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mobileTWS for Android FAQs

If you are having trouble using mobileTWS for Android on your device, check here for more information.


The first time you upgrade to the production version of mobileTWS which includes any version higher than version 0.1.132, you are required to first uninstall beta mobileTWS and then reinstall the production version. When you receive the notice to upgrade during login, please hit Upgrade to go to the mobileTWS page on the Android Market. From here, choose Uninstall and follow the process to uninstall mobileTWS. Once the uninstall is complete, you can choose to Install from the mobileTWS page on the Android Market.

If you do not see the Uninstall button on the Android Market page, you need to manually uninstall using the procedure below.
To uninstall:

  1. From the phone's Home screen, invoke the Settings menu.
  2. Select Applications and then select Manage Applications.
  3. Select the mobileTWS application and click Uninstall.

Once mobileTWS has been uninstalled, run the application file or install once more from the Android Market. This is a one-time upgrade process; going forward you will be able to upgrade new versions seamlessly.

Android only considers applications coming from Android Market to be 100% safe. However, you can still install mobileTWS from the IB website or your computer by opening your phone Application Settings and checking the 'Unknown sources' checkbox. After that you will be able to install applications from the sources other than Android Market.

For security reasons, mobileTWS automatically logs out after 20 minutes of inactivity (mobileTWS is considered inactive when it is not visible on the screen or screen is switched off). If you are logged in as a paid user you can shorten this period to one minute for extra security. To do so, open Configuration from mobileTWS main screen and choose Auto logout. If mobileTWS logged out automatically, you will see a notification with IB logo in Android taskbar. By clicking on mobileTWS notification in Android notification list you will re-activate mobileTWS.

After mobileTWS goes to the background (when you take an incoming call, for example) you can bring it back by clicking on the mobileTWS application icon or by a long press on Home button. Note that in the latter case mobileTWS may not be listed among the currently running applications, especially if it was sitting in the background for long time. This is perfectly normal as Android shuts down inactive applications automatically when it needs resources.

If customer service has requested that you upload your log file, this is most effectively done before you log in again, as the log is cleared immediately following login. To upload the log file BEFORE you log in to mobileTWS:

  • From the Login menu, select Upload log.

To upload the log file if you are already logged in to mobileTWS:

  • From the Configuration screen, select Upload log.

To upload the log file from any other screen within the mobileTWS application:

  • Type uploadlog (case is not important) and you will be shown the log upload dialog where you can provide a description of the problem and choose to attach a screenshot to the bundle to be sent to IB support. Note that you won't see uploadlog letters on the screen as you will be typing them. If you see what you type (the input focus happened to be on an editable field) the log upload shortcut won't work. To make it work move the focus somewhere else. If your phone does not have a physical keyboard you can invoke the software keyboard at any time by a long press on Menu button.

In cases where you are unable to upload your log file using the above procedure you can view, copy and email the file manually. Simply locate the log file in Configuration, copy the file and email it to aTWS@interactivebrokers.com

The mobileTWS login does not support passwords longer than eight characters. If your password is longer, please enter only the first eight characters. Or, reset your TWS password to eight characters or less through Account Management. To reset your password, log into Account Management on the IB web site. Under the User Management section, select Password.

When you log in to your IBKR Mobile application, all other TWS sessions will automatically be logged out. In a case where you are logged into TWS and lose your internet connection, you do not have to wait for TWS to time out; when you log into IBKR Mobile the existing session is logged out. Note that IBKR Mobile provides more limited trading capabilities than the full internet version of TWS.

Several account types are not yet supported in IBKR Mobile, including institutional accounts, G-accounts (guaranteed dollars) and OATS-reportable accounts. If you have any of these account configurations you will not be able to trade your IB account through the IBKR Mobile application.

Yes. From the Text Message page of the alert, enter the email address where you would like the alert sent. This address will be used going forward for all alerts unless it is deleted or changed. If you do not enter an email address, your alert will be sent as a text to your mobile device.

Please submit your request to IB via the IBKR Mobile platform-specific section of the New Features Poll for consideration.

The current version of IBKR Mobile supports the following:

  • Order Types: Limit, Market, Relative, Stop, Trailing Stop, Stop Limit
  • Times in Force: Day, Good Till Cancelled (GTC), Outside Regular Trader Hours (outside RTH)
  • Products: Stocks, ETFs, Options, Futures, Forex, Futures Options, Warrants

We use your phone information for the following reasons:

  • To associate free Alerts with the user, so when you open free alerts you will see the alerts you created in a previous session.
  • To route you to the geographically closest servers (we have servers on three continents).
  • To pre-populate the default email address with email to the SMS gateway. This currently applies only to AT&T and Verizon phones.

You may be behind a corporate firewall. Please open port 4000 for unproxied TCP/IP communication from your device.

If the recommendations on this page have not solved your problem, please email aTWS@interactivebrokers.com with a detailed description of the issue you are having, including the following information:

  • Problem statement in the subject line, for example:"Unable to communicate with server" message
  • Mode of connection (Wi-Fi or Cellular).
  • The device and version you are using.