MT5 order types explained: limit, stop and stop limit

Six pending order types, one market order and a lot of confusion. See what each does, when it fills and how to record the entry method.

Two families: market orders and pending orders

In MetaTrader 5 you can trade in two ways. A market order buys or sells right now at the current price. A pending order is an instruction to trade later, if the price reaches a level you set. Pending orders come in three pairs: Limit, Stop and Stop Limit, each with a buy and a sell version. Knowing which one you used matters for a journal, because the order type is part of the story of an entry and shapes the kind of slippage you can expect.

The descriptions below follow the MetaTrader 5 help pages. Execution details differ between forex CFDs and exchange-traded symbols, and between brokers, so confirm them for your own account.

The six pending types in one table

Order	Fills when	Where it sits versus the market	Typical idea
Buy Limit	Ask is at the level or lower	Below the current price	Buy a dip
Sell Limit	Bid is at the level or higher	Above the current price	Sell a rally
Buy Stop	Ask is at the level or higher	Above the current price	Buy a breakout
Sell Stop	Bid is at the level or lower	Below the current price	Sell a breakdown
Buy Stop Limit	Stop level reached, then a Buy Limit is placed at the limit price	Stop above the market, limit below the stop	Breakout, then pullback entry
Sell Stop Limit	Stop level reached, then a Sell Limit is placed at the limit price	Stop below the market, limit above the stop	Breakdown, then pullback entry

One caveat: some sources word the Sell Stop Limit placement differently, so check the placement rules in your terminal’s order window before relying on the last row.

Limit versus Stop in plain words

A Limit order promises a price no worse than the one you set, but it may never fill if the market does not come back to it. A Stop order is triggered when the price moves through its level and then fills at the next available price, which can be worse than the level in a fast market. In short, limits trade certainty of price for uncertainty of fill, and stops trade the other way round. That difference is why a stop entry can show more slippage than a limit entry.

Stop Limit: two steps

A Stop Limit order waits for the stop level, and only then does it place a limit order at a second price. If the market jumps past your limit price and never returns, the order sits unfilled. It is a way to avoid chasing a breakout at any price, at the cost of sometimes missing it entirely.

Stop loss and take profit are not order types

A stop loss and a take profit are levels attached to a position, not separate entry orders. When one triggers, the server closes the position and the history shows an exit deal, often with a comment such as [sl] or [tp]. The page on MT5 history comments explains those tags.

Where the order type shows up in history

The History tab can list orders as well as deals and positions. In the orders view each row carries a type, such as buy, sell, buy limit or sell stop, along with the state, for example filled or canceled. Pending orders that were cancelled or expired appear there but never become trades. That is the source of many “missing” trades: the order exists, no deal followed. The relation between the three records is explained in MT5 deal, order and position IDs.

What to write in your journal

Entry method. Market, limit, stop or stop limit. Over a few dozen trades you may find one method behaves better for a given setup.
Planned price versus filled price. The difference is your slippage. The app does not record intended prices, so write the planned level in the notes.
Missed trades. Limit and stop-limit orders that never filled. Note how often the move happened without you.
Cancelled orders. Cancelling and re-placing orders late is a pattern worth noticing.

A worked example (hypothetical)

A trader sees gold at 2,650 and wants to buy a pullback to 2,644. A Buy Limit at 2,644 fills only if Ask falls to 2,644 or lower. Another trader wants to buy a break above 2,656 and places a Buy Stop there; when Ask reaches 2,656 the order is triggered and fills at the next price, perhaps 2,656.40. Over twenty trades, the first trader notes seven limit orders that never filled while the market rose without them, and the second records an average of 0.35 of extra slippage on stop entries. These are invented figures, but they show the kind of pattern a journal can reveal.

What AI Trading Journal records

The app reads your closed positions from MetaTrader 5 and keeps one entry per position, with the result as profit plus commission plus swap, dated by the last exit on the broker’s server clock. It does not record intended prices or the order type, and it never places or changes orders. Add the entry method as a tag or in the notes. The MT5 trading journal guide shows what else to log.

Limits of this page

Behaviour differs on exchange-traded symbols, where triggers can use the last price, and between brokers.
Order types and names in your terminal may vary by build.
Nothing here is trading advice or a recommendation to use any order type.

What happens to pending orders after they leave the Trade tab: pending orders in MT5 history.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between a limit and a stop order in MT5?

A limit fills at the set price or better and may not fill at all. A stop is triggered when the price moves through its level and fills at the next price, which can be worse.

What is a Buy Stop Limit order?

A two-step order: when Ask reaches the stop level, a Buy Limit is placed at the limit price you set below that level.

Is a stop loss an order type?

No. It is a level attached to a position. When it triggers, the position is closed at the market.

Why does an order appear in the history but not as a trade?

It may have been cancelled or expired without a fill, so no deal and no position exist.

Does the journal app record the order type?

No. Add it as a tag or in the notes.

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