresses are displayed

And I will open the app now, I will tap again on Delegate to earn. Now again, the Ledger Live app gives me another baker by default. But I will tap on the Pencil to choose the one I want. Now here you can look for them in the list but the better thing you can do is tap on Add custom validator.

And I will paste the address from the website and I will tap on Confirm validation.

And here is the same icon with the delicious steak and it shows the estimated yields per year. I will tap on Continue.

Now I need to connect to my Nano X, it will take just a couple of seconds to connect it.

It requires confirmation from the device itself. Once I do that, it will display both addresses.

So it will show the address from the Steak and Bake. And it will show as well my public address, which is the source.

And then I will be just confirming it from the device. It says, ‘On your device, please confirm to finalize the operation’. And it’s loading, takes a few more seconds, and here it is, ‘Delegation sent’.

You should earn your first rewards in around 40 days. Depending on the validator and then I will see the results.

If you’re not familiar with Ledger Nano X, you can use Ledger Nano S for staking your Tezos

I have some more details like the date, the hour, the network fee. Which is about 20 cents, very small fee. And from my address to the address of the delegator. And if I go back to the portfolio, I can see the delegation as actual transaction and you can see that it was delegated.

It’s easy to keep track of what I have done, if I’m delegating or if I’m staking more accounts.

So now the Tezos actually stays into my account, it’s on my Ledger. I have just delegated it to a baker and I will get rewards for it. So this is how easy it is to delegate your Tezos using the Ledger Live app connecting it to the Ledger Nano X I’m using. And if you’re not familiar with it, there is the Ledger Nano S as well. I have made a video for both of them, so if you wonder which one would work better for you, then you can have a look at it.

But if you are a beginner who is just starting out and you want to test or you are buying your first Cryptocurrencies for a couple of hundred dollars, for example, I don’t think it’s worth it buying a Ledger. Probably on a later stage when you have at least a couple of thousand dollars in value. Then I think it is worthy having a Ledger so you will store your Cryptocurrency safe.

Always use the official website

And something very important. If you are planning to buy a Ledger for staking Tezos, I would suggest you go from the official website. This is our affiliate link if you want to use it.

And if you have any questions about staking Tezos on the Ledger Live app. Or anything that would be useful to you, please write in the comments below. I’ll be super happy to answer your questions if I can of course. And if you found the video useful, give it a thumbs-up. I will see you guys in the next lecture.