80% implied volatility high meaning

Implied volatility (IV) na di annualized move wey option price dey talk about for di stock wey dey under am. High reading no good or bad by itself. Na price, and price only get meaning when you compare am to something: di rest of di options market, and di stock own history. Dis page take di readings wey people dey search for, 80% and 30% and 20%, and measure each one against dose yardsticks for one pinned session, July 28, 2026.

80% implied volatility high?

Against di traded options market for one single session, 80% dey inside di upper fifth of names and far from di ceiling. Di panel below sort every screened US underlying wey get liquid near-the-money chain into volatility bands.

WITH per_name AS (
    SELECT underlying_symbol AS u,
           100 * quantileExact(0.5)(implied_volatility) AS iv_pct
    FROM global_markets.options_greeks
    WHERE date = '2026-07-28'
      AND iv_converged AND implied_volatility BETWEEN 0.02 AND 5
      AND abs(strike_price / underlying_close - 1) <= 0.05
      AND expiration_date BETWEEN date + 20 AND date + 60
      AND underlying_symbol != 'SPCX'
    GROUP BY u
    HAVING sum(volume) >= 500 AND count() >= 10
),
banded AS (
    SELECT multiIf(iv_pct < 20, 'under 20%', iv_pct < 30, '20 to 30%', iv_pct < 40, '30 to 40%',
                   iv_pct < 60, '40 to 60%', iv_pct < 80, '60 to 80%', '80% and up') AS iv_band,
           min(iv_pct) AS lo,
           count() AS underlyings
    FROM per_name
    GROUP BY iv_band
)
SELECT iv_band,
       underlyings,
       round(100 * underlyings / (SELECT count() FROM per_name), 1) AS share_pct,
       round(100 * sum(underlyings) OVER (ORDER BY lo DESC) / (SELECT count() FROM per_name), 1) AS share_at_or_above_pct
FROM banded
ORDER BY lo

Of di screened underlyings, 19.1% carry near-the-money implied volatility of 80% or higher, 75 names in total. Di widest band, 40 to 60%, hold 22.7% of di list. Only 7.4% of names print under 20%, 29 of dem.

Two readings follow from dat shape. An 80% quote dey unusual but no be exotic, roughly one-in-five name for dis screen. And a 20% quote, di kind wey look ordinary to anybody wey dey use to stock charts, dey rarer for di traded options tape than an 80% quote. Di screen cover underlyings wey get actively traded chain, wey tilt di distribution upward: quiet stocks carry quiet option volume and drop out of di count. A 30% reading, anoda common search, land inside di 30 to 40% band alongside 19.4% of di list, near di middle of di traded universe.

Dat answer di market-wide question. E leave di question wey a trader dey usually ask, wey be whether 80% high for dis stock.

Di same IV number no be di same for two tickers

Fix di session and vary di ticker, and di number move across a wide span of familiar names.

SELECT underlying_symbol AS symbol,
       round(100 * quantileExact(0.5)(implied_volatility), 1) AS atm_iv_pct
FROM global_markets.options_greeks
WHERE date = '2026-07-28'
  AND underlying_symbol IN ('KO','JNJ','SPY','QQQ','AAPL','MSFT','NVDA','TSLA','PLTR','COIN','MSTR')
  AND iv_converged AND implied_volatility BETWEEN 0.02 AND 5
  AND abs(strike_price / underlying_close - 1) <= 0.05
  AND expiration_date BETWEEN date + 20 AND date + 60
GROUP BY symbol
ORDER BY atm_iv_pct DESC

MSTR print 80.2% while SPY print 15.3%, a gap of more dan four times across one screen of household tickers. A broad index fund average im members' individual moves together, and im options price a far narrower distribution dan any single member's chain. Di mechanics dey covered in full for di implied volatility explainer.

Di practical consequence be say a bare IV number no fit grade. A 40% quote go be an ordinary Tuesday for one of dese tickers and an extreme for anoda. Grading need a reference range, and di natural range na di name's own.

