What Delta Value Do I Use For My Trades?

I have been asked the above question a few times so I thought it would be good to answer this question in a blog post so that more people can be aware. So, when I mentioned low delta, I actually do not have a specific range of delta values that I use. My general rule of thumb is to keep my premium to 10% of the total price of 100 shares.

For example, if Apple is currently trading at a share price of $150, I will buy a premium that is about $1500, which is 10% of the total price of 100 units of Apple shares. For lower prices shares like Apple, the delta is higher, maybe 0.5%.

For more expensive stocks like Alphabet or Tesla, the delta will be lower as I find 10% of 100 units of Alphabet shares too expensive a LEAPS contract to own. In summary, I chose lower delta options to keep the premium so that I can buy more contracts and have the flexibility to cash them out whenever I wish to take profits. Also, a lower premium contract will lower my loss (if the stock does not move in my favor) as I paid less premium for the contract.

The below table will give better clarity.