OptiView is a web-based analytics platform that provides advanced visualization tools in order to foster your understanding of financial theory and visualize your market data based on widely used financial models. It helps you better understand financial theory, products and market data.

With OptiView, you can analyze the theoretical value of individual options or complex strategies over time, under different market scenarios, and compare different strategies to one another.

Check out the Platform-section of this FAQ to discover what tools OptiView has to offer.
The Technical-section features some useful information on the financial theory used and what theoretical value means in this context.

While we are on it, let's also answer what OptiView is not.

We are not a brokerage and do not hold or manage your assets.
However, you can connect your brokerage account to retrieve market data, and send your selected option or composed strategy conveniently from our platform to your brokerage.

We are not a trading venue and do not execute trades.

And last but not least, we are not financial advisors.
OptiView can't replace your own market research, technical education, and a licensed professional. OptiView can not and does not provide analysis of an investment, its value or its suitability to achieve your investment objectives, or financial advise in general.
The net values you are presented with throughout the platform are hypothetical and do not represent fair value or a price target. They are provided solely for educational and informational purposes.

Investing in options contains significant risks where losses can exceed the initial investment. Always consult a licensed professional before making any investment decisions or considering options trading.

OptiView is designed for retail investors. Meaning anyone who trades on their own behalf and for their own account.
If you’re unsure whether you qualify, you probably do.

To use OptiView, you need to meet three basic requirements:

1. You are resident of a country that we support,
2. You have an account with OptiView, and
3. You have an account with a brokerage we support (and the respective trading permission from the brokerage)

OptiView is especially suited for novice investors seeking to understand the complexities of options trading.
Our user-friendly, intuitive platform simplifies key concepts to help you learn effectively, sometimes prioritizing clarity over technical depth.

However, experienced option traders can benefit from the OptiView platform alike, since the innovative approach to structure option strategies visually enables a faster and more enjoyable comprehension of the forces at work.

When you’re ready for more advanced features, or if you already need deeper analysis tools, stay tuned for OptiView Plus - our upcoming platform designed for professional traders, building on the established OptiView core with extended functionality.

OptiView is optimized for modern desktop computers and up-to-date web browsers.

While the platform is accessible from any internet-connected device, including smartphones and tablets, we recommend using a device with a screen size of at least 16 inches and relatively recent hardware for the best experience.

Because of the complex financial calculations and graphical displays, performance may be slower on lower-end devices or smaller screens.

We are developing a mobile version and smartphone app, expected to launch by November 2025. We’ll update you here when it becomes available.

OptiView currently supports users in the following countries:

• United States

More countries will be added soon.

Travelling abroad? No problem. You can access your OptiView account and all features from anywhere with internet access.

Yes. OptiView is completely free, with no hidden fees.

You may use it at no cost for your own educational purposes, provided you do not resell or redistribute the platform or its content.
For a detailed list of permitted uses, please refer to our Terms and Conditions.

Your brokerage may charge fees for API access, market data, or trades you execute. These charges are determined solely by your brokerage, so please check with them for details.

In the future, we may run promotional campaigns, or offer premium subscriptions for OptiView Plus.
But for now, OptiView remains completely free for you to use.

We design our platform to meet the highest standards of security and reliability.

Your funds and investments always remain securely with your trusted brokerage. OptiView never accesses, interacts with or handles your assets.
Our platform provides visualization tools only; all financial services are managed by your brokerage.

Your personal data is encrypted both in transit and at rest, stored and processed exclusively by reputable international service providers.
Check out the Privacy Policy-section of these FAQ for more information, or our Privacy Policy for the details.

Please note, since OptiView does not offer financial services, we are not regulated by financial authorities.

No, OptiView is not a brokerage and we can't receive, transmit or execute orders for you, nor can we hold your assets in custody.

All financial products and services are offered and provided by your brokerage and all communication related to financial markets data, and order placement happens directly between you and your brokerage.
You cannot deposit funds or other assets with OptiView.

If you wish to use OptiView for options analysis and need a brokerage, you can find a list of supported ones on the Supported Brokers-tab of your Account on the platform.

