Recipe · Flow scanner
Run the unusual options activity screener recipe
A paid Cookbook that ranks chain-snapshot contracts on volume/OI and, when history exists, relative volume versus that contract’s own recent daily volume. Thresholds are tunable. It does not name a trader or fire an alert.
Official template: Unusual Options Activity Screener · Updated 2026-09-12
The job
Screen unusual contracts by volume versus the book, not by a vendor’s opaque UOA score.
What this recipe computes
- volumeToOI = session contract volume ÷ standing open interest on the chain snapshot.
- relativeVolume versus that same contract’s recent daily volume when at least five prior snapshots exist.
- A ranked board with reader-tunable floors (vol/OI, rel vol, volume, OI, max DTE).
What it does not claim
- It is not a live unusual-print tape. Live UOA still lives on Option Trades.
- High volume/OI is not proof of a new whale, opening status, or a next-session move.
- 0DTE is excluded. An EOD 0DTE print is a different job.
How to read it
Step 1
Run the screener
Open Unusual Options Activity Screener in Cookbooks. Tune vol/OI and relative-volume floors if the default board is too loud or too quiet.
Step 2
Read vol/OI first, then rel vol
Vol/OI asks how large today is versus the standing book. Rel vol asks how large today is versus this contract’s own tape. A blank rel-vol cell means not enough history, not a zero.
Step 3
Handoff to the tape
Anything you might trade still needs Option Trades and the chain. The recipe is the shortlist, not the fill.
Frequently asked questions
- Is this the live UOA tape?
- No. This is a completed-session chain screen. Live prints, sweeps, and filters stay on Option Trades.
- Does a high volume/OI mean someone opened a position?
- Not from this report. Volume/OI is a ratio. Rolls, hedges, and closing prints can all print the same number.
Related glossary
- Unusual options activity (UOA)UOA flags contracts or underlyings trading far above recent norms in volume, size, or premium. It is an attention screen, not a directional signal.
- Volume / open interest (Vol/OI)Vol/OI is today’s volume divided by open interest. High ratios mean today’s trading is large versus the standing book.
- Open interest (OI)Open interest is how many options contracts remain open. Unlike volume, it does not reset each morning and usually updates after the session.
- Option flowOption flow is the time-and-sales stream of options prints: contract, size, premium, and inferred aggressor side.
Related personas
- Options Flow for Day TradersDay traders need speed with a filter: see what is printing now, rank what is unusual, then validate structure before risking capital. TradingFlow is built for that same-session loop.
- Unusual Options Activity for EarningsEarnings compress time: IV is rich, strikes get loud, and the wrong filter set gets expensive. Rank unusual activity, bound DTE to the event, and plan for IV crush as well as direction.
Related recipes
Open Unusual Options Activity Screener in TradingFlow
This public page describes the job. The recipe runs in the app and requires a subscription. It is not a free live report.