If you've ever built a credit spread in ThinkorSwim's Analyze tab, you already know the shape of a risk graph: a payoff curve, a break-even, and a shaded band showing where the underlying is statistically likely to land. MyATMM's new Risk Profile tool gives you that same familiar picture — and then adds the pieces you always wished were there, like connecting the graph directly to a broker so you can place, walk, and cancel real orders without leaving the screen.
In this walkthrough we build a simple SPX put credit spread from scratch, connect it to a broker, submit and adjust a live order, set a standing order to buy it back, and then follow the trade all the way through to a profit-and-loss summary that shows both realized P&L and max risk. It's the full life cycle of a defined-risk options trade in one connected workflow.
A quick note on terminology before we dig in: a put credit spread is a defined-risk position where you sell a put and buy a further out-of-the-money put for protection, collecting a net credit up front. The Risk Profile tool doesn't care which structure you build — verticals, single legs, butterflies, and iron condors all draw the same way — but the put credit spread is a clean, common example to learn the interface on.
The Risk Profile tool ties into broker integration, so the first thing worth setting up is a broker connection on the portfolio you'll be trading. In the video we use a paper-trading portfolio bound to a Tradier paper account, which is the ideal sandbox for learning the tool without risking real capital.
The connection flow is straightforward: you generate an API key inside your broker, paste it into the Broker Auth screen, click connect, then pick the account and the portfolio you want to bind it to. Once bound, anything in the application that does order management — including the Risk Profile screen — routes through that broker.
From the Tools menu, open the Risk Profile tool and create a new profile. You pick a target expiration — in the walkthrough we target the next trading day, which effectively simulates a 0DTE-style trade — and the profile auto-names itself off that date. Because the tool supports multiple profiles on the same expiration, you can type your own name and keep several ideas side by side for the same day.
As soon as the profile loads, it defaults to SPX and draws a gray shaded region on the chart. That shaded area is one standard deviation, calculated from the current spot price out to the expiration you selected. Pick a 14-day expiration and the band widens; pick tomorrow and it tightens. It's a fast visual read on where price is statistically expected to stay over the life of the trade — exactly the context you want when deciding how far out-of-the-money to place your short strike.
Click Add Spread and the tool drops a vertical at the money, then zooms to fit it on screen. It defaults to a call debit spread, but flipping it to a put instantly redraws the payoff line into the classic put-credit-spread shape. From there you shape the position:
Save the position and it renders on the risk graph. A simple checkbox toggles it on and off the chart, so you can layer multiple structures and compare them visually. If you like building repeatable structures like this, MyATMM also supports custom strategy templates for spreads so you're not rebuilding the same legs every session.
Here's where the Risk Profile tool separates itself from a plain analysis screen. Click the order button and a broker submittal dialog opens. Green check marks confirm the tool found and matched each option leg in the broker's system. It shows the credit it will submit at, tells you which broker you're connected to, and — if you aren't connected yet — offers a link to go set that up.
Once the order is working, you rarely get filled at your first price. Instead of cancelling and re-entering, the tool gives you quick increment and decrement buttons to walk the price in real time. For SPX you adjust by a nickel at a time; penny and nickel quick-buttons let you nudge the order down from a dollar to $0.95 to $0.90 to $0.85 with single clicks, and a refresh button checks whether it filled. A live mark shows the current tradeable premium as a guide — remember it fluctuates, so treat it as a reference, not a rule.
You submit the spread at $1.00 hoping for a little extra. It doesn't fill, so you click minus to reprice at $0.95, then $0.90, then $0.85 — each a single button press that updates the resting order at your broker instantly. No re-typing, no re-submitting. You can pull up your broker dashboard alongside and watch the order change in real time.
You can also cancel working orders directly from this screen, which cancels them at the broker. Under normal market conditions you'd submit, walk the price, get filled, then mark the fill so its status updates.
When the market is open, this screen is alive: the spot price moves, the payoff line bounces as implied volatility shifts across the legs, and the premium number drifts. Once you're actually filled, you lock the price so the position stops floating and reflects your true entry. Click edit, set the price to your fill — say the $0.90 credit — and save. That price is now set in stone for tracking purposes.
Locking is what turns a hypothetical drawing into a tracked, live position. From a put credit spread, you're now waiting for time to pass and price to stay above your short strike so you can buy the spread back for less than you sold it, or let it expire worthless and keep the full premium.
Say you only want to capture part of the premium — you'd be happy taking the position off at a $0.40 debit for a $50 profit. The tool makes this a two-click setup:
Submit that as a standing order and it rests at your broker, waiting to buy the spread back when price comes to you. When the market is live, the order dialog is smart about it: it peers into your existing positions, recognizes the legs are already open, and marks them as closing orders (sell-to-close / buy-to-close) automatically. You can still click any leg to override the action manually if you know something the tool couldn't infer.
The toolbar around the chart is where a lot of the day-to-day value lives. A few highlights from the walkthrough:
And the position builder isn't limited to verticals. Remove a leg for a single call or put, add a third leg and it forms a butterfly, or add a fourth for an iron condor — each with the option to unlink legs and place them exactly where you want. If condors are your bread and butter, it's worth reading up on the best iron condor tracker apps for options sellers to see how MyATMM stacks up for that structure specifically.
Each profile can be renamed, deleted, or shared with others. For ThinkorSwim users who want to stop tracking trades in spreadsheets, there's a genuinely handy touch: you can download a risk profile in ThinkorSwim's format and import from it too, so you can move a position between the two tools without rebuilding it leg by leg.
Multiple profiles on the same expiration live in a quick dropdown, and a portfolio switcher lets you jump between the portfolios you've bound to brokers. It's designed so a trader running several ideas on the same day can flip between them without losing context.
Here's the part that ties everything together. After the trade plays out — you bought the spread back for $0.40 and pocketed roughly $50 minus commissions — your broker has a record of every fill. Export those transactions as a CSV, then head to the Import/Export screen and drag-and-drop the file. One click to parse and the trades land in your account, with an import history you can drill into. (If you trade Tradier, the dedicated guide on importing Tradier CSV transactions with AI walks through that exact flow.)
From there, the Strategy Summary screen becomes the payoff. Grouped by option expiration, it shows each set's total profit and loss, the number of transactions and legs, and the commissions and fees you paid. Most importantly, it pulls the max risk straight from the Risk Profile tool — the same $1,410 figure from our spread — and sets it beside your realized P&L. That pairing is what lets you see a real return on risk for each individual position, not just a dollar gain in isolation.
Zoom out further and the dashboard rolls everything up — every SPX spread, every wheel position on other tickers, every strategy you run — into weekly and monthly views. If you're already using MyATMM to track SPX credit spreads and iron condors, the Risk Profile tool is the front end that feeds all of it.
Options trading involves risk and is not suitable for all investors. Credit spreads carry defined risk but can still result in significant losses, and 0DTE-style trades move quickly. Past performance does not guarantee future results. This content is for educational purposes only and should not be considered financial or investment advice. MyATMM is a tracking tool, not an advisory service. Always consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions.
MyATMM provides purpose-built cost basis tracking for option sellers, with the flexibility to track covered calls, cash-secured puts, and wheel strategy positions.
Track up to 3 tickers completely free forever. No credit card required.
Create Your Free Account TodayBuilt for covered calls, cash-secured puts, and the wheel strategy