MT4 in 2026: why it refuses to die
MetaQuotes stopped issuing new MT4 licences a while back, steering brokers toward MT5. Yet most retail forex traders haven't moved. The reason is simple: MT4 does one thing well. A huge library of custom indicators, Expert Advisors, and community scripts only work with MT4. Moving to MT5 means rewriting that entire library, and most traders would rather keep trading than recoding.
I've tested MT4 and MT5 side by side, and the gap is marginal for most strategies. MT5 has a few extras such as more timeframes and a built-in economic calendar, but the charting is nearly identical. For most retail strategies, there's no compelling reason to switch.
Getting MT4 configured properly the first time
Downloading and installing MT4 is the easy part. 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 instruments you follow.
Chart templates save time. Set up your preferred indicators on one chart, then right-click and save as template. From there you can apply it to any new chart in two clicks. Minor detail, but over weeks it saves hours.
One setting worth changing: go to Tools > Options > Charts and tick "Show ask line." The default view is the bid price by default, which can make your entries look off by the spread amount.
How reliable is MT4 backtesting?
MT4's built-in strategy tester allows you to run Expert Advisors against historical data. But here's the thing: the accuracy of those results comes down to 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 that needs accuracy, you need third-party tick data.
That quality percentage in the results matters more than the bottom-line PnL. Anything below 90% indicates the results are probably misleading. People occasionally post backtest results with 25% modelling quality and wonder why their live results don't match.
This is one area where MT4 genuinely outperforms most web-based platforms, but it's only as good as the data you give it.
Custom indicators on MT4: worth the effort?
MT4 ships with 30 built-in technical indicators. The average trader uses maybe a handful. But the platform's actual strength comes from user-built indicators written in MQL4. The MQL5 marketplace alone has thousands available, spanning tweaked versions of standard tools to complex multi-timeframe dashboards.
Installing them is straightforward: place the .ex4 or .mq4 file into the MQL4/Indicators folder, reboot MT4, and it appears in the Navigator panel. The risk is quality. Free indicators are hit-and-miss. Some are genuinely useful. Others are abandoned projects and may crash your terminal.
Before installing anything, verify how recently it was maintained and if other traders have flagged problems. A broken indicator doesn't only show wrong data — it can freeze your entire platform.
The MT4 risk controls you're probably not using
There are some risk management features that a lot of people skip over. The most useful is maximum deviation in the new order panel. It sets the amount of slippage you're willing to tolerate on market orders. Without this configured and you'll get whatever price comes through.
Everyone knows about stop losses, but MT4's trailing stop feature are overlooked. Click on an open trade, pick Trailing Stop, and set your preferred distance. The stop adjusts with price moves in your favour. Doesn't work well in choppy markets, but for trend-following it reduces the need to stare at the screen.
You can configure all of this in under five minutes and the difference in discipline is noticeable over time.
EAs on MT4: what to realistically expect
Automated trading through Expert Advisors sounds appealing: program your strategy and stop staring at charts. In reality, the majority of Expert Advisors underperform over any meaningful time period. EAs marketed using incredible historical results tend to be curve-fitted — they worked on historical data and fall apart once the market does something different.
That doesn't mean all EAs are worthless. Some traders code their own EAs for well-defined entry rules: opening trades at session opens, calculating lot sizes, or exiting positions at predetermined levels. These utility-type EAs are more reliable because they do defined operations without needing discretion.
When looking at Expert Advisors, run them on a demo account for a minimum of a few months. Live demo testing tells you more than backtesting alone.
Using MT4 outside Windows
The platform was designed for Windows. Mac users deal with friction. The old method was running it through Wine, which was functional but introduced display glitches and stability problems. Certain brokers now offer native Mac apps built on Crossover or similar wrappers, which work more smoothly but remain wrappers at the end of webpage the day.
The mobile apps, on both iOS and Android, are genuinely useful for keeping an eye on your account and tweaking stops. Full analysis on a phone screen isn't realistic, but managing exits while away from your desk is worth having.
Look into whether your broker has a native Mac build or just a wrapper — it makes a real difference day to day.