Can I automatically convert Pine Script code to MQL5?

There is no fully automated converter that handles all Pine Script constructs perfectly. Tools like Pineify can generate MQL5 EA code from a natural-language description of your strategy, but direct transpilation is error-prone because the two languages have fundamentally different execution models — Pine Script runs on each bar by default, while MQL5 uses event-driven callbacks like OnTick() and OnBar(). Manual review is always required.

What is the biggest conceptual difference between Pine Script and MQL5?

Pine Script uses a vectorized, bar-series model where every built-in (ta.sma, ta.rsi, etc.) returns a time-indexed array automatically updated on each bar. MQL5 separates indicator creation (iMA, iRSI returning handles in OnInit) from data retrieval (CopyBuffer in OnTick), requiring explicit buffer management and bar-close gating logic that Pine Script handles implicitly.

How do I replicate ta.crossover() and ta.crossunder() in MQL5?

Copy two bars of each indicator buffer with ArraySetAsSeries(true), then check: crossover = (buf[1] other[0]); crossunder = (buf[1] > other[1]) && (buf[0] < other[0]). Index 0 is the most recent closed bar, index 1 is the previous bar — matching Pine Script's [0] and [1] notation.

How does strategy.entry() in Pine Script map to MQL5 order functions?

strategy.entry() is equivalent to sending a TRADE_ACTION_DEAL market order via OrderSend() with a populated MqlTradeRequest struct. Pine Script automatically handles position reversal (closing the opposite side before opening a new one), so in MQL5 you must explicitly close existing opposite positions before calling OrderSend() for the new direction.

Why does my converted EA trade on every tick instead of every bar like my Pine Script strategy?

Pine Script strategies execute once per completed bar by default. In MQL5's OnTick(), you must gate your logic to fire only when a new bar opens. The standard pattern is to cache the last bar's open time with SeriesInfoInteger(_Symbol, PERIOD_CURRENT, SERIES_LASTBAR_DATE) and skip OnTick() execution until that timestamp changes.

Complete .mq5 source code

Pine Script to MQL5: How to Convert TradingView Strategies to MT5 EAs

This tutorial walks through the key conceptual and syntactic differences between Pine Script (TradingView) and MQL5 (MetaTrader 5), showing you step-by-step how to translate common strategy patterns — moving averages, RSI filters, entry/exit logic — into production-ready Expert Advisors. Whether you are migrating an existing Pine Script strategy or building a parallel MT5 version, this guide maps every critical concept so you can avoid the most common porting mistakes.

Build a custom MT5 indicator View the MQL5 code

Strategy logic

Entry conditions

N/A — this is a tutorial/indicator reference page. The embedded example EA demonstrates a classic dual-SMA crossover with an RSI confirmation filter, entering a buy when the fast SMA crosses above the slow SMA and RSI is below 60, mirroring a typical Pine Script strategy.entry() call.

Exit conditions

N/A — this is a tutorial/indicator reference page. The example EA closes positions when the opposite SMA crossover occurs, replicating the strategy.close() / strategy.exit() pattern found in Pine Script.

MQL5 Expert Advisor Code

//+------------------------------------------------------------------+
//|  PineToMQL5Tutorial.mq5                                          |
//|  Teaching example: Dual-SMA crossover with RSI filter            |
//|  Mirrors a typical Pine Script strategy for educational purposes  |
//+------------------------------------------------------------------+
#property copyright "Pineify (pineify.app)"
#property version   "1.00"
#property strict

//--- Input parameters (equivalent to Pine Script 'input.*' calls)
input int    FastMAPeriod  = 10;     // Fast SMA period
input int    SlowMAPeriod  = 30;     // Slow SMA period
input int    RSIPeriod     = 14;     // RSI period
input double RSIBuyMax     = 60.0;   // RSI must be below this to buy
input double RSISellMin    = 40.0;   // RSI must be above this to sell
input double LotSize       = 0.1;    // Trade lot size
input int    MagicNumber   = 202401; // Unique EA identifier
input int    Slippage      = 10;     // Max slippage in points

//--- Indicator handles (Pine Script uses built-in series; MQL5 uses handles)
int handleFastMA;
int handleSlowMA;
int handleRSI;