Each element is explained in detail in its own FAQ section. Here’s a high-level overview of their purposes:

Element	Function
Underlying search bar	Allows you to search, filter, and select any underlying asset for which OptiView provides options analysis. This is always the starting point of your journey on OptiView and should be selected first by clicking on the name of the desired underlying.
Main chart	The centerpiece of OptiView, displaying the visual output of your analysis. It provides historical price data for the underlying, available option expirations, details of your composed strategy, and, depending on the selected analysis tool, a tailored visual assessment.
Brokerage selection bar	Displays all brokerages offering options trading for your selected underlying. Switch between them by clicking their respective logos.
Strategy composer	Lists the options currently in your strategy. You can edit, remove, or add new options by specifying the required parameters.
Market prices table	Shows current market prices for all available options on your selected underlying. Filter by option style and lot size (see the Basics on Options-section of these FAQ if you don't know what that means ) and add options to your strategy by clicking a price.
Command panel	Displays aggregated details of your strategy and lets you adjust quantities. When you choose to Send the order to your selected brokerage, you’ll see a confirmation screen with all security details before final submission.

To view all underlyings supported by OptiView, remove the filter in the underlying search bar. Simply click the filter icon at the bottom right of the search bar to display the complete list.

Check out our video on YouTube for an example.

To add an underlying to your Favorites, you need to enable Functional cookies.

You can enable them by checking the box on the Communication Preferences-tab of your Account on the platform.

Learn more in our Privacy Policy.

We take great care to display the correct logo for each underlying, but mismatches can occur given the thousands of underlyings we support.
If you believe an underlying’s name and logo don’t match, follow the displayed name, not the logo.

Logos are sourced from the respective company’s public materials and are shown solely for identification on our platform. They do not imply endorsement or partnership and remain trademarks of their respective owners.

If you are a rights holder and prefer your logo not to be displayed, please contact us at [email protected] and we will remove or correct it.

The brokerages supported on the OptiView platform can vary depending on the underlying.

To see which brokerages offer trading for a specific underlying on the OptiView platform, select the desired underlying and check the brokerage selection bar.

For a complete list of all brokerages currently supported by OptiView, open your Account and go to the Supported Brokerages-tab.

To view the currently quoted bid- (the price you can sell at) and ask-prices (the price you can buy at) on the OptiView platform, select both, an underlying and a brokerage.

If options are available for your chosen underlying, the market-prices table will populate with the corresponding quotes.

You can change the option’s style (see the Basics on Options-section for details) by clicking the filter icon at the top right of the table (if more than one style is available).

You can change the lot size of an option by switching the tabs at the top of the table. For some options and brokerage combinations, only one lot size might be available.

The strategy composer is a modular builder: each option you include gets its own tile with the same set of input fields.

You can add another option by clicking the “+” icon once the previous tile’s parameters are complete. In practice, you can include as many options as you want to analyze, but the meaningfullness of the visual output might suffer for larger option combinations.



Tip: instead of filling all inputs manually, you can also:

• Click a bid/ask quote in the market-prices table to prefill parameters,
• Click an expiration line in the main chart, or
• Drag a strike bar in the main chart.

The OptiView platform currently offers two main tools to analyze your option strategy:

1. the Net Value Heatmap, and
2. the Pathway Viewer.

To switch between them, click the gearwheel icon in the top-right corner of the main chart and toggle the Analysis Tool switch.

This is a known issue with Chart.js (the graphical rendering library used by the OptiView platform) and certain browsers, unfortunately outside of our direct control.
It can cause the heatmap to display incorrectly or “break” in the wrong spot when small layout changes occur.

You can fix the issue temporarily by switching to another analysis tool for a moment, then switching back to the Net Value Heatmap to trigger a re-render.

For a longer-term fix, update your browser to the latest version or try using a different browser when using the OptiView platform - Safari is generally unaffected.

When using the tool Pathway Viewer, you can choose between Multiple-representation and Dollar-representation.
Change the mode by clicking the gearwheel icon in the top-right corner of the main chart and toggling the Representation Mode switch.

In Multiple-representation mode, the implied paths are shown as multiples of the initial premium paid or received. As per OptiView convention, a multiple refers to hypothetical returns on the initial investment, assuming financial theory holds and current market levels persist.

