In this article, we explore the Watermark indicator, a tool that enhances your trading charts with customizable, dynamic text overlays. Learn how to utilize its features to display real-time data and set alerts that adjust the watermark's appearance based on market conditions. The Watermark indicator adds a highly configurable watermark to your trading charts.
As well as static text, such as the chart symbol and timeframe, you can use a variety of variables which make the text in the watermark update automatically. For example, you can configure the watermark to show the current spread on the chart's market, or the profitability of your open trades.
You can also configure the indicator with an alert condition which causes the colour of the text to change. For example, you can make the watermark turn red if the chart's bid price reaches a target, or if the margin usage on your account exceeds a particular level.
How to Install a Watermark Indicator?
To download and install the Pro Trading Tools please follow these steps:
- Login to MyFXTM dashboard > Trading Signals > Pro Trading Tools
- Download FX Blue or Trading Central for your Platform (Meta Trader 4 or Meta Trader 5)
- Run the dowloaded FX Blue and Trading Central files and apply them to your chosen MetaTrader Platform when prompted.
- Relaunch the MetaTrader platform. You’ll find your FX Blue* and Trading Central tools in the ‘Navigator panel under ‘Indicators’ and/or ‘Expert Advisors’.
Using the Watermark indicator
Adding the indicator to a chart
You add the indicator to a chart in the usual MT4/5 way, either by dragging it from the Navigator onto a chart, or by double-clicking on it in the Navigator. You can also use standard MT4/5 features such as adding the indicator to your list of Favorites, or assigning a Hotkey to it.
You can then control the indicator's display and behaviour using the settings on its Inputs tab.
Watermark text and variables
The watermark can display either a single line of text, or two separate lines (header and sub-header). If you only want a single line of text, then you simply clear the setting for the sub-header text.
You can use any mixture of fixed text and variables in the settings for the watermark. The default settings for the header and sub-header are {SYMBOL} and {PERIOD}. These variables cause the watermark to display the name of the chart symbol and the chart's timeframe. You can combine fixed text and variables. For example, setting the sub-header to Spread: {SPREAD} will cause it to display text such as Spread: 2.0
Variables
You can use the following variables in the text for the watermark. These are also listed at the bottom of the Inputs tab, for easy reference while you are changing the indicator's settings.
| Variable | Description |
| {SYMBOL} | Name of chart symbol, e.g. EURUSD |
| {PERIOD} | Chart timeframe, such as M5 |
| {BID} | Current bid price |
| {ASK} | Current ask price |
| {SPREAD} | Current spread in pips, e.g. 2.0 |
| {TIME} | Current broker/system time |
| {LOCALTIME} | Current local time, according to your computer's clock |
| {COUNTDOWN} | Number of seconds remaining in the current chart candle |
| {EQUITY} | Account equity |
| {BALANCE} | Account balance |
| {PL} | Total floating profit/loss of all trades on the account |
| {PL%} | Total floating profit/loss as a percentage of balance, e.g. 2.3% |
| {SYMBOLPL} | Profit/loss for open trades on the chart symbol |
| {SYMBOLPL%} | Symbol profit/loss as a percentage of total balance |
| {MARGINUSED} | Total margin usage on the account |
| {MARGINFREE} | Total free margin on the account |
| {MARGINUSED%} | Total margin used as a percentage of equity |
| {MARGINFREE%} | Total free margin as a percentage of equity |
| {MARGINLEVEL} | MT4/5-style margin level percentage |
Font size and colour
By default, the indicator will set the font size of the text automatically based on the chart size, and it will automatically choose a colour based on the Foreground setting in the MT4/5 chart properties. You can override these automatic choices using the indicator's settings.
Alerts
You can set up an alert which automatically causes the colour of the watermark text to change. For example, you can have an alert when a price target is reached, or when the spread exceeds a threshold, or when your open trades on the chart symbol go into loss, or when there are less than 60 seconds remaining in the current chart candle.
You set an alert by choosing one of the conditions, and by providing a threshold value to compare against. The threshold value is used as follows for each of the types of alert:
| Alert | Threshold |
| Spread | Triggered if the spread, in pips, is greater than the threshold |
| Balance | Triggered if the account balance is below the threshold |
| Equity | Triggered if the account equity is below the threshold |
| Account P/L | Triggered if total floating profit/loss on the account is below the threshold (e.g. -100 to trigger an alert when your account goes $100 into loss) |
| Account P/L % | Triggered if total floating profit/loss as a percentage of balance goes below the threshold, e.g. -2 to mean open drawdown of 2% |
| Symbol P/L | Triggered if floating P/L only on trades for the chart symbol goes below the threshold |
| Symbol P/L % | Triggered by floating P/L for the chart symbol as a percentage of total account balance |
| Margin used (cash) | Triggered if total margin usage goes above the threshold, e.g. 2000 meaning margin usage of over $2000 |
| Margin used (%) | Triggered if total margin usage as a percentage of equity goes about the threshold, e.g. 10 |
| Margin free (cash) | Triggered if total free margin goes below the threshold, e.g. 1000 meaning less than $1000 of free margin |
| Margin free (%) | Triggered if total free margin as a percentage of equity falls below the threshold |
| Margin level | Triggered the MT4/5-style margin level percentage falls below the threshold |
| Seconds remaining | Triggered when the number of seconds remaining in the current candle goes below the threshold, e.g. 60 to trigger an alert when a new candle is due in less than one minue |
| Bid above threshold | Triggered if the bid price goes above the value in the threshold |
| Bid below threshold | Triggered if the bid price does below the value in the threshold |
| Ask above threshold | Triggered if the ask price goes above the value in the threshold |
| Ask below threshold | Triggered if the ask price goes below the value in the threshold |