iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) Options Chain
The options chain displays all available contracts with end-of-day quotes, Greeks, volume, and open interest for each strike and expiration, and streams live quotes for traders who connect a broker. It is the primary tool for options trade selection.
iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) operates in the Financial Services sector, specifically the Asset Management - Bonds industry, with a market capitalization near $41.97B, listed on NASDAQ, carrying a beta of 2.40 to the broader market. Providing exposure to long-term government debt, the iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF aims to replicate the performance of an index. public since 2002-07-30.
Snapshot as of Aug 21, 2026.
- Spot Price
- $81.95
- Total OI
- 12.4M
- Total Volume
- 679.3K
- Front Expiration
- 28 days
- Second Expiration
- 35 days
- ATM IV
- 10.8%
- Avg Bid/Ask Spread
- 1.80%
As of Aug 21, 2026, iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) has 12.4M open contracts and 679.3K contracts traded. The nearest expiration is 28 days out, followed by 35 days. ATM implied volatility is 10.8%. Average bid/ask spread across the chain is 1.80%: tight liquidity, suitable for active strategies. The options chain aggregates every listed strike and expiration, letting traders evaluate skew, term structure, and liquidity in a single view.
How TLT options chain Data Feeds Strategy Selection
Strategy selection on iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF options does not derive from any single metric in isolation. The options chain view above sits inside a broader read: ATM IV currently sits at 10.8% and dealer gamma exposure is negative, so dealer hedging amplifies directional moves. Combine the options chain data here with the volatility-skew surface, dealer-gamma exposure, max-pain level, and upcoming-events calendar to build a positioning thesis. Risk-defined structures (credit spreads, debit spreads, iron condors) are usually safer than naked positions while the regime is uncertain; the data on this page anchors the inputs but does not by itself constitute a trade thesis.
How to read the TLT chain depth
The listed-expirations table above shows every expiration available for iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF options with its days-to-expiration count and ATM implied volatility. Front-month expirations carry the most volume, the highest gamma, and the tightest bid-ask spreads; longer-dated tenors carry less liquidity but more vega exposure. TLT front expiration sits at 28 days - the typical hedging horizon for monthly options. The backwardated slope of -0.001 means near-dated IV is pricing acute event risk.
TLT chain mechanics and execution
Options are listed at standardized strike intervals (typically $1 for sub-$25 underlyings, $2.50-$5 for mid-cap, $10-$50 for large-cap), and the deltas of each listed strike are determined by where IV lies relative to the strike's moneyness. Average bid/ask spread on the TLT chain is 1.80% - a measure of liquidity. Tighter spreads on liquid strikes mean lower transaction costs; wider spreads on long-dated or far-OTM strikes mean execution drag can dominate the math. The chain table on the SPA side shows the full per-strike, per-expiration grid; this SSR page summarizes the listed expirations and the front-month context to anchor the structural read.
Using the TLT chain to build structures
Strategy selection starts with the chain: directional theses use single-leg calls or puts, range-bound theses use credit spreads or iron condors, vol theses use straddles or strangles, calendar theses use diagonal spreads. TLT's current 3.09% expected move anchors wing placement - structures with wings at the implied band collect the modal-outcome premium under lognormal assumptions. Cross-reference with the gamma-exposure profile to understand where dealer hedging will reinforce or fight your position, and with the volatility-skew chart to confirm the strikes you're trading sit at the IV levels your strategy assumes.
Learn how the options chain is reported and how to read the data →
TLT listed expirations
Per-expiration ATM implied volatility for TLT options. Each row is one listed expiration with its days-to-expiration count and ATM IV pulled from the same term-structure feed that powers the SPA's expiration filter. Front-month expirations carry the highest gamma, the tightest bid-ask spreads, and the most volume; longer-dated tenors carry less liquidity but more vega.
| Expiration | DTE | ATM IV |
|---|---|---|
| Aug 24, 2026 | 3 | 7.3% |
| Aug 26, 2026 | 5 | 9.2% |
| Aug 28, 2026 | 7 | 10.3% |
| Aug 31, 2026 | 10 | 9.7% |
| Sep 2, 2026 | 12 | 10.9% |
| Sep 4, 2026 | 14 | 11.2% |
| Sep 11, 2026 | 21 | 10.7% |
| Sep 18, 2026 | 28 | 10.8% |
| Sep 25, 2026 | 35 | 10.7% |
| Sep 30, 2026 | 40 | 10.7% |
| Oct 2, 2026 | 42 | 11.2% |
| Oct 16, 2026 | 56 | 11.1% |
| Oct 30, 2026 | 70 | 12.2% |
| Nov 20, 2026 | 91 | 11.6% |
| Dec 18, 2026 | 119 | 11.9% |
| Dec 31, 2026 | 132 | 11.7% |
| Jan 15, 2027 | 147 | 11.8% |
| Feb 19, 2027 | 182 | 11.8% |
| Mar 19, 2027 | 210 | 11.8% |
| Mar 31, 2027 | 222 | 11.8% |
| Apr 16, 2027 | 238 | 11.9% |
| May 21, 2027 | 273 | 11.9% |
| Jun 17, 2027 | 300 | 12.1% |
| Jun 30, 2027 | 313 | 11.9% |
| Jul 16, 2027 | 329 | 11.9% |
| Aug 20, 2027 | 364 | 11.9% |
| Jan 21, 2028 | 518 | 12.0% |
| Jun 16, 2028 | 665 | 12.3% |
| Dec 15, 2028 | 847 | 13.1% |
TLT most-active contracts
| Type | Strike | Expiration | Volume | OI | IV | Bid | Ask |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PUT | $81.00 | Sep 18, 2026 | 67.6K | 133.8K | 11.1% | $0.61 | $0.63 |
| PUT | $80.00 | Sep 18, 2026 | 67.3K | 66.4K | 11.5% | $0.34 | $0.35 |
| PUT | $83.00 | Sep 18, 2026 | 30.2K | 78.1K | 10.8% | $1.67 | $1.69 |
| PUT | $82.00 | Sep 18, 2026 | 25.9K | 129.8K | 10.8% | $1.04 | $1.06 |
| CALL | $85.00 | Sep 18, 2026 | 24.9K | 84.9K | 11.7% | $0.14 | $0.15 |
| PUT | $82.00 | Oct 16, 2026 | 20.8K | 23.2K | 11.1% | $1.50 | $1.52 |
| CALL | $83.00 | Sep 18, 2026 | 17.5K | 76.1K | 10.8% | $0.51 | $0.52 |
Top 7 contracts from the institutional-grade nightly options scan; ranked by volume within the broader S&P 500/400/600 + ETF universe.
Frequently asked TLT options chain questions
- What does the TLT options chain show right now?
- As of Aug 21, 2026, iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) has 12.4M contracts outstanding and 679.3K traded today, with ATM IV of 10.8%. The full chain spans every listed strike and expiration with bid/ask, Greeks, volume, and open interest per contract.
- What expirations are available for TLT options?
- The nearest expiration is 28 days out, followed by 35 days. Listed expirations typically extend monthly with weeklies between, plus LEAPS one to two years out for liquid names.
- How tight are TLT options bid/ask spreads?
- Average bid/ask spread across the chain is 1.80%. Tight liquidity supports active strategies including ratio spreads and fly structures.