Bull call spread
Buy the lower-strike call and sell the higher-strike call. You pay a net debit and want the underlying to rise. The default 100/120 call, priced 10 versus 3, is this spread: breakeven 107, max loss 7, max gain 13.
Options Spread Calculator
Chart a bull call spread, bear put spread, call spread, or put spread. You buy one option and sell another of the same type at a different strike, so both the gain and the loss are capped.
Defaults are a 100/120 bull call spread priced 10 versus 3. Switch Type to Put for a put spread. Click Calculate, then slide spot, time, and each implied vol. Figures are theoretical and for information only.
Type a symbol, then Load or leave the field. Spot, ~30-day historical realized vol, and a US risk-free proxy are filled when the ticker is found. Strikes and target are recentered near the new spot.
Delayed/free data. Historical realized vol is not implied vol from an options chain. Not investment advice.
New Option 1 Price:
New Option 2 Price:
How the spread P&L is calculated
An options spread — also called an option spread — is long one option and short another of the same type at a different strike. This options spread calculator prices a bull call spread, a bear call spread, a bear put spread, or a bull put spread. Net premium is V − V2 (you pay the long leg and collect the short leg). Both the gain and the loss are limited to the strike gap versus that net debit or credit.
Expiry P&L = Q × [max(φ(S − K), 0) − V] − Q2 × [max(φ(S − K2), 0) − V2]
- φ — +1 for a call spread, −1 for a put spread
- K — long strike; K2 — short strike
- Live P&L uses two Black-Scholes marks and the same long-minus-short difference
Each leg has its own implied vol. Defaults (call spread, V = 10 at 100, V2 = 3 at 120) imply 23.97% and 22.13%.
Bull call, bear put, call spread, and put spread
Leg 1 is the option you buy. Leg 2 is the option you sell. Set Type to Call or Put, then put the two strikes on those legs. These four names are the usual vertical spreads.
Bear call spread
Sell the lower-strike call and buy the higher-strike call. You collect a net credit and want the underlying to stay below the short strike. Max gain is the credit. Max loss is the strike width minus that credit.
Bear put spread
Buy the higher-strike put and sell the lower-strike put. You pay a net debit and want the underlying to fall. It is the put-spread counterpart of a bull call spread: defined risk, capped gain.
Bull put spread
Sell the higher-strike put and buy the lower-strike put. You collect a net credit and want the underlying to stay above the short put. Max gain is the credit. Max loss is the strike width minus that credit.
Worked examples
Bull call spread: long 100-strike at 10, short 120-strike at 3, one lot each. Net debit 7. The chart uses this payoff.
Spot at 100 or below
Both calls expire worthless. You lose the 7 net debit — the maximum loss on this bull call spread.
- Expiry P&L
- −7
- Max loss
- 7
Breakeven at 107
Long intrinsic of 7 offsets the net debit. Below 107 the spread is still a net loser at expiry.
- Expiry P&L
- 0
- Breakeven
- K + net debit = 107
Spot at 120 or above
The strike gap is 20 and you paid 7, so the maximum gain is 13. Implied vols on the two legs are 23.97% and 22.13%.
- Expiry P&L
- 13
- Max gain
- 13
Bear put spread, expiry payoff only: long the 100 put at 10, short the 80 put at 3, one lot each. Net debit 7. These figures are the payoff arithmetic. Click Calculate on a put spread to solve each leg's implied vol.
Spot at 100 or above
Both puts expire worthless. You lose the 7 net debit — the maximum loss on this bear put spread.
- Expiry P&L
- −7
- Max loss
- 7
Breakeven at 93
Long-put intrinsic of 7 offsets the net debit. Above 93 the bear put spread is still a net loser at expiry.
- Expiry P&L
- 0
- Breakeven
- K − net debit = 93
Spot at 80 or below
The strike gap is 20 and you paid 7, so the maximum gain is 13. Further drops do not add profit: the short 80 put caps it.
- Expiry P&L
- 13
- Max gain
- 13
When to use an options spread
Use a debit spread — bull call or bear put — when you have a directional view but do not need unlimited gain, and you want to pay less than the single long option. Use a credit spread — bear call or bull put — when you want to collect premium and still cap the loss of the option you sell.
- Bull call spread: moderately bullish, lower cost than a long call, gain capped at the strike width minus the debit.
- Bear put spread: moderately bearish, lower cost than a long put, gain capped the same way.
- Call spread versus put spread is the option type. Bull versus bear is which strike you buy.
A single long option, if you want the uncapped side, is on the long call calculator or the long put calculator. Each leg's premium inverts with the same solver as the implied volatility calculator.
Related calculators on this site
A single long or short option is one leg. Butterflies and condors add more strikes. Vanilla pricing is the engine behind each mark.
Options spread FAQ
An options spread is long one option and short another of the same type at a different strike. Net premium is the long premium minus the short premium. The strike gap caps both the gain and the loss. This page prices a bull call spread, a bear call spread, a bear put spread, or a bull put spread.
A bear put spread buys the higher-strike put and sells the lower-strike put. You pay a net debit and profit if the underlying falls. Max loss is that debit. Max gain is the strike width minus the debit. On the worked example, long the 100 put at 10 and short the 80 put at 3: debit 7, breakeven 93, max gain 13.
Leg 1 is the option you buy and Leg 2 is the option you sell. Set Type to Call for a call spread or Put for a put spread. A bull call spread buys the lower strike and sells the higher strike. A bear put spread buys the higher strike and sells the lower strike.
If you buy the lower strike and sell the higher strike, you want spot up — a bull call spread (the default). Swap the strikes so the short is the lower one and the same structure profits if spot falls (a bear call spread). Put spreads flip which way the intrinsic points.
For a debit call spread, max loss is the net premium paid; max gain is the strike width minus that debit. The default 100/120 call spread pays 7 and can make 13. A credit spread reverses those two numbers.
A textbook spread uses the same quantity on both legs. The form lets you type different sizes; the chart will follow whatever you enter, which can leave residual naked risk.
Each strike is inverted on its own. The 10-priced 100 call implies 23.97%; the 3-priced 120 call implies 22.13%. The sliders can move those vols independently.
Intrinsic uses strike minus spot instead of spot minus strike. A long higher-strike put versus a short lower-strike put is a bear put spread. The same net-debit arithmetic applies.
European vanilla Black-Scholes on each leg, the same engine as the option calculator. There is no smile: each leg has a single flat vol.
Disclaimer: the contents of this website are for informational purposes only and do not constitute any investment recommendation. The visitor acts at his own risk.