Based in New York, Kalshi obtained a DCM (Designated Contract Market) license from the CFTC ( s/be “Commodity” Futures Trading Commission), and went live in 2021. As it is governed by the CFTC, which is a federal institution not a state one, Kalshi is available all over the US. For now, at least.
It provides a tremendous variety of contract markets on real-world events, including economics, climate, tech & science, health, politics, culture, and, of course, sports. For US sports traders, Kalshi brands itself as the go-to prediction market with an abundance of markets, plus it has market maker and parlay-style contracts to diversify your predictions.
What Users Say About Kalshi
| Positive Feedback | Negative Feedback |
|---|---|
| Real time prices and quick settlement | Slow and not helpful support |
| Customer support replies in less than 5 minutes | Kalshi fees are way higher than competition |
| A game changer for making informed decisions on real time events | Fees are the same as sportsbooks – no edge |
| Helps me and my team hedge risk | Bank card charges |
What is Kalshi
Prediction markets are growing exponentially in the US, and came to the forefront of the industry during the 2024 US Presidential Elections and the 2025 Super Bowl between the Chiefs and the Eagles. Kalshi was one of the go-to contract trading platforms during these early mass trading hypes, with the Elections market topping half a billion dollars and the Super Bowl winner market exceeding $27 million.
The interest didn’t stop there, as Kalshi was quick to up its game, and by the start of the following NFL regular season, it rolled out a full selection of contracts and even multi-leg event contracts – resembling parlays. As it continues to shatter records and bring new features out, Kalshi is at the forefront, driving the frenzy toward prediction markets in the US.
How Does Kalshi Work
One of the most expansive prediction markets in the US, Kalshi is the chiselled product for American sports traders. Only you don’t stake sports bets at Kalshi. Instead, you buy and trade contracts on binary events. You can open the platform, head to a market such as “Kansas City Chiefs to Win the Super Bowl”, and then buy Yes contracts or No contracts. The price of the contracts is based on market demand, and the market volume will determine how many you can buy.
These are peer-to-peer products, meaning that if a trader’s precision is correct, the event contract settles in their favor and they receive a payout. These are $1 contracts, meaning Taders receive $1 if the contract settles correctly. If the prediction is wrong, the contract settles at $0, and they receive nothing. Kalshi uses a dynamic pricing model, meaning the price directly correlates to the market’s (the public’s) perceived probability of the event winning. This price can fluctuate based on demand, and the contract prices will accurately reflect consensus opinion.
So much so, in fact, that prediction markets like Kalshi and Polymarket were actually more accurate than polls at the 2024 US presidential elections, and many see these platforms as conveying the Wisdom of the Crowds theory.
Main Features of Kalshi
What makes Kalshi stand out from the rest is its emphasis on sports-specific prediction markets. Kalshi has an entire lobby for sports trading, with expansive coverage including alternate lines, live contracts, and even parlay combo markets.
Sports Offering
Click on the sports category, and you will find a broad selection of sports categories and events to pick from. Kalshi has categories for football, basketball, hockey, soccer, golf, MMA, and various other popular sports. There are market types, ranging from moneylines, spreads, and totals for individual games, to futures, awards, conference, league, and other long-term prediction market categories for the season as a whole.
It gets more interesting when you click on any single game. This opens up all the markets, where you’ll be able to trade event contracts on spreads and totals for individual games. For select soccer, NFL, NBA, and other high-profile games, Kalshi may even offer props markets such as BTTS for soccer or player points scored for NBA games.
Parlays
Another distinguishing feature is Kalshi’s parlay-type event contracts. These are offered for single-game props and multi-game events, and you can combine multiple event contracts into one prediction. Though we have to point out that the Kalshi parlay builder, or combo function, is quite limited and doesn’t allow many SGP options. Also, the parlay building is limited based on the liquidity and market volume of the markets picked.
There are premade combo-style events that are more straightforward to buy Yes or No contracts on, but having a feature to combine multiple contracts is quite revolutionary.
Social Functions
Kalshi Ideas is a forum where you can post and comment on predictions, share your own, discuss markets, and analyze outcomes with your peers. It has the look and feel of a social feed, only catered to contract trading, and this helps you locate key trending predictions, find hot new predictions that may hit the shelves soon, and watch the Live Trades to see who is trading on what right now. To access Kalshi ideas, navigate to the community section where you can view and comment on market ideas.
There is also a market builder feature on the Kalshi platform. Simply click on Market Builder above the feed, make your market title, and then enter a description for it. Your idea will be reviewed by Kalshi, and should the operators think it can attract some liquidity, your custom requested order will go live.
APY Interest
When buying and selling contracts, you will notice the Kalshi 3.5% APY interest displayed on contract slips. It states you can gain variable interest on open positions and idle cash, basically meaning you can accrue interest on your positions and get paid while you hold them. The interest is paid in the first week of each month, and can take up to 10 business days to process.
The interest is calculated daily, and on the net value of your portfolio. This means the available funds in your account and your last traded prices at the end of each day. US users can get paid interest calculated every day, which is paid out in monthly installments. Though it is important to note that you are only eligible for the Kalshi APY interest if you have a balance of $250 or more. Plus, the interest rate can fluctuate.