	Multiple < 0	Multiple = 0	Multiple = 1	Multiple > 1
Net premium > 0 (You net paid cash to buy the securities)	Liability exceeds initial premium paid* by a factor of the multiple. (e.g., a multiple of -1.0x means the liability equals the initial premium paid.)	Strategy is worthless or positions offset each other; initial premium fully consumed.	Strategy value equals the initial premium paid; break-even.	Value exceeds initial premium paid by a factor of the multiple. (e.g., 2.0x = twice the initial premium paid.)
Net premium < 0 (You net received cash for underwriting the securities)	Liability exceeds the initial premium received by a factor of the multiple. (e.g., -1.0x means liability is twice the premium received, partially offset by that premium.)	Liability equals the initial premium received; break-even.	Liability is zero or positions offset each other; you still keep the initial premium received.	Sum of premium received, long positions’ value, and short positions’ liability equals premium × multiple.* (e.g., 2.0x = net asset equal to the initial premium received plus its equivalent again.)

*This situation is only possible when combining non-offsetting long and short positions

In Dollar-representation mode, the implied paths are shown as constant net values for the option strategy.

When using the Pathway Viewer in Multiple-representation, the implied paths are expressed as multiples of the initial premium paid or received.
In simple terms, a multiple is a return factor on your initial investment.

For example, a multiple of 2.0x means your option strategy’s value has doubled in theory under current market levels and the respective scenario.

For complex strategies, interpretation depends on whether you paid the net premium (net premium > 0) or received the net premium (net premium < 0) when entering the position.

• If you paid the premium:
  • Multiple > 1 → worth more than initially paid
  • Multiple = 1 → break-even
  • Multiple < 1 → worth less than initially paid
• If you received the premium:
  • Multiple > 0 → liability smaller than initial premium received
  • Multiple = 0 → break-even
  • Multiple < 0 → liability larger than initial premium received

Use the table below to match your conditions:

Conditions	Interpretation	Example
Net premium > 0 Multiple < 0*	Liability exceeds initial premium paid by factor of the multiple.	You paid net $10 for a call, while selling a put. Price drops, net value = $10 liability → -1.0x.
Net premium > 0 Multiple = 0	Worthless strategy; premium fully consumed.	You paid $10 for a call; price drops; option worthless → 0.0x.
Net premium > 0 Multiple = 1	Value equals initial premium — break-even.	You paid $10 for a call; price rises to match premium value → 1.0x.
Net premium > 0 Multiple > 1	Value exceeds initial premium by factor of the multiple.	You paid $10 for a call; price rises; option worth $20 → 2.0x.
Net premium < 0 Multiple < 0	Liability exceeds initial premium received by factor of the multiple.	You received $10 for a call; price rises; option worth $20 → -1.0x.
Net premium < 0 Multiple = 0	Liability equals premium received — break-even.	You received $10 for a call; price rises to make option worth $10 → 0.0x.
Net premium < 0 Multiple = 1	No liability; still keep initial premium received.	You received $10 for a call; price drops; option worthless → 1.0x.
Net premium < 0 Multiple > 1*	Sum of premium received, long position value, and reduced short liability equals premium × multiple.	You received $10 for a call, while buying a put; price drops; net asset = $10 → 2.0x.

*Possible only when combining non-offsetting long and short positions.

Regardless of the selected analysis tool, the OptiView platform adds a suite of interactive, informational elements directly to the main chart.

You can add or remove chart elements by clicking the gearwheel icon in the top‑right corner of the main chart and toggling the checkboxes under Chart elements.

