This page reflects STEP options positioning from the latest published market-close snapshot. Intraday price and contract changes are not displayed.
Published Snapshot
May 19, 2026 close
Max Pain — STEP
Data as of market close May 19, 2026
Nearest listed expiration 2026-06-18 shows max pain at $55.00 (2.48 above spot). Use this page to evaluate pin-risk zones, strike pressure, and open-interest concentration before selecting trade structure.
Max Pain Strike
$55.00
Nearest expiry
Expected Move
±$7.75
±14.8%
Days to Expiry
30
Calendar days
Total Call OI
264
Nearest expiry
Total Put OI
409
Nearest expiry
P/C OI Ratio
1.55
Put-heavy
Spot Price
$52.52
Published close
Consensus
-
Open report for full read
Max Pain by Expiration
Pain by Strike
Drill into expiration
Selected: 2026-06-18
Expiration
Max Pain Strike
Last Updated
2026-04-17
$50.00
4/17/2026, 11:30:04 PM
2026-05-15
$50.00
5/15/2026, 11:38:48 PM
2026-06-18NextUpdated
$55.00
5/19/2026, 11:35:48 PM
2026-07-17
$40.00
5/19/2026, 11:35:48 PM
2026-09-18
$50.00
5/19/2026, 11:35:48 PM
2026-12-18
$65.00
5/19/2026, 11:35:48 PM
Selected expiration: 2026-06-18 at max pain $55.00.
STEP pain by strike for 2026-06-18 expiration
Strike
Call Pain
Put Pain
Total Pain
22.5
0
1325250
1325250
25
9500
1223000
1232500
30
38000
1018500
1056500
35
66500
814000
880500
40
114000
616500
730500
45
161500
444500
606000
50
212000
274500
486500
55
277000
139500
416500
60
376000
81000
457000
65
497500
50500
548000
70
621500
33000
654500
75
749500
22000
771500
80
881500
11000
892500
85
1013500
0
1013500
90
1145500
0
1145500
95
1277500
0
1277500
105
1541500
0
1541500
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.