Trading a VIX straddle lets you take a pure volatility position on CBOE Volatility S&P 500 Index without committing to a direction. CBOE Volatility S&P 500 Index's straddle involves buying (or selling) a call and a put at the same strike and expiration, profiting when the stock moves more (or less) than the combined premium implies. Use our scanner to evaluate VIX straddle pricing in real time and find the moments when expected moves are mispriced.
A long straddle on VIX profits from large moves in either direction and is a classic play into binary events like earnings, product announcements, or macro releases. A short straddle profits when CBOE Volatility S&P 500 Index stays range-bound and implied volatility contracts. The breakeven points are simple: strike plus total premium on the upside, strike minus total premium on the downside. Comparing the VIX straddle price to historical realized moves helps you judge whether the market is overpaying or underpaying for volatility.
Earnings, product cycles, macro prints — any time volatility itself is the trade, the VIX straddle is the cleanest expression of that view. Our scanner prices every VIX straddle against historical realized moves, flags expirations where the market is overpaying or underpaying for vol, and ranks setups by breakeven width and IV rank. Whether you're long a VIX straddle into a catalyst or short a VIX straddle to harvest decay, the options straddle setups that matter are all in one place.
