What keeps MT4 relevant after two decades
MetaQuotes stopped issuing new MT4 licences years ago, nudging brokers toward MT5. Still, most retail forex traders haven't moved. The reason is simple: MT4 has twenty years of muscle memory behind it. Thousands of custom indicators, Expert Advisors, and visit this site community scripts were built for MT4. Moving to MT5 means rebuilding that entire library, and few people can't justify the effort.
I've tested MT4 and MT5 side by side, and the differences are less dramatic than the marketing suggests. MT5 adds a few extras like more timeframes and a built-in economic calendar, but the charting is about the same. Unless you need MT5-specific features, MT4 still holds its own.
Getting MT4 configured properly the first time
The install process is quick. The part that trips people up is getting everything configured correctly. On first launch, MT4 loads with four charts tiled across a single workspace. Clear the lot and start fresh with the instruments you actually trade.
Chart templates save time. Build your go-to indicators once, then save it as a template. From there you can apply it to any new chart without redoing the work. Sounds trivial, but over weeks it makes a difference.
A quick tweak that helps: go to Tools > Options > Charts and tick "Show ask line." MT4 only shows the bid price on the chart, which makes your entries look off by the spread amount.
Backtesting on MT4: what the results actually mean
MT4 comes with a backtester that lets you run Expert Advisors against historical data. Worth noting though: the quality of those results comes down to your tick data. Standard history data from MetaQuotes is modelled, meaning the tester fills gaps with made-up prices. For anything beyond a rough sanity check, download third-party tick data.
That quality percentage in the results matters more than the bottom-line PnL. Anything below 90% suggests the results shouldn't be taken seriously. I've seen people post backtest results with 25% modelling quality and ask why the EA fails in real conditions.
The strategy tester is one of MT4's stronger features, but it's only as good as the data you give it.
Building your own MT4 indicators
MT4 comes with 30 built-in technical indicators. Most traders never touch them all. However the real depth lives in custom indicators built with MQL4. You can find thousands available, ranging from simple moving average variations to complex multi-timeframe dashboards.
Adding a custom indicator is simple: drop the .ex4 or .mq4 file into the MQL4/Indicators folder, restart MT4, and you'll find it in the Navigator panel. The risk is quality. Publicly shared indicators range from excellent to broken. Some are genuinely useful. Others are abandoned projects and will crash your terminal.
Before installing anything, check how recently it was maintained and if other traders have flagged problems. A poorly written indicator won't just give wrong signals — it can slow down your entire platform.
The MT4 risk controls you're probably not using
There are a few native risk management tools that most traders skip over. Probably the most practical one is the maximum deviation setting in the trade execution window. This defines the amount of slippage you're willing to tolerate on market orders. If you don't set it and the broker can fill you at whatever price is available.
Everyone knows about stop losses, but MT4's trailing stop feature is overlooked. Click on an open trade, choose Trailing Stop, and define the pip amount. It moves when price moves into profit. Doesn't work well in choppy markets, but if you're riding trends it reduces the urge to micromanage the trade.
None of this is complicated to set up and they remove a lot of the emotional decision-making.
EAs on MT4: what to realistically expect
Automated trading through Expert Advisors attract traders for obvious reasons: program your strategy and stop staring at charts. The reality is, the majority of Expert Advisors underperform over any decent time period. EAs sold with flawless equity curves are usually curve-fitted — they worked on past prices and stop working the moment conditions shift.
This isn't to say all EAs are a waste of time. Certain traders develop personal EAs for specific, narrow tasks: time-based entries, calculating lot sizes, or taking profit at predetermined levels. These smaller, focused scripts are more reliable because they do repetitive actions where you don't need discretion.
Before running any EA with real money, run them on a demo account for a minimum of several weeks in different conditions. Forward testing tells you more than historical results ever will.
MT4 beyond the desktop
MT4 is a Windows application at heart. Running it on Mac has always been compromises. Previously was emulation, which mostly worked but had rendering issues and stability problems. Certain brokers now offer Mac-specific builds using Wine under the hood, which work more smoothly but remain wrappers at the end of the day.
MT4 mobile, on both iOS and Android, are surprisingly capable for watching your account and tweaking stops. Doing proper analysis on a mobile device is pushing it, but managing exits on the go has saved plenty of traders.
Look into whether your broker has a native Mac build or just a wrapper — it makes a real difference day to day.