Polymarket is a prediction market: you buy and sell shares on the outcome of real-world events. Shares are priced between $0 and $1, and each share on the winning side is worth $1 when the market resolves. Since late 2025 it has run as two separate products: the international site polymarket.com, which runs on the Polygon blockchain, and the Polymarket US app, a CFTC-regulated exchange for US residents. This guide explains how trading, deposits, costs and resolution work on each, as of September 2026.
Polymarket was founded in 2020 by Shayne Coplan, who is its CEO, and launched in New York in June 2020. The company named in US court filings and Justice Department releases is Blockratize Inc. The polymarket.com footer names Adventure One QSS Inc., and the US product is operated by QCX LLC d/b/a Polymarket US.
What you trade are shares in a question with a deadline and written rules, such as whether a candidate wins an election or whether a central bank cuts rates at a given meeting. The share price reflects what traders collectively think the chance is: a Yes share at 30¢ implies roughly a 30% probability.
Your counterparty is another trader. Orders meet in an order book, and on most market categories the trader whose order fills immediately (the taker) pays a fee. Polymarket has also drawn large outside investment, including from Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), the owner of the New York Stock Exchange; the details are in our Polymarket review.
There are now two Polymarkets, and they are not interchangeable. Polymarket's help center describes them as separate products with unconnected accounts and separate support teams ([email protected] and [email protected]).
The rest of this guide covers both and flags where they differ. An account on one does not give you access to the other.
Each market is a question with two outcomes, usually Yes and No. Shares trade between $0 and $1. When the market resolves, each winning share can be redeemed for $1.00 and each losing share is worth $0.
Prices come from an order book of buy and sell orders placed by other traders. Two order types matter:
Because a Yes share and a No share on the same market always add up to $1 at resolution, the two sides mirror each other: No at 45¢ corresponds to Yes at 55¢.
You can also buy with a card or bank transfer through third-party on-ramps such as MoonPay, available on Polymarket since July 2024 (card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, bank transfer, and PayPal in some regions). Polymarket says it charges no fee to deposit or withdraw, but intermediaries such as MoonPay or Coinbase may charge their own.
Polymarket's docs describe withdrawals as instant, with no Polymarket fee, although converting between tokens can involve slippage; they suggest splitting withdrawals above $50,000. Tokens sent on a network Polymarket doesn't support may be lost for good (Polymarket runs a recovery tool for some wrong-token deposits), so check the deposit page before you send.
On polymarket.com, takers pay a fee on most categories and makers pay nothing. The fee follows one formula, shares × rate × price × (1 − price), so it is largest at 50¢ and shrinks toward the extremes. The rate depends on the market's category, from 0 on geopolitics to 0.07 on crypto. Taker fees were phased in during 2026: first on short-term crypto markets by early January, then on nearly all categories from March 30, 2026.
The US app has its own published fee schedule, with a taker fee, a maker rebate and volume-based discounts, separate from polymarket.com's.
For worked examples and the current rate in each category, see Polymarket fees explained. To price a specific trade, use the fee calculator. On thin order books, the spread and slippage can cost more than the fee itself.
Every market has written rules that name what settles it. On polymarket.com, outcomes go through UMA's Optimistic Oracle, a system outside Polymarket where a result is proposed and can be challenged:
Disputes happen, and they can go against what many traders expected. In March 2025 a market on whether Ukraine would agree to a Trump minerals deal before April (about $7M traded) resolved Yes although no deal had been signed; Polymarket said it was not a market failure and issued no refunds. In July 2025 a UMA vote resolved a market on whether Zelenskyy would wear a suit before July (about $237M traded, according to Decrypt) as No, even though many outlets had described his outfit as a suit. Because UMA votes are weighted by token holdings, large holders can sway outcomes. Read a market's rules before you trade it.
polymarket.com blocks or limits trading in a published list of countries and regions, including the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Australia and four Canadian provinces. Regulators in several countries that are not on that list, such as Spain, India and Turkey, have ordered blocks of their own. Polymarket's help center and its developer docs also don't fully agree with each other.
US residents use the separate Polymarket US app, not polymarket.com. For the country-by-country picture on both Polymarket and Kalshi, with dates and sources, see where you can use Polymarket and Kalshi. This is not legal advice. Access rules change often, and we re-verify them quarterly.
Both are order-book prediction markets whose fees peak at a 50¢ price. The main differences: Kalshi is a CFTC-regulated US exchange on bank rails that has also accepted members from many other countries since October 2025. polymarket.com is crypto-based and serves users outside the US, and Polymarket US is its separate, CFTC-regulated US app. Fees differ by category, and Kalshi charges makers on some series while Polymarket makers pay nothing.
We put the same events side by side, with current prices, depth and after-fee cost, on the compare page. For Kalshi itself, see how Kalshi works and our Kalshi review.
