0DTE (zero days to expiration)

An option on its expiration day — extremely sensitive to price and time, and a fast way to win or lose the whole premium.

0DTE, or zero days to expiration, refers to options contracts that expire on the same day you trade them. On the most liquid index products like SPX and QQQ, contracts now expire every weekday, so there is always a batch of options with only hours of life left. Because so little time remains, these options are almost pure gamma and theta plays: their value can swing violently on small moves in the underlying, and any premium not backed by real movement decays to nothing by the close.

In practice a trader might sell a put spread a couple of percent below the current SPX level in the morning, collecting premium and betting the index simply won't fall that far before 4pm. If the market drifts sideways, theta does the work and the spread expires worthless for a full profit. Others buy cheap calls or puts hoping to catch a fast intraday breakout while paying almost nothing for time value.

The common mistake is treating the low ticket price as low risk. A 0DTE option that costs a few dollars can lose all of it in minutes, and short 0DTE positions can move against you far faster than you can react. Size these trades as if you could lose the whole position, because on expiration day you often will.

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Educational use only. Quotes are delayed ~15 minutes and nothing here is financial advice. Options trading involves substantial risk of loss.