What forex traders should actually know about MetaTrader 4
What keeps MT4 relevant after two decades
MetaQuotes stopped issuing new MT4 licences some time ago, steering brokers toward MT5. Yet most retail forex traders haven't moved. The reason is straightforward: MT4 works, and people trust what works. A huge library of custom indicators, Expert Advisors, and community scripts run on MT4. Switching to MT5 means rebuilding that entire library, and most traders can't justify the effort.
I've tested MT4 and MT5 side by side, and the differences are smaller than you'd expect. MT5 has a few extras such as more timeframes and a built-in economic calendar, but the charting is about the same. If you're weighing up the two, MT4 is more than enough.
Getting MT4 configured properly the first time
The install process is quick. Where people waste time is getting everything configured correctly. On first launch, MT4 shows four charts tiled across the screen. Clear the lot and start fresh with the markets you care about.
Chart templates save time. Build your usual indicators on one chart, then right-click and save as template. After that you can apply it to any new chart in two clicks. Minor detail, but over weeks it makes a difference.
A quick tweak that helps: go to Tools > Options > Charts and tick "Show ask line." The default view is the bid price by default, which makes entries appear wrong until you realise the ask price is hidden.
Backtesting on MT4: what the results additional reading actually mean
MT4 comes with a backtester that allows you to run Expert Advisors against historical data. But here's the thing: the reliability of those results depends entirely on your tick data. Standard history data is not real tick data, meaning gaps between real data points are estimated mathematically. If you're testing something more precise than a quick look, download third-party tick data.
That quality percentage in the results matters more than the profit figure. If it's under 90% indicates the results aren't trustworthy. People occasionally share screenshots with 25% modelling quality and wonder why the EA fails in real conditions.
The strategy tester is one of MT4's stronger features, but the output is only useful with quality tick data.
Building your own MT4 indicators
MT4 ships with 30 standard technical indicators. The average trader uses maybe a handful. But where MT4 gets interesting lives in community-made indicators written in MQL4. The MQL5 marketplace alone has over 2,000 options, ranging from basic modifications to full trading dashboards.
Installing them is straightforward: place the .ex4 or .mq4 file into your MQL4/Indicators folder, restart MT4, and you'll find it in the Navigator panel. The risk is quality. Community indicators vary wildly. A few are solid tools. Others haven't been updated since 2015 and can freeze your terminal.
If you're downloading custom indicators, look at when it was last updated and if people in the forums mention bugs. A broken indicator won't just give wrong signals — it can lag the whole terminal.
Managing risk properly inside MT4
MT4 has a few native risk management options that the majority of users don't bother with. Probably the most practical one is maximum deviation in the order window. This defines how much slippage is acceptable on market orders. Without this configured and you're accepting whatever price comes through.
Stop losses are obvious, but MT4's trailing stop feature is underused. Right-click an open trade, choose Trailing Stop, and enter a distance. Your stop loss moves with price moves in your favour. Doesn't work well in choppy markets, but for trend-following it removes the need to micromanage the trade.
None of this is complicated to set up and they remove a lot of the emotional decision-making.
Running Expert Advisors: practical expectations
Expert Advisors on MT4 attract traders for obvious reasons: set rules, let the code trade, walk away. In reality, most EAs lose money over any extended time period. The ones marketed using incredible historical results are often over-optimised — they look great on past prices and fall apart the moment conditions shift.
None of this means all EAs are a waste of time. Some traders build custom EAs to handle well-defined entry rules: entering at a specific time, calculating lot sizes, or exiting positions at predetermined levels. That kind of automation tend to work because they execute mechanical tasks that don't require interpretation.
When looking at Expert Advisors, test on demo first for a minimum of several weeks in different conditions. Live demo testing reveals more than historical results ever will.
Using MT4 outside Windows
MT4 is a Windows application at heart. Running it on Mac deal with compromises. The old method was emulation, which did the job but had rendering issues and occasional crashes. A few brokers now offer macOS versions using compatibility layers, which work more smoothly but still aren't built from scratch for Mac.
MT4 mobile, on both Apple and Android devices, are surprisingly capable for monitoring positions and tweaking stops. Full analysis on a phone screen doesn't really work, but adjusting a stop loss from your phone has saved plenty of traders.
Check whether your broker offers a proper macOS version or just Wine under the hood — it makes a real difference day to day.