Kalshi Trading Fees
The one complaint that Kalshi users have about the service is the trading fees. That is not to say all Kalshi users complain about it, but when we were assessing the customer feedback and testing the platform for ourselves, we found that Kalshi does charge a considerable fee for trading. It is quite complex as well. The fact is, they work very differently from a traditional US sportsbook like BetMGM.
Basically, taker fees apply to orders that fill immediately against existing orders (not just “buying orders”, both buy and sell orders can be takers). Maker fees apply to orders that rest on the order book and are matched later by someone else. The fees are proportionate to the price of a contract, with the overall percentage fluctuating from around 3.5% to 10% and potentially higher.
- The 50% bets, such as a coin toss, a point spread, or a moneyline on a game between two evenly matched teams, is charged at around 3.5%.
- Contracts with higher chances of winning (and therefore lower prices), tend to have much higher fees, such as a $0.10 priced contract would be charged $0.01 per contract, essentially coming out to 10%.
- Prices of $0.75, $0.80, and $0.90 are charged at approximately 1.75%, 1.4%, and 0.70%, respectively.
Fees are going to be higher when the contract prices are lower, and at 50% you are paying around 3.5% fees for making trades. Placing maker orders – where there is no market liquidity, but you are waiting for someone to lay your bet – has far lower fees, ranging from around 2% to 0.08% and potentially lower. They are charged at about 1/4 of the fees you would pay for trader contracts.
Then, there are the 2% debit card fees. Kalshi does not charge you for signing up, for settled markets, or for using wire transfer/crypto deposits and withdrawals. However, for bank card payments, there is a 2% fee on deposits and a $2 fixed fee on debit card withdrawals.
How to Trade Contracts at Kalshi
The act of trading contracts is straightforward at Kalshi, but you must always remember that there is always a risk involved when it comes to event contract trading. If you want to trade a contract, you can pick your market and then choose whether you want to buy in USD or by the number of contracts. For existing orders with market liquidity, your orders are immediately filled, and right before paying for the contracts, you have to accept the trader fees, and then submit your order.
For maker orders, where there is no market liquidity, you pay the significantly lower maker fees, and then your order will be submitted, and you basically wait for someone else to buy the contrasting Yes/No market to fill your order.
There are a number of guides, blog posts, and even a Kalshi forum where you can ask for help. Contract trading here can be done seamlessly, but traders must always be aware that they can lose their investment, and the element of risk is always there.
Kalshi Deposits and Withdrawals
Kalshi has a suitable range of payment options that make transferring money a simple process. E-wallet systems such as PayPal are accepted in addition to ACH transfers.
In terms of crypto, Kalshi works with a service provider, Zero Hash, and supports BTC, USDC, SOL, XRP, and a handful of others. The platform added crypto options back in 2024, mainly to compete with its biggest rival, Polymarket.
| Deposit Methods | Processing Time | Fee |
| Debit cards | Instant | 2% |
| Bank transfer (ACH) | Instant | None |
| Crypto | 30 Minutes | None |
| Google Pay | Instant | None |
| PayPal | Instant | None |
| Venmo | Instant | None |
| Cash App | Instant | None |
| Withdrawal Methods | Processing Time | Fee |
| Debit cards | 3 days | $2 fixed fee |
| Bank transfer | 7 days | Free |
| Crypto | 1-3 days | Network fees |
| PayPal | 1-3 days | Free |
| ACH Transfers | 1-3 days | Free |
| Venmo | 1-3 days | Free |
Is Kalshi Legit
Yes, Kalshi is a fully registered prediction market, holding a Designated Contract Market (DCM) issued by the CFTC. This means it is a fully regulated exchange. Kalshi expanded in 2025 and the platform is available broadly outside of the US; though 38 territories still remain restricted.
When signing up to the platform, you will need to verify your ID, by providing your SSN. This ensures that you are eligible to use the financial instruments and contract markets, a necessary regulatory compliance for Kalshi and other licensed prediction markets.
Where Kalshi Can Improve
Fees are definitely an area where Kalshi can improve its offering, as this is the area that, if users are to complain about something, it will generally be. In terms of sports contract trading, parlay building, and requesting custom orders, Kalshi shines above many of its prediction market competitors.
The product stands out with its pioneering sports products, and it has set up a clean interface that makes navigation very simple, which is highly appreciated.
Alternatives to Kalshi
Kalshi is one of the most well known prediction markets worldwide. Trading contracts is still a relatively new concept amongst US players. However, there are viable alternatives if you want to try your hand on different platforms. Both Polymarket and Crypto.com have a huge range of markets where you can trade contracts and make predictions.
Our Verdict
Popular for good reason and continuously paving the way for other prediction markets, Kalshi comes highly recommended.
Kalshi has the coverage and the market volume, ensuring that you can make all kinds of trades, custom orders, and go into the finer details of a game with props and parlay possibilities. The fees are perhaps the only drawback for users. But using alternate deposit/withdrawal gateways, picking higher-priced contracts, and utilizing the Kalshi APY, you can cut those fees to a minimum.
Kalshi regularly adds new features and functions for sports fans. It is a well-recommended choice for any sports fan who wants to test out prediction markets, as long as they are well aware of the risks involved in losing their investments.
(2 votes, average: 4.50 out of 5)
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