Glossary
Vol/OI ratio
Volume divided by open interest — a ratio above 1 means brand-new positioning.
What it is
The Vol/OI ratio is volume divided by open interest on a specific options contract. When today's volume on a contract dwarfs the existing open interest, it almost always means brand-new positioning — not someone closing an old trade.
- Vol/OI >> 1: New money entering. Someone is opening a fresh directional bet.
- Vol/OI ≈ 1: Could be closing an existing position. Less interesting.
- Vol/OI << 1: Light activity on a well-established position.
In the Unusual Activity score
Vol/OI ratio is the largest single component of the conviction score — contributing up to 40 points — and it is measured against the ticker's own 30-day percentile baseline. A 10× ratio on a ticker that normally prints at 2× is far more meaningful than the same 10× on a ticker that prints at 8× routinely.
In the feed columns
Every flow in the Live Flow and Unusual Activity feed shows the Vol/OI ratio in its own column. A ratio above 5× is the threshold where the trade starts feeling like genuine fresh positioning. Above 20× is rare and worth special attention.
Where you will see it
- Unusual ActivityProprietary scoring on volume-to-OI, premium size, and bid-ask execution flags the trades that matter: 85+ is significant, 95+ is institutional-grade.
- Live FlowThe raw tape as it prints. Filter by premium, score, DTE, and trade type to watch flow build on a single name in real time.
- Liquidity MapWhere the open interest and liquidity actually sit on a chain, mapped so you can see the walls that shape the underlying.