Put/Call Ratio (PCR) is the ratio of puts to calls. It shows which kind of option is more plentiful: the ones that gain on a decline or the ones that gain on a rise.
How PCR is calculated
The number of puts is divided by the number of calls. There are two ways to count, and they are different measures:
- PCR by open interest: how many puts and calls are open right now. It moves slowly and reflects accumulated positions.
- PCR by volume: how many puts and calls traded during the day. It moves fast and reflects today's activity.
OLIMP shows PCR by open interest for the selected series: in the info panel on the chart ("ATM IV · PCR" row) and on the instrument pages in Analytics.
How to read the value
- PCR near 1: puts and calls are roughly equal.
- PCR well above 1: more puts. Participants are hedging against a decline or betting on one more often.
- PCR well below 1: more calls. Interest leans toward the upside.
Every instrument has its own normal. Stock indices usually carry more puts because they hedge equity portfolios, so PCR above 1 is ordinary there. Gold and currencies look different. Compare the value not with one but with what it was for the same instrument a week and a month ago.
Why PCR cannot be read at face value
"Lots of puts means the market expects a drop" is the most common reading and the least reliable. Three reasons.
- Every option has a seller. The exchange report gives the number of open contracts, not who bought and who sold. Heavy put open interest can mean protection being bought or puts being sold by someone confident price will not fall.
- Puts are often insurance, not a bet. A holder of the underlying who bought puts does not expect a drop; they are protected and stay in the position.
- Strike location matters. Puts far below price and puts right next to it tell different stories. PCR folds them into one number and loses the difference.
What to combine PCR with
- Its trend. Rising PCR on a rising price often means participants are insuring accumulated gains. Falling PCR on a falling price means protection is being taken off.
- Walls. PCR says "how much", walls say "where". A skew toward puts together with a large put wall below price points to the specific level where interest is concentrated.
- Skew. The info panel has a "Skew 25Δ" row: the tilt in option prices. If puts are both more numerous and more expensive than calls, demand for downside protection is confirmed by price, not just by count.
- Flows. Open-interest inflow shows which side is building positions right now rather than over the life of the series.
PCR and series
Monthly and weekly series have different PCRs. A weekly series holds fewer positions, so one large trade can move the ratio a lot. Use the monthly series for the overall picture and the weekly one for expiration day. The "monthly / weekly" switch is on the "Contract" tab.
Example: gold, early October 2026
In the series expiring October 27, there were 100,854 open calls and 64,219 open puts on October 2. PCR by open interest was about 0.64: one and a half times more calls.
What it was a week earlier matters more. On September 25 there were 88,453 calls and 57,485 puts, and PCR was nearly the same at 0.65. Over the week price fell 3.8% while both sides grew almost equally: calls by 14%, puts by 12%. The skew did not change. Concluding from the single number that "0.64 means the market expects a rally" would be hasty; the trend shows something else: during the decline participants did not unwind call positions and added puts at the same time.
Questions and answers
What counts as a high PCR? There is no universal threshold. The benchmark is the instrument's own history: a value clearly above its usual level is "high".
Does PCR work as a contrarian signal? That approach is popular for stock indices, where a very high PCR is read as excess fear. We have not tested it on CME data and do not treat PCR as a signal.
Why does PCR in OLIMP differ from another site? Most likely it is a different measure there: by volume rather than open interest, for another series, or for another market such as equity options rather than options on CME futures.
Common mistakes
- Comparing PCR across different instruments.
- Drawing a conclusion from one value without looking at the trend.
- Mixing up PCR by volume and by open interest: many sources quote the former, OLIMP shows the latter.
- Taking a put skew for a signal. PCR describes sentiment; it is not an entry point.
This article describes open positions based on exchange data and is not investment advice.