MetaTrader 5 Platform Tour: Market Watch, Navigator, Toolbox and Charts

MetaTrader 5 surrounds the chart with four windows, where Market Watch lists prices, Navigator holds accounts and tools, the Toolbox shows trades and the Data Window shows exact values. Ctrl+M, Ctrl+N, Ctrl+T and Ctrl+D show or hide each one.

Module 3 · Lesson 2 of 7

KCM Academy Editorial Team
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Last updated 19 October 2026

What you'll learn

Part of the MetaTrader 5 Basics module. Not installed yet? Start with how to install MetaTrader 5.

What are the main windows in MetaTrader 5?

MetaTrader 5 has four main windows around the chart: Market Watch, Navigator, Toolbox and the Data Window. Market Watch shows prices, Navigator holds your accounts and tools, the Toolbox shows your trades and history, and the Data Window shows exact chart values. Each one has a keyboard shortcut that shows or hides it.

A trading platform window split into four colored panes: a price list, a navigator tree, a candlestick chart and a table along the bottom
The platform wraps the chart in four windows for prices, tools, trades and exact values.

Layout and shortcuts follow the MetaTrader 5 user interface help and the official list of hot keys.

Window Shortcut What it shows What you use it for
Market Watch Ctrl+M Symbols with bid and ask prices, spread and daily change Choosing what to watch, opening charts, checking the spread
Navigator Ctrl+N Your accounts, indicators, Expert Advisors and scripts Switching account, adding an indicator to a chart
Toolbox Ctrl+T Open trades, account figures, history and logs Watching positions and margin, reviewing past trades
Data Window Ctrl+D Exact prices and indicator values at the cursor Reading one candle precisely
Chart window None (it is the main area) The price chart for one symbol, one tab per chart Studying price over a chosen timeframe

Press F9 from anywhere to open a new order window. A closed panel is only hidden: its shortcut or the View menu brings it back.

What does Market Watch show?

Market Watch is the list of symbols your broker offers, with live bid and ask prices for each one. The Market Watch help page lists the bid, the ask, the spread, the time of the last quote and the daily change in percent. You choose which columns appear from its right-click menu.

Key terms in Market Watch

To add a symbol, click the + below the list and type its name, or right-click and open Symbols. To open a chart, drag the symbol onto the chart area. Double-clicking a symbol opens a new order window instead.

Right-click a symbol and choose Specification to see your broker's conditions for it, such as the spread in points, contract size and swap.

What are the Market Watch tabs?

Market Watch has four tabs:

Tab What it shows
Symbols The price list: bid, ask, spread and daily change
Details Daily statistics for each symbol, such as the high and low
Trading One-click buy and sell panels, which send orders instantly
Ticks A tick chart of every recent price change for the selected symbol

How do you read a line in Market Watch?

To read a Market Watch line, find the bid and the ask, then subtract the bid from the ask to get the spread. The spread tells you how far price must move in your favour before a new trade breaks even. Multiply it in pips by the pip value to see the cost in money.

Symbol Bid Ask Spread (points)
EURUSD (synthetic) 1.08500 1.08512 12
  1. Spread in price: 1.08512 − 1.08500 = 0.00012.
  2. Spread in points: 0.00012 ÷ 0.00001 = 12 points.
  3. Spread in pips: 12 ÷ 10 = 1.2 pips.
  4. Cost on 0.10 lot: about $1 per pip, so 1.2 pips × $1 = about $1.20.

Pips and lots are explained in the lots, pips and pip value lesson.

What is the Navigator in MetaTrader 5?

The Navigator is the panel that lets you switch between your trading accounts and run indicators, Expert Advisors and scripts. It is laid out as a tree you can expand, and you use it to open one of your accounts or add an indicator to a chart. Press Ctrl+N to show or hide it.

To add an indicator, drag it from the Navigator onto a chart, as the MetaTrader 5 indicators help shows.

How do charts, timeframes and the Data Window work?

A chart shows the price history of one symbol, and the timeframe sets how much time each bar or candle covers. MetaTrader 5 offers 21 timeframes, from one minute (M1) to one month (MN1). You switch between them with the timeframe buttons on the toolbar, and each chart sits in its own tab.

What is the Data Window?

