MetaTrader 4 Color Scheme

Written by Dominic Walsh · Published 13 Aug 2026 · Last updated 17 Aug 2026

Changing your MetaTrader 4 color scheme takes about thirty seconds and pays you back every session you sit in front of the platform. The default black background with blue and white candles is functional rather than comfortable, and it is not what most traders end up using. This guide covers every colour setting MT4 exposes, the three built-in presets, and how to save your scheme as a template so a new chart opens the way you want it.

Where the MetaTrader 4 color scheme lives

Every colour on a chart is controlled from one dialog. Right-click anywhere on the chart and choose Properties, or press F8 with the chart focused. Both open the same window.

The dialog has two tabs. Colors holds every colour element plus the preset dropdown. Common holds the chart type and what the chart displays, which is a separate thing worth knowing about.

Note that the dialog applies to the active chart only. Changing it does not touch your other open charts, which surprises people the first time. Making a change stick across every chart needs a template, covered further down.

Every colour element explained

Eleven settings sit on the Colors tab, and a live preview to the left updates as you change them.

The pairing that catches beginners is Bar Up and Bull candle. Bar Up colours the outline and wick while Bull candle colours the body. Set them to the same colour and you get solid candles. Set the body to the background colour and rising candles appear hollow, which is the classic look many traders prefer.

The three built-in presets

The Color scheme dropdown at the top offers three ready-made options, and they are a faster starting point than setting eleven values by hand.

Yellow On Black is the highest contrast of the three and the easiest on the eyes in a dark room. Green On Black follows the same idea with a different accent. Black On White flips everything for a light background, which suits a bright room and prints far better.

Pick the preset closest to what you want, then adjust individual elements from there. The dropdown simply loads a set of values into the other fields, so nothing stops you overriding any of them afterwards.

Setting a colour by hand

Each element opens a palette of standard colours plus a Custom option at the bottom. Custom opens the full Windows colour picker, where you can enter exact RGB values.

That matters if you want to match a specific look. Two combinations come up constantly among traders: a very dark grey background around RGB 24-24-24 rather than pure black, which reduces glare on modern displays, and a soft off-white near 245-245-245 instead of pure white for the same reason.

For candles, the widely used pairing is green for bullish and red for bearish, since it matches almost every chart you will see elsewhere. If you are red-green colourblind, blue and orange give the same separation without the ambiguity, and MT4 has no accessibility preset so this is worth setting deliberately.

The Common tab changes what you see

Colour is only half of a readable chart. The second tab controls what appears at all.

Chart type switches between bar chart, candlesticks and line chart. Our guides on bar chart vs candlestick and line charts in forex cover when each format helps.

Show grid is off for a lot of traders, since the dotted lines compete with price. Show OHLC puts the four values in the top-left corner, which is genuinely useful. Show Ask line draws the second price, and it is worth enabling if you trade short-term, because the spread becomes visible rather than assumed. Show period separators marks day or week boundaries, which helps when you trade sessions.

Chart shift moves price away from the right edge so there is room to draw ahead of it, and Chart autoscroll keeps the newest candle in view.

Saving the scheme so it sticks

This is the step most people miss. Changing Properties affects one chart, and opening a new chart gives you the defaults again.

The fix is a template. With your chart looking right, right-click the chart and choose Template, then Save Template. Name it default and MT4 will apply it to every new chart automatically. Save it under any other name and you can apply it manually from the same menu.

A template stores more than colours. It also keeps your chart type, timeframe settings and any indicators attached, so a saved workspace comes back complete. Templates live in the MQL4 folder alongside indicators, which our guide on how to install MT4 and MT5 indicators covers.

One warning worth heeding: pressing Reset in the Properties dialog returns every colour to the MT4 factory default, not to your last saved state. Save the template first.

Choosing colours that help you read the chart

Three principles do most of the work. Contrast where it matters. Candles should stand out sharply from the background; grid lines and axes should recede. Traders often overshoot here and make the grid as loud as price.

Consistency across timeframes. Use the same scheme everywhere so a glance at any chart reads the same way. Mixing a dark H1 with a light H4 slows recognition more than people expect.

Comfort over hours. A dark background reduces eye strain in a dim room, and a light one is easier in daylight. Anyone sitting in front of charts for a full session will notice the difference by the end of it.

Common mistakes

Four repeat. Changing Properties without saving a template tops the list, and the work is lost the moment a new chart opens. Setting Bull candle and Bar Up to different colours by accident comes second, which produces candles with mismatched bodies and outlines. Third, traders leave Stop levels a colour that blends into the background and lose track of their orders. Fourth, they press Reset expecting their own defaults and get the factory ones instead.

Where to go next

A readable chart is the foundation for everything else. Read how to read candlestick charts for what those coloured bodies are telling you, then compare formats in bar chart vs candlestick. To add tools to your newly readable chart, see the best day trading technical indicators and follow how to install MT4 and MT5 indicators. For further reading, the MetaTrader 4 platform help documents every dialog, and the candlestick chart article on Wikipedia covers the format itself.

FAQ

How do I change the MetaTrader 4 color scheme?

Right-click the chart and choose Properties, or press F8. The Colors tab holds every element plus three built-in presets, and a live preview shows each change before you accept it.

Why did my colours disappear on a new chart?

Properties applies to the active chart only. Save your scheme as a template named default, and MT4 will apply it automatically to every chart you open afterwards.

What is the difference between Bar Up and Bull candle?

Bar Up colours the outline and the wick of a rising candle, while Bull candle colours the body. Setting the body to the background colour produces the hollow candle look many traders prefer.

Can I use custom RGB colours?

Yes. Each dropdown has a Custom option at the bottom that opens the Windows colour picker, so you can enter exact RGB values rather than choosing from the standard palette.

How do I hide the grid?

Either untick Show grid on the Common tab, or set the Grid colour to match your background. Both work, though the tickbox is cleaner and easier to reverse later.

Does changing colours affect my trading results?

Only through readability and comfort, which are worth more over a long session than they sound. Trading involves risk, results are not guaranteed, and past performance is not indicative of future results.