Basics

Contract

By Ryan Silk & Lawrence Polatchek · Reviewed April 2026 · Options Trading Glossary

One contract = 100 shares

What is Contract?

Contract One options contract represents 100 shares of the underlying. When you see an option priced at $2.00, the actual cost is $200 (100 x $2.00).

Complete Definition

One options contract represents 100 shares of the underlying. When you see an option priced at $2.00, the actual cost is $200 (100 x $2.00).

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Written by

ApexVol Research Team

Quantitative options research

All calculations use live ORATS institutional data — the same source used by professional volatility desks.

Technical reviewer

Ryan Silk, ApexVol Founder

Reviewed for technical accuracy

10+ years trading options. Built ApexVol's pricing engine, Greeks model, and IV-rank methodology.

This guide is updated as market conditions and ORATS data change. Last revised 2026-05-12. How we research →

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