Options flow is the trade-by-trade record of the US options market, shown as each trade prints. For each one, you see the contract, the number of contracts, the price, the premium, and the exchange. In other words, it’s the options tape.
Traders sort that options order flow by how each order filled. A block fills in one print (one reported trade). A split fills in several prints on one exchange. A sweep fills in several prints across several exchanges at nearly the same moment. Splits and sweeps reach the tape as a string of smaller trades, so they’re easy to scroll past.
The block, split, and sweep examples below are AAPL options trades from Wednesday, November 4, 2026, in Quant Data’s Consolidated Order Flow. All times are Eastern (ET).
Key takeaways
Block, split, and sweep describe how an order filled. None of the three is bullish or bearish on its own.
A sweep’s prints are spread across exchanges. No single exchange shows the whole order. Quant Data shows it on one row and lets you open the prints behind it.
Options flow shows what traded, not why. The same trade can open a position, hedge one, or close one, so read it alongside price, volume, and open interest.
Quant Data’s Consolidated Order Flow labels every trade Block, Split, or Sweep in the Consolidation column, and shows MULTIPLE in the Exchange column when an order filled on more than one exchange. Shown: AAPL trades with $500K or more in premium on November 4, 2026, from 3:50 PM back to 3:40 PM ET.
Sweep vs block vs split: how each order fills
The difference between an options sweep and a block is how the order filled. A sweep fills in several prints across several exchanges at nearly the same moment, while a block fills in one print on one exchange. A split sits in between: several prints, all on one exchange.
How it fills | Exchange column in Quant Data | How traders often read it | |
Block | One print on one exchange | One exchange | One trade at one price; large ones are often arranged between two parties |
Split | Several prints on one exchange | One exchange | Size that’s easy to underestimate, because one order prints in pieces |
Sweep | Several prints across several exchanges, at nearly the same moment | MULTIPLE | Urgency: the order filled on several exchanges at once instead of waiting |
How a block, a split, and a sweep reach the tape, and how Consolidated Order Flow shows each one.
See blocks, splits, and sweeps on your tickers. Consolidated Order Flow covers 6,000+ tickers, live and for past sessions, and you can try it with a 7-day free trial.
What is a block trade in options?
A block trade in options is a large order that reaches the tape as a single print on one exchange. It’s often agreed between two parties first, then crossed on an exchange at that price, so the full size prints at once instead of in pieces.
In the image below, someone traded 1,500 AAPL December 18, 2026 $375 calls on ISEX at $3.40. In Quant Data’s Consolidated Order Flow, BLOCK marks an order that filled in one print, so there are no smaller prints to open.
Shown: the AAPL call block at 3:48:46 PM ET on November 4, 2026, for $510K in premium, in Quant Data’s Consolidated Order Flow.
What is a split order in options?
In options, a split order is one order that fills as several prints on a single exchange. On the raw tape it looks like a handful of smaller trades, so its full size is easy to underestimate.
Take the split below. On the tape, you’d see four AAPL put trades on PACF, all at $10.00: 332, 35, 293, and 340 contracts. Added up, that’s one order for 1,000 contracts and $1M in premium.
In Consolidated Order Flow, it’s one row labeled SPLIT. To see the prints behind it, click the puzzle icon in the Consolidation column (Show Comprising Trades).
Quant Data’s Consolidated Order Flow opens the prints behind any split. Shown: the AAPL November 13, 2026 $360 put split at 11:03:06 AM ET on November 4, 2026.
What is an options sweep?
An options sweep is one order that fills across several exchanges at nearly the same moment, taking the size available on each. Traders often read a sweep as urgency: whoever sent it wanted the full size now instead of waiting on one exchange.
The catch is that no single exchange shows the whole order, because the pieces print on different exchanges. In Consolidated Order Flow, you see it as one row labeled SWEEP, with MULTIPLE in the Exchange column. Click the puzzle icon in the Consolidation column (Show Comprising Trades) and you’ll see every print behind it.
For the sweep below, that’s 650 calls in 42 prints on 20 exchanges, all at $13.20. The largest piece was 209 contracts, and 40 of the 42 were under 50.
Quant Data shows every exchange a sweep touched. Shown: the AAPL November 20, 2026 $345 call sweep at 12:51:13 PM ET on November 4, 2026, for $858K in premium.
What is a golden sweep?
A golden sweep is a sweep with a very large premium, big enough to stand out even among other sweeps. The name comes from flow traders, not from the exchanges, and each platform sets its own bar for what counts as one.
Traders watch golden sweeps because they combine size with urgency: a big order filled across many exchanges at once instead of waiting on one. Read one like any other trade, though. A golden sweep can be a hedge, one part of a larger position, or someone closing out, so on its own it doesn’t tell you where the stock goes next.
In Quant Data’s Consolidated Order Flow, golden sweeps are highlighted with a gold outline. Click the flag icon at the top of the panel (Flag Filters) and set Golden Sweeps to Only to see just those trades, or to Hide to take them out of the feed.
The Flag Filters menu in Quant Data’s Consolidated Order Flow, opened from the flag icon at the top of the panel.
What is unusual options activity?
Unusual options activity (UOA) is options trading that stands out from a contract’s normal business, such as far more volume in a day than the contract usually sees. There’s no exchange definition of “unusual,” so each platform sets its own bar.
Traders watch unusual options flow because it points to contracts where money is moving in a way it normally doesn’t. On its own, though, it isn’t bullish or bearish. An unusual trade can be a hedge, one leg of a spread, or someone closing out, so treat it as a reason to take a closer look, not as a read on where the stock is headed.
