This page reflects NYT 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 — NYT
Data as of market close Aug 18, 2026
Nearest listed expiration 2026-08-21 shows max pain at $70.00 (4.93 above spot). Use this page to evaluate pin-risk zones, strike pressure, and open-interest concentration before selecting trade structure.
Max Pain Strike
$70.00
Nearest expiry
Expected Move
±$2.00
±3.1%
Days to Expiry
3
Calendar days
Total Call OI
19,856
Nearest expiry
Total Put OI
7,135
Nearest expiry
P/C OI Ratio
0.36
Put-heavy
Spot Price
$65.07
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
$75.00
6/18/2026, 11:25:34 PM
2026-07-17
$75.00
7/17/2026, 11:30:15 PM
2026-08-21NextUpdated
$70.00
8/18/2026, 11:23:49 PM
2026-09-18
$70.00
8/18/2026, 11:23:49 PM
2026-10-16
$70.00
8/18/2026, 11:23:49 PM
2026-12-18
$65.00
8/18/2026, 11:23:49 PM
2027-01-15
$67.50
8/18/2026, 11:23:49 PM
Selected expiration: 2026-08-21 at max pain $70.00.
NYT pain by strike for 2026-08-21 expiration
Strike
Call Pain
Put Pain
Total Pain
50
0
15529500
15529500
55
0
11973500
11973500
60
0
8437500
8437500
65
5000
4926000
4931000
67.5
72000
3182250
3254250
70
1348250
1816750
3165000
72.5
3871750
814750
4686500
75
6404500
250
6404750
77.5
8991000
0
8991000
80
12726000
0
12726000
82.5
16538250
0
16538250
85
21474750
0
21474750
105
61184750
0
61184750
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.