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VX futures explained: how VIX futures really work

The VIX is called Wall Street's fear gauge, but you can't buy the gauge itself. VIX futures are the closest thing, and they behave in ways that surprise almost everyone at first.

Market guide · 7-minute read · Updated 2026-10-21

At a glance

VIX futures trade on the Cboe Futures Exchange (CFE), not CME. Specs checked Oct 2026. Check cboe.com for current specs before you trade. A Mini VIX contract (VXM) with a $100 multiplier also trades.

The VIX vs VIX futures

The VIX index is calculated from S&P 500 option prices. It isn't something you can buy.

A VIX future is a bet on what the VIX will be on one future date. So:

• A future expiring next month and the VIX today can show very different numbers.
• When the VIX jumps, near futures usually jump less.
• Far-off futures move least of all.

Contango: the slow drag

In calm markets, VIX futures usually trade above the VIX today, and later months trade higher still. That shape is called contango. See Contango and backwardation.

As expiry gets closer, the future tends to drift down toward the VIX. That drift is why holding long VIX futures for weeks in calm markets has often lost value, even when nothing dramatic happens.

In a panic, it flips. Near futures jump above later ones. That's backwardation.

What moves it

• The S&P 500. VIX usually rises when stocks fall fast, and eases when they climb steadily.
• Fed and inflation days. FOMC at 2:00 pm ET and CPI at 8:30 am ET can lift or crush it.
• Big scheduled events. Elections and major earnings can raise it in advance, then drop it after.
• Time. With every day closer to expiry, the future is pulled toward the VIX itself.

When it's busiest

Most VX volume trades during US stock hours. Overnight trades thinner and can jump on headlines.

Its personality

• Spikes up, grinds down. Fear arrives fast. Calm returns slowly.
• Big ticks. At $50 a tick, a 1-point move is $1,000 per contract.
• Wednesday expiry. Monthly VX contracts usually settle on a Wednesday morning, about 30 days before the following month's standard S&P 500 options expiry. Weekly contracts exist too.
• Settles to a special quote. The final value comes from a special opening auction of S&P 500 options, not from the VIX you saw the night before. It can differ a lot.

Reading it with our method

1. Read the S&P 500's bigger chart first. If ES is in a steady uptrend, VIX futures usually drift lower.
2. Then mark the last places VX turned around on the daily chart. VX ranges for long periods, then spikes.
3. Body-close rule. Spikes leave huge tails. Only a candle body closing past a level counts.
4. Stop first, size second. Example: a 1.5-point stop is 30 ticks × $50 = $1,500 per VX contract. On VXM it's $150. If your plan says $100, even VXM is too big at that stop. A math example, not a promise.

The futures tick value calculator does this for any contract.

Common mistakes

• Expecting VX to match the VIX. It tracks the expected VIX at expiry, not today's number.
• Holding long in calm markets and ignoring contango. The drift adds up.
• Shorting it as "easy" decay. Short VIX positions can lose huge amounts in a spike. February 2018 is a famous example, when some products tied to short volatility collapsed in a day.
• Forgetting the Wednesday expiry. It's not a Friday like most stock options.

Questions