Designing the Option Chain Experience

Helping traders analyze 12+ market variables in one workspace while reducing unnecessary context switching during options trading.

Aug 15, 2026

Role

Product Designer

Duration

2 Weeks

Platform

masterWeb Trading Platform

Overview

Options Trading Isn't Simple

A single options trade can require traders to evaluate 12+ data points across Calls and Puts, including Strike Price, LTP, Open Interest, Volume, Greeks, Expiry and Price Action.

During volatile market conditions, these variables update continuously, leaving traders only a few seconds to interpret market movements before making a decision.

The challenge wasn't to remove complexity.

It was to organize complexity around the trader's decision.

Options Trading Isn't Simple

A single options trade can require traders to evaluate 12+ data points across Calls and Puts, including Strike Price, LTP, Open Interest, Volume, Greeks, Expiry and Price Action.

During volatile market conditions, these variables update continuously, leaving traders only a few seconds to interpret market movements before making a decision.

The challenge wasn't to remove complexity.

It was to organize complexity around the trader's decision.

The Problem

The previous Option Chain provided essential market data but created friction during analysis.

Traders had to move between the chart and Option Chain to validate opportunities, while advanced metrics such as Greeks were unavailable in the primary workflow.

Key Frictions

  • No Greeks

  • Separate charting experience

  • Dense data structure

  • Difficult Call vs Put comparison

  • Fixed columns

  • High context switching

The previous Option Chain provided essential market data but created friction during analysis.

Traders had to move between the chart and Option Chain to validate opportunities, while advanced metrics such as Greeks were unavailable in the primary workflow.

Key Frictions

  • No Greeks

  • Separate charting experience

  • Dense data structure

  • Difficult Call vs Put comparison

  • Fixed columns

  • High context switching

The Old Workflow

The existing experience required traders to move between multiple contexts before reaching a trading decision.

Before

Search Instrument — Open Chart — Switch to Option Chain — Compare Contracts — Return to Chart — Place Trade

6 Steps

Every additional switch interrupted the analysis flow and increased the effort required to validate an opportunity.

The existing experience required traders to move between multiple contexts before reaching a trading decision.

Before

Search Instrument — Open Chart — Switch to Option Chain — Compare Contracts — Return to Chart — Place Trade

6 Steps

Every additional switch interrupted the analysis flow and increased the effort required to validate an opportunity.

Design Goals

The redesign focused on four measurable goals.

The redesign focused on four measurable goals.

Process & Exploration

Finding the Right Option Chain Header

Before finalizing the layout, I explored different ways to organize expiry, strategy controls and trading actions around the Option Chain.

The goal was to answer a simple question:

What information belongs to the global toolbar, and what belongs to the Option Chain itself?

❌ Didn't work

  • Expiry felt disconnected from the Option Chain

  • Too many controls competed for attention

  • Strike and expiry didn't feel connected

Contextual Expiry

I moved expiry closer to the Option Chain and Strike column.

✓ Worked better

  • Clearer relationship with the data

  • Cleaner top bar

  • Easier to understand

  • Better visual hierarchy

Solutions

Solution 01

A Clearer Option Chain

I made the Strike the center point of the table.

Calls stay on the left and Puts on the right.

This creates a predictable scanning pattern and makes it easier to compare both sides of the market at the same strike.

Solution 02

Greeks Without the Clutter

Different traders need different metrics.

I added a Manage Columns option for:

Delta · Gamma · Theta · Vega · IV

Additional metrics can be viewed using horizontal scrolling.

This keeps the main table clean while still giving advanced traders more data.

Solution 03

Chart + Option Chain Together

One of the biggest workflow problems was switching between the trading platform and charting tools to validate an opportunity.

I introduced a resizable split view with:

Chart + Option Chain

Traders can now monitor price action while analysing contracts without leaving the web platform.

A Workspace That Adapts

The splitter isn't fixed at 50/50.

Traders can adjust the space based on what they are doing.

More Chart ← Splitter → More Option Chain

Analyze → Compare → Trade

Before vs After

Previous Experience

Redesigned Experience

Separate Chart & Option Chain

Integrated Split View

Fixed Columns

Customizable Columns

No Greeks

5 Greeks

Dense comparison

Central Strike hierarchy

Multiple context switches

Continuous workflow

External charting dependency

Charting inside web platform

The redesign shifted the experience from a fragmented data screen into an integrated trading workspace.

Final Experience

Final Experience

The final Option Chain brings the key parts of options analysis together:

Market Data + Greeks + Chart + Strategies + Trading

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