Put Ratio Spread (Front Spread)
Description
Buying one at-the-money put and selling two puts further out of the money, financing most or all of the long put with the extra short premium.
Setup
- Buy one put at the money.
- Sell two puts at a lower strike, same expiry.
Context
Used when a moderate decline down to the short strike is expected, and the trader is willing to accept uncapped risk below it in exchange for a very low, or negative, cost of entry.
Risk Profile
Maximum gain occurs at the short strike. Below it, the extra uncovered short put creates loss that grows as the underlying falls; above the long strike, the position is flat at its net cost.
Pros
- Very low, sometimes negative, cost of entry.
- Maximum profit at the short strike can be large relative to the cost.
- Benefits from time decay on the short puts.
Cons
- Uncapped downside risk below the short strike.
- Needs active management if the underlying sells off hard.
Effect of Time
Time decay generally helps, since there are more short options than long ones.
Effect of Volatility
A rise in implied volatility generally hurts the position, since the short puts outnumber the long put.
Look-Alike Strategies
Live Structure
| Position? | Right? | Ratio | Strike | Expiry | IV? | Premium? | Fill Price? | Liquidity? | Est. Fee? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Long | Put | 1 | $75000.0000 | 20 Nov 2026 | 38.5% | $1950.0242 | $1987.5246 | 63.8000 | $22.5003 |
| Short | Put | 2 | $74000.0000 | 20 Nov 2026 | 39.2% | $1500.0186 | $1462.5181 | 115.3000 | $45.0006 |
Net cost, breakevens, the payoff chart and the scenario table are after costs: every leg filled by crossing the spread, estimated fees included -- the same numbers the Scanner ranks by.
Estimated Cost to Assemble
An estimate of what entering this structure right now would really cost: filling every leg by crossing the spread (the ask when buying, the bid when selling) instead of at the mid-price, plus an estimated exchange fee. Real fees and fills can differ from this estimate.
Compare venues
These exact contracts -- same strikes, expiries and ratios -- on every venue BOSS tracks for this currency, at execution: what selling (bid) or buying (ask) each leg there comes to, after that venue's own fee. Green marks the best venue for each leg and for the whole structure.
| Deribit this page | Bybit | OKX | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Index? | $74877.7500 | $74973.4480 | $74882.9000 |
| Mid-Price Cost | -$1050.0130 | -$1040.0000 | -$1106.5313 |
| Slippage? | +$112.5014 | +$10.0000 | +$56.2588 |
| Estimated Fees? | +$67.5008 | +$67.6226 | +$67.5106 |
| Total Estimated Cost | -$870.0108 | -$962.3774$92.3700 better than this page | -$982.7619$112.7500 better than this page |
| Max Profit? | $1870.0108 | $1962.3774 | $1982.7619 |
| Max Loss? | -$72129.9892 | -$72037.6226 | -$72017.2381 |
| Breakeven(s)? | $72129.9892 | $72037.6226 | $72017.2381 |
| Structure IV? | 38.8% | 39.0% | 38.7% |
| Open on this venue → | Open on this venue → |
Each leg: what it nets there per contract (fill price with the fee folded in), then the fill price, fee, IV and the size quoted at that price.
For comparing prices, not a recommendation: quotes move by the second, size is only what's shown at the top of the book, fees are each venue's published estimate, and the venues settle against different indexes and margin separately.
Market Context
This expiry as the Dashboard sees it: how the legs are priced against at-the-money and realized volatility, and where the expiry's forward sits against spot.
Volatility Smile?
Implied volatility across strikes at this expiry; the marked lines are this structure's strikes. Buying on the high part of the curve pays up for volatility; selling there collects it.
Leg bought Leg sold
Payoff & Greeks vs. Underlying Price
The Greeks curves are a Black-Scholes model using each leg's current implied volatility, holding time to expiry fixed -- not live exchange data at every price, which only exists at the current price (dashed line).
Payoff at Expiration
After costs At mid price
This structure's value and profit/loss at expiration, at a handful of specific prices: every leg's strike, every breakeven, the current spot, and the chart's own range.
| Underlying Price | Value at Expiration | Profit / Loss | Return on Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| $72129.9892 breakeven | -$870.0108 | $0.0000 | +0.0% |
| $73000.0000 | $0.0000 | $870.0108 | +100.0% |
| $74000.0000 | $1000.0000 | $1870.0108 | +214.9% |
| $75000.0000 current | $0.0000 | $870.0108 | +100.0% |
| $76000.0000 | $0.0000 | $870.0108 | +100.0% |
Delta (model)?
Gamma (model)?
Vega (model)?
Theta (model)?
Rho (model)?
Alternatives
From the Scanner's latest pass (21:31:48 UTC), priced at execution like everything above.
Same payoff through other strategies
None found in the latest scan.
Other strikes and widths of this strategy
| Strategy | Market | vs. this one | Credit/Debit | Max Profit? | Max Loss? | Prob. of Profit? | Max Profit / Max Loss? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Put Ratio Spread (Front Spread)68000/72000 | Deribit · BTC | — | -$67.5005 | $4067.5005 | -$199932.4995 | 96% | 0.02× |
| Put Ratio Spread (Front Spread)69000/72000 | Deribit · BTC | — | -$112.5008 | $3112.5008 | -$134887.4992 | 95% | 0.02× |
| Put Ratio Spread (Front Spread)69000/73000 | Deribit · BTC | — | -$195.0014 | $4195.0014 | -$202804.9986 | 94% | 0.02× |