Commitments of Traders
What is the COT report?
The COT report shows how different trader groups are positioned in futures markets. Learn what the data covers, where it comes from and when it is published.
The short version
The Commitments of Traders reports, usually shortened to COT, are published by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). They divide a market’s open interest into broad trader categories and show aggregate long, short and, where applicable, spreading positions. The reports also show changes from the previous reporting date, percentages of open interest and trader counts for reportable categories.
The figures come from positions reported by large futures traders. The public report combines them into anonymous category totals, giving traders and investors a consistent weekly view of market positioning.
Where the numbers come from
Clearing members, futures commission merchants, foreign brokers and exchanges submit position data to the CFTC. When a trader reaches the reporting level in one futures month or option expiration, the reporting firm must submit that trader’s full position across all expirations in the commodity.
The CFTC classifies reportable traders using information about their business and their use of futures. The exact categories depend on the report family, and one category can contain positions opened for different reasons.
Who appears in the Legacy report
The Legacy report has two classifications for reportable traders—commercial and non-commercial—plus residual nonreportable positions. A market appears in the report when at least 20 traders hold positions at or above the CFTC’s reporting levels.
Commercial tradersLegacy report
Reportable traders that use futures in that commodity to manage business risk. The category can include producers, users, merchants and swap dealers.
Non-commercial tradersLegacy report
Reportable traders that are not classified as commercial in that commodity. The group includes many funds and other large market participants.
Nonreportable positionscalculated remainder
The remainder on each side after all reportable positions—including Spreading on both sides where shown—are subtracted from open interest. The public report does not publish a trader count for this remainder.
Commercial and non-commercial traders often have different objectives. Compare each group with its own history instead of treating either as “smart money”. See how the groups differ in our guide to commercial and non-commercial traders.
The report families
Legacy provides the broadest view and the longest history. Disaggregated adds detailed trader groups for physical commodities. Traders in Financial Futures (TFF) does the same for financial futures such as currencies, interest rates and equity indexes.
The CFTC also publishes a Supplemental report for selected agricultural contracts, with a separate Index Traders category. Compare the scope and categories in our guide to Legacy, Disaggregated, TFF and Supplemental reports.
Legacy, Disaggregated and TFF are available as Futures Only and Futures and Options Combined reports. In the Combined version, options are converted into futures-equivalent positions using delta factors supplied by the exchanges. COT Screener uses the futures-only series for its main positioning board.
How to interpret positioning
Hypothetical example. Non-commercial traders are net long 150,000 gold futures contracts. To judge whether that is large, compare it with gold’s open interest and the same group’s historical range. Three fields provide the starting point:
- Net position. Longs minus shorts for a category. It is calculated from the published columns. A positive result is net long; a negative result is net short. The guide to calculating COT net positions provides worked examples.
- Weekly change. The difference between aggregate positions on the current and previous reporting dates.
- Historical range. The same group’s past positioning shows whether the latest reading is typical or near an extreme. The COT Index formula and lookback guide explains one way to make that comparison.
Where COT data fits in market analysis
COT data is best suited to weekly positioning analysis. The normal Friday release reflects Tuesday positions, so it is more useful for swing and position research than intraday timing. It covers futures and options on futures rather than individual stock holdings or the full cash and over-the-counter markets.
See the latest available report
Continue with our step-by-step guide to reading the COT report, browse the latest public readings for Gold, WTI Crude Oil and Euro FX, or open the free positioning board.
Official CFTC sources
The definitions and release details in this guide follow the CFTC’s overview of the COT reports, Legacy explanatory notes and official release schedule.
Common questions
Is the COT report free?
Yes. The CFTC makes current and historical COT data available to the public. Paid services charge for tools built around that data, such as charts, screening, calculated indicators and alerts.
What time does the COT report come out?
Under the normal schedule, Friday at 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time, using positions from the previous Tuesday. Federal holidays can delay the release. See the COT release schedule and holiday dates.
Does the COT report cover stocks?
Not as a record of holdings in individual shares. COT reports cover futures and options on futures. They include eligible equity-index futures, such as contracts linked to the S&P 500 or Nasdaq-100, alongside financial and physical commodity markets.
Where can I read this week's COT report?
You can read the raw data in the CFTC’s public reporting environment. Or you can create a free account to view it with calculated scores and charts on the positioning board. The board updates after each release.
