Master Professional Trading
GEX heatmaps, IV surface, and options flow
You don't need to trade options to benefit from options data. Options market makers hedge their positions by buying and selling futures, which means options positioning directly influences futures price action. The Options page gives you visibility into this hidden layer of the market: where dealer hedging flows will accelerate or dampen price moves, where implied volatility is priced, and where large players are placing bets.
Options dealers hedge with futures, creating support and resistance from gamma exposure
GEX strikes, zero gamma, and max pain reveal price magnets invisible on standard charts
Gamma Exposure (GEX) represents the total gamma held by options market makers at each strike price. When dealers are long gamma, they hedge by selling into rallies and buying dips, which dampens volatility. When dealers are short gamma, they must buy into rallies and sell into dips, which amplifies moves.
The GEX heatmap plots this exposure across strikes and expirations, giving you a visual map of where dealer hedging pressure will impact futures price.
The heatmap uses color intensity to represent gamma magnitude at each strike and expiration:
Positive Gamma (above zero gamma line):
Negative Gamma (below zero gamma line):
Toggle to VEX mode to see vega exposure across strikes. VEX shows where implied volatility is concentrated, helping you understand whether IV is likely to expand or compress. Useful for assessing whether options are cheap or expensive relative to realized volatility.
The options chain displays calls on the left and puts on the right, organized by strike price. Each row shows key data for that strike:
Use the expiration selector to switch between dates. Near-term expirations (especially 0DTE) have the highest gamma impact on futures. Longer-dated expirations show where institutional players are positioning for bigger moves.
The flow scanner surfaces unusual options activity: large block trades, sweeps across multiple exchanges, and prints that significantly exceed normal volume. This activity often represents informed or institutional money making directional bets.
Adjust the lookback window to see flow from the last hour, today's session, or multiple days. Filter by trade size, type (calls/puts), and sentiment (bullish/bearish) to focus on the signals most relevant to your analysis. Shorter windows capture immediate sentiment; longer windows reveal accumulation patterns.
The IV smile shows implied volatility across strikes for a single expiration. In equity markets, puts typically have higher IV than calls (the "skew"), creating a skewed smile. Changes in the smile shape reveal shifting hedging demand and tail risk pricing.
Put-call skew measures the difference in IV between out-of-the-money puts and calls. A steepening skew means traders are bidding up put protection, often preceding a selloff. A flattening skew suggests complacency or bullish positioning.
Term structure plots IV across expirations at a fixed delta. Normally, longer-dated options have higher IV (contango). When near-term IV exceeds longer-dated IV (backwardation), it signals elevated short-term fear or an imminent event like earnings or FOMC.
The strategy builder lets you construct multi-leg options positions: vertical spreads, straddles, strangles, iron condors, butterflies, and custom combinations. Select legs from the chain or type in strike and expiration details to model any structure.
Each strategy displays an interactive payoff diagram showing profit and loss at expiration across all price levels. Break-even points are clearly marked so you can evaluate risk/reward before entering a position. Adjust quantity and entry price to see how the payoff shifts.
Zero Days to Expiration (0DTE) options expire the same day they are traded. These contracts have extreme gamma because time decay compresses delta changes into hours instead of weeks. The resulting dealer hedging flows have an outsized impact on intraday futures price action.
The 0DTE dashboard includes a timeline scrubber that lets you step through intraday GEX changes. Watch how gamma levels shift as options are opened, closed, and expire throughout the day. This is particularly useful for understanding how afternoon gamma decay affects end-of-day price behavior.
With SPX 0DTE options now comprising over 40% of total SPX options volume, the intraday gamma impact is massive. As 0DTE options approach expiration, their gamma spikes dramatically near at-the-money strikes, creating intense pinning effects or explosive moves when gamma flips.
Trinity View combines three dimensions of options data into a single consensus view: gamma exposure (dealer positioning), vega exposure (volatility positioning), and VIX (market fear gauge). When all three align, the signal is strong. When they conflict, caution is warranted.
GEX Replay lets you play back historical gamma exposure data alongside price action. Select any past date and watch how GEX levels evolved throughout the session. Available playback speeds: 1x (real-time), 5x, 10x, and 30x.
Reviewing how GEX levels interacted with price on past sessions builds intuition that is hard to develop in real time. Look for how price responded at the King Strike, how crossing the zero gamma line changed behavior, and how gamma levels shifted around economic events. Pattern recognition improves with repetition.
The AI Insights panel analyzes current GEX positioning, IV surface, and flow data to suggest options strategies aligned with market conditions. Suggestions include specific strikes, expirations, and risk/reward profiles tailored to the current regime.
Treat these as starting points for your own analysis, not as trade recommendations. The AI surfaces patterns and structures you might miss, but the final decision should always be yours after considering your own risk tolerance and market view.