//+------------------------------------------------------------------+
//| OnInit — runs once on EA load (like Pine Script's init block)    |
//+------------------------------------------------------------------+
int OnInit()
  {
   //--- Create indicator handles
   //    Pine: fastMA = ta.sma(close, FastMAPeriod)
   handleFastMA = iMA(_Symbol, PERIOD_CURRENT, FastMAPeriod, 0, MODE_SMA, PRICE_CLOSE);
   handleSlowMA = iMA(_Symbol, PERIOD_CURRENT, SlowMAPeriod, 0, MODE_SMA, PRICE_CLOSE);
   //    Pine: rsiVal = ta.rsi(close, RSIPeriod)
   handleRSI    = iRSI(_Symbol, PERIOD_CURRENT, RSIPeriod, PRICE_CLOSE);

   if(handleFastMA == INVALID_HANDLE || handleSlowMA == INVALID_HANDLE || handleRSI == INVALID_HANDLE)
     {
      Print("ERROR: Failed to create indicator handles");
      return INIT_FAILED;
     }

   Print("PineToMQL5Tutorial initialized successfully");
   return INIT_SUCCEEDED;
  }

//+------------------------------------------------------------------+
//| OnDeinit — cleanup (no direct Pine Script equivalent)            |
//+------------------------------------------------------------------+
void OnDeinit(const int reason)
  {
   IndicatorRelease(handleFastMA);
   IndicatorRelease(handleSlowMA);
   IndicatorRelease(handleRSI);
   Print("PineToMQL5Tutorial deinitialized. Reason: ", reason);
  }

//+------------------------------------------------------------------+
//| Helper: count open positions for this EA                         |
//+------------------------------------------------------------------+
int CountPositions(ENUM_POSITION_TYPE posType)
  {
   int count = 0;
   for(int i = PositionsTotal() - 1; i >= 0; i--)
     {
      ulong ticket = PositionGetTicket(i);
      if(ticket > 0 &&
         PositionGetString(POSITION_SYMBOL) == _Symbol &&
         PositionGetInteger(POSITION_MAGIC)  == MagicNumber &&
         PositionGetInteger(POSITION_TYPE)   == posType)
         count++;
     }
   return count;
  }

//+------------------------------------------------------------------+
//| Helper: close all positions for this EA                          |
//| Pine equivalent: strategy.close_all()                            |
//+------------------------------------------------------------------+
void CloseAllPositions()
  {
   for(int i = PositionsTotal() - 1; i >= 0; i--)
     {
      ulong ticket = PositionGetTicket(i);
      if(ticket == 0) continue;
      if(PositionGetString(POSITION_SYMBOL) != _Symbol) continue;
      if(PositionGetInteger(POSITION_MAGIC)  != MagicNumber) continue;

      MqlTradeRequest request = {};
      MqlTradeResult  result  = {};

      request.action    = TRADE_ACTION_DEAL;
      request.symbol    = _Symbol;
      request.ticket    = ticket;
      request.volume    = PositionGetDouble(POSITION_VOLUME);
      request.type      = (PositionGetInteger(POSITION_TYPE) == POSITION_TYPE_BUY)
                          ? ORDER_TYPE_SELL : ORDER_TYPE_BUY;
      request.price     = (request.type == ORDER_TYPE_SELL)
                          ? SymbolInfoDouble(_Symbol, SYMBOL_BID)
                          : SymbolInfoDouble(_Symbol, SYMBOL_ASK);
      request.deviation = Slippage;
      request.magic     = MagicNumber;
      request.comment   = "PineToMQL5 close";

      if(!OrderSend(request, result))
         Print("CloseAllPositions error: ", result.retcode, " ", result.comment);
     }
  }

//+------------------------------------------------------------------+
//| Helper: open a market order                                      |
//| Pine equivalent: strategy.entry(id, strategy.long/short)         |
//+------------------------------------------------------------------+
bool OpenPosition(ENUM_ORDER_TYPE orderType)
  {
   MqlTradeRequest request = {};
   MqlTradeResult  result  = {};

   request.action    = TRADE_ACTION_DEAL;
   request.symbol    = _Symbol;
   request.volume    = LotSize;
   request.type      = orderType;
   request.price     = (orderType == ORDER_TYPE_BUY)
                       ? SymbolInfoDouble(_Symbol, SYMBOL_ASK)
                       : SymbolInfoDouble(_Symbol, SYMBOL_BID);
   request.deviation = Slippage;
   request.magic     = MagicNumber;
   request.comment   = (orderType == ORDER_TYPE_BUY) ? "PineToMQL5 buy" : "PineToMQL5 sell";
   request.type_filling = ORDER_FILLING_IOC;

   if(!OrderSend(request, result))
     {
      Print("OpenPosition error: ", result.retcode, " ", result.comment);
      return false;
     }
   return true;
  }