The following features are included by default:

Feature	Description	Interactivity
Expiration dates	After you select an underlying and a brokerage, the chart displays a subset* of available expiration dates (for the current option style and lot size) as vertical lines. These lines provide a visual reference of expirations relative to historical prices. When an expiration is part of your strategy, its line appears with an accent color to distinguish it.	Click any vertical line to: Add a new option with that expiration, Update the expiration of an incomplete option in your strategy, or Remove all options with that expiration if it’s already selected.
Selected Strikes	When you add an option to your strategy, a horizontal line marks its strike price, providing a quick sense of moneyness. Green indicates legs that add long delta exposure (e.g., long calls, short puts); Red indicates legs that add short delta exposure (e.g., short calls, long puts).	Drag and drop a strike line to adjust that option’s strike within your strategy.
Available Strikes	While dragging a Selected Strike, potential “drop targets” appear, indicating alternative strikes. For performance and clarity, this is typically a small subset of round‑number (“repdigit”) strikes* that tend to be the most liquid.	When you drop the dragged strike: If Available Strikes is enabled (default), the strike snaps to the nearest displayed drop target. If it’s disabled, the strike snaps to the nearest actual strike in the option chain for the current lot size, style, type, and expiration.
Heatmap Legend	When using the Net Value Heatmap, this legend indicates the magnitude and sign of theoretical net values shown in the chart.	See the FAQ How does the Net Value Heatmap work? for details, and Why is my Net Value Heatmap sometimes glitching? for troubleshooting.

*For practicality, certain expirations and strike prices may be omitted from the visualization. Refer to the market‑prices table or the strategy composer for the complete set of available options.

To remove a connected brokerage from the OptiView platform, follow these steps:

1. Log in to your OptiView account.
2. Click on Account in the header bar.
3. Navigate to Supported Brokers in the left sidebar.
4. Click the trash-icon next to the brokerage you want to remove.

Once confirmed, OptiView will irrevocably remove the link between your brokerage account and the OptiView platform.

OptiView uses OAuth 2.0, the de facto industry standard for online authorization. OAuth lets you grant a website or app limited access to resources hosted by another service, on your behalf, without sharing your username or password.

With OAuth on the OptiView platform, you enter your brokerage credentials only on the brokerage’s own secure page.

OptiView never sees or stores your login details.
Instead, your brokerage issues an access token to OptiView. We protect this token with encryption in transit and at rest and store it according to our Privacy Policy in data centers operated by reputable, international cloud providers.

The token allows your brokerage to verify and authorize only the requests you initiate (for example, retrieving balances or placing orders you explicitly submit). You can revoke access at any time by removing the connection in OptiView or via your brokerage.

No web-based authentication can eliminate risk entirely, but OptiView’s organizational, operational, and technical safeguards are designed to minimize risk as much as possible.

API stands for Application Programming Interface. An API is a set of rules, protocols, and definitions that allows one piece of software to communicate with another in a standardized way.

In the context of brokerage connections on the OptiView platform, an API refers to the secure interface a brokerage provides to its customers (and sometimes approved third-party applications) so that software can exchange data and instructions directly with the brokerage’s systems.

For example, when you connect your brokerage account to OptiView, the platform uses the brokerage’s API to retrieve quotes, option chains, or to send an order you’ve confirmed, always under the permissions you’ve granted.

When you click Send on the Confirmation Screen, OptiView queries your brokerage for all accounts you’re eligible to trade from.

If there’s only one eligible account (or your brokerage returns only one), the order is placed for that account automatically.
If there is more than one eligible account, a pop‑up appears so you can choose the desired account before the order is submitted.

Note: Available accounts and permissions (e.g., margin vs. cash, options approval levels) are controlled by your brokerage. If an account doesn’t appear, check your brokerage settings or eligibility.

The visual outputs on the OptiView platform are grounded in widely accepted, standard financial theory and models used across the industry.
You can find the full methodology, formulas, and citations in our Model Documentation.

The document also details conventions used throughout the OptiView platform. For example:

1. Expired options: once an option passes its expiration date, it contributes zero to a strategy’s calculated net value, even if it may have been exercised earlier.
2. Taxes: returns are shown before income taxes. Actual tax treatment may apply; seek advice from reputable sources or a qualified advisor.
3. Dividends: the assumed dividend yield is inferred from market prices under no‑arbitrage conditions. It can fluctuate over time and is an estimate, not a guarantee.

In practice, models may incorporate risk‑neutral valuation, no‑arbitrage pricing, and commonly used frameworks such as Black‑Scholes‑Merton and binomial/trees, with inputs like implied volatility, interest rates, and dividend yields calibrated from current market data.
See the Model Documentation for exact specifications and parameter sources.

