Calculate the payout at each possible settlement
For one underlying and one expiration, treat each listed strike as a hypothetical settlement price S. For every contract strike K, multiply the intrinsic value by open interest and the contract multiplier, then add the calls and puts. This page uses standard 100-share contracts. It rejects missing multipliers and reported nonstandard sizes; adjusted cash or mixed deliverables need a separate contract-level model.
Call payout(S) = 100 × Σ[call OI(K) × max(S − K, 0)]
Put payout(S) = 100 × Σ[put OI(K) × max(K − S, 0)]
Total payout(S) = Call payout(S) + Put payout(S)
Max pain = candidate S with the lowest total payout
These amounts are gross intrinsic payouts. A holder who paid a premium can lose money even when the option has a positive payout. Premiums, commissions, hedges, and early exercises are absent from this model. For physically settled equity options, intrinsic value is a cash-equivalent measure rather than the actual share delivery. See the OIC explanation of intrinsic value and option risk.
A three-strike example you can recompute
This synthetic chain has one expiration, standard contracts, and no fees. Its 600 call contracts and 550 put contracts are held fixed across every settlement scenario. These are example inputs, not a market snapshot.
| Strike | Call OI | Put OI |
|---|---|---|
| $90 | 100 | 300 |
| $100 | 200 | 200 |
| $110 | 300 | 50 |
| Settlement | Calls | Puts | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| $90 | $0 | $300,000 | $300,000 |
| $100 | $100,000 | $50,000 | $150,000 |
| $110 | $400,000 | $0 | $400,000 |
At S = $100, only the $90 calls and $110 puts have intrinsic value: (100 − 90) × 100 × 100 + (110 − 100) × 50 × 100 = $150,000. The minimum is $100. If the $110 put OI later rises from 50 to 500, the totals become $1,200,000, $600,000, and $400,000. The minimum moves to $110 even though this exercise makes no assumption about the current stock price. An OI update can move the reference level without demonstrating a directional trade.
Check the OI date before comparing intraday prices
Massive defines open interest as the quantity held at the end of the last trading day. Its quote and trade fields have separate update times. This calculator displays when it fetched the response, but the response does not supply an OI-specific timestamp. The displayed fetch time does not establish OI freshness.
- Match the ticker, expiration, strike, contract type, and deliverable before comparing providers. Do not combine weekly and monthly expirations.
- Record the source OI date if your provider supplies it. If it is absent, leave it unknown; do not substitute a quote timestamp.
- Refresh the same expiration to compare the returned OI. Unchanged OI is compatible with active intraday trading; volume is not a count of newly opened positions.
- Check coverage before trusting the minimum. This page queries calls and puts separately for the chosen date. It refuses a result when either response has another page or reaches the 250-contract limit.
The Options Industry Council explains that opening and closing transactions are paired after trading ends. A put/call OI ratio therefore describes contract counts; it does not reveal whether the holders or writers are bullish, bearish, or hedged.
Why the minimum is not a price target
The formula never models the next stock trade. News, earnings, underlying liquidity, and positions opened or closed after the OI snapshot can all make the eventual settlement far from the minimum. There is no probability of touching the level in this output, and a large gap from the current quote does not establish an opportunity. A flat minimum can also span several strikes, so all ties are shown.
Max pain and gamma exposure answer different questions. Max pain aggregates intrinsic payouts at expiration. GEX estimates how delta exposure changes when the underlying moves and requires gamma plus position-sign assumptions. OI alone does not reveal dealer inventory, so neither a payout minimum nor a put/call ratio proves a dealer hedging flow.
Cross-check a TradingView contract before using the result
In TradingView's options chain, choose the underlying and expiration and compare the contract type and strike with this page. Where your TradingView view does not expose OI, obtain that field and its date from the options data source instead of substituting volume. Contract charts help check identity and price; they do not turn this snapshot into a historical options backtest.
Pineify's AI Stocks & Options Picker includes an options chain and options insights in its ticker research view. Use those inputs to inspect a candidate contract, its quotes, and its Greeks after checking the max pain assumptions. Availability of a field is not evidence that it is current or suitable for an order.
Sources reviewed October 18, 2026. This tool is educational and is not investment advice. Options can lose the premium paid, and some short positions have substantially greater risk.