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DATA · OPTIONS CHAIN

Crypto Options Chain Data: Null vs Zero - Handle Missing Fields Correctly

An options chain has hundreds of strikes, and many have no bids, no asks or no trades. Deribit returns null for those, and treating null as zero breaks every downstream calculation.

By ChartsPod Editorial Team · Reviewed by ChartsPod Research
Published · Updated · 5 min read

Short answer

In Deribit's book summary, bid_price, ask_price and mid_price are null when there are no bids or asks; last, low and price_change are null when there were no trades. mark_price is always present, and options carry mark_iv, interest_rate and underlying_price. So a deep out-of-the-money strike with no bid has bid_price null, not 0 — a zero bid would imply someone bids nothing. Build the chain with null-aware mids (fall back to mark price, flagged) and never average nulls as zeros.

Fields and what missing values mean

FieldNull / absent meansZero / empty means
bid_price / ask_priceNo bids / no asks—
mid_priceNo bid or no ask—
last / lowNo trades in 24h—
volume—0: no trades in 24h
mark_priceAlways present—
Options Chain: how to read each fieldOptions Chain: how to read each field: bid_price / ask_price — No bids / no asks; mid_price — No bid or no ask; last / low — No trades in 24h; volume — 0: no trades in 24h; mark_price — Always present.bid_price / ask_priceNo bids / no asksmid_priceNo bid or no asklast / lowNo trades in 24hvolume0: no trades in 24hmark_priceAlways present
Options Chain: missing vs zero, field by field. Original ChartsPod editorial graphic.

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Handling policy

Policy for this sourcePolicy for this source: Null bid ≠ zero bid; Use mark price as flagged fallback; Drop strikes with no quotes from spread stats; Keep options-only fields separate; Timestamp the snapshot.POLICY FOR THIS SOURCENull bid ≠ zero bidUse mark price as flagged fallbackDrop strikes with no quotes from spread statsKeep options-only fields separateTimestamp the snapshot
Apply this policy to every options chain request. Original ChartsPod editorial graphic.

Illustrative: a chain's 'average spread' computed with null asks set to 0 comes out negative for far strikes — impossible, and a sign that nulls were coerced.

Conclusion

Related: Crypto Options Open Interest: Null vs Zero - Handle Missing Fields Correctly, Crypto Options Implied Volatility: Null vs Zero - Handle Missing Fields Correctly.

Build the chain with null-aware mids (fall back to mark price, flagged) and never average nulls as zeros.

Check Crypto Options Chain Data against a live market before relying on it.

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Questions readers ask

Why is bid_price null on some strikes?

There are no bids.

Is volume ever null?

It's a number; 0 means no trades.

What should replace a null mid?

Mark price, flagged as model-based.

Sources and methodology

Field definitions come from DEX Screener's API reference, CoinGecko's onchain API documentation and Binance's Spot API documentation, read 17 October 2026. Where a schema was not visible in the documentation, this guide says so and describes defensive handling rather than asserting field behaviour.

  1. Deribit API: get_book_summary_by_currency — nullable bid/ask/mid/last/low/price_change; options-only mark_iv, interest_rate, underlying_price; OI units.
  2. ChartsPod: product overview, pricing and FAQ — free terminal, venues, modules, no order placement; checked 17 Oct 2026.

This article explains research tools and workflows. It is not financial advice, does not recommend buying or selling any asset and does not predict prices. Crypto derivatives carry a risk of rapid and total loss of margin.

CHARTSPOD EDITORIAL EDITION · RESEARCH AND EDUCATION ONLY · NOT FINANCIAL ADVICE.