Throughout the OptiView platform, 'theoretical value' refers to the value the adopted financial model suggests for an individual option or complex strategy.

It’s important to note that the OptiView platform is only here for you to educated yourself about the financial model itself, not the outputs derived from the models, as these will almost certainly not be realized in practice.

The model outputs are strictly theoretical and highly unlikely to match actual future performance.

If you want more control over assumptions and parameters, keep an eye out for OptiView Plus once it becomes available.

On the OptiView platform, 'current market levels' refers to the market parameters assumed when deriving certain model outputs.

By OptiView convention, we assume that the market environment prevailing at the moment you run your analysis will persist into the future, and we feed these stable parameters into the financial models.

This includes, for example:

• The current bid-ask spread
• The current interest rate
• The current implied volatility
• The current implied dividend yield

It’s important to note that these parameters will almost certainly change during the analyzed timeframe. This is one reason why the model outputs are strictly theoretical and highly unlikely to match actual future performance.

If you want more control over assumptions and parameters, keep an eye out for OptiView Plus once it becomes available.

An option is a contract that gives you the right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell something (for example a stock) at a set price before or at a certain date.

Example: Think of it like reserving a concert ticket. You pay a small fee to hold the right to buy the ticket at today’s price later. If you decide not to go, you lose the fee, but you don’t have to buy the ticket.

The strike price is the price you’ve locked in to buy or sell the asset if you decide to use your option.

Example: If you have a call with a strike price of $50, you can buy the stock for $50 even if the market price jumps to $60.

The expiration date is the last day you can use your option before it becomes worthless.

Example: Like a coupon that expires, if you don’t use it before the date, you lose it.

An option’s price is based on:

• Current stock price
• Strike price
• Time until expiration
• How much the stock tends to move (volatility)
• Interest rates and dividends

Example: Think of it like property insurance: the riskier the location, the longer the insured periode, or the more likely you’ll need it — the higher the price.

An option is “in the money” if exercising it right now would make you a profit.

Example:

• A $50 call is “in the money” if the stock is at $60.
• A $50 put is “in the money” if the stock is at $40.

If you don’t use (exercise) your option before it expires, it simply becomes worthless.

Example: It’s like letting a coupon expire, you can’t use it after the date, and you don’t get your money back.

Options are designed to be short-term contracts, not permanent rights.

The expiration date limits how long you can use them, which helps set their price and risk.

Example: Think of it like renting a car, you have the right to use it for a certain period, but after that, the agreement ends.

The premium is the price you pay to buy the option, it’s like an upfront fee for having the right to buy or sell later.

Example: If you pay $2 for a call option, that $2 is the premium. Even if you don’t use the option, the premium is non-refundable.

Option style refers to the execution characteristic of an option.
Two main styles are American and European options.

• American style: Can be exercised any time before and including the expiration date.
• European style: Can only be exercised on the expiration date.

Example: Using the plane ticket analogy from earlier, an American-style ticket lets you board the plane at any point in time before take-off, while a European-style ticket only permits boarding right before take-off.
Why would you want to board early? Well, they might be handing out snacks (think dividends) to anyone on board.

The lot size is the number of underlying shares (or units) each option contract represents.

Example: In many stock options, the standard lot size is 100 shares, meaning one contract gives rights over 100 shares of the stock. In other markets, like index or futures options, the lot size can be different and is set by the exchange.

OptiView collects only the minimum data necessary to provide, maintain, and improve the Platform and its Services. For clarity, “personal data” means any information that identifies you directly or indirectly.

The categories of data we collect include:

• Account Information: Your OptiView account details such as email address, account status, linked brokerages, and brokerage-issued tokens.
• Contact Information: Your name, email address, and country of residence, if you provide them.
• Usage Data: Your interactions with the Platform (e.g., features used, crash or diagnostic reports, performance metrics).
• Session Data: Device identifiers (e.g., IP address, browser type, operating system), session start/end times, and session status, collected during your active login session.
• Non-personal Data: Aggregated or anonymized data that cannot identify you (used for analytics and service improvement).

Some data comes directly from you (e.g., registration details), while other data may be received from your linked brokerages or, if you consent, from third-party services like Google Analytics.

