When the underlying stock moves, the “at-the-money” strike moves with it. That simple fact can make implied volatility (IV) appear to change even when it hasn’t—leading you to chase noise instead of information. The smarter approach is to compare the same strike over time and then check how the entire curve (the “smile”) shifted.
Market Chameleon’s Single-Leg Dashboard gives you that view in seconds, so you can separate real IV moves from mere ATM re-centering and decide where deeper research is worth your time.
Try it here: Market Chameleon Single-Leg Dashboard
https://marketchameleon.com/Overview/GOOG/Option-Trades/Single-Leg-Dashboard
Most traders start by monitoring ATM IV because it’s convenient and widely quoted. The catch: if the stock rallies or sells off, yesterday’s ATM strike isn’t today’s ATM strike. Comparing “ATM to ATM” may be comparing different strikes, each with its own natural IV level. What looks like a vol change could simply be the underlying sliding to a new strike on the existing skew.
What you actually want to know:
Did the implied volatility of this exact strike change from yesterday to today?
That’s a strike-versus-strike question—and the dashboard answers it directly.
For each expiration, you can review IV changes calculated strike-to-strike for:
ATM (pinned to yesterday’s ATM strike for a true comparison)
25-delta put (downside skew)
25-delta call (upside skew)
By lining these up across expirations, you can quickly see whether:
The whole smile shifted (all three move in the same direction), or
Skew rotated (e.g., calls down more than puts, or vice versa), or
Only one part moved (e.g., ATM steady while wings shifted).
This turns the question from “Is IV up?” into “Where is IV changing and by how much?”
Enter a symbol (e.g., GOOG).
Go to Options ? Single-Leg Dashboard.
Scan the expirations: look for the largest one-day changes in ATM / 25? put / 25? call.
Diagnose the move:
All three down? Likely a broad smile shift lower.
25? call down more than 25? put? Upside vol is getting marked lower vs. downside.
ATM flat but wings moving? Skew is doing the work, not overall vol.
Decide where to dig deeper: use the insight to explore specific expirations and strikes with time & sales, open interest changes, and volume.
Broad smile down: Market is marking volatility lower across the board—often post-event or after a macro cooldown.
Downside holding up, upside marked down: Relative demand for puts vs. calls is firm; risk perception tilts to the downside.
Upside lifting: Call skew strengthening can reflect chase-y flows, hedging needs, or positioning ahead of catalysts.
Expiration-specific moves: Isolating a single week’s smile shift can flag where the street expects the action (events, flows, or hedging windows).
The dashboard is designed to help you triage the tape and focus on areas that warrant more work. After you spot a notable IV change:
Check open interest and its one-day change to distinguish new positioning from roll-offs.
Review time & sales around the affected strikes to see how the flow printed (and at what prices).
Contextualize with volume and bid/ask to avoid thin or one-off prints driving your read.
Cross-check across expirations to see if the move is localized (event-dated) or systemic.
Used together, these steps help you form a coherent story before you consider any strategy construction.
Vol buyers: Validate that IV actually rose at your targeted strike—don’t rely on ATM headlines.
Spread traders: Smile diagnostics help you select which wing to own or sell when structuring verticals, calendars, or diagonals.
Hedgers: When downside vol holds firm vs. upside, it can influence hedge cost and timing.
Post-event trading: After earnings or macro prints, the dashboard quickly shows whether the vol crush was broad or skew-specific.
Without a strike-to-strike lens, you can waste hours reconciling contradictory signals: price up, ATM IV “up,” but wings “down,” and nothing quite adds up. The Single-Leg Dashboard normalizes the comparison so you see true IV changes at the same strike, then layers the 25? wings to summarize the smile’s rotation—all in one place.
Explore it now: Market Chameleon Single-Leg Dashboard
https://marketchameleon.com/Overview/GOOG/Option-Trades/Single-Leg-Dashboard
Financial Disclosure: Market Chameleon, its presenters, and this content are not registered investment advisors or broker-dealers. This blog is for informational purposes only and illustrates how to use Market Chameleon tools and data. Nothing here should be taken as investment advice. Always consult a licensed financial professional before making investment decisions.