Home / Academy / How to trade gold on MT5
A practical walkthrough of MT5 for gold: from opening a demo account to placing, managing and closing a trade, on desktop, iPhone and Android, using the platform's official terms.
Risk warning: CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. Educational content only. Nothing here is a recommendation, and no result is guaranteed.
MetaTrader 5 (MT5) is a trading platform made by MetaQuotes. Your broker, not MetaQuotes, executes your trades. The platform shows live prices, draws charts, holds your order ticket and lists your open positions and history. It runs on Windows, Mac (through a broker's package or compatible software), iPhone, Android and the web. Most gold signal followers use it, which is why this lesson focuses on it.
Button names and steps below follow MetaTrader's official help pages (linked at the bottom). Menus, shortcuts and screens can differ between app versions and brokers. We never show invented screenshots as if they were the real platform.
Never share your account password, and never install a trading "robot" or "indicator" from a stranger. Some of them are scams.
MetaTrader's help confirms the File menu route and explains that demo trading uses virtual money. Source: Open an Account (MetaTrader 5 Help).
Open the app's settings or accounts section, add an existing account (login + server) or open a new demo account with your broker. Screens differ by version.
On desktop, Market Watch (View menu, or Ctrl+M) lists symbols with bid and ask. If gold is not listed, right-click inside Market Watch, choose Symbols and search for the gold instrument. Brokers name it differently: XAUUSD, XAUUSD.m, GOLD and others. On mobile, open Quotes, tap + and search.
On desktop, right-click the symbol in Market Watch and choose Chart Window, or use File → New Chart. The toolbar offers timeframes from M1 (one minute) up to D1 (daily) and beyond, and a chart-type button for bars, candlesticks and lines. On mobile, open a symbol's chart from Quotes and use the timeframe and chart-type buttons at the top of the chart.
New to candlesticks? Read How to read gold charts.
| Platform | How to open the order ticket |
|---|---|
| Desktop | Tools → New Order (F9 on Windows), or right-click the symbol in Market Watch and choose New Order. |
| Android | On the Trade tab tap the New order button (an icon), or select a symbol in Quotes and choose New order. |
| iPhone | In Quotes, select the symbol and choose Trade. With nothing open, the Trade tab also offers Open position. |
Official fields: Symbol, Type (execution or pending order), Volume, Stop Loss, Take Profit, Deviation (Instant execution), Comment (up to 31 characters) and Fill Policy (Market/Exchange modes).
A market order opens immediately at the current price: Buy by Market or Sell by Market (Market execution), or Buy / Sell (Instant execution). Your broker's execution mode decides the exact button labels. In Instant mode, Deviation sets how far the price can move before you may get a new quote.
A pending order waits for price to reach a level you choose:
| Type | Use |
|---|---|
| Buy Limit | Buy at a price below the current market. |
| Sell Limit | Sell at a price above the current market. |
| Buy Stop | Buy when price rises above the current market (momentum). |
| Sell Stop | Sell when price falls below the current market. |
| Buy Stop Limit / Sell Stop Limit | Two-stage orders: a stop level triggers a limit order. |
A pending "Stop" order is not the same thing as a stop loss. The first opens a trade, the second protects one. Pending orders are placed with the Place button, and changed with Change (MetaTrader 5 Help).
Volume is in lots. Calculate it from your risk and stop distance (calculator in risk management). Stop Loss and Take Profit are entered as prices (or as distances, depending on settings). A value of zero means "not set". The platform rejects levels on the wrong side of the market (mobile: Invalid S/L or T/P).
Before you press the button, check: the symbol is gold; the direction is right; the lot size is the one you calculated; the stop loss and take profit are on the correct sides; the spread is normal. Then press the button. The window shows a confirmation or a rejection with a reason.
Open positions are listed on the Trade tab: symbol, direction, volume, open price, SL, TP, current price and floating profit or loss. On mobile the Trade tab is the same idea. Completed orders and deals are stored on the History tab.
Desktop: right-click the position on the Trade tab, choose Modify or delete, set the new levels and click Modify. You can also drag the lines on the chart. Mobile: tap the current value in the position's dialog and type a new level, or drag the level on the chart. On Android, minimise the trading panel first to drag.
Desktop: double-click the position on the Trade tab, or right-click it and pick Close Position. For a partial close, pick Close Position, enter a smaller volume and confirm. Android: long press the position on the Trade tab, choose Close position, then tap the button at the bottom. iPhone: select the position on the Trade tab and use its context menu. On hedging accounts a Close By option offsets two opposite positions against each other.
The History tab shows closed positions, orders and deals with profit or loss, open and close times and prices. Review it weekly: which trades followed your plan? Which broke it? A journal built from history is the fastest way to improve.
Your broker chooses how the account handles positions. On a netting account only one position per symbol exists, so a second BUY adds to it and a SELL reduces or reverses it. On a hedging account you can hold several positions on the same symbol, even opposite ones. This changes how you manage multiple take-profit levels. Source: MetaTrader 5 Help: Basic principles.
Below is the order the real screenshots will follow. Each step needs a genuine capture, so these panels are placeholders until real images are added. Nothing here pretends to be the real platform.
Launch MetaTrader 5 (desktop) or the app (mobile) and log in to your demo or live account.
Find the gold symbol in Market Watch (desktop) or Quotes (mobile).
Open the New Order window (desktop) or the New order dialog (mobile).
Pick the direction and an execution mode, then use the matching button.
Type the Volume. Use your position-size calculation, not a guess.
Type the Stop Loss price on the correct side of the market price.
Type the Take Profit price on the correct side.
Press Buy by Market / Sell by Market (or Buy / Sell on some accounts).
Check the Trade tab: symbol, volume, open price, SL and TP.
Adjust the levels on the open position if your plan calls for it.
Close the position, in full or in part, or let the SL or TP do it.
Find the gold symbol in Market Watch, open the New Order window, enter the volume, stop loss and take profit, then press Buy by Market or Sell by Market. Practise on a demo account first.
Brokers name the symbol differently. Use the gold symbol your broker lists, and check its contract specification for lot size and tick value.
No. A position has one take profit. Use separate positions on a hedging account, or close part of the position at each target.
The platform is free to download, but your broker's trading costs (spread, commission, swap) still apply.
No. It is an educational form that imitates the fields. It cannot trade and it is not MetaTrader.
The Gold Desk shares XAUUSD signals on Telegram, with entry, stop loss and targets on every call. Signals are educational ideas, not advice, and no result is guaranteed. Not directed at residents of the USA. Join the free Telegram channel.