MT5 Alerts & Price Notifications

Watching charts all day is neither practical nor healthy. MetaTrader 5 alerts let you define precise conditions — a price level reached, an indicator crossing a threshold, a time of day — and receive an instant notification without being glued to your screen. Whether you are waiting for EUR/USD to touch a key support level or for the RSI to enter oversold territory, MT5 alerts ensure you never miss the moments that matter to your trading plan.

This lesson covers every alert type available in MT5, how to create and manage them, and how to extend notifications to your mobile device and email inbox.

Types of MT5 Alerts

MT5 supports several alert trigger conditions, each suited to different trading scenarios:

These conditions cover the vast majority of price alert scenarios. For more complex conditions — such as indicator crossovers or multi-condition alerts — you can use custom Expert Advisors or indicator-based alerts written in MQL5.

Creating a Price Alert Step by Step

Setting up MT5 price alerts takes under a minute once you know where to look.

Method 1 — From the Alerts tab:

1. Open the Toolbox panel by pressing Ctrl+T if it is not visible.
2. Click the Alerts tab at the bottom of the Toolbox.
3. Right-click anywhere in the Alerts area and select Create.
4. In the dialog, configure: the symbol (e.g., EURUSD), the condition (e.g., Bid <), the value (e.g., 1.0850), and the notification type.
5. Set the expiration date if you want the alert to auto-delete after a certain time.
6. Set maximum iterations to control how many times the alert fires before deactivating.
7. Click OK to activate the alert.

Method 2 — From the chart:

1. Right-click directly on the chart at the price level where you want the alert.
2. Select Trading and then Alert from the context menu.
3. MT5 will pre-fill the symbol and approximate price level. Adjust as needed and confirm.

Push Notifications to Mobile

One of the most useful MT5 alert features is push notifications, which send alerts directly to the MetaTrader 5 app on your smartphone. This means you can walk away from your computer entirely and still receive price alerts in real time.

Setting up push notifications:

1. Install the MetaTrader 5 app on your iOS or Android device and log in to any account.
2. In the mobile app, go to Settings and find your MetaQuotes ID — a unique alphanumeric code assigned to your device.
3. On your desktop MT5, go to Tools → Options → Notifications.
4. Enter your MetaQuotes ID in the field provided.
5. Click Test to verify the connection. You should receive a test notification on your phone within seconds.
6. Once configured, any alert set to use push notifications will be delivered to your mobile device.

Push notifications work even when your desktop MT5 is running but your computer screen is off, making them ideal for overnight monitoring of price levels on different trading sessions.

Email Alerts

MT5 can also send alert notifications via email. This requires configuring an SMTP server in the platform settings.

1. Go to Tools → Options → Email.
2. Enable the Email option.
3. Enter your SMTP server details (e.g., smtp.gmail.com for Gmail), port (typically 465 or 587), your email login, and password.
4. Set the To address where alert emails should be delivered.
5. Click Test to confirm the configuration works.

Once configured, select Email as the notification method when creating an alert. Email alerts are particularly useful for longer-term traders who check email regularly but do not keep MT5 open continuously.

Managing Active Alerts

As you create more alerts, managing them efficiently becomes important.

• View all alerts in the Alerts tab of the Toolbox panel. Each alert shows its symbol, condition, value, status, and remaining iterations.
• Enable or disable an alert without deleting it by right-clicking and toggling its state. This is useful when you want to temporarily pause an alert during high-volatility news events.
• Modify any alert by double-clicking it in the Alerts tab to reopen the configuration dialog.
• Delete outdated alerts regularly. A cluttered alerts list makes it harder to track the conditions that actually matter to your current trading plan.
• Organize by priority — some traders maintain only 3 to 5 active alerts at any time, focused on their highest-conviction setups, rather than creating dozens of speculative alerts.

Key Takeaways

• MT5 alerts notify you when specific market conditions are met, removing the need to watch charts continuously.
• Price alerts can trigger on bid or ask prices crossing above or below your specified levels.
• Push notifications send alerts to your smartphone via the MetaTrader 5 mobile app using your MetaQuotes ID.
• Email alerts require SMTP configuration but allow notifications even when you are away from your trading setup entirely.
• Sound alerts are the simplest type and work well when you are at your desk but focused on other tasks.
• Set expiration dates and iteration limits on every alert to prevent stale or repetitive notifications.
• Keep your alerts list focused on your active trading plan rather than creating speculative alerts on every possible level.

This lesson is for educational purposes only. It does not constitute financial advice.