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TIME-DEPENDENT OPTIONS STRATEGY

Poor Man’s Covered Call Calculator

Compare a long-dated call plus a shorter call against the capital required for 100 shares.

Live or manual legs

Select available Schwab-backed contracts or enter values manually.

Long deep-ITM LEAPS call · long 1×
Short nearer-term call · short 1×

Strategy summary

Estimated values from the selected legs.

Total debit
$2,900.00
Short-call premium
$300.00
Estimated break-even
$99.00
Capital required
$2,900.00
100-share capital
$10,000.00
Capital difference
$7,100.00
Estimated return
10.34%

OPTIONS TRADE

MANUAL long call 70 32 2027-01-15 / short call 105 3 2026-10-16
Expiration
StrategyPOOR MAN'S COVERED CALL
Contracts1 CONTRACT
Net debit2900
MAX PROFIT10.34% estimated return
MAX LOSS2900

Risk and limitations

Short calls can be assigned early. The long call is not equivalent to shares; returns and risk depend on delta, time value, volatility, and the two expirations.

How this calculator works

A poor man’s covered call pairs a deep in-the-money long-dated call with a shorter-dated short call.

How to use it

Enter the long-dated call and the nearer short call separately. Check the expiration ordering, net debit, and comparison with 100 shares; assignment of the short call can create a decision before the long call expires.

Formula, payoff, and assumptions

Total debit is LEAPS call cost minus short-call premium; the comparison estimates capital against buying 100 shares.

The comparison with 100 shares is a capital-use comparison, not an equivalence claim. The long call's delta, remaining time value, and expiration create different risk from owning stock.

Practical example

A $32 long call offset by a $3 short call has a $29 net debit per share before fees.

Reading this result

Capital required can be lower than owning 100 shares, but the position’s behavior is not the same as stock ownership. The long call’s delta and remaining time value change the exposure over time.

Common planning mistake

Do not overlook the expiration mismatch. A short call can be assigned before the long-dated call expires, and exercising the long call may sacrifice its remaining time value.

Risk and limitations

The long call is not shares. Delta, time value, early assignment, and expiration mismatch affect actual results.