AvaTrade MT4 vs MT5 vs WebTrader: Which Platform Should You Choose?

Platform choice is where new traders lose the most time for the least benefit. The instinct is to assume the higher number must be better, so MT5 beats MT4 and that settles it. It does not. AvaTrade scores 9.5 out of 10 for platforms in our assessment precisely because it offers four genuinely different tools, and the one that suits you comes down to three questions: do you trade anything besides forex, do you run automated strategies, and how much complexity do you actually want on screen?

The platform matrix

All four connect to the same AvaTrade account and the same instruments. What differs is capability and how much of it is in your face.

Platform features are as published by AvaTrade and MetaQuotes at the time of writing. Available instruments vary by your account entity and region.

MetaTrader 4: best for forex and Expert Advisors

MT4 has been the retail forex standard for two decades and that longevity is the point. Its MQL4 ecosystem is far larger than MT5’s, so if you plan to buy, download or copy an existing Expert Advisor, the odds are overwhelming that it was written for MT4. Add a lighter footprint on older machines and an interface most traders already recognise, and it remains the right default for anyone whose world is currency pairs and automation.

The trade-off is age. Nine timeframes, around 30 built-in indicators and single-threaded backtesting all feel dated next to MT5. If you are building strategies from scratch rather than running someone else’s, that gap starts to matter.

MetaTrader 5: best for multi-asset and advanced analysis

MT5 is the more capable platform on paper and it is not close: 21 timeframes against MT4’s 9, roughly 38 built-in indicators, a built-in economic calendar, depth of market, and multi-threaded backtesting that runs dramatically faster. If you trade indices, commodities and stock CFDs alongside forex, or you develop and test your own systems, this is the one to be on.

Two honest caveats. MQL5 is not backwards compatible, so an MT4 Expert Advisor will not simply run here, and the third-party library is smaller. And for a beginner trading two currency pairs, most of that extra capability is noise you are paying attention to for nothing.

WebTrader and AvaTradeGO: best for simplicity

WebTrader is AvaTrade’s browser platform. Nothing to download, nothing to install, you log in and trade, which also makes it the only realistic option on a locked-down work computer. AvaTradeGO is the mobile app, and it is where AvaTrade’s own features live most comfortably, including AvaProtect loss protection, which is not part of the standard MetaTrader interface.

You give up the deep customisation and Expert Advisor support of MetaTrader. For a beginner placing a handful of considered trades, that is a fair trade, and starting here avoids the very common mistake of drowning in indicators before learning to read price.

How to get started, free

You do not have to guess. A demo account funded with virtual money lets you run all four in live market conditions at zero risk, which is the only sensible way to decide.

Which platform fits you?

If you are still unsure, the honest answer is to start on WebTrader or AvaTradeGO and move to MetaTrader when you find something you cannot do. Platform capability you are not using is not an advantage, and switching later costs nothing because it is the same account.