This page reflects VAL 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 — VAL
Data as of market close Aug 18, 2026
Nearest listed expiration 2026-08-21 shows max pain at $75.00 (11.37 below spot). Use this page to evaluate pin-risk zones, strike pressure, and open-interest concentration before selecting trade structure.
Max Pain Strike
$75.00
Nearest expiry
Expected Move
±$3.55
±4.1%
Days to Expiry
3
Calendar days
Total Call OI
12,323
Nearest expiry
Total Put OI
4,464
Nearest expiry
P/C OI Ratio
0.36
Put-heavy
Spot Price
$86.37
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, 11:36:31 PM
2026-07-17
$75.00
7/17/2026, 11:34:30 PM
2026-08-21NextUpdated
$75.00
8/18/2026, 11:35:17 PM
2026-09-18
$77.50
8/18/2026, 11:35:17 PM
2026-11-20
$85.00
8/18/2026, 11:35:17 PM
2026-12-18
$55.00
8/18/2026, 11:35:17 PM
2027-01-15
$42.50
8/18/2026, 11:35:17 PM
2027-02-19
$65.00
8/18/2026, 11:35:17 PM
Selected expiration: 2026-08-21 at max pain $75.00.
VAL pain by strike for 2026-08-21 expiration
Strike
Call Pain
Put Pain
Total Pain
25
0
21948500
21948500
40
3000
15267500
15270500
45
5000
13040500
13045500
47.5
6000
11928750
11934750
50
7000
10821250
10828250
52.5
8250
9721500
9729750
55
9500
8631500
8641000
57.5
16750
7545750
7562500
60
24000
6462500
6486500
62.5
41250
5383000
5424250
65
58500
4311250
4369750
67.5
75750
3247750
3323500
70
97750
2192250
2290000
72.5
120000
1388000
1508000
75
142250
585000
727250
77.5
673750
309500
983250
80
1205500
38000
1243500
82.5
2875250
23750
2899000
85
4553250
10000
4563250
87.5
6513750
6750
6520500
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.