IV rank put di reading inside di stock's own range

IV rank score where today's implied volatility dey sit between di lowest and highest readings of di past 52 weeks: 0 for di range floor, 100 for di range ceiling. Di arithmetic na current IV minus di 52-week low, divide by di 52-week high minus di low. IV percentile answer di same question by counting instead, di share of sessions for dat window wey close below today's reading.

WITH per_session AS (
    SELECT underlying_symbol AS u,
           date AS d,
           100 * quantileExact(0.5)(implied_volatility) AS iv_pct
    FROM global_markets.options_greeks
    WHERE date BETWEEN '2025-07-28' AND '2026-07-28'
      AND underlying_symbol IN ('KO','JNJ','SPY','QQQ','AAPL','MSFT','NVDA','TSLA','PLTR','COIN','MSTR')
      AND iv_converged AND implied_volatility BETWEEN 0.02 AND 5
      AND abs(strike_price / underlying_close - 1) <= 0.05
      AND expiration_date BETWEEN date + 20 AND date + 60
    GROUP BY u, d
    HAVING count() >= 10
)
SELECT u AS ticker,
       round(anyIf(iv_pct, d = '2026-07-28'), 1) AS iv_now_pct,
       round(min(iv_pct), 1) AS iv_52w_low_pct,
       round(max(iv_pct), 1) AS iv_52w_high_pct,
       round(100 * (anyIf(iv_pct, d = '2026-07-28') - min(iv_pct)) / (max(iv_pct) - min(iv_pct)), 1) AS iv_rank
FROM per_session
GROUP BY ticker
HAVING countIf(d = '2026-07-28') = 1 AND count() >= 200
ORDER BY iv_rank DESC

Read two rows of dat panel together. MSTR carry di highest implied volatility for di screen at 80.2%, and im IV rank come to 38.8, under di midpoint of im own 52-week range, wey run from 50.2% to 127.6%. KO sit at 20.9%, roughly a quarter of dat level, with an IV rank of 68.7.

Measured against itself, di calm consumer name dey priced for more movement dan di volatile one. Dat na di argument for IV rank for one single pair of rows. Di absolute number place di stock against di market; di rank place di stock against im own past year. Di live version of dis screen across di full tape na di highest IV rank stocks board, and di absolute-level version na di highest implied volatility stocks board.

One caveat for di rank arithmetic. One single violent session inside di 52 weeks set a ceiling wey di range-based rank never forget, and a name wey im window contain such session score low for months afterward. IV percentile treat dat session as one tick among 252. Di two numbers disagree most for names wey get one spike for anoda quiet year.

Implied volatility beside realized volatility

Di last comparison na di most direct: wetin di options market price, next to wetin di stock actually do. Realized volatility annualize di standard deviation of a stock's daily returns over a past window. Here e cover di 30 sessions ending July 28, 2026, beside di implied volatility quote for dat date.

WITH daily AS (
    SELECT ticker,
           toDate(toTimeZone(window_start, 'America/New_York')) AS d,
           argMax(close, window_start) AS px
    FROM global_markets.delayed_stocks_minute_aggs
    WHERE ticker IN ('KO','JNJ','SPY','QQQ','AAPL','MSFT','NVDA','TSLA','PLTR','COIN','MSTR')
      AND toDate(toTimeZone(window_start, 'America/New_York')) BETWEEN toDate('2026-05-20') AND toDate('2026-07-28')
      AND (toHour(toTimeZone(window_start, 'America/New_York')) * 60
           + toMinute(toTimeZone(window_start, 'America/New_York'))) BETWEEN 570 AND 959
    GROUP BY ticker, d
),
rets AS (
    SELECT ticker, d,
           log(px / any(px) OVER (PARTITION BY ticker ORDER BY d ROWS BETWEEN 1 PRECEDING AND 1 PRECEDING)) AS r
    FROM daily
),
realized AS (
    SELECT ticker, 100 * stddevSamp(r) * sqrt(252) AS rv
    FROM rets
    WHERE r IS NOT NULL AND d > toDate('2026-06-12')
    GROUP BY ticker
    HAVING count() >= 20
),
implied AS (
    SELECT underlying_symbol AS ticker,
           100 * quantileExact(0.5)(implied_volatility) AS iv
    FROM global_markets.options_greeks
    WHERE date = '2026-07-28'
      AND underlying_symbol IN ('KO','JNJ','SPY','QQQ','AAPL','MSFT','NVDA','TSLA','PLTR','COIN','MSTR')
      AND iv_converged AND implied_volatility BETWEEN 0.02 AND 5
      AND abs(strike_price / underlying_close - 1) <= 0.05
      AND expiration_date BETWEEN date + 20 AND date + 60
    GROUP BY ticker
)
SELECT implied.ticker AS ticker,
       round(implied.iv, 1) AS implied_vol_pct,
       round(realized.rv, 1) AS realized_vol_30d_pct,
       round(implied.iv - realized.rv, 1) AS iv_minus_realized
FROM implied INNER JOIN realized ON implied.ticker = realized.ticker
ORDER BY iv_minus_realized DESC

