Brokerage platforms are great all-in-one tools for traders with integrated functionalities for all types of investment-related activities. However, those platforms are not explicitly designed for options traders, resulting in limited options analysis functionality.
That’s where the best options screeners come into play. They are designed to serve options traders with the best possible data and analysis features. Below we have listed our favorite screeners you can use to analyze options flow with state of the art options analysis tools.
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What Is an Options Screener
An options screener is a tool to filter and analyze options based on strike price, expiration date and implied volatility. Choosing the right options screener is important for traders and investors to find the best options trading opportunities. A good screener will help you find trades that fit your trading strategy and risk profile, so it’s a must have for options trading.
Options screeners are an absolute game-changer for active traders trying to make sense of the stock options market. Think of them as your personal trading assistant. The options scanner screens through mountains of options contracts to find golden opportunities that match exactly what you’re looking for. If you already traded for a while, you know how overwhelming it can be to manually search through thousands of options.
Options screeners do all the heavy lifting, so we as traders have more time to focus on the trade. Those scanners track everything from volume spikes to unusual trading patterns, helping spot potential trades in real time. Plus, you can tweak them to scan for specific strategies you love, whether that’s covered calls or valuable iron condor trades.
Whats is great is how these tools can pick up on unusual options activity – sometimes catching big institutional moves before they become obvious to everyone else. For serious options traders, it’s like having an extra pair of eyes on the market. Let’s get into details and look for the best ones.
Best Options Screeners
1 .Market Chameleon
Market Chameleon is a financial analytics platform that provides options and stock market data analysis tools. Real time options chains, unusual options activity scanning, volatility analysis, earnings calendars and options strategy backtesting. Market Chameleon is well-known for their incredible options flow data and historical volatility charts.
The total access package for $99 per month provides the best value with an incredible range of options screeners, stock research and data. A remarkable aspect is that subscribers can download multiple datasets to their devices for further analysis.
See Also: Market Chameleon Review
2. InsiderFinance
InsiderFinance is a web based platform that provides real time stock market data and trading tools for retail investors. It has live market scanners, unusual options activity tracking, custom stock screening tools and dark pool trading insights. InsiderFinance also comes with social sentiment analysis, breaking news alerts and a proprietary algorithm to detect market manipulation.
In addition, InsiderFinance utilized the TradingView API and integrated functionalities for comprehensive technical analysis with charting, trading indicators, annotations like trendlines and more directly within the InsiderFinance tool. You can also join the free trading masterclass, where you learn how to use the platform step-by-step.
All paid plans provide subscribers with full access to all features and cost $75/month, $195 per quarter, or $660 annually.
See Also: InsiderFinance Review
3. BlackBoxStocks
BlackBoxStocks is a real time analytics platform for stock and options traders. It connects to multiple trading platforms and has features like real time alerts for unusual stock and options activity, dark pool tracking, chat room and proprietary algorithms to detect market movements.
The screener results include the time stamp of the trade alert, the stock symbol, expiration date, value, strike price, spot type, C/P, IV, and value. Also options flow analysis, real time scanning for momentum stocks and social sentiment tracking are integrated.
As for pricing they have 2 main plans: a monthly plan priced at $99.97 and an annual plan for $959 (which is $79.92 per month). Both plans include access to all tools, real time data and community features.
See Also: BlackBoxStocks Review
4. Cheddar Flow
Cheddar Flow is a real-time options flow platform for retail traders to follow institutional trading. It has unusual options activity tracking, dark pool trades, real-time flow data and more. Customizable alerts, historical data analysis and options chain data are also included in the subscription.
In addition, you can also use sweep tracking (to see aggressive trades), smart money tracking, dark pool monitoring, unusual options activity detection and real-time market analysis tools. Good for options traders who want to follow institutional money.
As for the pricing, you have the choice between the Standard and Professional plan on a monthly basis for $85/$99 per month, or the Pro Plan as annual subscription for $900 (equals $75 per month).
