MetaTrader 4 in 2026: what still works and what doesn't

Why traders still pick MT4 over newer platforms

MetaQuotes stopped issuing new MT4 licences a while back, steering brokers toward MT5. Yet most retail forex traders stayed put. The reason is simple: MT4 has twenty years of muscle memory behind it. 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 both platforms side by side, and the differences are marginal for most strategies. MT5 adds a few extras such as more timeframes and a built-in economic calendar, but chart functionality is very similar. Unless you need MT5-specific features, MT4 is more than enough.

MT4 setup: what the manual doesn't tell you

The install process is quick. What actually causes problems is getting everything configured correctly. By default, MT4 shows four charts squeezed onto one window. Shut them all and start fresh with the markets you care about.

Templates are worth setting up early. Build your go-to indicators on one chart, then right-click and save as template. Then you can load it onto other charts without redoing the work. Minor detail, but over months it saves hours.

One setting worth changing: open Tools > Options > Charts and tick "Show ask line." By default MT4 displays the bid price by default, which makes buy entries seem misaligned until you realise the ask price is hidden.

How reliable is MT4 backtesting?

MT4's built-in strategy tester lets you run Expert Advisors against historical data. Worth noting though: the accuracy of those results hinges on your tick data. The default history data is not real tick data, meaning the tester fills gaps using algorithms. For anything that needs accuracy, download third-party tick data.

Modelling quality is more important than the headline profit number. Anything below 90% indicates the results are probably misleading. Traders sometimes post backtest results with 25% modelling quality and wonder why the EA fails in real conditions.

Backtesting is where MT4 earns its reputation, but only if you feed it decent data.

MT4 indicators beyond the defaults

MT4 ships with 30 built-in technical indicators. Few people use more than five or six. But where MT4 gets interesting comes from user-built indicators written in MQL4. You can find over 2,000 options, spanning simple moving average variations to full trading dashboards.

Adding a custom indicator is simple: copy the .ex4 or .mq4 file into your MQL4/Indicators folder, refresh MT4, and you'll find it in the Navigator panel. The risk is quality control. Free indicators range from excellent to broken. A few are solid tools. Some are abandoned projects 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 lag the whole terminal.

Risk management settings most MT4 traders ignore

You'll find some risk management tools that the majority of users never configure. First worth mentioning is the maximum deviation setting in the new order panel. This controls how much slippage is acceptable on market orders. Leave it at zero and the broker can fill you at whatever price is available.

Everyone knows about stop losses, but trailing stops is worth exploring. Click on an open trade, pick Trailing Stop, and enter the pip amount. Your stop loss follows with price moves your way. It won't suit every approach, but for trend-following it reduces 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: define your rules and let the machine execute. In practice, the majority of Expert Advisors lose money over any decent time period. EAs marketed using incredible historical results are often fitted to past data — they worked on historical data and fall apart the moment market conditions change.

That doesn't mean all EAs are a waste of time. Certain traders build custom EAs for one particular setup: opening trades at session opens, calculating lot sizes, or closing trades at fixed levels. These smaller, focused scripts work because they handle defined operations where you don't need interpretation.

When looking at Expert Advisors, test on demo first for at least a few months. Running it forward in real time tells you more than historical results ever will.

MT4 beyond the desktop

MT4 is a Windows application at heart. Mac users has always been a workaround. Previously was running it through Wine, which was functional but came with rendering issues and stability problems. A few brokers now offer native Mac apps wrapped around compatibility layers, which are better but remain wrappers at the end of the day.

MT4 mobile, on both iPhone and Android, are genuinely useful for information resource monitoring open trades and making quick adjustments. Full analysis on a phone screen doesn't really work, but adjusting a stop loss while away from your desk has saved plenty of traders.

Check whether your broker offers real Mac support or a compatibility layer — it makes a real difference day to day.