The spread indicator is a very handy tool that you can use to immediately see what the spread is on any market or Forex pair.
This can be extremely useful especially if you are looking to quickly enter or exit a trade and you don’t want to get caught out by spreads that may quickly be widening.
Why Use a Spread Indicator
Spreads can quickly widen especially at times such as when large news events are being released.
It is not unusual to quickly see your normal spread of 1-2 pips blow past 10 pips.
If you are an intraday trader on a 5 minute chart looking for a 10 pip profit and you are not aware of these increased spreads, then you are going to be a long way behind before you even enter the trade.
MT4 and MT5 have something called a ‘market watch’ tab. This tab allows you to see what the current bid and ask price is on any market or pair.
The market watch panel does not show you what the spread amount is. You have to manually calculate this on the fly. It also does not show you if the spread is getting bigger or smaller.
A spread indicator is changing in real time on your chart showing you the exact amount you could pay in spread.
Spread Indicator MT4
This MT4 spread indicator is a super simple to download and use indicator that will show you directly on your chart in real time the current spread.
You also have the option of changing colors to suit your profile and make it easier to see when you need it.
Read and download: Spread Indicator – indicator for MetaTrader 4
NOTE: If you do not yet have the correct charts make sure you read about the best trading charts and the broker to use these indicators with here.
Spread Indicator MT5
This MT5 spread indicator at MQL5 allows you to add it to any of your pairs or markets charts. You also have the option of changing the color to suit your charts profile.
Another nice bonus of this indicator is you can reposition it to where you would like on your chart.
Read and download: Spread Indicator – indicator for MetaTrader 5
Spread History Indicator MT4
Spread Record Standard MT4 – MQL5
Being able to see the current live spread is handy, but being able to see what the history of the spread was can be even better.
Not only can this help your trading, but it can help you work out a little bit more about your broker.
This spread history indicator for MT4 is a premium indicator, but you can download and try a free demo.
It allows you to see the maximum spread for each bar period as well as the average spread.
The nice thing about this indicator is that it remembers your settings and the previous spread history even when restarting MT4.
Read and download: Spread Record Standard MT4
Spread History Indicator MT5
Spread Record Standard MT5 – MQL5
This spread history indicator for MT5 is by the same creator as the MT4 version and is quite similar.
This indicator is also a premium indicator at MQL5 that you can also test as a demo version.
The spread record indicator for MT5 shows you the spread for each price bar. It has a number of different variables that include the maximum, minimum and average spread over a set period.
Just like the MT4 version this indicator will remember your settings and even after restarting will have the same settings stored.
Read and download: Spread Record Standard MT5
Note: Don’t know how to install and use these indicators? Read How to Download, Install and Use MT4 and MT5 Indicators
