What information would actually improve your options trading decisions?

F&O
1

I’ve been thinking about this lately.

Most retail traders today have access to more data than ever before—charts, option chains, OI data, market news, screeners, indicators, social media, etc.

Yet a large percentage of traders continue to struggle with consistency.

This makes me wonder whether the problem is no longer access to information, but rather converting information into actionable decisions.

For example, before entering an options trade, what additional information would genuinely help you?

  • A suggested entry range?
  • Expected holding period?
  • Probability of target achievement?
  • Risk-reward analysis?
  • Historical performance of similar setups?
  • Something else entirely?

I’m currently researching this space and would love to understand how experienced traders here think about decision support.

What information do you wish your broker, charting platform, or trading tools provided before you entered a trade?

2

Jane street order book :rofl:

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3

For options specifically, the one thing that actually changed my decisions was OI concentration at nearby strikes before entry — not the full chain, just where the heaviest writing is relative to spot. Combined with VIX level it tells you what the market is pricing as unlikely, which is more useful than a probability calculator. Everything else felt like more data to second-guess myself with.

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