//+------------------------------------------------------------------+
//| OnTick — main logic loop (Pine Script runs top-to-bottom on each |
//|          new bar; here we gate execution to bar-close events)    |
//+------------------------------------------------------------------+
void OnTick()
  {
   //--- Only act on a newly closed bar (Pine Script default: executes on bar close)
   static datetime lastBarTime = 0;
   datetime currentBarTime = (datetime)SeriesInfoInteger(_Symbol, PERIOD_CURRENT, SERIES_LASTBAR_DATE);
   if(currentBarTime == lastBarTime) return;
   lastBarTime = currentBarTime;

   //--- Read indicator buffers (index 1 = previous closed bar, like Pine's [1])
   double fastMA[], slowMA[], rsi[];
   ArraySetAsSeries(fastMA, true);
   ArraySetAsSeries(slowMA, true);
   ArraySetAsSeries(rsi,    true);

   if(CopyBuffer(handleFastMA, 0, 0, 3, fastMA) < 3) return;
   if(CopyBuffer(handleSlowMA, 0, 0, 3, slowMA) < 3) return;
   if(CopyBuffer(handleRSI,    0, 0, 3, rsi)    < 3) return;

   //--- Pine Script crossover/crossunder detection
   //    ta.crossover(fastMA, slowMA)  =>  fastMA[1] < slowMA[1] && fastMA[0] > slowMA[0]
   bool crossOver  = (fastMA[1] < slowMA[1]) && (fastMA[0] > slowMA[0]);
   bool crossUnder = (fastMA[1] > slowMA[1]) && (fastMA[0] < slowMA[0]);

   bool rsiOkBuy  = rsi[0] < RSIBuyMax;
   bool rsiOkSell = rsi[0] > RSISellMin;

   int buys  = CountPositions(POSITION_TYPE_BUY);
   int sells = CountPositions(POSITION_TYPE_SELL);

   //--- Entry logic (Pine: if crossover(fast, slow) and rsi < RSIBuyMax => strategy.entry("Long", strategy.long))
   if(crossOver && rsiOkBuy && buys == 0)
     {
      if(sells > 0) CloseAllPositions();
      OpenPosition(ORDER_TYPE_BUY);
     }

   //--- Exit / reverse logic (Pine: if crossunder(fast, slow) and rsi > RSISellMin => strategy.entry("Short", strategy.short))
   if(crossUnder && rsiOkSell && sells == 0)
     {
      if(buys > 0) CloseAllPositions();
      OpenPosition(ORDER_TYPE_SELL);
     }
  }
//+------------------------------------------------------------------+

Copy this code into MetaEditor, save it in the MQL5/Experts folder, and compile with F7.

Generate a custom Multi-pair educational EA

Describe the ATR inputs, alert rules, visual style, or confirmation filter you want. Pineify generates editable MQL5 source code that you can inspect and compile in MetaEditor.

Generate custom MQL5 code See the H1 version

Pine Script vs MQL5: Same Strategy, Different Platforms

Aspect	Pine Script (TradingView)	MQL5 (MetaTrader 5)
Execution	Series evaluated on chart updates	Event handlers with explicit buffers
Deployment	Runs in TradingView with alerts	Runs in the MT5 terminal or on a VPS
Broker access	Via TradingView broker integration	Direct broker connectivity
Backtesting	Strategy Tester for strategy scripts	Strategy Tester for Expert Advisors
Code complexity	Simpler, functional syntax	C++-like, more powerful

The calculation can be implemented on either platform, but the runtime model and buffer APIs differ. Read the Pine Script Supertrend reference before porting logic between them.

Frequently Asked Questions

Related MQL5 pages

Moving Average Mql5 Indicator→Rsi Mql5 Indicator→Mt5 Expert Advisor Tutorial→

Risk and testing note

Past performance is not indicative of future results. Backtest statistics are based on historical data and do not guarantee future profits. Trading involves significant risk of loss. This content is for educational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.