Complete Beginner’s Guide to Deriv MT5 (Start Trading the Right Way)

Starting with Deriv MT5 as a complete beginner gives you a massive advantage. Unlike traders who learned on outdated platforms, you’re beginning with the industry’s most advanced trading software. Moreover, Deriv MT5 combines professional-grade tools with accessibility that works for newcomers.

This complete Deriv MT5 beginner guide walks you through everything—from account setup to placing your first trade. Additionally, we’ll cover essential concepts that separate successful traders from those who blow accounts in their first month.

Step 1: Understanding What MT5 Actually Is

Before downloading anything, understand what you’re getting into. MetaTrader 5 (MT5) is trading software that connects you to financial markets. Moreover, it provides charts, analysis tools, and order execution all in one interface.

What MT5 does:

Displays real-time price charts for thousands of instruments
Provides technical indicators for analysis
Executes your buy and sell orders
Tracks your open positions and account balance
Offers automated trading through Expert Advisors

Therefore, MT5 is your command center for trading. Additionally, it’s free to use—you just need a broker account.

Why Deriv MT5 specifically: Deriv provides the broker infrastructure (pricing, execution, account management) while MT5 provides the trading interface. Consequently, you get professional execution combined with industry-standard software.

Step 2: Opening Your Deriv MT5 Account

Start by creating your Deriv account here. The process takes about 5 minutes.

Account creation process:

Enter email and create password
Verify your email address
Complete personal information (name, address, date of birth)
Choose MT5 as your platform
Select account type (Standard, Financial, or Financial STP)

Important account type differences:

Standard: Fixed spreads, no commission—good for beginners learning Financial: Variable spreads, no commission—better for active trading Financial STP: Raw spreads + commission—best for experienced traders

My recommendation for beginners: Start with Standard account. Moreover, the fixed spreads make costs predictable while you’re learning.

Step 3: Downloading and Installing MT5

After creating your Deriv account, download MT5:

For Windows:

Go to Deriv’s platform download page
Click “Download MT5 for Windows”
Run the installer
Follow installation prompts
Launch MT5 when installation completes

For Mac: MT5 runs on Mac through compatibility software. However, the web terminal works perfectly on Mac without downloads.

For Mobile:

Download “MetaTrader 5” from App Store or Google Play
Open app and search for “Deriv”
Log in with your account credentials

Pro tip: Start with desktop MT5 for learning. Mobile is great for monitoring, but desktop offers the full feature set for education.

Step 4: Logging Into Your MT5 Account

When you first open MT5, you’ll see a login screen.

Your login credentials:

Login: Your MT5 account number (found in Deriv dashboard)
Password: Password you created during MT5 account setup
Server: Select Deriv’s server from dropdown (usually auto-detects)

After logging in successfully, you’ll see your account balance in the “Terminal” window at the bottom of the screen.

Common login issues:

Wrong server selected—ensure you pick correct Deriv server
Wrong password—reset through Deriv dashboard if needed
No internet connection—check your network

Step 5: Understanding the MT5 Interface

MT5 looks intimidating at first. However, it’s organized logically once you understand the layout.

Key sections:

Market Watch (left side): Shows available trading instruments. Additionally, displays current bid/ask prices. Right-click to add or remove instruments from view.

Chart Window (center): Displays price charts for selected instruments. Moreover, you can open multiple charts simultaneously. Right-click chart to change timeframes, add indicators, or modify appearance.

Toolbox/Terminal (bottom): Shows your account info, open positions, account history, and alerts. Additionally, this is where you monitor active trades.

Navigator (left panel): Access your accounts, indicators, Expert Advisors, and scripts. Furthermore, drag indicators from here onto charts.

Therefore, you have everything needed for analysis and trading in one interface. Additionally, you can customize the layout by dragging windows to different positions.

Step 6: Placing Your First Trade (Paper Trading)

Before risking real money, use Deriv’s demo account. Moreover, it provides unlimited virtual funds for practice.

How to place a market order:

Select your instrument: In Market Watch, double-click the pair you want to trade (start with EUR/USD)
Right-click the chart: Select “Trading” → “New Order” (or press F9)
Order window appears: You’ll see several fields to fill
Set your parameters:
- Symbol: Should show your selected pair
- Volume: Start with 0.01 lots (micro lot = $0.10 per pip)
- Stop Loss: Set 20-30 pips below entry (we’ll cover this more later)
- Take Profit: Set 40-60 pips above entry (2:1 risk-reward)
- Type: Market Execution
Click “Buy” or “Sell”: Choose based on your analysis (for practice, pick randomly)
Trade executes: You’ll see your position in the “Trade” tab of Terminal window

Consequently, you’ve placed your first trade. Additionally, you can now watch how the position behaves as price moves.

Important note: On demo, use realistic position sizes. Therefore, if your real account will have $500, use $500 on demo. This builds proper habits.

For detailed trading strategies and risk management, explore deriv mt5 and The MT4 Era Is Ending—Why MetaTrader 5 Is Taking Over in 2026.

Step 7: Understanding Position Management

Once your trade is open, you need to manage it. Moreover, this is where beginners often make costly mistakes.

Monitoring your position: Look at the “Trade” tab in Terminal window. You’ll see:

Symbol: Which pair you’re trading
Type: Buy or Sell
Volume: Your position size
Price: Your entry price
S/L: Your stop loss level
T/P: Your take profit level
Profit: Current profit or loss in account currency

Modifying your position: Right-click the position → “Modify or Delete Order”

Here you can:

Adjust stop loss
Adjust take profit
Close position entirely

Critical beginner mistake: Moving stop losses further away when price approaches them. This turns calculated risk into unlimited risk. Therefore, if you set a stop loss, let it execute if hit.

