When is October 2026 OPEX?
Friday, October 16, 2026. Standard equity, ETF and index options for October 2026 expire that day. Source: Cboe 2026 options expiration calendar.
SPX AM vs PM settlement
Two SPX products expire on 2026-10-16, and they settle at different times.
- Standard SPX (A.M.-settled, the monthly): last trades Thursday, October 15, 2026. Cboe: “Trading in SPX options will ordinarily cease on the business day (usually a Thursday) preceding the day on which the exercise-settlement value (i.e., the expiration date) is calculated, 5:00 pm ET.” “The exercise-settlement value, SET, is calculated using the opening sales price in the primary market of each component security on the expiration date.”
- SPXW (P.M.-settled): trades through 2026-10-16 and settles at the close. Cboe: “Trading in SPXW options will ordinarily cease on the day of expiration, 4:00 pm ET, and at 1:00 pm ET for any half day holiday.”
Source: Cboe SPX specifications. More in SPX settlement dates.
VIX expiration: Wednesday, October 21, 2026
The October 2026 VIX options and VX futures expire on 2026-10-21, the Wednesday after OPEX, settling to a special opening quotation of VIX that morning. See the VIX term structure.
SPX max pain for 2026-10-16
- SPX, A.M.-settled monthly: 7,550
- SPXW, P.M.-settled: 7,725
- Both roots combined: 7,610 (the SPX max pain calculator figure)
Max pain from open interest as of the prior close: the settlement level at which listed calls and puts on this expiration would pay the least intrinsic value. A positioning reference, not a price target, and it moves as open interest changes. Chain read Oct 8, 16:03 ET.
Expected move to October 2026 OPEX
SPX options price ±1.58% (±123.1 points), one standard deviation, to the 2026-10-16 close of the SPXW close-settled series, as of Oct 8, 16:03 ET: risk-neutral, not a forecast. The ATM straddle is 98.25 points.
SPX expected move, as of Oct 8, 16:03 ET
One standard deviation the options market prices to each expiration's close, as of the time shown: risk-neutral, not a forecast.
| Window | Date | Expiration used | One sd (%) | One sd (points) | Range on the forward | ATM straddle |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| To the next session's close | 2026-10-09 | 2026-10-09 | ±0.58% | ±45.2 | 7,726.4 to 7,816.7 | 36.05 |
| To this week's last close | 2026-10-09 | 2026-10-09 | ±0.58% | ±45.2 | 7,726.4 to 7,816.7 | 36.05 |
| To the CPI release 08:30 ET, before the open. Source | 2026-10-14 | 2026-10-14 | ±1.27% | ±98.4 | 7,674.9 to 7,871.7 | 78.55 |
| To monthly options expiration | 2026-10-16 | 2026-10-16 | ±1.58% | ±123.1 | 7,652.6 to 7,898.8 | 98.25 |
| To the FOMC decision Statement at 14:00 ET on the second day of the meeting. Source | 2026-10-28 | 2026-10-28 | ±2.60% | ±202.0 | 7,581.9 to 7,985.9 | 161.15 |
| Through the election session Polls close the evening of November 3; the November 4 session follows. Source | 2026-11-04 | 2026-11-04 | ±3.34% | ±259.8 | 7,530.1 to 8,049.7 | 205.60 |
| To the November monthly expiration | 2026-11-20 | 2026-11-20 | ±4.44% | ±346.7 | 7,454.1 to 8,147.4 | 276.55 |
| To the December monthly expiration | 2026-12-18 | 2026-12-18 | ±5.89% | ±460.6 | 7,359.6 to 8,280.8 | 367.45 |
Points and range are measured on the forward price to each expiration, not spot. Delayed Cboe chain.
SPY and QQQ: expected move for all three.
Gamma into expiration
Where dealer gamma sits around these strikes: SPX gamma exposure.