How to Convert Pine Script to MQL5, and When Not To

Q: Is there a free Pine Script to MQL5 converter?

TradingView and MetaQuotes don't offer one, as far as we could find in November 2026. Third-party tools and AI assistants can produce a draft for little or nothing, but that draft still needs the checks on this page before it trades real money.

Q: Can ChatGPT convert Pine Script to MQL5?

It can write a useful first draft, and a simple strategy may compile on the first try. Check when the code runs, how positions are handled and how each indicator is calculated, because those mistakes still compile. Then compare the trades in the Strategy Tester with your TradingView backtest.

Q: Can I convert a protected or invite-only script?

Not without the author, because you can't read its source code. If the script can fire alerts, you can still send those alerts to MT5 through a bridge.

Q: Will the EA match my TradingView backtest exactly?

Rarely. Broker prices, spreads, commissions and candle times differ, and some indicators are calculated differently. Aim for the same trades in the same direction at about the same time, and look into anything else.

Q: Do I still need a paid TradingView plan after converting?

No. A converted EA runs in MT5 without TradingView. You only need a plan with webhooks, Essential or higher, if you send alerts instead.

Q: Is converting Pine Script to MQL4 any different?

The idea is the same, but the code isn't. In MQL4, iMA returns the value directly rather than a handle, and orders go through OrderSend. The alert route works on both MT4 and MT5.

Last updated 4 November 2026 · By the TradingView Link team

Short answer

There's no official converter, so you rewrite the strategy in MQL5 yourself, pay a developer, or start from an AI draft and check it line by line. The logic usually carries over, but the timing doesn't: a Pine strategy runs once per bar by default, while an MT5 Expert Advisor (EA) runs on every tick. If you only want your Pine strategy to place MT5 orders, you don't have to convert it: its TradingView alerts can do that through a bridge.

Should you convert your strategy or send alerts instead?

We make TradingView Link, a bridge, so weigh our view with that in mind. Both routes are valid, and each one suits some traders better.

Converting to MQL5 compared with sending alerts through a bridge
Question	Convert to an MQL5 EA	Send alerts through a bridge
Where does the strategy run?	Inside MT5, on your PC or VPS	On TradingView's servers. Only the order runs in MT5
Do you need a paid TradingView plan?	No	Yes: Essential or higher, for webhooks
Which prices drive the signals?	Your broker's	The data on your TradingView chart
Where do you backtest?	The MT5 Strategy Tester	TradingView's strategy report
What does it cost?	Your time or a developer's fee, once	A bridge plan ($0 to $19.99 a month with us) plus the TradingView plan
Can it use protected scripts?	No. You need the source code	Yes, if the script can fire alerts
How do you change the strategy?	Edit, recompile and re-test the EA	Edit the Pine Script, then create the alert again
Is there a delay before the order?	No outside delay	From under a second to about 20 seconds, depending on the plan

Convert if:

You want to backtest and optimise in MT5, on your broker's own prices.
You don't want to keep paying for TradingView.
Your logic needs to react to every tick, or to read the account's equity and open positions.
You plan to hand the EA to other people.

Send alerts if:

The script is protected or invite-only.
You change the strategy often.
It uses data your broker doesn't have, such as another exchange's symbols.
You want it running today, not after a rewrite.

What does it cost to have a Pine Script converted?

Public requests on MQL5's freelance board give a rough idea. Among those we read in November 2026, buyers offered 30 to 40 USD, 50+ USD, 90+ USD and 30 to 200 USD. Those are buyers' budgets, not quotes, and a strategy with several indicators and money management costs more than a simple one.

Whoever does the work, ask for:

The .mq5 source code, not only the compiled .ex5, so you can change it later.
A Strategy Tester report for the same symbol, timeframe and dates as your TradingView backtest.
A list of anything that couldn't be matched exactly.

Which Pine Script functions map to MQL5?

These are the ones most strategies use. The notes show where conversions usually go wrong.

Common Pine Script functions and their MQL5 equivalents
Pine Script	MQL5, and what to watch for
`ta.ema(close, 9)`	`iMA(_Symbol, _Period, 9, 0, MODE_EMA, PRICE_CLOSE)` Returns a handle, not a value. Create it once in OnInit, then read it with CopyBuffer.
`ta.sma(close, 20)`	`iMA(_Symbol, _Period, 20, 0, MODE_SMA, PRICE_CLOSE)` Same as above.
`ta.rsi(close, 14)`	`iRSI(_Symbol, _Period, 14, PRICE_CLOSE)` Both use the same kind of smoothing, so expect close values on matching prices.
`ta.atr(14)`	`iATR(_Symbol, _Period, 14)` Different maths. Pine takes an RMA of true range; MetaQuotes' example ATR takes a simple average.
`ta.macd(close, 12, 26, 9)`	`iMACD(_Symbol, _Period, 12, 26, 9, PRICE_CLOSE)` MT5's signal line is an SMA. TradingView's MACD lets you choose EMA or SMA, so check yours.
`close`	`iClose(_Symbol, _Period, 1)` Pine reads close once the bar has closed. In an EA that bar is index 1, because index 0 is still forming. So close[1] in Pine is index 2.
`ta.crossover(fast, slow)`	`fast[0] > slow[0] && fast[1] <= slow[1]` There is no built-in. Write the comparison yourself, on closed bars.
`input.int(9, "Fast EMA")`	`input int FastLength = 9; // Fast EMA` Inputs become settings in the EA's dialog.
`strategy.entry("Long", strategy.long)`	`trade.Buy(Lots, _Symbol)` Uses CTrade from the standard library. It doesn't reverse an open short the way strategy.entry can.
`strategy.close("Long")`	`trade.PositionClose(_Symbol)` Closes by symbol, not by entry name. Use magic numbers if several strategies share a symbol.
`strategy.exit("Exit", stop = sl, limit = tp)`	`trade.Buy(Lots, _Symbol, 0, sl, tp)` Stops and targets sit on the position in MT5. The broker can reject levels too close to the price.
`request.security(syminfo.tickerid, "60", close)`	`iClose(_Symbol, PERIOD_H1, 1)` Read the closed higher-timeframe bar, so a backtest never sees a value it could not have had.
`alert("text")`	`Alert("text")` SendNotification sends the message to the MT5 phone app instead.
`syminfo.mintick`	`SymbolInfoDouble(_Symbol, SYMBOL_TRADE_TICK_SIZE)` Also read SYMBOL_VOLUME_MIN and SYMBOL_VOLUME_STEP before you size an order.