In Quant Data’s Consolidated Order Flow, trades flagged as unusual are highlighted with a teal outline, so they stand out as you scroll the feed. To see only those trades, click the flag icon at the top of the panel (Flag Filters) and set Unusual Trades to Only. Set it to Hide to take them out of the feed. To find the biggest trades instead, sort by the Premium column.
A teal outline marks a trade flagged as unusual. Shown: AAPL options trades with $10K or more in premium on November 6, 2026, from 2:55 PM back to 2:51 PM ET, in Quant Data’s Consolidated Order Flow.
How to read options flow, one row at a time
Reading options flow comes down to five things on each trade: the contract, the size, the premium, how the order filled, and the context around it. Take the November 4 AAPL call sweep above and read it left to right. The same five steps work on any row.
The contract: AAPL November 20, 2026 $345 call. That’s the ticker, the expiration date, the strike, and whether it’s a call or a put.
The size: 650 contracts. A standard stock option contract covers 100 shares.
The premium: $858K. Premium is the total dollar amount that changed hands. Every print here was at $13.20, so 650 × $13.20 × 100 = $858,000. It’s a fairer way to compare trades than contract count: the 1,500-contract block above came to only $510K.
How it filled: SWEEP, with MULTIPLE in the Exchange column. One order, filled across 20 exchanges.
The context: Check the trade against the contract’s volume and open interest (the Volume and OI columns), and against what AAPL’s price is doing. Open interest is the number of contracts still open, and it updates once a day. The same contract trading again and again in a session is also worth a closer look.
Can options flow tell you where a stock is going?
No. Options flow shows where size went, not where price goes next. It tells you what traded and how the order filled. It doesn’t tell you why.
The same trade can open a new position, hedge stock or other options, close an old position, or be one part of a larger trade. The 650-call sweep above could be any of those, and the flow alone won’t tell you which.
It’s never suggested to rely solely on one tool for making trading decisions. Tools should be used in confluence with each other.
Why use Quant Data for options flow?
Quant Data’s Consolidated Order Flow labels every options trade Block, Split, or Sweep, live or for a past session. You can open the prints behind any split or sweep. Quant Data started as an options platform and has spent six years delivering licensed options data.
One row per block, split, or sweep: You see a sweep’s full size on one line instead of piecing it together exchange by exchange.
The details on every trade: Each row shows the contract, size, price, premium, exchange, moneyness, Greeks, and sentiment, and you can filter or sort any column.
Live and past sessions: You can watch flow as it prints, or pick a past date to see that session’s trades, as in the examples above.
More than the feed: You can use it alongside Net Drift, Net Flow, dark pool levels, and GEX on 6,000+ tickers, and join 20,000+ members in our community. You can try it with a 7-day free trial.
Where can I find options flow in Quant Data?
In Quant Data, options flow is in the Consolidated Order Flow tool, which shows trades live as they print. To find it, you’ll want to log in to v3.quantdata.us. It sits on the Dashboard.
To add it to another page, click the “+” icon in the top right of any tool, open the Options tab, and add Consolidated Order Flow. For the full steps, I suggest reading How to Add Tools to Built-in and Custom Pages on Quant Data.
The panel opens on today’s session; click the date at the top of the panel to pick a past one. The Consolidation column labels each trade Block, Split, or Sweep, and the Type column shows how it executed; see What are Trade Types on the Dashboard?. For how flow adds up over a session, see Mastering the Net Drift Tool.
Can I get blocks, splits and sweeps through an API?
Yes. The Quant Data API has an Order Flow Consolidated endpoint that returns consolidated option trades, including blocks, splits and sweeps. You can call it from code or ask for it in plain English through an AI assistant connected to the Quant Data MCP server. The API is sold as a separate plan. To get started, see the options flow API guide.
FAQ
Is a block always a large trade?
Not necessarily. In Consolidated Order Flow, Block describes how a trade filled, not how big it was. To focus on large trades, sort or filter by the Premium or Quantity column.
Are sweeps bullish or bearish?
A sweep is neither bullish nor bearish on its own. It shows how an order filled, not the trader’s whole position: the same call sweep could open a new bet or close an old one. So a call sweep isn’t automatically bullish, and a put sweep isn’t automatically bearish.
How do I find unusual options activity today?
To find unusual options activity today, open Consolidated Order Flow in Quant Data. Trades flagged as unusual are highlighted with a teal outline. To see only those trades, click the flag icon at the top of the panel (Flag Filters) and set Unusual Trades to Only. For an earlier session, click the date at the top of the panel and pick a past day.
What is the difference between options flow and order flow?
Options flow, also called options order flow, is the record of trades in listed options: the contract, size, price, premium, and how each order filled. Plain “order flow” usually means trades and resting orders in futures or stocks, read on tools like a footprint chart or a DOM. Quant Data covers options flow and futures order flow; for the futures side, see What is Order Flow Trading? How to Read Futures Order Flow.
Is options flow the same as dark pool data?
No. Options flow is the record of trades in listed options. Dark pool prints are stock trades that happen off the public exchanges and are then reported to the tape. For more, I suggest reading What are Dark Pool prints?
I have not signed up for Quant Data. How do I?
If you want Consolidated Order Flow on your tickers, along with GEX, dark pool data and more, click here to start your free trial. Click on Learn More if you would like to learn more about what we offer.
Would you like further assistance?
If you have any questions or need further assistance, please don’t hesitate to reach out to the Quant Data team at support@quantdata.us or via our live chat located on the bottom right-hand corner of your screen. We are available on our live chat between 9:30 AM and 5:00 PM (eastern time), Monday through Friday.