Kalshi and Polymarket charge takers by the same formula, contracts times a rate times price times one minus price, and both cap out at $1.75 per 100 contracts on a 50-cent crypto contract; KalshiKalshi and Polymarket charge takers by the same formula, contracts times a rate times price times one minus price, and both cap out at $1.75 per 100 contracts on a 50-cent crypto contract; Kalshi
Kalshi vs Polymarket (2026): Same $1.75 Fee Cap, Different Everything Else, and Which One Can You Actually Use?
Kalshi and Polymarket charge takers by the same formula, contracts times a rate times price times one minus price, and both cap out at $1.75 per 100 contracts on a 50-cent crypto contract; Kalshi applies its 7% rate to every category, settles in US dollars through a CFTC-regulated exchange and pays interest on idle cash, while Polymarket's global venue charges 0% to 7% by category with free makers, settles in USDC on Polygon and is closed to US persons, who use the separate, dollar-settled Polymarket US.
Key Takeaways
- Kalshi's taker fee is 7% of price times one minus price on every contract, peaking at $1.75 per 100 contracts at 50 cents, and its maker fee of 1.75% applies only on designated series.
- Polymarket's global venue charges takers by category, 7% on crypto, 5% on sports, economics, culture and weather, 4% on finance, politics and tech, and 0% on geopolitics, with makers free and rebated.
- Polymarket US, the CFTC-regulated exchange Polymarket built from its QCEX acquisition, is dollar-settled, open to US persons since its December 2025 relaunch, and runs its own category schedule.
- Kalshi is the deeper US book by a wide margin according to third-party depth studies, while Polymarket's global venue handled about $36 billion in the year to February 2026.
- Polymarket's global venue blocks 39 countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Singapore and Japan, and 31 of those also appear on Kalshi's restricted list.
- MEXC Prediction Markets, in public beta since 16 March 2026, is a third option for readers outside the United States and outside the roughly 40 jurisdictions it does not serve.
Two venues, one fee formula, and a map that changed in December 2025
For most of their history the Kalshi vs Polymarket question had an easy answer: Kalshi if you were American and wanted a regulated exchange, Polymarket if you were anywhere else and wanted zero fees.
Both halves of that answer are out of date.
Polymarket introduced taker fees in stages during 2026 and now publishes a category schedule whose crypto rate matches Kalshi's exactly, and it relaunched a CFTC-regulated US exchange in December 2025 that dropped its waitlist in May 2026.
What has not changed is the shape of the choice: one venue settles in dollars under a US regulator with the deepest books in the country, the other settles in USDC on a blockchain with cheaper categories, free makers and no US access on its global platform.
This article puts both fee formulas side by side with a verification date on each, prices a year of trading at three activity levels, maps where each venue is open, and ends with a verdict by reader type; where MEXC fits, it says so in its own labelled section.
How do Kalshi and Polymarket compare at a glance?
