Polymarket vs Kalshi
Pick Polymarket if you are traders who want order-book prediction markets on politics, sports, crypto and world events, through the international site or the CFTC-regulated US app. Pick Kalshi if you are uS residents who want CFTC-regulated, dollar-denominated event contracts on sports, politics, economics and weather.
Checked 2026-10-16 · both venues' fee pagesPolymarket is a prediction market where users trade Yes/No outcome shares on an order book. It runs two separate platforms: the international, crypto-based polymarket.com on Polygon, and Polymarket US, a fiat, CFTC-regulated exchange operated by QCX LLC. The international site also lists perpetual futures.
Kalshi is a US prediction-market exchange regulated by the CFTC as a Designated Contract Market, where users trade event contracts on sports, politics, economics, weather and other outcomes in US dollars. It also offers perpetual futures to approved US users through its FCM, Kalshi Prime.
Side by side
| Polymarket | Kalshi | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Prediction market | Prediction market |
| Status | live | live |
| Chains | Polygon | |
| Platforms | web, ios | web |
| Custody | non-custodial | custodial |
| KYC | unknown | required |
| Platform fee, round trip | — | — |
| $1,000 round trip | — | — |
| Sign-up perk | International: none documented. Polymarket US: a $25 trading credit for the referee after signing up with a code and depositing at least $10. | Predictions: a sign-up bonus credit that varies by offer. Perps: a discount on the referee's own perps fees, rate not published. |
| Perps taker / maker | 0.04% / 0.013% | 0.12% / 0.05% |
| United States | Partly available | Partly available |
| United Kingdom | Not available | Not available |
| European Union | Partly available | Partly available |
| Launched | 2020-06 | 2021-07 |
| Reported incidents | 4 | 3 |
Features
| Feature | Polymarket | Kalshi |
|---|---|---|
| prediction markets | ✓ | ✓ |
| order book | ✓ | ✓ |
| combos | ✓ | ✓ |
| perps | ✓ | ✓ |
| maker rebates | ✓ | — |
| taker rebate tiers | ✓ | — |
| liquidity rewards | ✓ | — |
| API/SDK | ✓ | — |
| builder program | ✓ | — |
| mobile app | ✓ | ✓ |
| fiat deposits (US) | ✓ | — |
| sports contracts | — | ✓ |
| liquidity incentives | — | ✓ |
| market maker program | — | ✓ |
| API | — | ✓ |
| FIX | — | ✓ |
| social feed | — | ✓ |
| fiat deposits | — | ✓ |
"—" means the feature was not in the sources we checked, not proof it's missing.
Polymarket: watch out for
- Taker fees peak at 2% to 3.5% of trade value at 50c prices, depending on category.
- The international site is close-only in the UK, France, Germany, Italy and several other countries, and blocks US trading.
- The CFTC fined Polymarket $1.4M in January 2022 for offering unregistered event contracts.
Kalshi: watch out for
- Sports contracts are restricted or under injunction in Nevada, Massachusetts and Washington, and New York's AG is suing.
- Full KYC with a government photo ID is required for every user.
- Referral bonus amounts vary by offer and are not published as a fixed rate.
FAQ
Is Polymarket better than Kalshi?
Pick Polymarket if you are traders who want order-book prediction markets on politics, sports, crypto and world events, through the international site or the CFTC-regulated US app. Pick Kalshi if you are uS residents who want CFTC-regulated, dollar-denominated event contracts on sports, politics, economics and weather.
Which is cheaper, Polymarket or Kalshi?
We could not compare published fees for both.
Can I use Polymarket or Kalshi in the US?
Polymarket: partly available. Kalshi: partly available. Based on each venue's own terms.
Sources
Last checked . Fees and terms change often; the venue's own page wins if it disagrees with ours.
- Polymarket Docs: Fees — checked 2026-10-16
- Polymarket Docs: Taker Rebate Program — checked 2026-10-16
- Polymarket Docs: Referral Program (terms effective 2026-05-28) — checked 2026-10-16
- Polymarket Docs: Perps Fees — checked 2026-10-16
- Polymarket Docs: Perps Referral Program — checked 2026-10-16
- Polymarket Docs: Geographic Restrictions — checked 2026-10-16
- Kalshi Help: How is Kalshi regulated? — checked 2026-10-16
- Kalshi Help: Fees — checked 2026-10-16
- Kalshi Help: Perps Fees Explained — checked 2026-10-16
- KalshiEX CFTC filing: Exchange Fee Schedule (Perpetual Futures Contracts), 2026-06-24 — checked 2026-10-16
- Kalshi Help: Applying for Perpetuals Access — checked 2026-10-16
- Kalshi Help: Your Perpetuals Margin Account — checked 2026-10-16