Polymarket is a prediction market where people trade shares on the outcome of real-world events, priced between $0 and $1. Each share on the winning side is worth $1 when the market resolves. It runs as two separate products: polymarket.com for users outside the US, and the CFTC-regulated Polymarket US app for US residents.
You buy Yes or No shares from other traders through an order book, and the price reflects the market's implied probability. When the event is decided, the market resolves (on polymarket.com, through UMA's Optimistic Oracle). Winning shares are then worth $1 each and losing shares $0. You can also sell before the market resolves.
It depends on where you are physically located. Polymarket publishes a list of blocked and close-only countries for polymarket.com, and some regulators block it even where it is not on that list. US residents can only use the separate Polymarket US app. Our availability page covers the rules and regulator actions country by country, as of September 2026. This is not legal advice.
On polymarket.com, takers pay a fee on most categories, calculated as shares × rate × price × (1 − price). Makers pay nothing, and geopolitics markets are fee-free. Polymarket charges no fee to deposit or withdraw, though third parties may. The US app has its own fee schedule. Rates as of 2026-09-20.
On polymarket.com you withdraw from your Polymarket wallet to a crypto wallet or exchange address you choose. Polymarket's docs describe withdrawals as instant with no Polymarket fee, though token conversion can involve slippage and exchanges or on-ramps may charge their own fees. On the Polymarket US app, which is funded in US dollars, Polymarket describes withdrawals as free.
On polymarket.com, resolution runs through UMA's Optimistic Oracle. An approved proposer posts the outcome with a bond; if nobody disputes it within 2 hours, it stands. A disputed outcome can go to a vote of UMA token holders, which takes about 48 hours, and a fully disputed market takes about 4–6 days. In a widely reported 2025 dispute, Polymarket issued no refunds.
Polymarket US operates as a CFTC-regulated designated contract market, and US residents cannot trade on polymarket.com. Several states are challenging prediction markets in court, and a Nevada court has barred Polymarket from offering event contracts to Nevada residents without a gaming licence. This is regulatory information, not legal advice.
Every fact on this page comes from the sources below, checked on September 24, 2026. Where only secondary reporting was available, we say so. Products, fees and access rules change; we re-verify this page quarterly.
PolyKal is an independent research tool. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or operated by Polymarket or Kalshi. We don't take trades or hold funds, and nothing here is legal, tax or financial advice. Last reviewed September 24, 2026.
Polymarket is a prediction market: you buy and sell shares on the outcome of real-world events. Shares are priced between $0 and $1, and each share on the winning side is worth $1 when the market resolves. Since late 2025 it has run as two separate products: the international site polymarket.com, which runs on the Polygon blockchain, and the Polymarket US app, a CFTC-regulated exchange for US residents. This guide explains how trading, deposits, costs and resolution work on each, as of September 2026.
Polymarket was founded in 2020 by Shayne Coplan, who is its CEO, and launched in New York in June 2020. The company named in US court filings and Justice Department releases is Blockratize Inc. The polymarket.com footer names Adventure One QSS Inc., and the US product is operated by QCX LLC d/b/a Polymarket US.
What you trade are shares in a question with a deadline and written rules, such as whether a candidate wins an election or whether a central bank cuts rates at a given meeting. The share price reflects what traders collectively think the chance is: a Yes share at 30¢ implies roughly a 30% probability.
Your counterparty is another trader. Orders meet in an order book, and on most market categories the trader whose order fills immediately (the taker) pays a fee. Polymarket has also drawn large outside investment, including from Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), the owner of the New York Stock Exchange; the details are in our Polymarket review.
There are now two Polymarkets, and they are not interchangeable. Polymarket's help center describes them as separate products with unconnected accounts and separate support teams ([email protected] and [email protected]).
The rest of this guide covers both and flags where they differ. An account on one does not give you access to the other.
Each market is a question with two outcomes, usually Yes and No. Shares trade between $0 and $1. When the market resolves, each winning share can be redeemed for $1.00 and each losing share is worth $0.
Prices come from an order book of buy and sell orders placed by other traders. Two order types matter:
Because a Yes share and a No share on the same market always add up to $1 at resolution, the two sides mirror each other: No at 45¢ corresponds to Yes at 55¢.
You can also buy with a card or bank transfer through third-party on-ramps such as MoonPay, available on Polymarket since July 2024 (card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, bank transfer, and PayPal in some regions). Polymarket says it charges no fee to deposit or withdraw, but intermediaries such as MoonPay or Coinbase may charge their own.
Polymarket's docs describe withdrawals as instant, with no Polymarket fee, although converting between tokens can involve slippage; they suggest splitting withdrawals above $50,000. Tokens sent on a network Polymarket doesn't support may be lost for good (Polymarket runs a recovery tool for some wrong-token deposits), so check the deposit page before you send.