Dimension | Kalshi | Polymarket (global venue) | Polymarket US |
Markets | Politics, economics, weather, sports, culture and crypto event contracts; binary contracts settling at $1 or $0 | Politics, geopolitics, sports, crypto, culture, mentions and finance; binary contracts in USDC, including 15-minute and 5-minute crypto markets | The global lineup inside a US regulatory wrapper, dollar-settled |
Fees | Taker: 7% times price times one minus price, capped at $1.75 per 100 contracts at 50 cents; maker: 1.75% on designated series only | Taker by category: crypto 7%, sports and economics, culture, weather and other 5%, finance, politics, tech and mentions 4%, geopolitics 0%; makers pay nothing and receive rebates funded from taker fees | Separate dollar-settled schedule with free makers and category taker rates, effective 1 July 2026 per third-party summaries; check Polymarket US for current rates |
Regulation and availability | CFTC-designated contract market since 2021; US persons with state-level exceptions for sports contracts; restricted list in its member agreement covers the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan and Thailand among others | 2022 CFTC settlement barred US access; 39 blocked countries including the US, UK, France, Singapore and Japan | CFTC-licensed via the QCEX acquisition in July 2025; relaunched December 2025, waitlist dropped May 2026; US persons only |
Settlement and funding | US dollars; ACH free, wire $25 per side; interest paid on idle cash tracking Treasury rates, per Kalshi | USDC on Polygon; no Polymarket fee to deposit or withdraw USDC, though on-ramps may charge | US dollars, no wallet needed |
Liquidity | Deepest US books; about 53% of combined weekly volume per DefiRate's tracker; 0.11 cents of slippage on a 50,000-contract order in River Markets' case study | About $36.2 billion traded in the year to February 2026 and 47% of combined weekly volume, per River Markets and DefiRate | Young books; 3.62 cents of slippage on the same 50,000-contract order, per River Markets |
Signature feature | Regulatory certainty, tax paperwork and interest on cash; distribution through Robinhood and Google Finance | On-chain settlement, maker rebates and the widest event board | Polymarket's board with a US licence |
Data verified as of 21 September 2026 against Kalshi's fee schedule and member agreement, Polymarket's fee documentation and terms, and third-party depth and volume trackers named in each cell.
A third option outside the United States: MEXC Prediction Markets
Traders outside the United States who want event contracts settled inside a crypto exchange account sometimes look at MEXC Prediction Markets, which entered public beta on 16 March 2026 on the same matching engine as MEXC's spot and futures markets.
MEXC does not serve United States residents, so for a US-based reader the choice stays between Kalshi and Polymarket US.
MEXC Prediction Markets is also not offered in roughly 40 jurisdictions listed in its launch announcement, including Canada, Australia, India, Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, France, Italy, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Poland and the Netherlands, so check eligibility before funding an account.
Readers weighing event contracts against futures can start with our prediction markets vs futures comparison.
How are Kalshi and Polymarket fees actually calculated?
By the same formula, with different rates and different treatment of makers.
On Kalshi a taker pays the number of contracts times 7% times the contract price times one minus that price, rounded up, which peaks at $1.75 per 100 contracts when the price is 50 cents and falls toward zero at either extreme.
Kalshi also charges makers 1.75% on the same formula, but only on designated series, so a resting limit order on most markets pays nothing.
On Polymarket's global venue a taker pays the same formula with a category rate: 7% on crypto, which produces the same $1.75 cap as Kalshi, 5% on sports, economics, culture, weather and other markets for a $1.25 cap, 4% on finance, politics, tech and mention markets for a $1.00 cap, and 0% on geopolitics.
Polymarket makers pay nothing on any market and receive daily rebates funded from taker fees, which rewards passive execution.
Polymarket US publishes its own exchange-wide schedule, effective 1 July 2026 per third-party summaries, with free makers, category taker rates and volume rebates for large takers, and it differs from the global schedule on some categories, so check its fee page for current rates.
A 100-contract taker order at 50 cents therefore costs $1.75 on Kalshi in any category, $1.75 on a Polymarket crypto market, $1.25 on a Polymarket sports market, $1.00 on a Polymarket politics market and nothing on a Polymarket geopolitics market.
Third-party summaries of Polymarket's schedule differ on the sports rate, with some quoting 3%, so this article uses the 5% figure from Polymarket's fee documentation and flags the discrepancy.
Where can you legally trade Kalshi and Polymarket?
Kalshi and Polymarket US serve the United States, Polymarket's global venue serves most of the rest of the world, and the three barely overlap.
Kalshi is a CFTC-designated contract market that serves US persons in most states, with state-level exceptions for sports contracts, and its member agreement lists restricted jurisdictions that include the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan and Thailand.
Polymarket's global venue blocks 39 countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Singapore and Japan, and 31 of those appear on both platforms' lists, so a reader in one of those places has neither.
Polymarket US is open to US persons only, and it is the venue a US reader actually compares with Kalshi.
