Ether: are retail traders long or short?
Ether: 68/100, leaning long. Small traders hold 959 long and 449 short contracts: 68.1% long. Week before: 69. A year before: 53. Three-year range: 6 to 94.
On 9 October 2026 small traders in CME ether and micro ether futures (Bybit/Binance ETHUSDT once eligible) were 68.1% long, a Crowd Gauge reading of 68 out of 100 (leaning long), according to TradingLookup's Crowd Gauge (October 2026).
- Data as of
- All markets
- Method
The contract behind the reading
- Contract
- CME ether and micro ether futures (Bybit/Binance ETHUSDT once eligible)
- CFTC contract code
- 146021
- CFTC contract code
- 146022
- A long position is
- a bet that the ether price rises.
- In the composite
- Yes, in the crypto half
Positioning, not price. "Small traders" are everyone below the CFTC's reporting size ("non-reportable"): the closest public measure of retail positioning in CME ether and micro ether futures (Bybit/Binance ETHUSDT once eligible). It also holds some small firms, so treat it as a proxy.
What today's reading means
Ether reads 68: small traders' long share is above about 68% of the last 156 weekly readings in this contract. The last crowded-long week (80+) was 15 May 2026. The last crowded-short week (20 or less) was 28 August 2026.
Record readings for Ether
- Highest Crowd Gauge reading
- 93.8
- Lowest Crowd Gauge reading
- 0.9
- Most long small traders have been
- 88.2% long
- Least long
- 31.3% long
How often Ether hits an extreme
| Band | Weeks | Share of weeks | Separate spells | Longest spell | Most recent |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crowded long (80+) | 24 | 10% | 6 | 6 weeks, to 20 December 2024 | 15 May 2026 |
| Crowded short (20 or less) | 53 | 22% | 10 | 12 weeks, to 15 July 2022 | 28 August 2026 |
History
Last 12 weekly readings
| Released | Reading | Band | Change | Long | Short | Long share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 68.0 | Leaning long | −1 | 959 | 449 | 68.1% | |
| 68.6 | Leaning long | +17 | 964 | 445 | 68.4% | |
| 51.6 | Balanced | +16 | 1,215 | 459 | 72.6% | |
| 35.3 | Leaning short | −27 | 577 | 383 | 60.1% | |
| 61.9 | Leaning long | +13 | 900 | 419 | 68.2% | |
| 49.0 | Balanced | +35 | 870 | 413 | 67.8% | |
| 13.8 | Crowded short | −29 | 897 | 852 | 51.3% | |
| 43.0 | Balanced | +14 | 782 | 587 | 57.1% | |
| 28.9 | Leaning short | +4 | 693 | 590 | 54.0% | |
| 25.0 | Leaning short | +11 | 746 | 594 | 55.7% | |
| 14.4 | Crowded short | −47 | 779 | 671 | 53.7% | |
| 61.2 | Leaning long | +30 | 821 | 386 | 68.0% |
Did extreme Ether readings come before price moves?
| Period, horizon | After 80 or more | After 20 or less | All weeks | Weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 on, 1 week | 0.84% | -0.18% | -0.11% | 236 |
| 2018 on, 4 weeks | -1.70% | 0.64% | -0.22% | 234 |
| 2018 on, 12 weeks | -3.17% | 8.31% | 0.03% | 229 |
From 2018, the 4 weeks after a crowded-long Ether reading averaged -1.70%, against -0.22% for all weeks; after a crowded-short reading, 0.64%. Separate crowded-long episodes in that period: 6; crowded-short: 10.
History, not a forecast. Small samples swing a lot, and one market proves little. The pooled result across markets is on the method page.
Sources for Ether
- CFTC COT (small traders)In the reading (contract code 146021). 288 weekly reports since 6 April 2021.
- CFTC COT (small traders)In the reading (contract code 146022). 252 weekly reports since 14 December 2021.
- bybit:ETHUSDTETHUSDT: Not collected yet.
- binance:ETHUSDTETHUSDT: Not collected yet.
- Crypto Crowd Fear & Greed
- Bitcoin 83/100