Updated Options Breakeven Tool

Options Breakeven Calculator

Calculate breakeven prices for single options, vertical spreads, covered calls, straddles and strangles in one options breakeven calculator.

Calls & Puts Vertical Spreads Covered Calls Straddles & Strangles

Advanced Options Breakeven Calculator

Switch between Single Option, Vertical Spread, Covered Call and Straddle / Strangle modes to see breakeven prices and basic risk metrics.

This mode assumes a long single-leg option position and ignores commissions, assignment risk and early exercise.

This mode assumes standard vertical spreads held to expiration and does not model early assignment, margin or execution risks.

This mode assumes one covered call per 100 shares and ignores dividends, taxes and transaction costs.

This mode assumes long premium positions on both legs and does not include commissions, early exercise or volatility changes.

Options Breakeven Calculator – Calls, Puts, Spreads, Covered Calls and Straddles

The Options Breakeven Calculator helps you quickly find the underlying price at which your options strategy breaks even at expiration. Instead of manually working through each payoff diagram, this tool calculates breakeven levels for popular strategies such as long calls and puts, vertical spreads, covered calls, straddles and strangles.

Breakeven is a key concept in options trading. It shows the price where your strategy neither makes nor loses money before costs. Understanding breakeven levels helps you compare trade ideas, set realistic profit targets and manage risk with more clarity.

How the Options Breakeven Calculator Works

The calculator is divided into four modes:

  • Single Option: Long calls and puts with standard contract size.
  • Vertical Spread: Debit and credit spreads for calls and puts.
  • Covered Call: Long stock plus short call income.
  • Straddle / Strangle: Long volatility strategies using call and put combinations.

Each mode asks for a few inputs such as strike prices, premiums, and contract size. It then outputs breakeven prices and basic risk metrics like total premium, max profit or max loss.

Mode 1: Single Option Breakeven

This mode handles a single long call or long put.

Long Call Breakeven

Breakeven Price = Strike Price + Premium Paid

Long Put Breakeven

Breakeven Price = Strike Price − Premium Paid

The calculator also multiplies the premium by contract size and number of contracts to show total premium and total position cost.

Mode 2: Vertical Spread Breakeven

Vertical spreads combine a long and short option of the same type (call or put) with different strikes and the same expiration date. The calculator supports both debit and credit spreads.

Call Debit Spread (Bull Call)

Net Debit (per share) = Long Premium − Short Premium
Breakeven Price = Long Strike + Net Debit
Max Profit (per share) = (Short Strike − Long Strike) − Net Debit
Max Loss (per share) = Net Debit

Put Debit Spread (Bear Put)

Net Debit (per share) = Long Premium − Short Premium
Breakeven Price = Long Strike − Net Debit
Max Profit (per share) = (Long Strike − Short Strike) − Net Debit
Max Loss (per share) = Net Debit

Call Credit Spread (Bear Call)

Net Credit (per share) = Short Premium − Long Premium
Breakeven Price = Short Strike + Net Credit
Max Profit (per share) = Net Credit
Max Loss (per share) = (Long Strike − Short Strike) − Net Credit

Put Credit Spread (Bull Put)

Net Credit (per share) = Short Premium − Long Premium
Breakeven Price = Short Strike − Net Credit
Max Profit (per share) = Net Credit
Max Loss (per share) = (Short Strike − Long Strike) − Net Credit

The calculator multiplies per-share values by contract size and number of spreads to show total max profit and max loss.

Mode 3: Covered Call Breakeven

A covered call is created by buying shares of stock and selling a call option against those shares. The premium received from the call reduces your cost basis and defines the breakeven level.

Covered Call Breakeven

Breakeven Stock Price = Stock Purchase Price − Call Premium Received

Covered Call Max Profit

Max Profit (per share) = (Call Strike − Stock Purchase Price) + Call Premium

The calculator shows breakeven price, max profit and downside protection percentage, which is the premium received divided by stock purchase price.

Mode 4: Straddle and Strangle Breakeven

Straddles and strangles are long volatility strategies where you buy both a call and a put.

Long Straddle Breakeven

Assuming the same strike for call and put:

Total Premium = Call Premium + Put Premium
Upper Breakeven = Strike + Total Premium
Lower Breakeven = Strike − Total Premium

Long Strangle Breakeven

When call and put strikes differ:

Total Premium = Call Premium + Put Premium
Upper Breakeven = Call Strike + Total Premium
Lower Breakeven = Put Strike − Total Premium

The calculator reports both breakeven levels and total position cost for your chosen contract size and number of contracts per leg.

Why Breakeven Matters in Options Trading

Breakeven prices give you a reference point for how much movement you need in the underlying asset before a strategy becomes profitable. Key benefits of knowing breakeven include:

  • Comparing multiple trade ideas on the same underlying.
  • Seeing how higher premiums shift breakeven further away.
  • Understanding the impact of wider or narrower spread widths.
  • Evaluating whether your directional forecast is realistic.
  • Communicating risk and reward more clearly when planning trades.

Remember that real-world outcomes can differ from simple breakeven models due to changing volatility, early assignment, transaction costs and tax considerations.

How to Use This Calculator Effectively

  • Use the Single Option tab to understand basic call and put breakevens.
  • Switch to Vertical Spread mode when combining long and short legs to control risk.
  • Try Covered Call to see how call income lowers your stock cost basis.
  • Experiment with Straddle / Strangle to see how total premium affects required price move.
  • Adjust premiums and strikes to test different market scenarios and volatility assumptions.

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Options Breakeven Calculator FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions About Options Breakeven

Get quick answers about how breakeven is calculated for calls, puts and multi-leg options strategies.

No. The breakevens shown are based on price and premium only. You can mentally adjust for commissions and fees if needed or include them by slightly modifying the premiums used.

Breakeven levels are theoretical and assume the position is held to expiration with no early assignment. Real results can differ due to volatility shifts, early exercise, adjustments and rolling.

Yes. You can replace the default 100-share contract size with any value used by your product (for example, mini contracts or alternative multipliers) and the totals will update accordingly.

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