Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) Short Interest

Shares short, days to cover, historical percentile

GOOGL Short Interest & Days to Cover

Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) currently has 70.5M shares short as of the Jul 31, 2026 settlement date, or about 2.0 days to cover at current trading volume. That is higher than 72% of the 158 readings on record since Jan 15, 2020, on a days-to-cover basis. Shares short have fallen for 3 straight reporting periods. Looking at recent periods where short interest increased, the stock is now averaging +4.6% since those additions, recent short sellers are broadly underwater on that basis.

Historical Level
Elevated
72th percentile of 158 readings since Jan 15, 2020
Trend
Falling, 3 reports
Current: 70.5M shares short
Days to Cover
2.0 days · High
72th percentile for this stock
Current Short Position
Shares short
70.5M
Days to cover
2.0
Days-to-cover percentile
72th
Avg daily volume
34.7M
Est. $ value of short position
$24.43B

As of the Jul 31, 2026 settlement date, short interest is reported roughly every two weeks, not in real time.

See GOOGL's full volatility profile →
Is This Normal for GOOGL?

Days to cover, compared against every biweekly reading on record for this stock specifically, not the market as a whole.

Historical average
1.8 days
Historical median
1.7 days
Highest on record
3.1 days
Sep 13, 2024
Lowest on record
0.9 days
Apr 14, 2022
Are Shorts Covering, or Building a Bigger Bet?

Short interest moving alone does not say much, what matters is whether it is moving with or against the price. Each period below compares the change in short interest to the stock's move over the same window.

Settlement DateSI ChangeRead
Jul 31, 2026-10.4%Covering into weakness
Jul 15, 2026-8.4%Covering into strength
Jun 30, 2026-4.4%Covering into weakness
Jun 15, 2026+8.4%Building into weakness
May 29, 2026+0.9%
May 15, 2026+8.6%New bearish bets despite strength
Apr 30, 2026-3.2%Covering into strength
Apr 15, 2026-2.0%
Are Short Sellers Winning?

Comparing the stock's price at each recent short-interest-increase to where it trades today. An estimate based on settlement-date prices, not any individual short seller's real entry.

Avg return since these additions
+4.6%
Shorts profitable in
33% of these periods
Build DatePrice ThenReturn Since
Nov 28, 2025$320.18+8.2%
Dec 15, 2025$308.22+12.4%
Feb 27, 2026$311.76+11.2%
Mar 13, 2026$302.28+14.7%
May 15, 2026$396.78-12.6%
Jun 15, 2026$369.35-6.2%
What Happened Last Time Short Interest Was This High?

The 40 periods where short interest was in the top quarter of GOOGL's own history on record (+2.14% or higher), and what followed.

Forward WindowAvg ReturnWin Rate
3 months+2.0%56% (n=36)
6 months+7.2%60% (n=30)
12 months+37.6%73% (n=26)

A historical pattern in GOOGL's own data, not a prediction.

Biggest Short Interest Moves on Record
Biggest builds
Apr 29, 2022 · +41.3% (1.3 days to cover)
Apr 15, 2021 · +36.8% (2.3 days to cover)
Mar 13, 2020 · +34.5% (2.0 days to cover)
Biggest covers
Apr 30, 2021 · -27.5% (1.8 days to cover)
Jul 15, 2025 · -23.9% (1.4 days to cover)
Jul 31, 2023 · -20.4% (1.3 days to cover)
Complete Short Interest History

Every biweekly settlement reading on record, most recent first. Page 1 of 4.