OptiView does not sell, rent, or otherwise disclose personal data to third parties, except where required by law or with your explicit consent.
For full details, see our Privacy Policy.

OptiView uses your data only when there is a valid legal basis and only to the extent necessary to provide, maintain, and improve the platform and its services.

Common purposes include:

• Service delivery: Operating your OptiView account, processing linked brokerage data, and running platform features.
• Platform improvement: Analyzing usage patterns, troubleshooting performance issues, and enhancing user experience.
• Security and fraud prevention: Detecting unusual account activity and safeguarding your sessions.
• Communication: Sending account updates, service announcements, and responding to your inquiries.
• Legal compliance: Fulfilling obligations under applicable laws or responding to lawful government requests.

OptiView does not sell or rent your personal data. Data is only shared with trusted service providers who act on our behalf, such as Amazon Web Services for hosting, and only when essential to providing the services. You may review all third-party relationships in our Privacy Policy.

OptiView does not sell, rent, or otherwise disclose your personal data to third parties for their own marketing purposes.

Your data is shared only with trusted third-party service providers who act on our behalf, under strict contractual agreements, and solely for the purposes of delivering the Services.

Examples include:

• Amazon Web Services (AWS): For secure hosting and storage of platform data.
• Linked brokerages: If you connect a brokerage to your OptiView account, we store brokerage-issued tokens necessary for account linkage. These contain no meaningful information outside of your brokerage.
• Google Analytics (optional): Only if you have explicitly consented via our cookie banner or privacy settings, to help us improve platform performance.

All service providers process data strictly in accordance with our instructions and applicable data protection laws. We also reserve the right to disclose certain data if required by law or in response to lawful governmental requests.

As an OptiView user, you have full rights over your personal data, in line with applicable regulations such as GDPR, CCPA, CPRA, PECR, and the Swiss FADP.

You may review all details related to your rights in our Privacy Policy.
You can exercise your rights through your account settings.

OptiView uses browser cookies (small text files stored on your device) to support essential platform functions, remember your preferences, and, if you consent, improve performance through analytics.

Cookies set by OptiView include:

• csrf_token – authenticates requests to protect against CSRF attacks (essential, session-only).
• refresh_token – maintains your login session (essential, session-only).
• optiView-riskBanner – stores your preference for showing or hiding risk disclosure banners (functional, 30 days).
• optiView-cookieBanner – remembers your cookie consent settings (functional, up to 1 year).

These cookies are essential for platform operation and do not track personal data unless explicitly stated.

Analytics cookies: If you give consent via our cookie banner or account settings, we use Google Analytics cookies (such as_ga, _gid, and _gat) to collect anonymized usage data that helps us improve the platform. You can change or withdraw your consent at any time in the Communication Preferences-tab of your Account on the platform.

No other cookies are set by OptiView or third parties beyond those listed here.

OptiView safeguards your data with administrative, technical, and physical controls designed to protect it during collection, transmission, storage, and processing.

Our core protections include:

• Encryption in transit and at rest: Personal data and access tokens are protected by strong encryption during transmission and while stored.
• Trusted infrastructure: We use reputable, international cloud providers to process and store data and apply industry best practices for secure operations.
• Contractual safeguards for cross‑border transfers: When data is moved internationally, we rely on Standard Contractual Clauses to help ensure equivalent protection.
• Access controls & least privilege: Data is only accessible to authorized personnel and services with a legitimate need.
• Ongoing reviews: Our safeguards are continuously reviewed and updated to address evolving threats.

We do not disclose full details of our security architecture publicly to maintain platform integrity. While no web‑based system can eliminate risk entirely, our measures are designed to minimize risk.

For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

OptiView stores and processes your data using Amazon Web Services (AWS) infrastructure. Data may be stored in the United States or other jurisdictions where AWS operates, always in compliance with applicable regulations.

If your data is transferred internationally, we implement Standard Contractual Clauses and other safeguards to ensure it receives equivalent protection regardless of location.

All personal data is encrypted in transit and at rest, and stored only with trusted service providers who meet our strict security standards.

For full details, see our Privacy Policy.