How to Choose Iron Condor Strikes and Wing Width
Reviewed by Leon Moyer - Published October 9, 2026 - Last reviewed October 9, 2026
In this lesson
Compare iron condors with different short strikes and wing widths, and explain how each choice moves the credit, the maximum loss and the chance of profit.
Choosing an iron condor comes down to two decisions: where the short strikes sit, which sets how much room the stock has and most of the credit, and how wide the wings are, which sets how much you can lose. Moving either one changes the credit, the maximum loss and the chance of profit at the same time, so no choice improves all three.
This lesson compares three condors on XYZ at $50, 45 days out, all priced with the free calculator's model at 30% implied volatility. The middle one is the standard 40/45/55/60 condor from Iron Condor Explained.
How do you choose iron condor short strikes?
The short strikes define the profit zone. Moving them closer to the stock collects more premium, because closer options carry more time value, but leaves the stock less room to move.
Traders often describe short strikes by delta, a rough model measure of how likely an option is to finish in the money. In the calculator's model, the 45 put has a delta of about -0.13 and the 55 call about 0.21, so these are fairly wide short strikes. Strikes $2.50 closer, at 47.50 and 52.50, have deltas of about -0.28 and 0.36 and collect much more.
The other common method is the expected move: placing the short strikes outside the range the options market implies for the stock by expiration. Both methods say the same thing in different units. Closer strikes mean more credit and less room.
How wide should iron condor wings be?
The wings are the long options that cap the loss. With the short strikes fixed at 45 and 55:
- $5 wings (40 and 60) collect $84 and risk $416.
- $2.50 wings (42.50 and 57.50) collect $59 and risk $191.
Same short strikes, two wing widths
Hover or tap the chart, or focus it and use the arrow keys, to read any price.
Open this trade in the free calculatorShow as table
The narrower condor risks fewer dollars, and here it even collects more credit for each dollar of width: 24% of its $2.50 width, against 17% of $5. What it gives up is premium. Its closer wings cost $0.38 together instead of $0.13, so it keeps only $0.59 of the $0.97 the short options brought in. Both condors keep their full credit between $45 and $55, and their break-evens barely differ: $44.41 and $55.59 with $2.50 wings, $44.16 and $55.84 with $5 wings.
Wing width is mostly a sizing decision. Two $2.50-wide condors and one $5-wide condor risk similar amounts, so the real question is how many dollars one full loss should cost you. The Position Sizing lesson in Course 1 and the Position Sizing and Portfolio Basics module in Building a Strategy cover the rule; here, the point is that the wing width and the number of contracts together set that dollar figure.
How do three iron condors compare side by side?
Worked example
Three iron condors on XYZ, 45 days out
All three use model prices at 30% implied volatility, rounded to the cent, and are one condor each.
How the numbers are worked out, using the close-shorts condor:
- Credit: $0.95 (47.50 put) + $1.22 (52.50 call) - $0.11 (42.50 put) - $0.27 (57.50 call) = $1.79.
- Maximum loss: ($5.00 - $1.79) x 100 = $321.
- Break-evens: $47.50 - $1.79 = $45.71 and $52.50 + $1.79 = $54.29.
Illustrative and hypothetical. The ticker and prices are invented for teaching, and the figures exclude commissions, fees, margin interest and taxes, which reduce real results. Past or hypothetical outcomes do not indicate future results.
Three iron condors on XYZ: what each one pays and risks
Credit received
Maximum loss
Reading the table:
- Closer short strikes more than double the credit and lower the maximum loss, but cut the model chance of profit from about 73% to about 59%. The stock only has to move about $4.30 to reach a break-even.
- Narrower wings cut the maximum loss by more than half and keep almost all the room, but the credit falls to $59 and each full loss is still more than three times the full win.
- No version is free. A bigger credit means a smaller chance of keeping it; a smaller maximum loss means a smaller credit.
The model chances assume implied volatility is the right forecast and that you hold to expiration. Real stocks gap on news, and most traders close condors early, which changes both the outcomes and the odds. Treat the percentages as a way to compare the three structures, not as predictions.
What else matters when choosing a condor?
- Expiration. Shorter-dated condors decay faster but leave less time to react to a move. Longer-dated ones collect more but tie up the risk longer.
- Implied volatility. Higher IV means bigger credits for the same strikes, because the market expects bigger moves. A condor sold before a known event, such as earnings, is betting the move will be smaller than priced. Course 3's Earnings and Event Strategies module covers that trade.
- Liquidity. Strikes with tight bid-ask spreads and real open interest make it cheaper to get in and, more importantly, to get out.
- Commissions and fees. Four legs on a narrow condor can take a meaningful bite out of a $59 credit, where your broker charges per contract.
Check your understanding
You move both short strikes of the 40/45/55/60 condor $2.50 closer to the stock and keep $5 wings. What happens to the credit, the maximum loss and the chance of profit?
Show answer
The credit rises (to $179 in this lesson), the maximum loss falls (to $321), and the model chance of profit falls (from about 73% to about 59%), because the profit zone is narrower.
A $2.50-wide condor collects $0.59. What is its maximum loss, and what share of the width is the credit?
Show answer
($2.50 - $0.59) x 100 = $191. The credit is $0.59 / $2.50, about 24% of the width.
Why is wing width mainly a sizing decision?
Show answer
The wings set the maximum loss per condor. Two narrow condors can risk about as much as one wide condor, so what matters is the total dollars one full loss would cost, which width and contract count set together.
Key takeaways
- Short strikes set the profit zone and most of the credit; wing width sets the maximum loss.
- Closer short strikes collect more and lower the chance of keeping it.
- Narrower wings risk fewer dollars but keep a smaller credit, so one full loss still outweighs several full wins.
- Width and contract count together decide how much one full loss costs you.
- Compare credit, maximum loss and break-evens side by side before choosing.
Common questions
How wide should iron condor wings be?
There is no single right width. Wider wings collect more credit and lose more in a full loss; narrower wings risk fewer dollars but collect less, and commissions take a bigger share of a small credit. Many traders choose the width that keeps one full loss inside their per-trade risk limit.
What delta should I sell for an iron condor?
Short strikes are often described by delta, but there is no standard value. A lower delta means strikes farther from the stock, a higher chance of profit and a smaller credit. Delta is a model figure, not a guarantee.
Should iron condor wings be the same width on both sides?
Equal wings are the standard version and keep the maximum loss the same on either side. Uneven wings are possible, but the wider side then sets the maximum loss and usually the margin requirement.
Is a higher credit iron condor better?
Not by itself. A bigger credit usually comes from short strikes closer to the stock, which narrows the profit zone and lowers the chance of keeping it. Compare credit, maximum loss and probability together.