MT4 in 2026: why it refuses to die
MetaQuotes stopped issuing new MT4 licences some time ago, pushing brokers toward MT5. But most retail forex traders haven't moved. The reason is simple: MT4 works, and people trust what works. Thousands of custom indicators, Expert Advisors, and community scripts only work with MT4. Migrating to MT5 means rebuilding that entire library, and the majority of users can't justify the effort.
I spent time testing both platforms side by side, and the differences are smaller than you'd expect. MT5 adds a few extras such as more timeframes and a built-in economic calendar, but the core charting is very similar. If you're weighing up the two, 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. By default, MT4 loads with four charts crammed into a single workspace. Shut them all and open just the markets you care about.
Templates are worth setting up early. Build your preferred indicators on one chart, then save it as a template. From there you can apply it to any new chart instantly. Sounds trivial, but over months it saves hours.
A quick tweak that helps: go to Tools > Options > Charts and enable "Show ask line." MT4 only shows the bid price on the chart, which makes entries appear wrong by the spread amount.
Backtesting on MT4: what the results actually mean
MT4's built-in strategy tester lets you run Expert Advisors against historical data. Worth noting though: the reliability of those results hinges on your tick data. Built-in history data from MetaQuotes is not real tick data, meaning the tester fills gaps using algorithms. If you're testing something more precise than a quick look, you need third-party tick data.
The "modelling quality" percentage tells you more than the profit figure. Anything below 90% indicates the results shouldn't be taken seriously. I've seen people post backtest results with 25% modelling quality and wonder why their live results don't match.
The strategy tester is one of MT4's stronger features, but it's only as good as the data you give it.
Building your own MT4 indicators
MT4 ships with 30 built-in technical indicators. The average trader uses maybe a handful. But where MT4 gets interesting lives in user-built indicators coded in MQL4. You can find over 2,000 options, ranging from tweaked versions of standard tools to complex multi-timeframe dashboards.
The install process is painless: drop the .ex4 or .mq4 file into your MQL4/Indicators folder, reboot MT4, and the indicator shows up in the Navigator panel. The risk is quality. Publicly shared indicators vary wildly. Some are genuinely useful. Many are abandoned projects and can freeze your terminal.
When adding third-party indicators, check how recently it was maintained and if people in the forums have flagged problems. Bad code won't just give wrong signals — it can freeze your entire platform.
The MT4 risk controls you're probably not using
There are a few native risk management options that most traders skip over. Probably the most practical one is the maximum deviation setting in like this the order window. It sets how much slippage is acceptable on market orders. Leave it at zero and you'll get whatever price the broker gives you.
Everyone knows about stop losses, but the trailing stop function is underused. Click on an open trade, select Trailing Stop, and enter your preferred distance. Your stop loss follows automatically as price moves your way. It won't suit every approach, but on trending pairs it takes away the temptation to stare at the screen.
These settings take a minute to configure and the difference in discipline is noticeable over time.
Running Expert Advisors: practical expectations
Automated trading through Expert Advisors have obvious appeal: program your strategy and stop staring at charts. The reality is, a huge percentage of them fail to deliver over any extended time period. The ones advertised with incredible historical results are often curve-fitted — they performed well on historical data and fall apart when the market does something different.
None of this means all EAs are useless. Some traders code personal EAs to handle specific, narrow tasks: time-based entries, managing position sizing, or taking profit at set levels. These utility-type EAs tend to work because they do defined operations that don't require judgment.
When looking at Expert Advisors, run them on a demo account for at least two to three months. Running it forward in real time reveals more than historical results ever will.
Using MT4 outside Windows
The platform was designed for Windows. Running it on Mac face a workaround. The old method was Wine or PlayOnMac, which mostly worked but had visual bugs and the odd crash. A few brokers now offer Mac-specific builds wrapped around Wine under the hood, which work more smoothly but still aren't built from scratch for Mac.
MT4 mobile, available for both Apple and Android devices, are genuinely useful for monitoring your account and managing trades on the move. Full analysis on a phone screen is pushing it, but closing a trade while away from your desk is genuinely handy.
Check whether your broker offers a proper macOS version or just Wine under the hood — the experience varies a lot between the two.