An Expert Advisor on MetaTrader is a compiled program. A developer writes MQL4 or MQL5 code, compiles it, and the terminal runs that fixed logic on every tick. If a trader wants that Expert Advisor to check with an AI model before it fires an order, someone has to write the code that makes the request, parses what comes back and decides what to do with it. MetaTrader's own documentation does not describe a way to wire that up without writing code.
eTrader AI starts from a different point. A trader builds an AI Trader by connecting blocks on a canvas: on a new candle, search the news, ask a model such as Claude, Grok or Gemini to decide, check a daily loss limit, then buy. No compiler, no client library, no line of code. This article compares what each platform's own documentation says it provides, not what a skilled developer could eventually build on top of either one.
What an eTrader AI Trader is built from
An AI Trader in eTrader is assembled from blocks rather than typed as a script. A trigger block fires on a new candle or a tick. A research block can search the news for a symbol. A decision block hands the situation to a model, such as Claude, Grok or Gemini, and asks it to choose an action. A risk block checks something concrete, like a daily loss limit, before anything is allowed through. Only then does an order block place the trade. The trader supplies their own API key for the model they pick, sets the rules and limits themselves, and can switch the AI Trader off at any time.
Every AI Trader runs in Trade mode, where it places real orders, or Signals only mode, where it sends a push notification and writes to a bot journal without touching the account. Both AI Traders and eTrader Code robots run in eTrader's cloud rather than on the trader's own machine, so there is nothing to keep switched on locally for the AI Trader to keep working. eTrader AI is available in any browser at ai.etraderweb.com and as a Mac app.
What a MetaTrader Expert Advisor is built from
An Expert Advisor is source code in MQL4 or MQL5, compiled into a program the MetaTrader terminal loads onto a chart. Every decision the Expert Advisor makes, including any call out to an external service, has to be written by the developer as part of that code. MetaTrader's own manuals describe indicators, order functions and event handlers for the terminal itself; they do not describe a built-in way to hand a decision to a language model without the developer writing that integration by hand.
That does not make the idea impossible. A developer who knows MQL4 or MQL5 and is comfortable calling an external API could write an Expert Advisor that sends the current market situation to a model and acts on the answer. It is a real option, and some MetaTrader developers already build things like it, in the same spirit covered in our piece on algo indicators versus Expert Advisors. The difference is that MetaTrader supplies the language and the terminal; the AI wiring itself has to be built by whoever writes the robot.
eTrader AI Trader vs MetaTrader Expert Advisor, side by side
| eTrader AI Trader | MetaTrader Expert Advisor | |
|---|---|---|
| How it is built | Blocks wired together on a canvas, no code | MQL4 or MQL5 source code, compiled |
| Talking to an AI model | A block calls a model such as Claude, Grok or Gemini with the trader's own API key | Not built into the terminal; a developer has to code the request themselves |
| Where it runs | eTrader's cloud, no VPS needed | The MetaTrader terminal, which needs to stay running |
| Trade or notify only | Trade mode or Signals only mode, chosen per AI Trader | Whatever the developer coded; a dry-run mode has to be built in |
| Turning it off | A switch the trader can use at any time | Removing or disabling the Expert Advisor from the chart |
| Who needs to build it | Any trader who can describe the rules | Someone who can write and maintain MQL4 or MQL5 |
Where the daily loss limit actually lives
The daily loss limit example is worth taking seriously, because it is where the two approaches differ in practice. In eTrader AI, a risk block sits in the chain before the order block, and the trader sets its threshold in the same canvas where they built the rest of the AI Trader, the same kind of guardrail described in our AI safety limits guide. Changing the limit is editing one block. Testing it means switching the AI Trader to Signals only mode and watching the journal for a few days before it is trusted with real orders.
In a hand-coded Expert Advisor, the same daily loss limit is a few lines inside a much larger file, sitting next to the AI request, the news lookup and the order logic. Changing it means editing code and recompiling. That is not a criticism of MQL4 or MQL5. It is simply a different way of working, better suited to a developer who already maintains that codebase than to a trader who wants to change one number and move on.
Which one actually fits a given trader
A firm or trader with an in-house developer, an existing library of Expert Advisors and a specific integration in mind, such as a proprietary data feed alongside the AI call, is well served by writing that logic directly in MQL4 or MQL5. The result is exactly as flexible as the developer makes it, and it plugs into whatever else the firm already runs on MetaTrader.
A trader who wants to test an idea involving an AI model without hiring a developer is the person eTrader AI was built for. They can wire up a research block, a decision block and a risk block, run it in Signals only mode to see what it would have done, and turn it into a live AI Trader once they trust it, using the same kind of workflow laid out in our guide to AI trading assistants. Both routes are legitimate. The honest difference is who has to do the wiring, and how quickly a limit can be changed once the AI Trader or Expert Advisor is already running. Firms weighing this up for their own traders can book an eTrader demo and see an AI Trader built from scratch.
"An AI Trader is not a black box. Every rule, every limit and every model call is a block the trader placed there themselves."
— The SGHK Team
Key Takeaways
- eTrader AI Traders are built by wiring blocks together, with the trader's own model key and their own rules and limits, and no code.
- MetaTrader Expert Advisors are compiled MQL4 or MQL5 code; calling an AI model from one is possible but has to be coded by the developer, not supplied by the terminal.
- Both an AI Trader and an Expert Advisor can run in a trade-placing mode or a notify-only mode, but on eTrader that split is a built-in setting rather than custom code.
- eTrader AI Traders run in eTrader's cloud with no VPS to keep on; a MetaTrader Expert Advisor needs the terminal running continuously.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does MetaTrader have a no-code AI trading builder?
Not according to MetaQuotes' own documentation for the platform. MetaTrader gives developers MQL4 and MQL5 to write Expert Advisors; calling an external AI model from one is something a developer has to code by hand, not a block-based builder supplied by the terminal.
Which AI models can an eTrader AI Trader use?
The trader connects a model such as Claude, Grok or Gemini using their own API key, then a decision block in the AI Trader sends it the situation and asks it to choose an action.
Does an eTrader AI Trader always place real trades?
No. Every AI Trader runs in Trade mode, which places orders, or Signals only mode, which sends a push notification and writes to a bot journal without touching the account, so it can be watched before it trades for real.
Can I still write a custom Expert Advisor that calls an AI model on MetaTrader?
Yes, if you or a developer you work with can write MQL4 or MQL5. The platform gives you the language and the terminal; the request to the AI model and the logic around it are code you write yourself.
Does an eTrader AI Trader need a server the trader manages?
No. AI Traders run in eTrader's cloud rather than on the trader's own computer, so there is no separate server to keep switched on for the AI Trader to keep working.
About SGHK
SGHK is a FinTech company that designs and builds its own software for the trading industry: the eTrader trading platform, Launch your Broker and Launch your Prop Firm. Every product is written, hosted and supported in-house and licensed to trading firms, with the CRMs branded to them, all hosted by us in the cloud, managed by each firm and built to scale across clustered servers as our clients grow. Everything is encrypted, and each firm is the only one with access to its data and its clients' data.