What doesn't carry over from Pine Script?

When the code runs. By default, a Pine strategy runs once, on each bar's closing tick, and its orders fill at the open of the next bar. OnTick runs on every price change. Without a new-bar check like the one below, an EA can trade several times in one bar.
How positions work. strategy.entry can reverse a position by itself, and pyramiding is a single setting. In MT5 you write that logic. On a hedging account, a sell order opens a second position rather than closing the buy, so close it explicitly.
Position sizing. A percent-of-equity setting has no direct equivalent. Work out the lots from equity and tick value, then round to the broker's lot step.
The prices. Your broker's candles won't match TradingView's data exactly, and MT5 charts follow the broker's server time, so daily and 4-hour bars can start at different hours.
Indicator maths. ATR and MACD can differ, as the table shows. Plot both versions side by side before you trust a converted signal.

Example: an EMA cross in Pine Script and MQL5

This is the same simple strategy in both languages. It's here to show the differences, and it isn't a strategy to trade.

Pine Script

//@version=6
strategy("EMA cross", overlay = true)

fastLength = input.int(9, "Fast EMA")
slowLength = input.int(21, "Slow EMA")

fast = ta.ema(close, fastLength)
slow = ta.ema(close, slowLength)

if ta.crossover(fast, slow)
    strategy.entry("Long", strategy.long)
if ta.crossunder(fast, slow)
    strategy.close("Long")

MQL5 Expert Advisor

#include <Trade/Trade.mqh>

input int    FastLength = 9;    // Fast EMA
input int    SlowLength = 21;   // Slow EMA
input double Lots       = 0.10; // Order size in lots

CTrade   trade;
int      fastHandle;
int      slowHandle;
datetime lastBar = 0;

int OnInit()
{
   // Indicators are created once and return a handle, not a value
   fastHandle = iMA(_Symbol, _Period, FastLength, 0, MODE_EMA, PRICE_CLOSE);
   slowHandle = iMA(_Symbol, _Period, SlowLength, 0, MODE_EMA, PRICE_CLOSE);
   if(fastHandle == INVALID_HANDLE || slowHandle == INVALID_HANDLE)
      return INIT_FAILED;
   return INIT_SUCCEEDED;
}

void OnDeinit(const int reason)
{
   IndicatorRelease(fastHandle);
   IndicatorRelease(slowHandle);
}

void OnTick()
{
   // Act once per bar, like a Pine strategy at its default settings
   datetime bar = iTime(_Symbol, _Period, 0);
   if(bar == lastBar)
      return;

   // Index 0 is now the last closed bar, and index 1 the one before it
   double fast[], slow[];
   ArraySetAsSeries(fast, true);
   ArraySetAsSeries(slow, true);
   if(CopyBuffer(fastHandle, 0, 1, 2, fast) < 2 || CopyBuffer(slowHandle, 0, 1, 2, slow) < 2)
      return; // Data isn't ready yet, so try again on the next tick
   lastBar = bar;

   bool crossUp   = fast[0] > slow[0] && fast[1] <= slow[1];
   bool crossDown = fast[0] < slow[0] && fast[1] >= slow[1];
   bool inTrade   = PositionSelect(_Symbol);

   if(crossUp && !inTrade)
      trade.Buy(Lots, _Symbol);
   if(crossDown && inTrade)
      trade.PositionClose(_Symbol);
}

Paste it into a new Expert Advisor in MetaEditor, compile it and run it in the Strategy Tester. It's kept short on purpose. A real EA also filters positions by magic number, checks the broker's lot limits and reads the result of every order.

How do you check that the conversion is right?

Pick one symbol and timeframe, and use the same dates on both platforms.
Run the EA in the MT5 Strategy Tester, with real ticks if your broker provides them.
Compare the trade lists, not only the profit: entry time, direction and exit. Small price gaps are normal. Look into any missing or extra trade.
Run it on a demo account for a while before you go live.

How do you run a Pine strategy on MT5 without converting it?

Add alert_message to each order in your Pine Script, with the order written as text.
Create one alert on the strategy, with {{strategy.order.alert_message}} as its message.
Turn on Webhook URL in the alert and paste your bridge's URL.
The bridge's EA in MT5 places each order as it arrives.

The strategy automation guide shows this with a full script, and this page lists the TradingView plans that include webhooks.

Skip the rewrite

Keep your Pine strategy where it is and send its alerts to MT5. The free plan includes 5 alerts a month, enough to test on a demo account.

Start free → Compare plans

Frequently asked questions

Is there a free Pine Script to MQL5 converter?