PCR, the put-call ratio, divides put open interest by call open interest. Many broker chains show one PCR for the whole expiry, worked out from every strike.
PCR =total put OI ÷ total call OI
In the sample chain: 11,35,910 ÷ 13,11,460 = 0.87. There are 0.87 put contracts open for every call contract.
Full form and the three versions
- PCR stands for put-call ratio.
- OI PCR uses open interest, as above. It describes positions that are still open.
- Volume PCR uses the day’s traded volume instead: 50,55,986 ÷ 54,01,910 = 0.94 in the sample. It describes today’s trading, not open positions.
- Strike PCR divides put OI by call OI at a single strike. At 25,000, the strike with the most put OI, it is 1,42,960 ÷ 68,210 = 2.10.
Strike-wise PCR across the chain
| Strike | Put OI | Call OI | PCR |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25,000 | 1,42,960 | 68,210 | 2.10 |
| 25,200 | 63,170 | 91,640 | 0.69 |
| 25,500 | 21,370 | 1,48,630 | 0.14 |
Strike PCR is high below spot, where put OI concentrates, and low above it, where call OI does. That shape is common, which is why the whole-chain figure depends so much on which strikes are included.
How traders read PCR
A PCR above 1 means more put contracts are open than calls; below 1, more calls. Traders read that in opposite ways. Some treat heavy put OI as put writers expecting the index to hold up. Others see those puts as protection bought by people who are worried about a fall. Some treat extreme readings, high or low, as a sign the crowd has leaned too far one way. The number is the same in every case; the interpretation is not. On its own, PCR is a description of positions, not a signal.
Where a single PCR reading can mislead
- It depends on which contracts are counted: one weekly expiry, the monthly expiry, or all of them together.
- Hedges count the same as bets. A fund buying puts to protect a portfolio raises PCR without any view on direction.
- Large OI at strikes far from spot can move the ratio while having little to do with where the index trades.
- A reading means more next to its own recent history than next to a fixed threshold such as 1.
Why the PCR on your platform may differ
Two platforms can show different PCRs for the same moment. One may count only the nearest weekly expiry while another adds every expiry together; one may use open interest and another volume; and each refreshes its data on its own schedule. Before comparing a PCR from a broker app with one worked out from NSE’s chain, check that both use the same expiry, the same measure and roughly the same time.
Related numbers
PCR summarises the whole chain in one figure. Max pain uses the same open interest strike by strike, and change in OI shows how those positions moved today.
Related lessons
- Open interest (OI) in the option chain
- Max pain: what it means and how it’s calculated
- Change in OI: what positive and negative numbers mean
Open the sample chain to select any number and read what it means.
Educational content, not investment advice. Every figure here comes from a synthetic sample chain, not live prices. See the terms of use.