Why traders still pick MT4 over newer platforms
MetaQuotes stopped issuing new MT4 licences some time ago, steering brokers toward MT5. But most retail forex traders haven't moved. The reason is simple: MT4 does one thing well. Thousands of custom indicators, Expert Advisors, and community scripts run on MT4. Switching to MT5 means porting that entire library, and most traders would rather keep trading than recoding.
I spent time testing both platforms side by side, and the gap is smaller than you'd expect. MT5 adds a few extras including more timeframes and a built-in economic calendar, but chart functionality feels nearly identical. For most retail strategies, MT4 is more than enough.
Setting up MT4 without the usual headaches
Downloading and installing MT4 is the easy part. The part that trips people up is the setup after install. By default, MT4 opens with four charts tiled across a single workspace. Clear the lot and start fresh with the instruments you follow.
Templates are worth setting up early. Configure your usual indicators once, then right-click and save as template. From there you can load it onto other charts in two clicks. Sounds trivial, but over time it makes a difference.
One setting worth changing: open Tools > Options > Charts and enable "Show ask line." The default view is the bid price by default, which can make buy entries seem misaligned by the spread amount.
Backtesting on MT4: what the results actually mean
MT4's built-in strategy tester gives you the ability to run Expert Advisors against historical data. That said: the accuracy of those results depends entirely on your tick data. Built-in history data from MetaQuotes is interpolated, meaning the tester fills gaps with made-up prices. For anything more precise than a quick look, you need proper historical data.
The "modelling quality" percentage matters more than the headline profit number. If it's under 90% means the results shouldn't be taken seriously. I've seen people show off backtests with 25% modelling quality and wonder why live trading looks different.
The strategy tester is one of MT4's stronger features, but only if you feed it decent data.
Custom indicators on MT4: worth the effort?
MT4 comes with 30 built-in technical indicators. Most traders never touch them all. That said, the platform's actual strength comes from custom indicators written in MQL4. The MQL5 marketplace alone has a massive library, covering everything from tweaked versions of standard tools to complex multi-timeframe dashboards.
Adding a custom indicator is simple: copy the .ex4 or .mq4 file into the MQL4/Indicators folder, reboot MT4, and it appears in the Navigator panel. One thing to watch is quality. Free indicators vary wildly. Some are well coded and maintained. Some haven't been updated since 2015 and can freeze your terminal.
When adding third-party indicators, look at how recently it was maintained and whether people in the forums mention bugs. A broken indicator won't just give wrong signals — it can slow down your entire platform.
Managing risk properly inside MT4
You'll find several built-in risk management features that a lot of people don't bother with. The most useful is maximum deviation in the trade execution window. This defines the amount of slippage you'll accept on market orders. Leave it at zero and you're accepting whatever more help price comes through.
Stop losses go without saying, but the trailing stop function are overlooked. Right-click an open trade, choose Trailing Stop, and set your preferred distance. Your stop loss adjusts when price moves into profit. Not perfect for every strategy, but if you're riding trends it removes the need to micromanage the trade.
You can configure all of this in under five minutes and they take some of the guesswork out of trade management.
Running Expert Advisors: practical expectations
EAs sounds appealing: program your strategy and stop staring at charts. In practice, the majority of Expert Advisors fail to deliver over any extended time period. The ones sold with incredible historical results are often fitted to past data — they worked on historical data and break down the moment market conditions change.
That doesn't mean all EAs are worthless. A few people code personal EAs for well-defined entry rules: opening trades at session opens, managing position sizing, or closing trades at predetermined levels. These smaller, focused scripts are more reliable because they execute repetitive actions where you don't need judgment.
If you're evaluating EAs, test on demo first for a minimum of a few months. Forward testing reveals more than any backtest.
Using MT4 outside Windows
MT4 was built for Windows. Running it on Mac has always been friction. The traditional approach was emulation, which was functional but came with visual bugs and the odd crash. Certain brokers now offer macOS versions using compatibility layers, which is an improvement but still aren't built from scratch for Mac.
The mobile apps, on both iPhone and Android, are surprisingly capable for keeping an eye on positions and tweaking stops. Full analysis on a mobile device isn't realistic, but closing a trade from your phone has saved plenty of traders.
Check whether your broker offers a native Mac build or just a wrapper — it makes a real difference day to day.