Clarification Of Spread In FXT Editor (How to Calc Spread)

Hi Trader 2384,

The spread value of in MT4 is expressed in Points. This is because “pips” as we know it is dependent also on the number of “digits” the broker has (i.e. whether it supports fractional digits or not).
Here is some code that will help demonstrate the point and let you confirm that the actual test values are as you expect:

// SpreadDivider is used to calculate whether the spread should be divided by 10 to get the "pip" spread

int spreadDivider = (Digits % 2 == 1) ? 10:1;

Print("Spread (Ask-Bid): " + DoubleToStr(Ask-Bid));

Print("Spread (expressed in Points): " + MarketInfo(Symbol(),MODE_SPREAD));

Print("Spread (Pips): " + DoubleToStr(MarketInfo(Symbol(),MODE_SPREAD) / spreadDivider));

On a 5-digit instrument, you would be expecting your Ask-Bid to be 0.00002 if your spread was set to 0.2 pips.

There is some discussion on MT4 forum threads that discuss this concept more.

Hope this helps.

Correct – “2” on a 5-digit broker means 0.2 pips (as the Tickstory UI shows).
In Metatrader MQL language, you can use “Digits” to determine how many digits a symbol has.

Regards.