This page reflects SM 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 — SM
Data as of market close Aug 18, 2026
Nearest listed expiration 2026-08-21 shows max pain at $25.00 (10.49 below spot). Use this page to evaluate pin-risk zones, strike pressure, and open-interest concentration before selecting trade structure.
Max Pain Strike
$25.00
Nearest expiry
Expected Move
±$1.50
±4.2%
Days to Expiry
3
Calendar days
Total Call OI
24,967
Nearest expiry
Total Put OI
7,088
Nearest expiry
P/C OI Ratio
0.28
Put-heavy
Spot Price
$35.49
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
$30.00
6/18/2026, 11:28:24 PM
2026-07-17
$25.00
7/17/2026, 11:37:04 PM
2026-08-21NextUpdated
$25.00
8/18/2026, 11:40:23 PM
2026-09-18
$32.50
8/18/2026, 11:40:23 PM
2026-10-16
$25.00
8/18/2026, 11:40:23 PM
2026-11-20
$30.00
8/18/2026, 11:40:23 PM
2026-12-18
$22.50
8/18/2026, 11:40:23 PM
2027-01-15
$22.50
8/18/2026, 11:40:23 PM
2027-02-19
$17.50
8/18/2026, 11:40:23 PM
Selected expiration: 2026-08-21 at max pain $25.00.
SM pain by strike for 2026-08-21 expiration
Strike
Call Pain
Put Pain
Total Pain
2.5
0
16586250
16586250
5
0
14814250
14814250
7.5
0
13042250
13042250
10
500
11270250
11270750
12.5
1250
9501250
9502500
15
2250
7732250
7734500
17.5
468750
5996250
6465000
20
987000
4452750
5439750
22.5
1572000
3000000
4572000
25
2408250
1631250
4039500
27.5
3396500
771500
4168000
30
4540500
281500
4822000
32.5
6214000
29750
6243750
35
8421500
1750
8423250
37.5
11469000
0
11469000
40
14781750
0
14781750
42.5
19133500
0
19133500
45
23632000
0
23632000
47.5
29849000
0
29849000
50
36081750
0
36081750
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.