Readers weighing alternatives can use our Kalshi alternatives guide and our Polymarket alternatives guide, which list both platforms' restricted countries in full.
How is money moved and settled on each platform?
In dollars on Kalshi and Polymarket US, and in USDC on Polymarket's global venue.
Kalshi accounts fund by ACH at no charge and by wire at $25 per side, contracts settle at $1 or $0 in dollars, and idle cash earns interest tracking Treasury rates, per Kalshi.
Polymarket's global venue holds USDC on Polygon, charges no Polymarket fee to deposit or withdraw it, and resolves markets on-chain, with disputes escalated to the UMA oracle, so a trader needs a wallet or an on-ramp such as an exchange.
Polymarket US removes the wallet: it takes dollar deposits and settles in dollars under CFTC customer-funds rules.
For a trader who already holds USDC, the global venue is the frictionless choice; for a trader who wants a bank account at each end, Kalshi and Polymarket US are.
Which has more liquidity?
Kalshi in the United States, Polymarket everywhere else, and the gap between Kalshi and Polymarket US is wider than either fee table.
DefiRate's prediction market tracker put weekly volume at about $2.7 billion on Kalshi and $2.1 billion on Polymarket's global venue, a 53 to 47 split, with Polymarket US at a fraction of a percent as its beta rolled out.
River Markets recorded about $36.2 billion traded on Polymarket's global venue in the year to February 2026, with sports the largest category.
In River Markets' live case study, a 50,000-contract order slipped 0.11 cents on Kalshi, 0.05 cents on Polymarket's global venue and 3.62 cents on Polymarket US, which made the youngest book the most expensive route all-in despite its lower schedule.
Fees decide small trades; depth decides large ones, and on the largest US contracts Kalshi's books are still the deepest.
What do the two regulatory histories mean?
Kalshi built its exchange inside the US regulatory perimeter from the start, and Polymarket bought its way in.
Kalshi has operated as a CFTC-designated contract market since 2021, prevailed in the DC Circuit in October 2024 when the court declined to block its election contracts, and has faced state-level challenges over sports contracts that remain unsettled in several states.
Polymarket settled with the CFTC in January 2022 for offering unregistered binary options and blocked US users, was searched by the FBI in November 2024 without charges being reported, acquired the CFTC-licensed exchange QCEX in July 2025, and relaunched a US venue in December 2025.
On resolution, Kalshi settles by its own published rules under CFTC oversight, while Polymarket's global venue relies on the UMA oracle, which has produced disputed outcomes on a handful of markets.
For a US reader both venues are now regulated; the difference is that Kalshi's record is longer and Polymarket's global venue is off-limits.
What else does each platform offer?
Kalshi offers interest on idle cash, distribution through Robinhood and Google Finance, and tax paperwork that a US accountant will recognise.
Polymarket's global venue offers 15-minute and 5-minute crypto markets, maker rebates, on-chain settlement and the widest event board, including mention and geopolitics markets that Kalshi does not list.
Polymarket US offers the Polymarket board with dollar accounts and API access, and its depth is still catching up to its schedule.
What does a year on Kalshi vs Polymarket really cost?
Price a trader who takes 1,000 contracts a month at 50 cents, the price where fees peak.
On Kalshi that is $17.50 a month, or about $210 a year, in any category.
On Polymarket's global venue it is $210 a year on crypto markets, $150 on sports, $120 on politics and nothing on geopolitics, and a trader who posts limit orders instead pays nothing on any category.
A trader who takes 100 contracts a month pays about $21 a year on Kalshi and $12 on Polymarket politics markets, and a trader who takes 10,000 a month pays about $2,100 against $1,200.
At every level the cheaper venue on paper is Polymarket's global venue, and at every level the question of whether you can open it comes first.
Who should choose Kalshi, and who should choose Polymarket?
Choose Kalshi if you live in the United States and trade size, because its books are the deepest in the country and its regulatory record is the longest.
