Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) Expected Move
Expected move estimates the probable price range for a given period based on at-the-money options pricing. It reflects the market consensus for volatility over the selected timeframe.
Snapshot as of May 29, 2026.
- Spot Price
- $16.26
- Expected Move
- 15.9%
- Implied High
- $18.84
- Implied Low
- $13.68
- Front DTE
- 33 days
As of May 29, 2026, Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) has an expected move of 15.86%, a one-standard-deviation implied price range of roughly $13.68 to $18.84 from the current $16.26. Expected move is derived from at-the-money straddle pricing and represents the market's pricing of a ±1σ move. Roughly 68% of outcomes should fall within this range under lognormal assumptions, though empirical markets have fatter tails.
VIX Strategy Sizing to the Expected Move
With Cboe Volatility Index pricing an expected move of 15.86% from $16.26, risk-defined strategies sized to the implied range structurally target the modal outcome distribution. Iron condors with wings at the ±1σ expected move boundaries collect premium against the ~68% probability that spot stays inside the range under lognormal assumptions; strangles set wider at ±1.5σ or ±2σ target the tails but pay smaller per-trade premium. Long-vol structures (long straddles, ratio backspreads) profit when realized move exceeds the implied move, the inverse trade: they bet against the lognormal assumption itself, capitalizing on the empirically fatter equity-return tails.
How to read the VIX implied-range chart
The shaded range above shows the one-standard-deviation implied price band at each listed expiration, derived from ATM implied volatility scaled to days-to-expiration. The front-tenor expected move is 15.86%, anchoring an implied range of approximately $13.68 to $18.84. Under lognormal assumptions, roughly 68% of outcomes fall inside that band; 95% fall inside ±2σ; 99.7% inside ±3σ. The empirical equity-return distribution has fatter tails than lognormal, so true tail-outcome frequency is moderately higher than these closed-form numbers suggest.
VIX expected move and event pricing
Expected move widens with √time: a 5% 30-day move corresponds to roughly a 2.5% 7.5-day move and a 10% 120-day move. VIX term-structure is in contango (slope 0.029), so longer-dated tenors price in proportionally more vol than √time scaling alone would suggest - typically because long-dated cycles include uncertain macro states. With IV rank at 8.7%, the implied move is at the low end of the typical VIX range - cheap optionality for buyers, thin premium for sellers.
Sizing VIX structures to the expected move
Iron condors with wings at ±1σ collect the modal-outcome premium; ±1.5σ widens probability of inside-range to ~87% but cuts collected premium roughly in half. Strangles do the inverse trade - they pay against the same lognormal distribution, profiting when realized exceeds implied. Calendar spreads bet on the slope of the term structure rather than the level. VIX put/call volume ratio currently at 0.35 indicates speculative call flow dominates - look for upside-skewed sentiment. The expected move is the inputs the chain is pricing, not a forecast - realized moves above or below are normal under any distribution.
Learn how expected move is reported and how to read the data →
Per-expiration expected move for VIX derived from ATM implied volatility at each listed expiration. Implied high/low bounds are computed as $16.26 × (1 ± expected move %). One standard-deviation range under lognormal assumptions, roughly 68% of outcomes fall inside.
| Expiration | DTE | ATM IV | Expected Move | Implied High | Implied Low |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 2, 2026 | 4 | 54.0% | 5.7% | $17.18 | $15.34 |
| Jun 10, 2026 | 12 | 55.8% | 10.1% | $17.91 | $14.61 |
| Jun 17, 2026 | 19 | 65.1% | 14.9% | $18.68 | $13.84 |
| Jun 24, 2026 | 26 | 59.5% | 15.9% | $18.84 | $13.68 |
| Jul 1, 2026 | 33 | 52.7% | 15.8% | $18.84 | $13.68 |
| Jul 22, 2026 | 54 | 55.6% | 21.4% | $19.74 | $12.78 |
| Aug 19, 2026 | 82 | 52.2% | 24.7% | $20.28 | $12.24 |
| Sep 16, 2026 | 110 | 49.0% | 26.9% | $20.63 | $11.89 |
| Oct 21, 2026 | 145 | 45.6% | 28.7% | $20.93 | $11.59 |
| Nov 18, 2026 | 173 | 43.2% | 29.7% | $21.10 | $11.42 |
| Dec 16, 2026 | 201 | 42.1% | 31.2% | $21.34 | $11.18 |
| Jan 20, 2027 | 236 | 40.7% | 32.7% | $21.58 | $10.94 |
| Feb 17, 2027 | 264 | 38.2% | 32.5% | $21.54 | $10.98 |
VIX highest implied-volatility contracts
| Type | Strike | Expiration | Volume | OI | IV | Bid | Ask |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CALL | $35.00 | Jul 22, 2026 | 137 | 294.0K | 121.6% | $0.63 | $0.69 |
| CALL | $65.00 | Jul 22, 2026 | 205 | 254.8K | 158.3% | $0.19 | $0.23 |
| CALL | $25.00 | Jun 17, 2026 | 30.3K | 247.2K | 132.4% | $0.34 | $0.38 |
| PUT | $15.50 | Jul 22, 2026 | 8.0K | 237 | 50.3% | $0.14 | $0.18 |
| PUT | $19.00 | Jun 17, 2026 | 30.3K | 115.2K | 90.5% | $2.35 | $2.41 |
| CALL | $25.00 | Jun 17, 2026 | 30.3K | 247.2K | 132.4% | $0.34 | $0.38 |
| CALL | $50.00 | Oct 21, 2026 | 155 | 199.3K | 98.0% | $0.86 | $0.94 |
| CALL | $22.00 | Jun 17, 2026 | 9.5K | 196.4K | 113.2% | $0.50 | $0.54 |
| CALL | $45.00 | Jun 17, 2026 | 29.2K | 129.3K | 193.0% | $0.07 | $0.10 |
| CALL | $65.00 | Jun 17, 2026 | 7.9K | 183.1K | 205.0% | $0.01 | $0.04 |
Top 10 contracts from the institutional-grade nightly options scan; ranked by iv within the broader S&P 500/400/600 + ETF universe.
Frequently asked VIX expected move questions
- What is the current VIX expected move?
- As of May 29, 2026, Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) has an expected move of 15.86% over the next 33 days, implying a one-standard-deviation price range of $13.68 to $18.84 from the current $16.26. The expected move is derived from at-the-money straddle pricing and represents the market consensus for a ±1σ price move.
- What does the VIX expected move mean for traders?
- Roughly 68% of outcomes should fall within ±1 expected move and 95% within ±2 under lognormal assumptions, though equity returns have empirically fatter tails than log-normal predicts. Strategies sized to the expected move (iron condors at ±1σ, strangles at ±1.5σ) target the typical outcome distribution; strategies that profit from tail moves (long-vol structures, ratio backspreads) target the tails the lognormal model under-prices.
- How is VIX expected move calculated?
- The expected move displayed here is derived from at-the-money implied volatility scaled to the chosen tenor: expected move % is approximately ATM IV times sqrt(T / 365), where T is days to expiration. An equivalent straddle-based form: the ATM straddle (call + put at the same strike) is roughly sqrt(2/pi) times spot times IV times sqrt(T/365), so the implied one-standard-deviation move is approximately 1.25 times ATM straddle divided by spot. The two formulations agree once the sqrt(2/pi) constant is reconciled.