How to Clean Up a Cluttered NinjaTrader Chart: Indicator Labels, Grid Lines and Watermark

To clean up a NinjaTrader 8 chart, clear the Label field of each indicator in the Indicators window (Ctrl+I) to remove the text in the top-left corner, then turn off the grid lines and the Data series watermark in Chart Properties (Ctrl+T). NinjaTrader has no single switch that hides every indicator label at once, so save your clean setup as a default and new charts start that way.

Menu names below are for NinjaTrader 8.1.x.x (checked against NinjaTrader’s help guide, October 2026). The watermark and toolbar options need 8.1.7 or later, and Show Indicators needs 8.1.6 or later.

What is cluttering your chart, and where to turn it off

Remove the indicator labels in the top-left corner

The list of names in the top-left corner is made of indicator labels. Each label belongs to one indicator on one chart, and NinjaTrader has no option to hide them all at once. A community feature request for a label toggle has been open on NinjaTrader’s forum since June 2025, and as of October 2026 it has no reply from NinjaTrader staff. Until that changes, you clear the labels one indicator at a time:

1. Click the chart so it has focus, then press Ctrl+I to open the Indicators window. You can also right-click the chart background and choose Indicators, or double-click an indicator on the chart.
2. In the Configured list, select the first indicator.
3. In the Properties section, find Label and delete all of its text.
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 for every indicator in the Configured list.
5. Click OK.

What this changes: only the text on the chart. NinjaTrader’s help guide says a blank Label removes the label from the chart. The indicator keeps plotting and calculating, and every other setting stays as it was. To get a label back, type one in again, or click the template text at the bottom right of the Indicators window and choose restore. Restore resets all of that indicator’s settings to NinjaTrader’s originals, not just the label.

Want a shorter label instead of none? Type your own text inside quotation marks, for example "EMA 20". NinjaTrader then shows only the text inside the quotes and drops the series information it normally adds. This is handy when you run two of the same indicator and still want to tell them apart at a glance.

Hide all indicators at once with Show Indicators

NinjaTrader 8.1.6 (September 2025) added a Show Indicators toggle. It hides every indicator on a chart for a quick clean view, then brings them all back.

1. Right-click the chart.
2. Click Show Indicators. Every indicator on that chart is hidden.
3. To bring them back, right-click and click Show Indicators again. Your indicators return with their settings unchanged.

You can also assign it a hot key in Tools › Hot Keys (our hotkeys guide shows how to record one). It works on one chart at a time and is meant to be temporary. It is not a label fix: traders on NinjaTrader’s forum report that the labels can stay in the top-left corner while the indicators are hidden. If the text is what bothers you, clear the Label field as shown above.

To hide a single indicator, open the Indicators window, select it in the Configured list and uncheck Visible. The help guide says this turns off both the visibility and the function of that indicator on the chart, so treat it as switching the indicator off.

Turn off the grid lines

1. Press Ctrl+T, or right-click the chart and choose Properties, to open Chart Properties.
2. In the Lines section, expand Grid line – horizontal and uncheck Visible.
3. Expand Grid line – vertical and uncheck Visible.
4. Click OK.

This removes only the background lines. The price and time axes stay. If you like a faint grid instead, leave Visible checked and pick a color closer to your chart background.

Remove or shorten the watermark (the big instrument name)

The large text centered on each chart panel, such as the instrument and period, is the Data series watermark. NinjaTrader added it in 8.1.7 (May 2026). It is on by default for new chart panels, while existing workspaces were left unchanged, so it often appears first on charts you open after updating.

1. Press Ctrl+T to open Chart Properties.
2. Find Data series watermark.
3. Delete everything in the field. NinjaTrader’s release notes say an empty field turns the watermark off.
4. Click OK.

To keep a smaller watermark instead, edit the field rather than emptying it. It accepts tokens (instrument, period and more) mixed with your own text, so you can remove the parts you do not need. If you are on a version older than 8.1.7 and still see a large instrument name, it is most likely drawn by an indicator, since NinjaTrader’s own watermark arrived in 8.1.7. Check the Configured list in the Indicators window.

Remove the instrument label and date range

NinjaTrader’s help guide says the data series label is displayed in a chart panel when more than one data series has been applied to the chart. To remove it:

1. Press Ctrl+F to open the Data Series window.
2. Select the data series whose label you want gone.
3. Delete the text in Label.
4. Click OK.

