If you are looking to use an automated forex trading system, one of the best options are forex robots for MT4. MetaTrader 4 (MT4) is the most widely used forex trading platform and therefore has literally thousands of free and paid forex robots that you can choose from. Whatever your trading style and goals, there is an MT4 forex robot for everyone. In this guide, I will cover the MT4 platform and what to look for in MT4 robots. I will also share with you some of the best MT4 forex robots from my many years of experience, trying and testing countless automated forex strategies.
What is MetaTrader 4 (MT4)?
MetaTrader 4 or MT4 for short, is by far one of the most popular forex trading platforms that is used by millions of forex traders all over the world. It is very user-friendly, with a fully customisable and intuitive user interface. MT4 is packed with all of the trading tools that you need to analyse the forex market, place and manage trades. It supports manual and automated forex trading, whilst you can buy and sell currency pairs on desktop, web and mobile devices. Just keep in mind that you will need the desktop version of the platform to run MT4 robots.
What are MT4 forex robots?
MT4 forex robots or expert advisors (EA) as they are known within the MT4 platform, can analyse the market on behalf of the user. They have built-in trading algorithms that can use a combination of technical analysis and price action analysis to scan currency pairs for signals to buy and sell. When the MT4 robot finds a valid trading signal according to its implemented forex strategy, it can place and manage a position without you needing to do anything.
Forex robots for MT4 usually have fully customisable settings that you can adjust depending on your trading preferences. Most of them will also come with default set files that have already been optimised by the developer for specific currency pairs and chart timeframes. This means they can be used “straight out of the box”. They should have step by step instructions so that you can have forex robots on your MT4 platform without any issues.
What is the MT4 strategy tester?
The MT4 strategy tester allows you to backtest MT4 forex expert advisors across historical data to see how they may have performed historically speaking. You simply choose your desired MT4 EA settings, currency pair and dates that you would like to test. The strategy tester will then run through a combination of settings to optimise the robot and find the best settings based on historical data.
Just keep in mind that there are some limitations when using the MT4 strategy tester. It cannot account for tick data, variable spreads or commissions. This means the modelling quality is maxed out at 90% unless you use a third party MT4 back testing software such as Birts Tick Data Suite. This would allow you to backtest MT4 expert advisors using real tick data, spreads, slippage and commission.
When you are looking for an MT4 forex robot, you will want to check to see if the developer has provided any backtests of the robot. This will allow you to get an idea of the automated forex strategy that it uses. You should be able to see performance over a long period of time on all of the recommended currency pairs.
How can a develop my own MT4 robot?
If you have some coding skills or want to learn, you can always fire up the MQL4 programming interface MetaEditor which is available in the MT4 platform. This will let you develop your own forex robots for MT4. You can also build customised indicators and scripts to help with your forex day trading activities.
However, don’t worry if you find programming too hard or just don’t have the time to learn. You can always hire a freelancer to make your ideas for an automated forex system a reality. The MQL community has the largest freelance service for ordering MT4 robots and technical indicators. You will find hundreds of professional forex developers who are ready to build your forex expert advisor for MT4 and MT5.
How do I use a forex robot for MT4?
Once you have decided on the MT4 forex robot that you would like to try out, you simply add it to the relevant folder of your MT4 platform installation directory. You will then be able to drag and drop it onto the currency pair charts and choose the input settings you would like it to use.
If you are using default forex EA settings that have been provided by the developer, you may want to at least check the risk or lot size to make sure they are suitable and amend accordingly. Everyone has a different risk preference and should not risk more than they can afford to lose.
Now that the MT4 forex robot is up and running, you will need to keep the platform open for it to continue to work. If there are open trades and you close MT4, the EA may not be able to manage the open orders correctly.
This is why so many forex traders use a forex VPS as it enables them to run multiple instances of the MT4 platform around the clock without needing their own computer switched on. This can also be a great way to test different MT4 robots and settings across various brokers and accounts to see which perform the best.
Forex brokers for using MT4 forex robots
The MT4 platform is free to use and available through the majority of forex brokers. You will need an MT4 forex broker in order to trade forex online and run MT4 robots. Thankfully, there is certainly no shortage of options with literally hundreds of regulated and unregulated forex brokers to choose from. You should consider things such as the currency pairs they provide, other financial instruments, deposit/withdrawal options supported and support.
When it comes to automated forex trading strategies, IC Markets is my broker of choice. This is because they are and ECN forex broker with deep liquidity pools. This means they can provide clients with tight spreads and quick execution speeds at the best available prices. This can be very important when trading with forex robots, especially scalping robots that rely on small changes in prices.