Di spread run from 15 points for COIN down to -20.4 points for TSLA. Options price above trailing realized movement for part of di list and under am for di rest, wey be di ordinary state of dis measurement instead of an anomaly.

Di row wey worth pausing on na MSTR. Im implied volatility of 80.2% na di highest absolute reading for di panel, and di stock deliver 86.3% over di prior 30 sessions. An 80% quote for a stock wey dey move at dat pace na different object from an 80% quote for a stock wey dey drift sideways. Implied volatility look forward over an option's remaining life while realized volatility look back over a fixed window, and di two never get to agree.

Wetin a high reading change for di contract level

High implied volatility raise di premium for every strike for di chain. Di buyer pay more for di same contract; di seller collect more for writing am. Vega measure dat sensitivity: di dollar change for an option's price per one point of implied volatility. As an illustrative example, a contract wey carry a vega of 0.10 gain about $10 per contract when IV rise a point and give back about di same when IV fall a point. Di vega page work through di sizing.

Scheduled events dey sit behind many elevated readings. Implied volatility climb into an earnings date and drop sharply once di number dey public, di pattern wey dem know as IV crush. A buyer wey hold through dat drop fit watch a position lose value while di stock move di anticipated direction, since di volatility premium wey dem pay for di event don expire. None of dis make a high reading good or bad. E make di reading a cost for one side of di contract and a receipt for di oda.

FAQ

80% implied volatility high?

Across US underlyings wey get actively traded option chains for July 28, 2026, 19.1% carry near-the-money implied volatility of 80% or more. E be high absolute reading and common one for di traded tape. Whether e high for a particular stock depend on dat name's own 52-week range, wey be wetin IV rank measure.

30% IV high?

For di same session a 30% reading fall inside di 30 to 40% band, wey hold 19.4% of screened names, close to di middle of di distribution. For a broad index fund di same 30% go sit near di top of a typical year. For a high-volatility single stock e go sit near di floor.

Wetin 20% implied volatility mean?

E mean say di options market dey price an annualized move of about 20% for di underlying, wey convert to roughly 2.8% over a month as a rough approximation (20 divide by di square root of 12). Only 7.4% of di screened underlyings print under 20% for July 28, 2026.

High implied volatility good or bad?

Neither by itself. E be di price of optionality, and e land different for each side of di contract: expensive for di buyer, richer premium for di seller, larger dollar swings for both. Di comparisons wey give di number meaning na di market-wide distribution, di name's own 52-week range, and di movement wey di stock don recently deliver.

Wetin be di difference between IV rank and IV percentile?

IV rank place today's reading between di 52-week low and high, so one single extreme session fix di ceiling for a year. IV percentile count di share of sessions for dat window wey close below today's reading, giving one spike di weight of one session. Di two fit differ sharply for a name wey get one single outlier week.

Every figure above na stored query over di options tape for July 28, 2026. Open di SQL under any panel, or run di same screens for di Strasmore terminal.