Bullish strategy · Intermediate
Market outlook Bullish
Long call financed by short lower-strike put.
Each row reprices every live leg independently. Entry premiums stay fixed.
| Underlying price | Move | Profit / loss |
|---|
Dollar-scaled for each leg's quantity, multiplier, expiry, and IV. Theta is per day; vega and rho are per one percentage-point move.
| Leg | Delta | Theta/day | Vega |
|---|
Strike configurations
Place the put and call strikes further apart to widen the flat, no-payoff zone near the current price.
Key difference: Larger dead zone with no gain or loss, but often closer to a true zero-cost trade.
Best for: Traders who want cheap upside exposure and don't mind a wider flat range.
Place both strikes close to the current stock price.
Key difference: Behaves almost like a synthetic long stock position with minimal flat zone.
Best for: Traders who want near 1:1 stock-like exposure financed by selling the put.
Common questions
It flips a hedging structure like a collar on its head: instead of selling a call to buy a protective put, you sell a put to finance a long call, reversing the risk profile to be bullish rather than protective.
Between the short put strike and the long call strike, the position neither gains nor loses from moves in that range — both options stay out-of-the-money and expire worthless.
A bull call spread has defined, limited risk on both sides. A risk reversal's short put carries the same open-ended downside as a naked short put, well beyond what a bull call spread risks.
Yes, if the short put's premium exceeds the long call's cost, often due to put skew (elevated implied volatility on downside strikes), which is common in equity index and many single-stock options.
Deep dive
Detailed explanations, management techniques, and real-world scenarios
Scenario Lab
Explore how this position changes before expiration
Quick reference
Quick answers about when to use, capital needed, and key risks
Profit and loss
Compare max profit, max loss and break-even across common strategies
Custom calculator
Combine calls, puts, stock, quantities and different expirations
Risk sensitivity
Inspect Delta, Gamma, Theta, Vega and Rho
Same market view
Every bullish structure on the site, ranked by risk and capital needed
Same experience level
Structures with a comparable learning curve to the bullish risk reversal
This calculator uses exact intrinsic value at a leg’s expiration and Black–Scholes theoretical value while that leg remains open. Position Greeks use the same visible legs and model assumptions. Results exclude fees, tax, liquidity, margin, early exercise and assignment behavior. Educational illustration only—not financial advice.