Do MT4 forex robots work?
Yes, forex robots for MetaTrader 4 do work. However, there can be no guarantee on how good or bad they will perform because it depends on so many factors including the broker and current market conditions. I have seen forex robots go through good and bad time, so make sure you manage your expectations and do not expect to wake up rich overnight.
You can shop around and study various different forex robots for MT4 to see which matches your needs the most. Have a look for any real verified account results as this can give you an idea if the forex robot is profitable and how it has been trading throughout different market conditions. Just like with back testing, if an MT4 forex robot has had good results recently, it does not mean that will continue moving forward. This is trading and anything can happen, including unexpected black swan events like the CHF/EUR peg crisis which caused widespread devastation for forex brokers and traders.
Does MT4 have forex trading robots?
Yes, thousands are actually thousands of trading robots that are available from the MetaQuotes marketplace which you can access from directly withing the MetaTrader 4 platform. From there, you can purchase or download free forex robots along with paid algorithmic trading applications to trade the financial markets automatically for you.
You will find everything from trend following expert advisors, scalping robots, martingale strategies, grid trading or neural networks. The MT4 marketplace features a wide selection of automated forex systems for traders of any skill and experience level.
For your convenience, all products can be sorted according to their popularity, price and other criteria. I like how each MT4 robot is provided along with a detailed description and screenshots to give you an idea of how it works and what to expect. This can help you to find forex trading robots that fit within your own trading strategy and risk preferences.
What are the best forex robots for MT4?
If you have made it this far then you should have a good idea of what MT4 forex robots are and how they work. I have tried and tested so many forex expert advisors for MT4 over the years that I have lost count. To be honest, the majority of them made claims they are the best MT4 forex robot ever but did not back that up with 99% modelling quality backtests or real verified results. That being said, you can see a selection of my best forex robots for MT4 below.
Forex Robotron
The Forex Robotron EA is an MT4 forex robot that has been around for a long time and comes with excellent support. It has 99% modelling quality back tests showing how well it can perform across multiple currency pairs using the same settings. It is also backed by real live verified by Myfxbook accounts with years of trading history to analyse.
Forex Scalping EA
As the name rightly eludes to, the Forex Scalping EA uses a scalping strategy that attempts to pick off a few pips during market hours of low volatility. They have impressive looking back tests across multiple currency pairs and a verified account showing how this scalping EA has been trading.
Forex Flex EA
The Forex Flex EA is another forex robot for MT4 that has been around for many years. I am really impressed with the dedication that the developer has put into continuing to try and improve the Flex EA. They also provide excellent support and have lots of verified trading account results so you can check the latest performance of this MT4 EA using various different settings.
Advantages of MT4 forex robots
- Hand-off automated forex trading strategies
- MT4 platform is available through many forex brokers
- MT4 platform is free to download and use
- MT4 platform is available on desktop, web and mobile
- Lots of free and paid MT4 robots available
- Forex robot marketplace built into the MT4 platform
- MQL4 programming interface to build custom MT4 EA’s
- Can hire a freelanced to develop a custom MT4 robot
- Can eliminate mistakes made by human error
- MT4 strategy tester to back test and optimise EA’s
Disadvantages of MT4 forex robots
- Lots of forex robot scams to try and avoid
- Cannot always account for fundamental news
- Cannot see things that the human eye can
- Might be prone to crashing and bugs
- No guarantee on how good or bad they will perform
Conclusion: should I use a forex robot for MT4?
If you are looking for an automated forex trading solution, then you can choose from forex robots, forex signals and social trading platforms such as eToro. Forex robots are probably the most hands-off forex strategy as everything is completely automated from setup. This means you can choose the MT4 forex robots you like, load them on your MT4 platform, and let them go to work. You can then check back when it is a good time for you to see how things have been going.
However, forex robots cannot always take into account things that we as humans can see with the naked eye. They are quite rigid by nature and might not have a built-in news filter to avoid potentially volatile market conditions. You can get a rough idea of how an MT4 forex robot trades based on back testing and verified results, but this is by no means an indication of what will happen in the future.
I would always test a forex robot in the MT4 platform on a demo account to begin with to see how things go. This will allow you to see if it meets your needs without needing risk anything. You can get a free forex demo account from most brokers. Just remember, every manual and automated forex strategy can go through good and bad periods.
Self-confessed Forex Geek spending my days researching and testing everything forex related. I have many years of experience in the forex industry having reviewed thousands of forex robots, brokers, strategies, courses and more. I share my knowledge with you for free to help you learn more about the crazy world of forex trading! Read more about me.
