Why traders still pick MT4 over newer platforms
MetaQuotes stopped issuing new MT4 licences a while back, nudging brokers toward MT5. Yet most retail forex traders haven't moved. The reason is straightforward: MT4 does one thing well. A huge library of custom indicators, Expert Advisors, and community scripts only work with MT4. Migrating to MT5 means porting that entire library, and few people would rather keep trading than recoding.
I spent time testing both platforms side by side, and the differences are marginal for most strategies. MT5 adds a few extras like more timeframes and a built-in economic calendar, but the core charting feels very similar. Unless you need MT5-specific features, MT4 still holds its own.
MT4 setup: what the manual doesn't tell you
The install process is quick. What actually causes problems is configuration. Out of the box, MT4 opens with four charts tiled across a single workspace. Close all of them and start fresh with the markets you follow.
Save yourself repeating the same setup by using templates. Configure your go-to indicators once, then right-click and save as template. Then you can load it onto other charts instantly. Minor detail, but over time it adds up.
One setting worth changing: go to Tools > Options > Charts and tick "Show ask line." MT4 only shows the bid price on the chart, which makes entries appear wrong until you realise the ask price is hidden.
How reliable is MT4 backtesting?
MT4's built-in strategy tester lets you run Expert Advisors against historical data. That said: the quality of those results depends entirely on your tick data. The default history data from MetaQuotes is interpolated, meaning gaps between real data points are estimated with made-up prices. For anything more precise than a quick look, grab third-party tick data.
That quality percentage in the results matters more than the headline profit number. Below 90% indicates the results are probably misleading. Traders sometimes post backtest results with 25% modelling quality and wonder why their live results don't match.
Backtesting is where MT4 earns its reputation, but the output is only useful with metatrader 4 quality tick data.
Building your own MT4 indicators
MT4 comes with 30 built-in technical indicators. Few people use more than five or six. However the platform's actual strength is in community-made indicators written in MQL4. There are thousands available, spanning simple moving average variations to complex multi-timeframe dashboards.
Installing them is straightforward: drop the .ex4 or .mq4 file into the MQL4/Indicators folder, refresh MT4, and it appears in the Navigator panel. The risk is reliability. Community indicators are hit-and-miss. Some are solid tools. Some haven't been updated since 2015 and may crash your terminal.
When adding third-party indicators, look at when it was last updated and if users report issues. A broken indicator doesn't only show wrong data — it can lag MT4.
The MT4 risk controls you're probably not using
MT4 has several built-in risk management tools that the majority of users skip over. The most useful is the maximum deviation setting in the new order panel. This defines how much slippage is acceptable on market orders. If you don't set it and the broker can fill you at whatever price the broker gives you.
Everyone knows about stop losses, but trailing stops are worth exploring. Right-click an open trade, select Trailing Stop, and set the pip amount. It adjusts when price moves your way. Doesn't work well in choppy markets, but on trending pairs it reduces the temptation to sit and watch.
None of this is complicated to set up and the difference in discipline is noticeable over time.
EAs on MT4: what to realistically expect
Expert Advisors on MT4 attract traders for obvious reasons: define your rules and let the machine execute. The reality is, most EAs lose money over any extended time period. Those sold with perfect backtest curves tend to be over-optimised — they worked on past prices and break down once the market does something different.
None of this means all EAs are a waste of time. Certain traders develop custom EAs to handle well-defined entry rules: opening trades at session opens, automating position size calculations, or taking profit at predetermined levels. These smaller, focused scripts are more reliable because they handle defined operations that don't require interpretation.
When looking at Expert Advisors, test on demo first for no less than two to three months. Forward testing is more informative than any backtest.
MT4 on Mac and mobile: what actually works
MT4 is a Windows application at heart. Running it on Mac face friction. The traditional approach was Wine or PlayOnMac, which did the job but had rendering issues and stability problems. Some brokers now offer native Mac apps using Crossover or similar wrappers, which are better but still aren't true native apps.
MT4 mobile, available for both iOS and Android, are genuinely useful for monitoring positions and tweaking stops. Full analysis on a mobile device doesn't really work, but managing exits from your phone is worth having.
It's worth confirming if your broker provides a native Mac build or just a wrapper — the experience varies a lot between the two.