CluenexBest unusual options activity scanners and options flow tools in 2026
Short answer
Unusual Whales is the best all round options flow tool for retail traders: real time flow, alerts and politician trades from $50 a month. FlowAlgo ($99 a month billed yearly) is built for traders who watch sweeps, blocks and dark pool prints all day. Barchart has the best free unusual options activity page. Market Chameleon is deepest for unusual volume against each stock's own history. thinkorswim gives Schwab clients free scans. Cluenex is the pick if you trade around a stock rather than the flow itself: it shows the biggest open options bets next to the stock's fair value, insider trades and the move options expect before earnings. Most big options trades are hedges or one leg of a spread, so flow is a reason to research, not a signal to copy.
The picks at a glance
| Tool | Best for | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unusual Whales | The best all round options flow tool for retail traders | Retail Basic $50 a month or $504 a year; Retail Pro $75 a month |
| FlowAlgo | Traders who watch sweeps, blocks and dark pool prints all day | $149 a month, or $99 a month billed yearly ($1,188 a year); two week trial $37 |
| Barchart | The best free unusual options activity scanner | Free unusual activity page; Plus $9.99 a month; Premier $29.95 a month ($19.95 billed yearly) |
| Market Chameleon | Unusual options volume measured against each stock's own history | Some reports free; Premium $99 a month |
| OptionStrat | Seeing a flow trade as a strategy, with its profit and loss chart | Free strategy builder; Live Flow about $100 a month |
| thinkorswim | Free options scans inside the platform you trade from | Free with a Schwab account |
| Cluenex Our product | Judging a big options bet: the bet next to the stock's fair value, insiders and expected earnings move | Core $690 a year (about $58 a month) or $69 monthly; Pro $1,990 a year (about $166 a month) or $199 monthly; free plan available |
How we picked
- Real time or end of day, and whether sweeps, blocks and open interest changes are shown
- Context: is the trade unusual for this stock, and is it opening or closing
- Alerts and filters that cut the noise
- Price, and what is free
1. Unusual Whales
Best for: The best all round options flow tool for retail traders.
Price: Retail Basic $50 a month or $504 a year; Retail Pro $75 a month
- Real time options flow with filters and alerts
- Politician and insider trades in the same product
- Large community and many free pages
- Flow is noisy: most large trades are hedges
- No fair value or business view on the stock
2. FlowAlgo
Best for: Traders who watch sweeps, blocks and dark pool prints all day.
Price: $149 a month, or $99 a month billed yearly ($1,188 a year); two week trial $37
- Real time options order flow, equity blocks and dark pool data
- Historical flow on demand
- One plan with every feature
- Pricey for occasional use
- Built for intraday traders, not investors
3. Barchart
Best for: The best free unusual options activity scanner.
Price: Free unusual activity page; Plus $9.99 a month; Premier $29.95 a month ($19.95 billed yearly)
- Free daily list of options trading far above open interest
- Expected moves and options screeners
- Low priced upgrades
- Delayed data on the free page
- Best filters and alerts need Premier
4. Market Chameleon
Best for: Unusual options volume measured against each stock's own history.
Price: Some reports free; Premium $99 a month
- Unusual volume report against average volume and open interest
- Deep earnings and volatility history
- Detailed screens for experienced traders
- Dense tables with a learning curve
- Monthly price adds up
5. OptionStrat
Best for: Seeing a flow trade as a strategy, with its profit and loss chart.
Price: Free strategy builder; Live Flow about $100 a month
- Flow shown as complete strategies, not single legs
- Clear profit and loss charts and an optimizer
- Live flow costs extra
- Less history than Market Chameleon
6. thinkorswim
Best for: Free options scans inside the platform you trade from.
Price: Free with a Schwab account
- Free with an account
- Sizzle Index and options scans for unusual volume
- Full options chains, analysis and paper trading
- Not a dedicated flow feed
- Requires a Schwab account
7. Cluenex (our product)
Best for: Judging a big options bet: the bet next to the stock's fair value, insiders and expected earnings move.
Price: Core $690 a year (about $58 a month) or $69 monthly; Pro $1,990 a year (about $166 a month) or $199 monthly; free plan available
- The biggest open options bets on each stock, read from real option chains
- The move options expect before every earnings report, against the stock's past moves
- Fair value, business health, insider trades and Congress trades on the same page
- Options strategies tested on real past prices
- End of day data: not a real time flow scanner
- No dark pool or block trade feed
Check any of 1,000 US stocks, free
No account needed. See the business, the price, insiders and the trend in plain words, with the price that would change our view.
Want alerts and a watchlist? Create a free account.
Where Cluenex is not the right fit
- Covers about 1,000 large US-listed stocks only: no small caps, no non-US stocks, no mutual funds
- A young service: the public sealed record started in October 2026, so it is short
- No community of contributor articles
Questions people ask
What counts as unusual options activity?
Volume in a contract that is far above its open interest or its usual daily volume, often a large premium paid quickly across exchanges (a sweep). Unusual means unusual for that stock and that contract, not just a large number.
Is following unusual options activity profitable?
Not reliably on its own. Many large trades are hedges against stock positions, one leg of a spread, or closing trades, and you rarely know which. Use flow as a reason to look at a stock, then judge the stock itself.
What is the best free unusual options activity scanner?
Barchart's unusual options activity page is free. Market Chameleon has free reports, Unusual Whales has free pages, and thinkorswim scans are free with a Schwab account.
What is the difference between options flow and open interest?
Flow is the trades happening today. Open interest is the number of contracts still open at the end of each day. A big trade that raises open interest the next day was likely a new position; one that does not may have been closed.
Sources
- Unusual Whales pricing (official page)
- FlowAlgo pricing guide 2026 (TradingToolsHub)
- Barchart pricing plans (PricingSaaS)
- Market Chameleon subscription page
- OptionStrat pricing guide 2026 (TradingToolsHub)
- 5 thinkorswim trading tools and tips (Schwab)
- Cluenex plans
Prices are list prices for US customers as of the date above and exclude promotions. Products change; check before you buy.