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If you are just starting out as a trader of the financial markets, it can be hard to know which trading software to trust. Serious retail traders generally swear by MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5, which are both developed by MetaQuotes Software Corporation, a company dating back to the dotcom boom of the early 2000s.
Both MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 are readily available with the leading online brokers. For instance, INFINOX offers all its retail clients the ability to use MetaTrader 4 or 5, as well as its own IX Social app to follow the trading angles of profitable, professional traders within its community. How to choose between MetaTrader 4 and 5 is one of the biggest questions for newbies to retail trading. Does MetaTrader 5 tip the scales simply because it’s a newer version? Below, we’ll differentiate each platform to help you make the right choice to take your trading to the next level.
MetaTrader 4 Vs MetaTrader 5: Who Wins?
The biggest difference between MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 depends on which instruments you plan to trade. MetaTrader 4 was developed solely for forex trading, which explains why its trading features are tailored largely to providing technical analysis and indicators on forex pairs. On the flip side, MetaTrader 5 has broader appeal, with its trading platform geared not only towards forex markets but the CFD, equity, and futures markets too.
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As a newcomer to financial trading, it’s possible that MetaTrader 4 will serve you well from day one. It’s certainly built for casual retail traders, simplifying the analysis and process of executing and managing orders in the market. Experienced traders will prefer MetaTrader 5 for the ability to assess trading timeframes in more granular detail, but its predecessor has enough to give retail traders the general picture. Nine different chart timeframes can be used, while the latter boasts 21 chart timeframes.
Order types are another reason why MetaTrader 4 is a more realistic proposition than its successor for beginner traders. There are only four order types to choose from and that’s a positive for newbies, preventing newcomers from over-complicating matters. Buy stop, buy limit, sell stop and sell limit orders are the remit of MetaTrader 4 – all of which can help manage your exposure in the market. On the flip side, MetaTrader 5 has two additional orders – buy stop-limit and sell stop-limit.
In terms of technical analysis, MetaTrader 4’s 30 in-built technical indicators should be more than adequate for beginner retail traders. If that’s not the case, users can also dip into the free “Code Base”, where a further 2,000-plus bespoke indicators can be sampled. MetaTrader 5 has 38 in-built technical indicators, with users of this platform also given free access to the Code Base.
MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5: Horses for Courses
Ultimately, MetaTrader 4 should be seen as the ideal starting point for retail forex traders. However, those with ambitions to trade instruments like stocks, indices, commodities, and even crypto assets will require MetaTrader 5 to get you started. Both platforms offer the necessary tools to manage your risk and take advantage of the abundant opportunities in the markets.
