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Bear put spread calculator
a defined-risk way down

A bear put spread buys a put and sells a lower one, cutting the cost of a bearish position in exchange for a floor on the profit. It is the mirror of a bull call spread, and the usual choice when you expect a decline to a level rather than a collapse.

Outlook: Bearish

Max profit

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best case at expiry

Max loss

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worst case at expiry

Breakeven

—

where the trade turns even

Net debit / credit

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to open the position

Your bear put spread

Per-share premiums. One contract = 100 shares.

Underlying price

Long put @ strike

Premium paid

Short put @ strike

Premium collected

Contracts

100 shares per contract

Profit at expiry Loss at expiry Breakeven Strikes & spot

How a bear put spread pays

Net debit = premium paid − premium collected Max profit = (strike width − net debit) × 100 × contracts Max loss = net debit × 100 × contracts Breakeven = long put strike − net debit

Cheaper than a naked put. The short put offsets part of your premium, which raises your breakeven and reduces the move you need.
Profit stops at the short strike. Below it, further declines change nothing — you have already made the maximum.
Well suited to support levels. If you expect a fall to a level you consider a floor, selling the put at that level costs you little.

Worth naming. The short leg means assignment risk on the way down, and put assignment leaves you long shares. That is a real cash requirement, not a theoretical one, if the position moves against you while both legs are still open.

What this does not model

Every figure here is the payoff at expiry. Before then your position is marked at market prices that still carry time value, so a trade can show a loss while sitting exactly where you wanted it — falling implied volatility alone will do that.

Short legs carry assignment risk. American-style options can be exercised at any time, most commonly on in-the-money calls just before an ex-dividend date. The diagram assumes you hold every leg to expiry.

For the full version — Greeks, marks and what-if scenarios — that is what the GreeksView desk does, in your browser, against option-chain figures from our licensed market-data feed.

Frequently asked questions

What is the maximum profit on a bear put spread?

The strike width minus the net debit, times 100 per contract. Buying the 100 put for $3.80 and selling the 90 for $1.30 is a $2.50 debit on a $10 spread, so the maximum is $750 — realised at or below 90 at expiry.

What is the breakeven on a bear put spread?

The long put's strike minus the net debit: 100 − 2.50 = $97.50 in the example. The stock has to be below that at expiry for the trade to make money.

How is this different from just buying a put?

It costs less and breaks even sooner, but caps your profit at the short strike. Buying the put outright keeps all the downside — worth it if you expect a genuine collapse, wasteful if you expect a move to a specific level.

Can I be assigned early on the short put?

Yes. A short put that goes deep in the money can be assigned at any time, leaving you long 100 shares per contract and needing the cash to pay for them. Your long put still protects the position's value, but the cash requirement arrives immediately.

Are commissions included in these numbers?

No — every figure is gross. On multi-leg positions this matters more than people expect: four legs to open and four to close is eight commissions against what may be a couple of hundred dollars of credit. Check your broker's per-contract rate against the max profit shown here before deciding a trade is worth putting on.

See it on a real chain

The numbers above are the ones you typed. Here is a bear put spread built from SPY's own chain at the last close — real strikes, real premiums, with its breakevens and probability of profit.

SPY bear put spread, priced from the close →

Run this on the GreeksView desk against a real option chain

GreeksView builds positions from real option chains, with Greeks labelled by source and delay, gamma exposure and what-if scenarios — in your browser, on figures from our licensed market-data feed.

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Educational tool only — not investment advice, and not a recommendation to enter any position. Options involve substantial risk and are not suitable for every investor. Figures are theoretical, exclude commissions and taxes, and assume the position is held to expiry. GreeksView is not a broker and does not hold funds.