Bear Put Spread Calculator
bearishA bear put spread is a vertical debit spread: you buy a higher-strike put and sell a lower-strike put at the same expiration. It's a cost-efficient way to bet on a stock declining with defined risk.
Max Profit
(Width of strikes − Net debit) × 100
Max Loss
Net debit paid × 100
Break Even
Long strike − Net debit
When to Use a Bear Put Spread
- You are moderately bearish — expecting a decline but not a crash
- You want to reduce the cost of a long put
- Implied volatility is elevated, making naked long puts expensive
- You want defined risk and don't want to short sell stock
Risks
- Max profit is capped — you don't benefit from a crash below the short strike
- You lose the full debit if the stock stays above the long strike
- Time decay works against you
How a Bear Put Spread Works
Buy a put at strike A and sell a put at strike B (B < A), same expiration. The short put partially offsets the cost of the long put.
Example
AAPL at $195. Buy the $200 put for $6.00, sell the $190 put for $2.80. Net debit: $3.20 ($320).
Key Takeaway
Bear put spreads are the defined-risk way to bet bearish. You sacrifice unlimited downside profit for a much lower cost of entry.