Recipes · Iron Condor
The Iron Condor recipe, field by field
Every Iron Condor backtest in 2manyoptions follows one recipe. This sheet lists every setting that matters, so you can set the same strategy up in your own trading platform or automation tool.
Values in your … come from the entry you pick in the product; its recipe card fills them in for you.
The model is validated against live broker trades. This sheet is a reference, not a guarantee: check every setting before trading.
Last reviewed: 2026-10-22
At a glance
An SPX Iron Condor opened and closed the same day. Each side is a credit spread with its own stop; nothing is adjusted after entry, and each side is held to expiration unless its stop (or the profit target, if you pick one) closes it first.
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Structure | SPX Iron Condor · 0 DTEPut spread and call spread managed separately once filled. |
| Short strikes | your premium ± 0.20Each spread's mid must fall in that range; the one closest to the middle is chosen. |
| Wings | 20, 25, 30 · or 45, 50, 55Width 25 or 50 in the product. |
| Entry | your entry time (ET)Limit order at the mid, lowered 0.05 every 5 s for 5 attempts; retried for up to 10 minutes. |
| Stop | your stop (multiple of the credit)A net loss of that multiple of the average credit of both sides. StopMarket on the whole side, triggered on Last or Single Bid. |
| Profit target | None · or a percentageA percentage of the original premium, per side. |
| Stop adjustments | None |
| Stop conversions | All disabledAccount-level settings: see below. |
| Size | 1 contract |
Exact fields, if your automation tool has them
Anything not listed stays empty or off.
Strategy details
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Symbol | SPX |
| Trade Type | IronCondorNot IronCondor-Full: once filled, the put spread and the call spread are managed separately. |
Short Strike Selection
Same values for PUT and CALL.
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Strike Selection | Premium |
| Target Minimum | your premium − 0.20Not below 0. Example: premium 1.50 gives 1.30. |
| Target Maximum | your premium + 0.20Example: premium 1.50 gives 1.70. |
| Selection Preference | Mid Premium/DeltaThe spread whose mid is closest to the middle of the range. |
| Min Distance OTM | 0 |
| Ratio | 0 |
Long Strike Selection
Same values for PUT and CALL.
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Selection | Width |
| Width(s) | 20, 25, 30 · or 45, 50, 55Width 25 in the product is the list 20, 25, 30; width 50 is 45, 50, 55. Any width in the list can be used. |
| Use Closer .05 strike width | off |
| Days To Expiration | 0Blank also means 0. |
| Min / Max Entry Price | 0 / 0 |
Stop Loss
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Order Type | StopMarket |
| Stop Type | VerticalThe stop closes both legs of the side, short and long. |
| Target Type | Multiple |
| Stop Multiple (net) | your stop1x in the product is 1, 1.25x is 1.25, and so on. It is the net loss on top of the credit. |
| Trigger Offset | empty (0) |
| Trigger | Last or Single BidDepends on your broker: see the broker notes below. |
| Leftover Long Behavior | Ignore |
| Stop Price Basis | Average PriceBoth sides share one stop level, computed from the average of the two credits, not from each side's own credit (Exact Price). |
Stop Loss Adjustments
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Adjustment 1, 2 and 3 | NoneThe stop stays where it was set at entry. |
Profit Target, exit and re-entry
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Profit Target | None · or PercentageNone holds each side to expiration. With a target in the product (for example 50%), choose Percentage and that amount: a percentage of the original premium, per side. |
| Timed Exit | none |
| Automatic Trade Re-Entry | off |
Fill Progression
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| # of Attempts | 5 |
| Wait | 5 s |
| Adjustment | 0.05The entry starts at the mid and lowers the price by 0.05 on each attempt. |
Scheduled Trade
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Execution Time | your entry timeThe product gives it in New York time (ET). See the time zone note below. |
| Seconds | 0 |
| Expiration Minutes | 10If no trade opens, the entry keeps being retried for 10 minutes. |
| Quantity | 1The fills behind the backtests are 1-contract orders. |
| Days | Monday to Friday |
| Entry condition | none |
Account-level settings
These live outside the strategy and usually apply to your whole account, so they also change any other strategy you run.
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Convert Vertical Stop to Short | Disabled |
| Convert 0 DTE Stops to Short | Disabled |
| Convert Short Stop to Vertical | Disabled |
Time zone
The product gives every time in New York time (ET). If your platform works in your local time, convert the entry time before you schedule it: from Madrid, for example, 10:30 ET is usually 16:30.
Broker notes on the stop trigger
- Interactive Brokers offers Double Bid, Single Bid, Mid Price, Last, and Last or Single Bid. This recipe uses Last or Single Bid.
- Tradier holds stops at the exchange, which supports Last or Single Bid only.
- TradeStation always triggers on Single Bid, whatever the strategy says.
What the backtest does not model
- The Last branch of the trigger. The backtest triggers the stop on the bid of the spread only. A stop that live trading triggers on the last trade price is not reproduced.
- REL orders and ITM Protection. Off in this recipe; the backtest has no model for them.
- Convert Short Stop to Vertical. Disabled in this recipe; the backtest never switches a side's stop back to the vertical.
- How your broker splits the credit. When an Iron Condor fills, the model splits the credit between the put and call spreads in proportion to each side's mid. Your broker's split can differ by a few cents.
- Entry retry timing. After the 5 attempts, the model starts a new cycle every 15 seconds until the 10 minutes run out. Live retries can come sooner.
- Size and fees. The fills behind the model are 1-contract orders; larger size can fill worse. Broker fees are not included.
When neither the put spread nor the call spread has a mid inside the premium range during the 10 minutes, no trade opens. That is why some entry times and premiums have few trades. How the backtests are built: methodology.