MT4 in 2026: why it refuses to die
MetaQuotes stopped issuing new MT4 licences some time ago, nudging brokers toward MT5. But most retail forex traders stayed put. The reason is simple: MT4 works, and people trust what works. Thousands of custom indicators, Expert Advisors, and community scripts only work with MT4. Moving to MT5 means rebuilding that entire library, and the majority of users can't justify the effort.
I spent time testing MT4 and MT5 side by side, and the differences are less dramatic than the marketing suggests. MT5 has a few extras such as more timeframes and a built-in economic calendar, but the core charting is nearly identical. If you're weighing up the two, there's no compelling reason to switch.
Getting MT4 configured properly the first time
The install process is quick. Where people waste time is the setup after install. By default, MT4 opens with four charts tiled across one window. Clear the lot and open just the markets you care about.
Chart templates save time. Set up your go-to indicators once, then save it as a template. Then you can apply it to any new chart in two clicks. Sounds trivial, but over weeks it adds up.
A quick tweak that helps: go to Tools > Options > Charts and tick "Show ask line." By default MT4 displays the bid price on the chart, which can make entries appear wrong by the spread amount.
Backtesting on MT4: what the results actually mean
MT4 comes with a backtester that gives you the ability to run Expert Advisors against historical data. Worth noting though: the reliability of those results depends entirely on your tick data. The default history data from MetaQuotes is not real tick data, meaning the tester fills gaps with made-up prices. If you're testing something beyond a rough sanity check, download proper historical data.
Modelling quality matters more than the profit figure. Anything below 90% indicates the results shouldn't be taken seriously. Traders sometimes post backtest results with 25% modelling quality and can't figure out why the EA fails in real conditions.
Backtesting is where MT4 earns its reputation, but only if you feed it decent data.
Building your own MT4 indicators
MT4 ships with 30 built-in technical indicators. Most traders never touch them all. But where MT4 gets interesting is in custom indicators coded in MQL4. There are a massive library, ranging from basic modifications to complex multi-timeframe dashboards.
The install process is painless: place the .ex4 or .mq4 file into your MQL4/Indicators folder, restart MT4, and the indicator shows up in the Navigator panel. The catch is quality control. Community indicators vary wildly. A few are solid tools. Many stopped working years ago and may crash your terminal.
Before installing anything, check the last update date and if users report issues. A broken indicator doesn't only show wrong data — it can slow down your entire platform.
Managing risk properly inside MT4
You'll find several built-in risk management features that most traders don't bother with. Probably the most practical one is maximum deviation in the trade execution window. It sets how much slippage is acceptable on market orders. Without this configured and you're accepting whatever price comes through.
Everyone knows about stop losses, but MT4's trailing stop feature are underused. Right-click an open trade, select Trailing Stop, and set the pip amount. It follows with price moves in your favour. Not perfect for every strategy, but on trending pairs it removes the urge to sit and watch.
You can configure all of this in under five minutes and the difference in discipline is noticeable over time.
Running Expert Advisors: practical expectations
EAs have obvious appeal: set rules, let the code trade, walk away. The reality is, the majority of Expert Advisors lose money over any meaningful time period. Those sold with perfect backtest curves are usually over-optimised — they worked find here on historical data and stop working when market conditions change.
That doesn't mean all EAs are a waste of time. Certain traders code custom EAs to handle one particular setup: opening trades at session opens, calculating lot sizes, or closing trades at fixed levels. These smaller, focused scripts work because they execute mechanical tasks without needing discretion.
If you're evaluating EAs, test on demo first for a minimum of several weeks in different conditions. Running it forward in real time is more informative than any backtest.
MT4 beyond the desktop
MT4 was built for Windows. Running it on Mac has always been compromises. Previously was running it through Wine, which was functional but had visual bugs and stability problems. A few brokers now offer macOS versions wrapped around Crossover or similar wrappers, which work more smoothly but still aren't built from scratch for Mac.
On mobile, on both iPhone and Android, are surprisingly capable for watching your account and tweaking stops. Doing proper analysis on a 5-inch screen doesn't really work, but adjusting a stop loss while away from your desk 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.