Markets Home

Active trader

Hear from active traders about their experience adding CME Group futures and options on futures to their portfolio.

Find a broker

Search our directory for a broker that fits your needs.

CREATE A CMEGROUP.COM ACCOUNT:

MORE FEATURES, MORE INSIGHTS

Get quick access to tools and premium content, or customize a portfolio and set alerts to follow the market.
Market Data Home

Real-time market data

Stream live futures and options market data directly from CME Group.

E-quotes application

Access real-time data, charts, analytics and news from anywhere at anytime.

CME DATAMINE:

THE SOURCE FOR HISTORICAL DATA

Explore historical market data straight from the source to help refine your trading strategies.
Services Home

Uncleared margin rules

Understand how CME Group can help you navigate new initial margin regulatory and reporting requirements.

Calculate margin 

Evaluate your cleared margin requirements using our interactive margin calculator.
Education Home

FX Insights from Macro Hive

Receive exclusive insights on key FX macro themes, volatility trends, and market events through our bi-weekly report.

Create a CMEGroup.com Account: More features, more insights

Get quick access to premium educational content, including expert-led webinars, a real-time trading simulator, and more.
      Course Overview
      • Straddles
      • Strangles
      • Option Butterfly
      • Option Ratio Spreads
      • Option Calendar Spreads
      • Bull Spread
      • Bear Spread
      • Covered Calls
      • Collars
      Option Strategies
      You completed this course.Get Completion Certificate
        • Also available in

        • 繁體中文
        • 简体中文

      Straddles

      Video not supported!

      Have you ever heard the saying “straddle the fence?” It means that you support both sides of an issue. Similarly, a common options strategy is referred to as a straddle because a straddle is used when you think the underlying futures market is going to make a move, but you are not sure which way.

      Buying a Straddle

      If you are buying a straddle, it is referred to as being long the straddle. A trader buys the call and the put of the same strike, same expiration and same underlying product.

      For example, if you want to straddle E-mini Sep 2425, you would buy the E-mini 2425 Sep call and buy the 2425 Sep put. The cost of the straddle in this example would be 103.75. 

      Traders will buy the straddle if they expect the market to start moving but are not sure which way. In our example, the E-mini futures contract would be at 2420 and we expect the future to move up or down but we are not quite sure which way.

      The profit potential is much larger than the cost of the straddle in either direction. At expiration, the break-even points are 2525 and 2315. These are the strike plus the straddle cost and the strike minus the straddle cost. 

      Loss is limited to the cost of spread. Maximum loss occurs if the market is at the strike at expiration. Because the straddle is composed of only long options, it loses option premium due to time decay. Time decay is most costly if the market is near the strike.

      Selling a Straddle

      Traders will sell a straddle, or short the straddle, when they expect the market is going to stagnate. Because the traders are short the straddle, they profit as the options decay, provided the market does not move far from the strike.

      Like the long straddle the straddle’s break-even points are at the strike plus the cost of straddle on the call side and the strike minus the cost of the straddle on the put side at expiration. These break-even points are the same regardless if you are long or short the straddle.

      For a short straddle, profit is maximized if the market is at the strike price at expiration.

      Loss potential is open-ended in either direction. Dramatic movements above the strike will make the call much more valuable. Conversely, movements below the strike will make the put more valuable. Because you are short both the call and the put, either case is potentially costly.

      Because being short the straddle is essentially short options, you pick up time-value decay at an increasing rate as expiration approaches. You profit from the time decay that the long straddle holder loses.  Again, time decay is most profitable if the market is near the strike.


      Test your knowledge

      Related Courses
      /content/cmegroup/en/education/courses/option-strategies/straddles
      • {{ course.name }}
      Previous Lesson
      Next Lesson
      Course Overview
      Get Completion Certificate
      Previous Lesson Next Lesson
      • YouTube
      • Twitter
      • Facebook
      • LinkedIn
      • Instagram
      • Rss

      CME Group is the world's leading and most diverse derivatives marketplace. The company is comprised of four Designated Contract Markets (DCMs). 
      Further information on each exchange's rules and product listings can be found by clicking on the links to CME, CBOT, NYMEX and COMEX.

      © 2021 CME Group Inc. All rights reserved.

      Disclaimer  |  Privacy Policy  |  Cookie Policy  |  Terms of Use  |  Data Terms of Use  |  Modern Slavery Act Transparency Statement  |  Report a Security Concern