What is a Forex EA (Expert Advisor)?

An EA (Expert Advisor) is a program that runs on the MetaTrader 4 / 5 (MT4/MT5) platform and executes trades automatically. It is also called automated trading or algorithmic/system trading.

Characteristics

• Rule-based, 24/7. It monitors the market constantly and enters/exits when conditions are met.
• Removes emotion. It mechanically avoids common discretionary mistakes such as late stop-losses and rushed take-profits.
• Many strategy types. Scalping / day-trade / swing, trend-following / counter-trend, averaging-down (grid) types, etc. Risk characteristics differ greatly by type (see Martingale / Grid).

Metrics used to evaluate an EA

Assess PF, maximum drawdown, win rate and expectancy together, with a sufficient number of trades and running period. Beyond backtests, forward (live) results matter most. TrackRecord publishes results auto-synced from real accounts.