Vertical spreads come in two flavours. A debit spread costs money to open and profits from a directional move; a credit spread pays you upfront and profits from time decay and the stock staying put or moving your way. Choosing between them comes down to your view and to implied volatility.
Open the Bull Put Credit Spread calculator →You pay a net debit — for example a bull call spread (buy a call, sell a higher call). Maximum loss is the debit paid; maximum profit is the distance between strikes minus the debit.
Debit spreads are best when options are relatively cheap (low IV) and you expect a clear directional move. They are a lower-cost, capped alternative to buying a single option.
You collect a net credit — for example a bull put credit spread (sell a put, buy a lower put). Maximum profit is the credit; maximum loss is the strike width minus the credit.
Credit spreads shine when options are expensive (high IV) and you want time decay and a high probability of profit working in your favour, even if the stock only stays still.
Match the structure to volatility: sell credit spreads when IV is high and rich; buy debit spreads when IV is low and cheap.
Match it to conviction, too: a strong directional view suits a debit spread, while a “this stock won’t break this level” view suits a credit spread.
Credit spreads usually do, because they can profit even if the stock does nothing — but their reward-to-risk is typically worse than a debit spread.
They require buying-power equal to the spread width minus the credit, set aside as the maximum possible loss.
No. Both legs are defined, so your maximum loss is capped at the strike width minus the premium.
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