This page reflects MTUS options positioning from the latest published market-close snapshot. Intraday price and contract changes are not displayed.
Published Snapshot
Aug 18, 2026 close
Max Pain — MTUS
Data as of market close Aug 18, 2026
Nearest listed expiration 2026-08-21 shows max pain at $20.00 (1.23 below spot). Use this page to evaluate pin-risk zones, strike pressure, and open-interest concentration before selecting trade structure.
Max Pain Strike
$20.00
Nearest expiry
Expected Move
±$1.43
±6.7%
Days to Expiry
3
Calendar days
Total Call OI
2,515
Nearest expiry
Total Put OI
549
Nearest expiry
P/C OI Ratio
0.22
Put-heavy
Spot Price
$21.23
Published close
Consensus
-
Open report for full read
Max Pain by Expiration
Pain by Strike
Drill into expiration
Selected: 2026-08-21
Expiration
Max Pain Strike
Last Updated
2026-06-18
$20.00
6/18/2026, 11:27:10 PM
2026-07-17
$20.00
7/17/2026, 11:23:14 PM
2026-08-21NextUpdated
$20.00
8/18/2026, 11:27:21 PM
2026-09-18
$20.00
8/18/2026, 11:27:21 PM
2026-11-20
$17.50
8/18/2026, 11:27:21 PM
2027-01-15
$17.50
8/18/2026, 11:27:21 PM
2027-02-19
$10.00
8/18/2026, 11:27:21 PM
2027-05-21
$12.50
8/18/2026, 11:27:21 PM
Selected expiration: 2026-08-21 at max pain $20.00.
MTUS pain by strike for 2026-08-21 expiration
Strike
Call Pain
Put Pain
Total Pain
2.5
0
706250
706250
5
250
569000
569250
12.5
1000
157250
158250
15
1750
99500
101250
17.5
5750
41750
47500
20
25250
17000
42250
22.5
89250
1250
90500
25
677000
1000
678000
30
1934500
500
1935000
35
3192000
0
3192000
How to Read Max Pain
Compare pin-risk and strike-pressure across expirations from the latest published close.
What max pain measures
Max pain is the strike where option holders would collectively lose the most at expiration, based on open interest across the listed chain.
How traders use it
It is most useful as a possible pinning zone, especially when spot is already trading near a crowded strike into expiration.
What can break it
Strong directional flows, news, or fast spot moves can overwhelm any pinning tendency, so max pain should support a thesis rather than drive it alone.
The closer you are to expiration, the more useful this becomes as context and the less useful it is as a standalone prediction.