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REDDIT

Divergence Between the VIX and the Fear & Greed Index

M
Jul 7, 2026 · 15:06

Good day All.

I’ve used the CNN Fear & Greed index for years to put me in the vicinity of market bottoms.

It worked during the COVID crash, the 2022 bear market, the tariff sell-offs, and are recent geopolitical scares.

Right now, there seems to be a disconnect that has me kinda puzzled:

\- **Fear & Greed Index:** "Fear" at around 40.

\- **VIX:** Hovering near its lows at 16.

Historically, these two move in tandem. This leaves me with two theories:

1. **The Fear & Greed index is broken:** It's being skewed by underlying technical noise or poor market breadth.

2. **The VIX is asleep at the wheel:** Market protection is dangerously cheap, and we are walking into a massive pullback.

Is the VIX just lagging, or are the other metrics within the Fear & Greed index painting a false picture?

What are you guy's thoughts?