With only $100 to spend on a put option, you’re dealing with limited capital, so your goal should be high risk, high reward — basically a lottery ticket trade. Here’s a smart way to approach it:
1. Look for highly liquid, cheap options
Stick with popular tickers that have good volume and narrow bid/ask spreads. Some good candidates:
- SPY (S&P 500 ETF)
- QQQ (Nasdaq ETF)
- AAPL, TSLA, AMD, RIOT, MARA, GME, AMC
2. Choose short-term expiration
To keep it under $100, you’ll probably need to go with weekly or next-week expiration, and choose out-of-the-money (OTM) puts. The tradeoff is cheaper cost but much lower chance of hitting — you’re betting on a big move down very soon.
3. Watch for catalysts
Earnings reports, CPI data, Fed meetings, or geopolitical events — if any of those are upcoming, they can cause big swings, which is good for your cheap put.
Example (as of now — double-check prices):
- SPY 4/19 495 Put (if SPY is around 510) — should be under $1.00 per contract ($100 total)
- TSLA 4/19 150 Put — if Tesla’s tanking lately, this could run
- RIOT or MARA puts — these can move like crazy based on Bitcoin’s swings