Data series defaults you save for a period type do not keep a blank label. The help guide says the label goes back to the instrument name, so clear it on each chart where you want it gone. If you see a date range in the top-left corner, open Chart Properties and uncheck Show date range.

Make new charts start clean

Everything above changes the chart you are on. A new chart adds each indicator with that indicator’s default settings, which include its normal label. That is why the labels come back. Save your clean setup once:

1. Indicator labels: in the Indicators window, clear the indicator’s Label, click the template text at the bottom right, choose save and save it with the name Default. From then on, that indicator starts with a blank label whenever you add it. Do this once per indicator type you use, not once per chart.
2. Chart properties (grid lines, watermark, toolbar): in Chart Properties, click the preset text and choose Save. New charts use these properties.
3. The whole chart: right-click the clean chart and choose Templates › Save As Default. New charts then open with this chart’s properties and indicators. To apply it to a chart that is already open, right-click it and choose Templates › Load.

Three things to know. A chart template, including the default one, overrides the Chart Properties defaults from step 2, so if you already use a default template, save the clean version over it. A template loads only on charts with the same number of data series, and it does not include drawing objects. Charts in workspaces you already saved keep their own settings until you change them, and workspaces do not save themselves, so save the workspace after you clean it up.

Other clutter you can turn off

• Price markers: in the Data Series window, expand Price marker to turn the data series marker off. For an indicator, uncheck Price marker(s) in the Indicators window.
• Execution markers: in the Data Series window, set Plot executions to Markers only to drop the text, or Do not plot to hide them. To keep this for every new chart of that period type (Minute, for example), click the preset text at the bottom right of the Data Series window and choose save.
• Trade lines (8.1.7 and later): in the Data Series window, go to the Trades section and uncheck Show trade lines to remove the lines that join entries to exits.
• Toolbar buttons (8.1.7 and later): in Chart Properties, open Chart Toolbar and turn off the icons you never use. Drawing Tools works the same way for the drawing tools menu. Turning a tool off does not remove drawings already on the chart.
• Chart Trader panel: click the Chart Trader icon on the chart toolbar and choose Chart Trader (Hidden). The panel disappears, but your orders and position still show on the chart and can be managed there.
• Session break lines: in the Data Series window, expand Trading hours break line and set it to Off.

Chart Studio: clean up every chart at once (coming soon)

Full disclosure: Chart Studio is our NinjaTrader 8 add-on, and it is not out yet. Its free chart cleanup is aimed at exactly the problem above. It hides the indicator labels in the top-left corner on every chart at once, hides grid lines, and hides the watermark or shortens it (NQ 12-26 becomes NQ). You set it once instead of chart by chart and indicator by indicator.

The free part needs a free Affordable Indicators account and works on one registered PC. The paid version ($295 for one PC, with a 7-day trial and no card needed) adds more, including hiding execution markers and toolbar buttons across charts and a Ctrl+K command palette. Chart Studio changes how your charts look and how you get around them. It does not make NinjaTrader faster. It is coming soon, and the product page has the details.

Frequently asked questions

How do I get rid of all the text in the top left corner of my chart?

Most of it is indicator labels: press Ctrl+I, select each indicator and delete its Label. If a date range shows there, uncheck Show date range in Chart Properties, and if you have a second data series, clear its Label in the Data Series window.

Can I hide indicator names without removing the indicator?

Yes. A blank Label removes only the text, and the indicator keeps plotting and calculating. If you want a short name instead, type it in quotation marks, like "EMA 20".

How do I remove the big instrument name in the background?

That is the Data series watermark, added in NinjaTrader 8.1.7 and on by default for new chart panels. Open Chart Properties (Ctrl+T) and delete the contents of Data series watermark.

Why do my labels come back on a new chart?

A new chart adds each indicator with its default settings, which include the normal label. Save the blank label as that indicator’s Default template, or save a clean chart with Templates › Save As Default.

Does Show Indicators hide the labels too?

It hides the indicators on that chart, but traders on NinjaTrader’s forum report the labels can stay in the top-left corner. To remove the text itself, clear each indicator’s Label.

Is there a way to hide every indicator label at once?

Not natively in NinjaTrader 8.1.8.3: labels are cleared one indicator at a time. Chart Studio’s free chart cleanup, coming soon, hides them on every chart at once.

Next, give your clean chart a darker look with our NinjaTrader dark mode guide, then save the result in a workspace with our NinjaTrader workspaces guide. More setup tips are in our Chart Setup hub.