This page reflects NEXT 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 — NEXT
Data as of market close Aug 18, 2026
Nearest listed expiration 2026-08-21 shows max pain at $7.00 (0.08 above spot). Use this page to evaluate pin-risk zones, strike pressure, and open-interest concentration before selecting trade structure.
Max Pain Strike
$7.00
Nearest expiry
Expected Move
±$0.38
±5.4%
Days to Expiry
3
Calendar days
Total Call OI
19,969
Nearest expiry
Total Put OI
4,129
Nearest expiry
P/C OI Ratio
0.21
Put-heavy
Spot Price
$6.92
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
$8.00
6/18/2026, 11:28:44 PM
2026-07-17
$7.00
7/17/2026, 11:24:45 PM
2026-08-21NextUpdated
$7.00
8/18/2026, 11:23:42 PM
2026-09-18
$7.00
8/18/2026, 11:23:42 PM
2026-10-16
$7.00
8/18/2026, 11:23:42 PM
2027-01-15
$7.00
8/18/2026, 11:23:42 PM
Selected expiration: 2026-08-21 at max pain $7.00.
NEXT pain by strike for 2026-08-21 expiration
Strike
Call Pain
Put Pain
Total Pain
1
0
2529300
2529300
2
300
2116500
2116800
3
600
1703900
1704500
4
900
1291500
1292400
5
1200
879300
880500
6
8000
473400
481400
7
219700
111900
331600
8
784300
0
784300
9
1719600
0
1719600
10
3363400
0
3363400
11
5330300
0
5330300
12
7327100
0
7327100
13
9323900
0
9323900
14
11320700
0
11320700
15
13317500
0
13317500
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.