Trading platforms are designated software used to open and manage your positions and make analyses using the in-built charts if possible. They allow traders to access their brokers’ feed and use multiple trading techniques such as limit orders for the best possible outcome. One of the noted trading software that has been the top choice for many retail traders is the MetaTrader 4. The program was developed by MetaQuotes Software and released in 2005.
Important Features of MetaTrader 4
MetaTrader 4 has gone through constant fixes and development to make it perfect software that matches all the needs of traders. The old and new features combined are beneficial.
Charting
MetaTrader 4 has a number of charting tools that traders can use to make their market analyses. It is possible to create your own custom template and save it for future use so that you don’t have to create the necessary stuff again.
MetaTrader 4 offers traders to choose amongst nine different time frames, including M1, M5, M15, M30, H1, H4 and D1, W1, and Monthly. The zoom in and out function allows traders to view the chars from a narrow and broad perspective. Traders can also minimize and expand multiple chart windows within a single pane.
Mobile App
MetaTrader 4 has its own mobile trading application, which can be used to manage and place your trades on the go. The app requires a good internet connection to work properly. It also hosts a range of features similar to the desktop platform, including charting, multiple order support, access to the community, and so on. You can get the app from Metatrader 4 App Download section on Playstore.
Orders
MetaTrader 4 allows traders to use multiple orders types to help in trading. This includes market and pending orders. Buy stop/limit and sell stop/limit positions can be entered with stop loss and take profits that are predetermined. It is also possible to enter custom comments. Through the terminal windows, traders can see all the executions they have made. One-click trading is available for scalpers who like to enter and exit the markets quickly.
Instruments
The range of instruments available on MetaTrader 4 depends on the designated brokers. In terms of support, the software can have forex, stocks, indices, metals, etc., within the market watch. Traders can enter and remove the assets they like to trade.
Algorithms
MetaTrader 4 supports a proprietary MQL4 programming language that allows traders to code robots, indicators, and scripts. There are tons of customer algorithms developed specifically for the MT 4 platform. Traders can download many EAs from the company’s own MQL 5 marketplace.
The community hosts many free and paid expert advisors that can be tested within the strategy tester of the MT 4. Historical testing gives an idea of how the algorithm will perform in the future.
Other important features include access to account history and viewing the records through a detailed statement that provides all statistics. All the executions on the platform are available in the journal through which traders can determine the root cause of any immediate problems.
Custom alerts can be set up by linking your MT 4 with the smartphone. There is little to no slippage by the software itself that processes orders in microseconds of placement.
A Few Demerits of MetaTrader 4
Most of the problems and bugs associated with MT 4 have been fixed. There are still a few deficiencies that exist that are mentioned as follows:
- Backtesting. Even though MT 4 has several options to test trading algorithms, it still lacks some vital functions. The range of available time frames is low, and it is not possible to set slippage parameters.
- Mac Compatibility. The original version of MT4 was made to run on windows only. To install it on Mac, traders have to perform additional steps, which can be troublesome.