Settlement DateShares ShortDays to CoverAvg Daily VolumeChange
Jul 31, 202670.5M2.034.7M-10.4%
Jul 15, 202678.7M2.531.3M-8.4%
Jun 30, 202685.9M2.731.8M-4.4%
Jun 15, 202689.8M3.029.5M+8.4%
May 29, 202682.9M2.928.3M+0.9%
May 15, 202682.1M2.829.1M+8.6%
Apr 30, 202675.6M2.333.0M-3.2%
Apr 15, 202678.1M2.333.4M-2.0%
Mar 31, 202679.7M2.334.5M-0.4%
Mar 13, 202680.0M2.433.5M+4.8%
Feb 27, 202676.3M2.234.4M+3.8%
Feb 13, 202673.6M1.938.4M-3.1%
Jan 30, 202676.0M2.135.4M-9.5%
Jan 15, 202683.9M2.336.2M+1.5%
Dec 31, 202582.7M2.335.4M+0.6%
Dec 15, 202582.2M2.336.4M+3.6%
Nov 28, 202579.3M2.138.3M+27.0%
Nov 14, 202562.5M1.933.5M-7.1%
Oct 31, 202567.3M2.033.5M+15.3%
Oct 15, 202558.3M1.734.9M-2.0%
Sep 30, 202559.5M1.636.0M-11.6%
Sep 15, 202567.3M1.738.8M+21.4%
Aug 29, 202555.5M1.537.2M-6.3%
Aug 15, 202559.2M1.539.6M+3.1%
Jul 31, 202557.4M1.442.1M-1.5%
Jul 15, 202558.2M1.441.9M-23.9%
Jun 30, 202576.5M1.842.7M+12.6%
Jun 13, 202567.9M1.739.9M+2.5%
May 30, 202566.3M1.740.0M-10.8%
May 15, 202574.3M1.938.1M+7.7%
Apr 30, 202569.0M1.936.1M+0.5%
Apr 15, 202568.7M2.034.8M+2.0%
Mar 31, 202567.3M2.231.0M-6.5%
Mar 14, 202572.0M2.429.9M+13.4%
Feb 28, 202563.5M2.229.3M-4.1%
Feb 14, 202566.2M2.328.8M+10.1%
Jan 31, 202560.1M2.227.5M-8.2%
Jan 15, 202565.5M2.427.8M-0.1%
Dec 31, 202465.6M2.427.3M-7.6%
Dec 13, 202471.0M2.726.3M+1.7%
Nov 29, 202469.8M2.725.8M+1.6%
Nov 15, 202468.7M2.824.5M+6.9%
Oct 31, 202464.3M2.525.4M-6.2%
Oct 15, 202468.5M2.725.4M-3.6%
Sep 30, 202471.1M2.825.1M-10.7%
Sep 13, 202479.6M3.125.4M+10.5%
Aug 30, 202472.0M2.924.6M+3.9%
Aug 15, 202469.3M2.825.1M+5.6%
Jul 31, 202465.7M2.724.3M-8.2%
Jul 15, 202471.5M2.925.0M+2.1%
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is GOOGL's current short interest?

Alphabet Inc. has 70.5M shares sold short as of Jul 31, 2026. Days to cover is 2.0.

Is GOOGL's short interest high or low right now?

On a days-to-cover basis, current short interest is higher than 72% of the 158 biweekly readings on record, spanning Jan 15, 2020 to Jul 31, 2026. The historical average days to cover is 1.8, and the highest on record is 3.1 days, on Sep 13, 2024.

Is short interest in GOOGL rising or falling?

Shares short have fallen for 3 consecutive reporting periods.

Are short sellers in GOOGL currently winning or losing?

Looking at the 6 most recent periods where short interest increased, the stock has averaged +4.6% since those additions, with price now below the entry level in 33% of those cases. This is an estimate based on the price at each settlement date, not a precise tracking of any individual short seller's actual entry.

What has historically happened after GOOGL's short interest was this high?

In the 40 periods where days to cover was in the top quarter of this ticker's own history (2.1 days or higher), the stock averaged +7.2% over the following 6 months (positive 60% of the time, n=30). This is a historical pattern, not a prediction.

Sourced from biweekly exchange short interest settlement data for GOOGL, not real-time. This page does not include cost-to-borrow, daily short volume, dark pool activity, or failure-to-deliver data, none of which exist in this data source. This is historical data, not investment advice. Read disclaimer →