optionscan

Optionscan is a term used to describe a tool or analytic approach for screening and evaluating options markets. It refers to the practice of scanning option chains across stocks, indices, and exchange-traded funds to identify options that meet predefined criteria, such as liquidity, volatility, time to expiration, or specific risk and payoff characteristics.

In practice, an optionscan aggregates options data from one or more data feeds and presents filters that can be applied to strike prices, expiration dates, bid-ask spreads, open interest, volume, and implied volatility. Advanced implementations may compute Greeks (delta, gamma, theta, vega) and profit-and-loss scenarios to help assess potential trades. Results are typically displayed as sorted lists or visual grids, with the ability to drill down into individual options for more detail.

Common uses include discovering relatively cheap or liquid options, finding unusual volume or volatility patterns, and identifying setup opportunities for strategies such as spreads, straddles, or hedges. Traders often save presets for recurring events like earnings, earnings season, or volatility announcements, and may set alerts when a scan matches specific criteria.

Optionscan can be part of a trading platform, a standalone analytics tool, or a custom script that queries market data APIs. Users should consider data quality, latency, liquidity, and the risks inherent in options trading when relying on scan results.

See also: options chain, implied volatility, Greeks, option strategies.