The Data Window shows the exact values under your cursor: the date and time, the bar's prices and the value of any indicator on the chart. Press Ctrl+D to open it, then move the cursor across the chart.

What does the Toolbox show?

The Toolbox is the panel along the bottom of the screen that shows your open trades, your account figures and your history. Its Trade tab lists open positions and the account line. The History tab lists closed trades. The Journal tab records what you and the platform did during the session.

Tab What it shows
Trade Open positions, pending orders, balance, equity, margin, free margin and margin level
History Closed trades, deposits and withdrawals
Journal A log of platform and trading events in the current session

How do you read balance, equity and margin level in MT5?

Balance is your money before open trades are counted, equity adds the profit or loss on open trades, and margin level is equity divided by margin, times 100. Free margin is equity minus the margin your open positions use. All five figures sit on the account line of the Trade tab.

These definitions follow the MetaTrader 5 help on executing trades:

Worked example: a synthetic $1,000 demo account

You buy 0.10 lot of EURUSD at the ask, 1.08512. The position is worth 10,000 euros × 1.08512 = $10,851.20. At an example leverage of 1:30, the margin is $10,851.20 ÷ 30 = $361.71. The price has not moved, so the position shows the spread as a loss of $1.20.

Figure Calculation Value
Balance Before open trades $1,000.00
Equity $1,000.00 − $1.20 $998.80
Margin $10,851.20 ÷ 30 $361.71
Free margin $998.80 − $361.71 $637.09
Margin level $998.80 ÷ $361.71 × 100 276.1%

MT5 shows the $1.

When price moves against the position, equity, free margin and margin level all fall; when it moves in your favour, all three rise. Margin is explained in the leverage and margin lesson, and the margin calculator runs the sum for other sizes.

What is one-click trading in MetaTrader 5?

One-click trading is a small panel on the chart that sends buy or sell market orders instantly, without the order window. You turn it on from the chart's right-click menu. The one-click trading help explains that the platform asks you to accept its terms the first time you use it.

It skips the confirmation step, so it is fastest once you know the normal order window from the place your first trade lesson.

How do you avoid common MetaTrader 5 beginner mistakes?

You avoid the common MetaTrader 5 beginner mistakes by checking which account is active, opening charts by dragging symbols, and reading equity rather than balance. The usual slips are trading on the wrong account, sending an order by accident and misreading the account figures. A quick look at the screen before each action prevents all three.

Mistake The fix
Trading live when you meant demo Check the account in the Navigator before each session
Opening an order window by double-clicking a symbol Drag the symbol to the chart area to open a chart
An instant order from one-click trading Turn it on once you know the normal order window
Treating balance as your real position Watch equity and free margin, which include open trades

Position sizing and limiting losses are covered in Module 5, Risk Management. Chart templates and Depth of Market come in a later module.

Try it on demo

Log in to a demo account in MetaTrader 5. Add EURUSD and XAUUSD to Market Watch, turn on the Spread column, and drag each symbol onto the chart area. Then press Ctrl+M, Ctrl+N, Ctrl+T and Ctrl+D one at a time to hide and show each window, and find your margin level on the Trade tab.

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1.10000

Quick check

  1. Which window lists symbols with their bid and ask prices?
  2. EURUSD shows bid 1.08500 and ask 1.08512. The spread is
  3. Where do you see your balance, equity and free margin?
  4. Equity is $998.80 and margin is $361.71. The margin level is about
  5. The Toolbox has disappeared from your screen. What do you do?

Frequently asked questions

How do I get Market Watch or the Navigator back in MT5?

Press Ctrl+M for Market Watch or Ctrl+N for the Navigator, or open either one from the View menu. A window that disappears has only been closed, not removed, so you never need to reinstall the platform.

Why can I not see some symbols in Market Watch?

Market Watch shows only the symbols chosen for display. Add more with the + below the list or the Symbols window. If a symbol is not listed at all, your account does not offer it.

What is the difference between balance and equity in MetaTrader 5?

Balance is the money in your account without open trades. Equity is the balance plus or minus the profit or loss on open trades, so the two are equal only when no positions are open.

Sources

Practise what you learned

Open an account to use MetaTrader 5. Start on a demo account before risking real money.

Open Account