Netflix, Inc. (NFLX) IV/HV History
Comparing implied volatility to historical (realized) volatility reveals whether options are priced rich or cheap relative to actual price movement. Persistent gaps can signal trading opportunities.
Netflix, Inc. (NFLX) operates in the Communication Services sector, specifically the Entertainment industry, with a market capitalization near $370.93B, listed on NASDAQ, employing roughly 14,000 people, carrying a beta of 1.55 to the broader market. Netflix, Inc. Led by Theodore A. Sarandos, public since 2002-05-23.
Snapshot as of May 20, 2026.
- Spot Price
- $88.41
- ATM IV
- 30.7%
- HV 20-Day
- 25.9%
- HV 60-Day
- 43.9%
- IV Rank
- 26.5%
- IV Percentile
- 42.1%
As of May 20, 2026, Netflix, Inc. (NFLX) ATM implied volatility is 30.7%. 20-day realized volatility is 25.9%, producing an IV-HV spread of +4.9 vol points. Options are pricing in more volatility than the stock has recently delivered, the volatility risk premium. IV rank is 26.5%.
How NFLX iv/hv history Data Feeds Strategy Selection
Strategy selection on Netflix, Inc. options does not derive from any single metric in isolation. The iv/hv history view above sits inside a broader read: ATM IV currently sits at 30.7% and dealer gamma exposure is positive, so dealer hedging is mechanically mean-reverting. Combine the iv/hv history 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 NFLX IV vs HV chart
The dual-line chart above tracks ATM implied volatility (forward-looking, what the chain is pricing) against 20-day realized historical volatility (backward-looking, what actually happened). ATM IV currently prints at 30.7%, 26.5% IV rank, against 25.9% realized over the trailing 20 trading days. Implied is pricing above realized by 4.9 vol points, the typical variance-risk-premium positive state in which premium sellers earn the gap. Persistent IV-above-HV is the variance-risk-premium-positive state typical of equity markets; persistent IV-below-HV is rare and usually marks underpriced vol that often expands.
NFLX IV/HV regimes and trade selection
NFLX sits in the bottom quartile of its 1-year IV range. Low-IV-rank regimes favor premium-buying or long-vol structures - long calls/puts, debit spreads, calendar spreads, long straddles. The risk: low rank can persist for months while theta decay eats premium-buyers alive without a vol-expansion catalyst.
Using NFLX vol history alongside the term structure
The IV/HV gap on this page captures the level of premium; the term-structure slope on the volatility page captures its shape across expirations. Term structure is roughly flat at 0.002, no strong near vs far premium being priced. Pair the rank read with the slope read with the event calendar to choose the right tenor for the structure.
NFLX IV/HV signal in volatility-cycle context
Equity-vol cycles tend to compress and expand on multi-month timeframes: a typical sequence runs low-IV-rank consolidation (months of flat tape, decaying premium) into a vol-expansion catalyst (earnings miss, macro shock, regime change) into elevated-IV-rank stress (premiums fat, dispersion high) back to mean-reverting compression. NFLX's current 26.5% IV rank places the ticker in the compression phase of that cycle. Compression phases are profitable for theta-harvesting structures but tend to end with abrupt vol-expansion regimes that hit short-vol books fast. The ratio of HV-20 (25.9%) to HV-60 (43.9%) gives a second cycle indicator: when 20-day exceeds 60-day, recent realization is running hotter than the trailing-quarter average - typically a sign that recent days have already started expanding vol regardless of where IV rank prints. Use the time series above to spot inflection points: meaningful IV/HV gap closures and openings tend to precede regime shifts by a few sessions.
Learn how implied vs realized volatility is reported and how to read the data →
Daily ATM implied volatility and 20-day realized (historical) volatility for NFLX over the last ~35 trading days. The IV-HV gap measures the variance risk premium - when IV trades persistently above realized HV, premium-sellers earn the spread; when IV dips below HV, vol is structurally underpriced.
Most recent 15 trading days (descending). Older history appears in the chart above.
| Date | ATM IV | HV 20d | HV 60d | IV Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 20, 2026 | 30.7% | 25.9% | 43.9% | 26.5% |
| May 19, 2026 | 31.0% | 26.1% | 44.0% | 27.6% |
| May 18, 2026 | 31.7% | 27.2% | 44.7% | 30.4% |
| May 15, 2026 | 30.7% | 25.2% | 44.4% | 26.5% |
| May 14, 2026 | 30.3% | 42.2% | 44.5% | 24.7% |
| May 13, 2026 | 30.9% | 42.5% | 44.5% | 27.2% |
| May 12, 2026 | 30.4% | 42.8% | 44.5% | 25.3% |
| May 11, 2026 | 30.0% | 43.2% | 44.2% | 23.7% |
| May 8, 2026 | 29.0% | 42.9% | 45.0% | 19.3% |
| May 7, 2026 | 29.9% | 43.1% | 45.4% | 23.1% |
| May 6, 2026 | 30.3% | 44.9% | 45.4% | 24.8% |
| May 5, 2026 | 30.7% | 44.9% | 45.4% | 26.3% |
| May 4, 2026 | 29.6% | 43.6% | 44.8% | 22.1% |
| May 1, 2026 | 28.6% | 43.8% | 44.8% | 17.7% |
| Apr 30, 2026 | 28.2% | 44.0% | 44.5% | 16.2% |
NFLX highest implied-volatility contracts
| Type | Strike | Expiration | Volume | OI | IV | Bid | Ask |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CALL | $120.00 | Jul 17, 2026 | 384 | 107.2K | 43.4% | $0.30 | $0.31 |
| CALL | $140.00 | Jul 17, 2026 | 97 | 102.8K | 50.6% | $0.12 | $0.14 |
| CALL | $41.00 | Jan 15, 2027 | 0 | 100.3K | 47.6% | $47.50 | $50.00 |
| CALL | $105.00 | Aug 21, 2026 | 333 | 71.4K | 36.4% | $1.80 | $1.87 |
| CALL | $125.00 | Aug 21, 2026 | 719 | 69.0K | 40.9% | $0.42 | $0.46 |
Top 5 contracts from the institutional-grade nightly options scan; ranked by iv within the broader S&P 500/400/600 + ETF universe.
Frequently asked NFLX iv/hv history questions
- Is NFLX options pricing rich or cheap right now?
- As of May 20, 2026, Netflix, Inc. (NFLX) ATM IV is 30.7% against 20-day realized volatility of 25.9%. IV rank is 26.5%. NFLX options are pricing in more volatility than the stock has recently realized: a positive variance risk premium worth 4.9 vol points.
- What is the NFLX variance risk premium?
- The variance risk premium is the persistent gap between implied and subsequently realized volatility. In equity markets it averages positive because option sellers demand compensation for bearing variance shocks. NFLX is currently priced consistently with this premium, which is one input to whether short-vol or long-vol structures carry their typical edge.
- What does NFLX IV rank mean for strategy selection?
- IV rank normalizes the current ATM IV to its 1-year range: 0% is the low, 100% is the high. NFLX's current rank of 26.5% signals where current pricing sits in its own 1-year history. High-rank regimes typically favor premium-selling structures (credit spreads, condors, covered calls); low-rank regimes typically favor premium-buying or long-volatility structures.