When Do Options Expire?
Options contracts don't live forever. Every option has an expiration date - after which it either gets exercised if it is in-the-money or expires worthless. For 2026 and 2027, the standard monthly cycle still falls on the third Friday of each month unless a market holiday moves it to Thursday.
Quarterly OpEx
3rd Friday of March, June, September, December
Quarterly cycles can concentrate stock options, index options, index futures, and longer-dated hedges in the same window. Use these dates as higher-attention liquidity and open-interest checkpoints, especially in March, June, September, and December.
Standard Monthly
3rd Friday of every calendar month
The standard monthly cycle is the main anchor for most equity and ETF option calendars. Use it to organize contract discovery, open-interest analysis, and expiration-aware backtests before checking ticker-specific listings.
Weekly (Short-Dated)
Every Friday that isn't the standard monthly
Available on many high-liquidity underlyings including SPY, QQQ, AAPL, NVDA, and index products like SPXW. Treat weekly dates as listed-contract candidates, then verify availability before requesting chains or modeling exposure.
AM vs. PM Settlement: A Critical Distinction
Settlement type determines when the final cash settlement value is calculated. That timing can affect risk measurement around volatile expiration sessions.
SPX, XSP, RUT, VIX options
Settlement price is calculated from the opening prices of the constituent stocks. Many AM-settled index contracts stop trading before the settlement calculation, so last-trading-day rules should be checked before modeling hedge windows.
SPY, QQQ, IWM, all equity options
Settlement price is the closing price on expiration Friday. Equity and ETF contracts generally remain tradable through the close, and ITM positions may be automatically exercised or assigned unless closed or handled with contrary instructions.
Why Expiration Dates Matter for Options Traders
Theta Decay Accelerates Into Expiration
Time value, or extrinsic value, does not erode linearly. The rate of decay measured by theta often increases as expiration approaches, especially for near-the-money contracts. That makes DTE segmentation important when comparing option returns or building backtests.
Assignment Risk on Short Options
American-style options, including most equity and ETF options, can be exercised before expiration. Assignment risk is most relevant when a short option is in the money, near expiration, or close to an ex-dividend date. Models should track moneyness, dividend timing, and closing instructions separately.
The "Pinning" Effect on Stocks
Large open interest around specific strikes can affect price behavior near expiration. This is often discussed as pinning, but it should be measured with quote, trade, open-interest, and underlying-price data rather than treated as a standalone signal.
Structuring Trades Around OpEx
Research workflows often bucket contracts by DTE, monthly versus weekly cycle, spread width, and open interest before comparing outcomes. Quarterly OpEx weeks deserve separate labels because liquidity, hedging activity, and realized volatility can differ from ordinary weekly cycles.
Options Expiration FAQ
What is a stock options expiration calendar?
A stock options expiration calendar shows when listed option contracts expire by cycle. The underlying stocks do not expire; the contracts on those stocks and ETFs do.
When is OpEx this month?
Standard monthly options expiration is normally the third Friday of each month. If that Friday is a market holiday, the standard monthly expiration moves to the prior Thursday.
What are LEAPS expiration dates for 2026 and 2027?
LEAPS usually use the standard monthly expiration cycle, most commonly the January monthly expiration. The calendar highlights the 2026 and 2027 standard monthly dates so you can check long-dated equity and ETF options.
Do SPY, QQQ, and SPXW options expire every Friday?
SPY and QQQ have standard weekly expirations on most Fridays plus monthly expirations. SPXW is the weekly S&P 500 index options series and can have additional expirations beyond standard Friday cycles.
What is quarterly OpEx?
Quarterly OpEx refers to the March, June, September, and December standard expiration cycles. These dates often carry heavier open interest because stock options, index options, and futures cycles overlap.
When is the next standard monthly OpEx after May 2026?
The next standard monthly equity and ETF options expiration after the May 15, 2026 cycle is Thursday, June 18, 2026 because Friday, June 19 is Juneteenth.
When is the next standard VIX expiration after May 2026?
After the May 19 cycle, the next standard VIX options expiration is Wednesday, June 17, 2026. The last trading day is typically Tuesday, June 16.
Query Options Data by Expiration Date.
The CuteMarkets API lets you filter full options chains by expiration date, contract type, and strike range in one request. Use it for expiration scanners, roll research, and contract discovery workflows that need listed dates rather than generated calendar guesses.
View Pricing & API Access