03/03/2015

MT4 vs MT5 Comparison: What Are The Major Differences?

The ability to access additional markets, enhanced order options, and improved analytical tools are just some of the advantages that MT5 has over MT4.

Those who are new to forex trading may have seen the terms MT4 or MT5 on forums, or in discussions but may not know what they stood for. Although the many acronyms found in the forex industry may be intimidating to newcomers, in the case of MT4 and MT5, it’s quite simple.

The MetaQuotes software company is most known for two online forex trading platforms: MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5. These platforms are more commonly referred to as MT4, and MT5 respectively. Because both platforms differ in a variety of ways, we wanted to offer our own MT4 vs MT5 comparison so both brokers and traders alike can better understand the differences.

MT5 Offers Access to More Trading Products and Markets than MT4

MT4 has always been recognized as a platform for both forex and CFD trading. To this day, many brokers offer a variety of trading symbols which at first glance would appear to cover the full range of available trading products: metals, energies, and stocks. Looking deeper though, you’ll discover that all non-forex products found in MT4 are actually CFDs.

One of the major differences between MT4 and MT5 is that more trading products are available in MT5. With an MT5 account it’s possible to connect to a variety of exchanges, which allows traders to speculate on global equities, ETFs, options, and futures. As an example, MetaTrader 5 recently received official certification by the CME (Chicago Mercantile Exchange), one of the largest futures and options exchanges in the world.

Order Types Are More Abundant in MT5

MT5 traders are able to enter more complex order types than they could in MT4. For example, MT5 offers the ability to place buy stop-limits and sell stop-limit orders. Another advantage is that MT5 allows brokers to offer market depth across all symbols, a feature that many sophisticated traders require to properly execute their trading systems.

MT5 Uses an Improved Coding Language: MQL5

MT4 took the forex world by storm by offering traders the ability to automate their own trading systems, which are known as EAs (Expert Advisors). Due to the popularity of EAs, MetaQuotes decided to offer an enhanced and upgraded coding language in MT5: MQL5. By taking advantage of object oriented programming, trading systems can be more easily coded in MQL5, and most importantly, the MQL5 language makes it is possible to develop far more intricate and complex systems than one could in MT4.

Analytical and Trade Analysis Has Improved in MT5

As mentioned previously, MT5 is able to connect to a variety of exchanges, which offers the benefit of viewing both historical and real time volume, a feature that was not available in MT4. Although difficult to gauge in the forex market, volume is an important trading indicator for futures and equity traders. In addition, MT5 offers more charting time frames than its predecessor: M2,M3,M20,H3, and H4 are just a few examples.

Depth of market integration and over 10 more chart time frames are a couple examples of the superior analytical tools offered by MT5.

MT5 is More Flexible for Brokers to Operate

MT5 is far more versatile when it comes to configuring price streams, trading groups, accounts, and product symbols. Many of these enhancements were requested by existing MT4 brokers. It became too cumbersome to attempt to implement all of these changes in MT4, which is why MetaQuotes instead chose to offer a more flexible and customizable system structure in MT5.

This is great news for brokers who are interested in onboarding a variety of white labels and other partnerships. Those who have previously worked with MT4 understand the many limitations this software presents, making the structure offered in MT5 a breath of fresh air.

Atomiq Consulting – Your Forex White Label Partner

If you are considering a forex white label partnership and need guidance in deciding whether to select an MT4 or MT5 white label, don’t hesitate to contact us. We are also happy to answer any other questions you have regarding the differences between MT4 and MT5. Our industry expertise and decades of forex industry knowledge make Atomiq Consulting the ideal partner for launching your own forex brokerage.