Choose Kalshi if you want dollar settlement, interest on idle cash and tax forms you can hand to an accountant.
Choose Polymarket's global venue if you live outside its 39 blocked countries and want the cheapest categories, free maker orders and on-chain settlement.
Choose Polymarket US if you are in the United States, prefer Polymarket's board and mostly post limit orders, and accept thinner books while they deepen.
If you live in the United Kingdom, France, Singapore or Japan, neither platform's public venue is open to you, and our alternatives guides above list what is.
The MEXC View: where we stand on Kalshi vs Polymarket
MEXC Learn is published by MEXC, which runs its own prediction markets product outside the United States, so read this section as an interested party's opinion.
We think Kalshi's decision to build inside the regulatory perimeter from day one has paid off, and that its depth on large US contracts is an advantage no fee schedule offsets.
We think Polymarket's category schedule is the more honest design, because it charges less where markets are cheaper to make, and its free-maker rule rewards the patient trader.
We also think a US reader comparing the two today is really comparing Kalshi with Polymarket US, and that the young book on the latter matters more than its lower schedule until it deepens.
MEXC Prediction Markets sits outside this comparison for US readers and for readers in the roughly 40 jurisdictions it does not serve, and we make no fee claim for it here; readers who want the mechanics can read our guide to hedging with prediction markets and our guide to trading Fed decisions with crypto.
Every figure in this article carries a verification date, and our review methodology explains how we score platforms we compete with.
Frequently asked questions
Is Kalshi better than Polymarket?
Kalshi is better for US traders who want depth, dollar settlement and a long regulatory record.
Polymarket's global venue is better for non-US traders who want cheaper categories, free maker orders and on-chain settlement.
Is Polymarket cheaper than Kalshi?
On most categories, yes: Polymarket charges takers 0% to 5% outside crypto against Kalshi's flat 7%, and its makers pay nothing.
On crypto markets the two cap at the same $1.75 per 100 contracts.
Can I use Polymarket in the US?
Not the global venue, which has blocked US persons since a 2022 CFTC settlement.
US traders use Polymarket US, the CFTC-regulated exchange relaunched in December 2025.
Is Kalshi legal in my state?
Kalshi is a CFTC-designated contract market available in most US states.
Sports contracts face state-level exceptions, so check Kalshi's state list before trading them.
How are Kalshi fees calculated?
Takers pay contracts times 7% times price times one minus price, rounded up, which peaks at $1.75 per 100 contracts at 50 cents.
Makers pay 1.75% on designated series only.
Does Polymarket charge fees?
Yes, on takers by category since 2026: 7% on crypto, 5% on sports, 4% on politics and 0% on geopolitics, by the same price formula.
Makers pay nothing and receive rebates.
Which has more liquidity, Kalshi or Polymarket?
Kalshi in the US and Polymarket's global venue worldwide, with a roughly 53 to 47 weekly split per DefiRate.
Polymarket US is far smaller than either.
Can I use Kalshi outside the US?
Only in jurisdictions not on its member agreement's restricted list, which includes the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan and Thailand.
Check the agreement for your country before funding.
Risk and compliance disclosure
Event contracts settle to zero when an outcome does not occur, so a position can lose its entire value; resolution disputes, thin books and state-level legal challenges add settlement and access risk on top of that.
Fees, market lists and regional availability change; every figure above carries its verification date and should be re-checked before you act on it.
MEXC does not serve United States residents, and MEXC Prediction Markets is not offered in roughly 40 jurisdictions listed in its launch announcement.
MEXC does not accept United Kingdom residents, is listed on ESMA's register of non-compliant entities for the EEA, and is offboarding Netherlands users by 16 November 2026, so the MEXC sections above are informational for readers in those regions.
Nothing here is investment, legal or tax advice.
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This article is provided by Sarah Chen for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. Cryptocurrency markets involve significant risk. Please conduct independent research or consult a qualified professional before making any investment decisions. The views expressed do not necessarily represent those of MEXC or its affiliates.
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