Step 8: Basic Technical Analysis

Trading without analysis is gambling. Therefore, learn to read charts and use basic indicators.

Understanding candlesticks: Each candle shows four prices:

Open: Price when period started
High: Highest price during period
Low: Lowest price during period
Close: Price when period ended

Green/white candles: Price closed higher than it opened (bullish) Red/black candles: Price closed lower than it opened (bearish)

Adding your first indicator (Moving Average):

Click “Insert” menu → “Indicators” → “Trend” → “Moving Average”
Set Period to 50, Method to Simple, Apply to Close
Click OK

You’ll see a line on your chart showing the 50-period average price. Moreover, this helps identify trend direction:

Price above MA = uptrend (look for buy opportunities)
Price below MA = downtrend (look for sell opportunities)

Adding a second indicator (RSI):

Click “Insert” menu → “Indicators” → “Oscillators” → “Relative Strength Index”
Set Period to 14
Click OK

RSI appears in a separate window below your chart. Additionally, it shows overbought (above 70) and oversold (below 30) conditions.

Simple trading strategy for beginners:

When price is above 50 MA AND RSI is below 30 → Look for buy entry
When price is below 50 MA AND RSI is above 70 → Look for sell entry

Therefore, you’re trading with the trend but buying when price has pulled back temporarily.

Step 9: Risk Management Basics

This section is more important than anything else in this guide. Moreover, risk management determines whether you survive long enough to become profitable.

The 1% rule: Never risk more than 1% of your account on any single trade.

Example: $1,000 account = $10 maximum risk per trade

How to calculate position size:

Position Size = (Account Risk $ / Stop Loss Pips) / Pip Value

Example calculation:

Account: $1,000
Risk: 1% = $10
Stop loss: 50 pips away
EUR/USD pip value: $0.10 per pip at 0.01 lots

Position Size = ($10 / 50 pips) / $0.10 = 2 mini lots = 0.02 lots

Therefore, you should trade 0.02 lots on this setup. Additionally, this ensures your risk is exactly $10 regardless of stop loss distance.

Why this matters: With 1% risk, you can survive 100 consecutive losses (which won’t happen). However, with 10% risk, you’re dead after 10 losses in a row (which happens more often than you think).

Step 10: Developing a Trading Routine

Successful traders follow systems. Therefore, create a routine and stick to it.

Daily routine for beginners:

Morning (before trading):

Check economic calendar for high-impact news
Review open positions and adjust if needed
Scan charts for potential setups
Plan maximum 2-3 trades for the day

During trading session:

Only take setups that match your strategy
Set stop loss and take profit before entering
Don’t move stop losses once set
Don’t revenge trade after losses

Evening (after trading):

Journal every trade (entry reason, result, emotions)
Review what worked and what didn’t
Identify patterns in your behavior
Plan for next day

Consequently, trading becomes systematic rather than random. Additionally, journaling reveals patterns you’d never notice otherwise.

Step 11: Common Beginner Mistakes (Avoid These)

Mistake 1: Trading without stop losses Some beginners think “I’ll just watch it and close manually.” However, emotions take over when real money is at risk. Therefore, always use automatic stop losses.

Mistake 2: Overtrading Taking 20 trades per day because you’re excited. Consequently, you’re gambling rather than executing a strategy. Instead, wait for quality setups.

Mistake 3: Risking too much Using 10-20% risk per trade to “grow faster.” However, this guarantees account blow-up during inevitable losing streaks. Stick to 1-2% maximum.

Mistake 4: Chasing losses After losing trade, immediately entering another to “get even.” This is emotional trading, not strategic. Therefore, take a break after losses.

Mistake 5: Ignoring demo practice Jumping to live trading after one profitable demo week. However, you need minimum 100 demo trades before considering real money.

Mistake 6: Changing strategies constantly Switching approaches every time you lose. Consequently, you never master anything. Instead, give strategies 50-100 trades before judging them.

Step 12: Moving to Live Trading

After consistent demo profitability (minimum 3 months), consider live trading.

Start small:

Deposit $100-500 maximum initially
Use same 1% risk rule (even though stakes are tiny)
Trade for another 50 trades before increasing capital

Emotional differences: Real money feels different. Therefore, even though your strategy is the same, emotions will affect decisions. Additionally, start small to manage psychological impact.

Gradual scaling: Only after proving profitability on small live account should you increase capital. Moreover, scale up 20-30% at a time, not doubling account size suddenly.

Open your live Deriv MT5 account when ready and start your professional trading journey with proper foundation.

Step 13: Continuing Education

Trading is a skill that requires constant improvement. Therefore, dedicate time to ongoing learning.

Resources for growth:

Read trading books (start with “Trading in the Zone” by Mark Douglas)
Watch professional trader analysis videos
Join trading communities (avoid signal groups)
Study your own trading journal for patterns
Take online courses on specific strategies

Additionally, focus on psychology and risk management as much as technical analysis. Moreover, mental discipline separates winners from losers more than strategy quality.

Your Trading Journey Starts Now

You now have everything needed to begin trading Deriv MT5 properly. Moreover, you know more than most beginners who just wing it and lose money.

Your next actions:

Create your Deriv account
Download and install MT5
Practice on demo for minimum 3 months
Track every trade in a journal
Study your results and improve

Trading success isn’t about finding the “holy grail” strategy. Instead, it’s about discipline, risk management, and consistent execution of an approach with positive expectancy.

Start with Deriv MT5 because you’re learning on the platform that will be relevant for the next decade. Additionally, Deriv provides the reliable execution and fair pricing that lets your skill determine results.

The journey ahead has challenges. However, starting with proper education and realistic expectations gives you a fighting chance. Most traders fail because they skip these foundations.

Don’t be most traders. Do the work, follow the process, and give yourself time to develop real skill.