On polymarket.com, takers pay a fee on most categories and makers pay nothing. The fee follows one formula, shares × rate × price × (1 − price), so it is largest at 50¢ and shrinks toward the extremes. The rate depends on the market's category, from 0 on geopolitics to 0.07 on crypto. Taker fees were phased in during 2026: first on short-term crypto markets by early January, then on nearly all categories from March 30, 2026.
The US app has its own published fee schedule, with a taker fee, a maker rebate and volume-based discounts, separate from polymarket.com's.
For worked examples and the current rate in each category, see Polymarket fees explained. To price a specific trade, use the fee calculator. On thin order books, the spread and slippage can cost more than the fee itself.
Every market has written rules that name what settles it. On polymarket.com, outcomes go through UMA's Optimistic Oracle, a system outside Polymarket where a result is proposed and can be challenged:
Disputes happen, and they can go against what many traders expected. In March 2025 a market on whether Ukraine would agree to a Trump minerals deal before April (about $7M traded) resolved Yes although no deal had been signed; Polymarket said it was not a market failure and issued no refunds. In July 2025 a UMA vote resolved a market on whether Zelenskyy would wear a suit before July (about $237M traded, according to Decrypt) as No, even though many outlets had described his outfit as a suit. Because UMA votes are weighted by token holdings, large holders can sway outcomes. Read a market's rules before you trade it.
polymarket.com blocks or limits trading in a published list of countries and regions, including the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Australia and four Canadian provinces. Regulators in several countries that are not on that list, such as Spain, India and Turkey, have ordered blocks of their own. Polymarket's help center and its developer docs also don't fully agree with each other.
US residents use the separate Polymarket US app, not polymarket.com. For the country-by-country picture on both Polymarket and Kalshi, with dates and sources, see where you can use Polymarket and Kalshi. This is not legal advice. Access rules change often, and we re-verify them quarterly.
Both are order-book prediction markets whose fees peak at a 50¢ price. The main differences: Kalshi is a CFTC-regulated US exchange on bank rails that has also accepted members from many other countries since October 2025. polymarket.com is crypto-based and serves users outside the US, and Polymarket US is its separate, CFTC-regulated US app. Fees differ by category, and Kalshi charges makers on some series while Polymarket makers pay nothing.
We put the same events side by side, with current prices, depth and after-fee cost, on the compare page. For Kalshi itself, see how Kalshi works and our Kalshi review.
Polymarket is a prediction market where people trade shares on the outcome of real-world events, priced between $0 and $1. Each share on the winning side is worth $1 when the market resolves. It runs as two separate products: polymarket.com for users outside the US, and the CFTC-regulated Polymarket US app for US residents.
You buy Yes or No shares from other traders through an order book, and the price reflects the market's implied probability. When the event is decided, the market resolves (on polymarket.com, through UMA's Optimistic Oracle). Winning shares are then worth $1 each and losing shares $0. You can also sell before the market resolves.
It depends on where you are physically located. Polymarket publishes a list of blocked and close-only countries for polymarket.com, and some regulators block it even where it is not on that list. US residents can only use the separate Polymarket US app. Our availability page covers the rules and regulator actions country by country, as of September 2026. This is not legal advice.
On polymarket.com, takers pay a fee on most categories, calculated as shares × rate × price × (1 − price). Makers pay nothing, and geopolitics markets are fee-free. Polymarket charges no fee to deposit or withdraw, though third parties may. The US app has its own fee schedule. Rates as of 2026-09-20.
On polymarket.com you withdraw from your Polymarket wallet to a crypto wallet or exchange address you choose. Polymarket's docs describe withdrawals as instant with no Polymarket fee, though token conversion can involve slippage and exchanges or on-ramps may charge their own fees. On the Polymarket US app, which is funded in US dollars, Polymarket describes withdrawals as free.
On polymarket.com, resolution runs through UMA's Optimistic Oracle. An approved proposer posts the outcome with a bond; if nobody disputes it within 2 hours, it stands. A disputed outcome can go to a vote of UMA token holders, which takes about 48 hours, and a fully disputed market takes about 4–6 days. In a widely reported 2025 dispute, Polymarket issued no refunds.
Polymarket US operates as a CFTC-regulated designated contract market, and US residents cannot trade on polymarket.com. Several states are challenging prediction markets in court, and a Nevada court has barred Polymarket from offering event contracts to Nevada residents without a gaming licence. This is regulatory information, not legal advice.
Every fact on this page comes from the sources below, checked on September 24, 2026. Where only secondary reporting was available, we say so. Products, fees and access rules change; we re-verify this page quarterly.
PolyKal is an independent research tool. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or operated by Polymarket or Kalshi. We don't take trades or hold funds, and nothing here is legal, tax or financial advice. Last reviewed September 24, 2026.