MT4 in 2026: why it refuses to die
MetaQuotes stopped issuing new MT4 licences years ago, pushing brokers toward MT5. Yet 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 were built for MT4. Switching to MT5 means porting that entire library, and most traders don't see the point.
After testing MT4 and MT5 side by side, and the gap is marginal for most strategies. MT5 has a few extras like more timeframes and a built-in economic calendar, but the see here charting is about the same. Unless you need MT5-specific features, MT4 is more than enough.
Getting MT4 configured properly the first time
The install process is quick. Where people waste time is configuration. Out of the box, MT4 loads with four charts tiled across the screen. Close all of them and start fresh with the pairs you care about.
Chart templates save time. Build your usual indicators on one chart, then right-click and save as template. From there you can apply it to any new chart without redoing the work. Minor detail, but over time it makes a difference.
A quick tweak that helps: open Tools > Options > Charts and check "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.
MT4 strategy tester: honest expectations
The strategy tester in MT4 allows you to run Expert Advisors against historical data. Worth noting though: the accuracy of those results depends entirely on your tick data. Built-in history data is not real tick data, meaning gaps between real data points are estimated mathematically. If you're testing something beyond a rough sanity check, grab proper historical data.
The "modelling quality" percentage tells you more than the profit figure. Anything below 90% indicates the results are probably misleading. I've seen people post backtest results with 25% modelling quality and ask 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 ships with 30 standard technical indicators. The average trader uses maybe a handful. However the platform's actual strength lives in user-built indicators coded in MQL4. There are over 2,000 options, spanning tweaked versions of standard tools to elaborate signal panels.
Adding a custom indicator is simple: drop the .ex4 or .mq4 file into the MQL4/Indicators folder, reboot MT4, and the indicator shows up in the Navigator panel. The catch is quality control. Free indicators vary wildly. Some are well coded and maintained. Many stopped working years ago and can freeze your terminal.
If you're downloading custom indicators, verify the last update date and if other traders mention bugs. Bad code doesn't only show wrong data — it can lag your entire platform.
Risk management settings most MT4 traders ignore
You'll find several built-in risk management tools that the majority of users never configure. First worth mentioning is the maximum deviation setting in the order window. It sets the amount of slippage you'll accept on market orders. If you don't set it and the broker can fill you at whatever price is available.
Stop losses are obvious, but MT4's trailing stop feature are overlooked. Right-click an open trade, select Trailing Stop, and enter the pip amount. Your stop loss adjusts with the trade goes your way. Doesn't work well in choppy markets, but on trending pairs it removes the need to stare at the screen.
You can configure all of this in under five minutes and they take some of the guesswork out of trade management.
Expert Advisors — before you trust a robot with your money
Automated trading through Expert Advisors sounds appealing: program your strategy and stop staring at charts. In practice, a huge percentage of them lose money over any decent time period. Those marketed using perfect backtest curves are often over-optimised — they worked on past prices and fall apart the moment market conditions change.
That doesn't mean all EAs are a waste of time. A few people code their own EAs for well-defined entry rules: opening trades at session opens, automating position size calculations, or taking profit at fixed levels. That kind of automation are more reliable because they execute defined operations without needing discretion.
Before running any EA with real money, run them on a demo account for no less than a few months. Forward testing reveals more than historical results ever will.
MT4 on Mac and mobile: what actually works
MT4 is a Windows application at heart. Running it on Mac deal with friction. Previously was Wine or PlayOnMac, which did the job but introduced display glitches and occasional crashes. 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.
On mobile, available for both iOS and Android, are genuinely useful for monitoring your account and making quick adjustments. Doing proper analysis on a mobile device isn't realistic, but adjusting a stop loss from your phone has saved plenty of traders.
Check whether your broker offers real Mac support or a compatibility layer — the experience varies a lot between the two.