There is no options-specific version of this test, which is the first thing worth knowing: Massive asks the same eleven questions whether the subscription you want is Options, Stocks, Indices, Currencies or Futures. The exchange definitions sitting behind them are not identical, so if you land near the line, read the one covering the data you want. Work through them on Am I a professional or non-professional subscriber?, then come back here for what it means for an Options subscription.
Applies to
- Plans: Options Basic, Starter, Developer and Advanced are Individual plans and are for non-professional subscribers. Options Business carries the commercial license.
- Endpoints: all of them. Nothing in the API behaves differently, because this is a licensing question rather than a technical one.
- Asset classes: US-listed options. Massive asks the same eleven questions for every other asset class too, though the exchange definitions behind them differ.
Who sets the rule for options
For US options the definitions come from OPRA, the consolidated feed every US options exchange reports to, and from the exchanges behind it. Their fee schedules charge per user and per category, and they hold the vendor responsible for classifying users correctly. Massive applies their definitions rather than writing its own, which is why the answer does not change if you move to another vendor.
Options carry one wrinkle stocks do not. An index option is an option, so it needs an Options subscription rather than an Indices one, and your classification then applies on the Options side of the catalog.
What it decides for an Options subscription
Your classification decides which side of the catalog you can buy from, and that is a bigger difference than a price:
| What changes | Non-professional | Professional |
|---|---|---|
| Plans you can buy | Options Basic, Starter, Developer, Advanced | Options Business |
| Where to buy | massive.com/pricing, self-serve | massive.com/business, some self-serve, the rest through sales |
| What you may do with the data | Your own personal, non-business use | Whatever the commercial license covers, including showing it to clients |
| Redistribution | Not permitted | Needs a license that covers it explicitly |
Do not assume the Business plan is the Individual plan at a higher price. The Business plans are packaged differently, and some data an Individual Advanced tier includes is sold as a separate expansion on the Business side.
How to get it right
- Take the eleven-question test on Am I a professional or non-professional subscriber?.
- If you sit near the line, describe what you are doing in a chat at massive.com/contact and we will tell you which side you fall on.
- If you are professional and want help choosing, go to sales through massive.com/business or sales@massive.com.
- If your circumstances change, tell us. Correcting it forward is routine; discovering it in an audit is not.
Why the exchanges care
The exchanges care because their fee schedules charge per user and per category, so the count and the classification of users is what they are paid on. That is why the question is asked at signup rather than left to you, and why the difference in price is a licensing cost rather than a difference in the quality of the data. Citizenship and location are not part of the test: use is.
If you see an error
Nothing in the API refuses a request because of your classification, so a refusal is about your subscription rather than your status.
{"status":"NOT_AUTHORIZED"} on an options endpoint means the product or tier does not cover the request. It is not a professional-status check, and on index options it is often an Indices subscription being used where an Options one is needed.
An Options plan that will not let you buy it is usually an account already marked professional. That is a classification answer, not a billing fault.
