Positions by Strike
The Positions by Strike view displays a horizontal bar chart showing the total options position size (calls + puts) at each strike price. This is one of the most commonly used views for understanding where market participants are concentrated relative to the current underlying price.
What This View Shows
Each bar represents the total options position (in contracts) at a given strike price. Bars extend to the right for positive positions and to the left for negative positions. The vertical axis lists strike prices, and the current price of the underlying is marked with a reference line.
This view helps answer questions like: Where are the largest concentrations of positions? How are positions distributed above and below the current price? How has positioning changed compared to an earlier time?
Toolbar Controls
View Mode Toggle
- Position — Displays standard horizontal bar chart of positions
- Candlestick — Displays OHLC-style boxplots showing the range of position values over the trading day at each strike
Product Selector
Choose which underlying product to display (SPX, VIX).
Configuration Panel
Participants
Select which market participant category to display. The default is Market Maker.
Expirations
Control which option expirations are included in the aggregation:
- All — Include all available expirations
- DTE — Filter by days to expiration (specify a DTE range)
- Custom — Select specific expiration dates to include
Display Options
- Total — Combined calls and puts (net position)
- Calls — Only call option positions
- Puts — Only put option positions
Comparison Dots
Enable reference data points overlaid on the bars to see how positions have changed:
- Show Previous (−10 min) — Dots showing where positions were 10 minutes ago
- Show Comparison — Compare to Market Open or a custom timestamp
Price Indicators
Show Straddle Bounds — Display horizontal lines at the expected move boundaries calculated from the at-the-money straddle price.
Strike Grouping
Bucket nearby strikes together for a higher-level view. Options: Show All Strikes, or group by 5, 10, 25, or 50 point intervals.
Start with Market Maker positions to understand the primary hedging landscape. Use Comparison Dots set to Market Open to quickly see how positioning has shifted during the session. The Straddle Bounds indicator shows the market's implied expected range. Switch between Total, Calls, and Puts to understand the directional composition at each strike.