5. FlowAlgo
FlowAlgo is a real-time options flow trading platform that tracks unusual options activity and dark pool trades. It helps traders find market-moving trades made by institutional investors. Features include real-time unusual options alerts, dark pool monitoring, options flow dashboard, proprietary algorithms for filtering big trades and mobile app.
FlowAlgo offers only one plan which includes all features, but for different pre-paid periods. You pay $149 if you choose the monthly plan, $387 quarterly, or $1,188 yearly. All plans include core features like real-time alerts and basic flow monitoring, higher tiers add dark pool data and advanced analytics tools.
6. Option Samurai
Option Samurai is a full options trading platform with many tools and features. Key features include unusual options volume tracking, Monte Carlo simulation tools, real-time technical analysis and volatility analysis suites. Option Samurai scans the market across over 1M options and 5000+ tickers for 24+ trading strategies.
You can save predefined scans, save custom scans and analyze profit/loss projections. There are two pricing tiers. Beginner: $35/month (annual billing, regular price $39/month) and Advanced: $50/month (annual billing, regular price $59/month). The Beginner plan is focused on core options trading functionality and the Advanced plan is geared towards more advanced traders who need real-time data and more analysis tools. The main value adds for the Advanced plan are the intraday data, unlimited accounts and the Excel integration and premium reports.
7. OptionStrat
OptionStrat is a web based options trading analysis and visualization platform. It provides real-time options chain data, advanced profit/loss calculators and strategy builders to help you understand the potential outcomes of complex options trades. This helps users to better understand what options to trade.
Key features include multi-leg options strategy visualization, risk analysis tools, IV (implied volatility) analysis and the ability to save and track multiple trade scenarios.
They have two subscription tiers: Live Flow ($59.99 per month), with options flow, strategy builder, optimizer and other benefits, and the Live Tools ($19.99 per month) which comes without the options flow analysis. They also offer annual plans at a discount.
Bottom Line
The BlackBox Stocks and InsiderFinance options screeners are best for active options traders traders, who are looking specifically scanning for options, including dark pool and unusual options activity. If you are mainly interested in UOA scans, consider reading my post about the best unusual options activity scanners.
Using an options screener can move the needle in a favorable direction and having insights at hand that most traders don’t have can be beneficial. Still, the decision to use paid options screeners or free options screeners is essential.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best options screener?
For active options traders scanning specifically for options, including dark pool prints and unusual options activity, BlackBoxStocks and InsiderFinance are the top picks. Market Chameleon offers the deepest data value through its options flow and historical volatility tools, while OptionStrat and Option Samurai focus more on strategy building and profit and loss visualization. The best fit depends on whether a trader wants flow scanning or strategy analysis.
What is an options screener?
An options screener is a tool that filters and analyzes options contracts by criteria such as strike price, expiration date, and implied volatility. It scans thousands of contracts in real time to surface trades that match a chosen strategy and risk profile, and many screeners also flag unusual options activity, which can reveal large institutional positioning before it becomes obvious to the wider market.
How much does an options screener cost?
Pricing covers a broad range. Lower-cost tools start around $19.99 per month for OptionStrat’s Live Tools tier and $35 per month for Option Samurai, mid-range platforms such as InsiderFinance ($75), Market Chameleon ($99), and BlackBoxStocks ($99.97) sit in the middle, and flow-focused services run higher, with Cheddar Flow at $85 to $99 per month and FlowAlgo at $149 per month. Annual billing usually lowers the effective monthly cost.
What should an options screener be able to do?
A capable options screener filters by strike, expiration, and implied volatility, scans in real time for volume spikes and unusual options activity, and tracks dark pool prints and sweeps so a trader can follow institutional flow. Support for specific strategies such as covered calls or iron condors, plus profit and loss visualization for multi-leg trades, is what separates a full options platform from a basic filter.