# Kalshi vs Polymarket > Independent. Not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by Novig. Canonical: https://novigapi.com/compare/kalshi-vs-polymarket Facts checked: 2026-11-12 Both are CFTC-regulated in the US: Kalshi since 3 Nov 2020 and Polymarket US since 9 Jul 2025. Checked 12 Nov 2026, Kalshi charges takers 0.07 x C x P x (1 - P) on most markets, and Polymarket US charges between 0.0695 and 0.095 by monthly volume. Polymarket's international venue charges 0.05 on sports. (Source: [CFTC: Designated Contract Markets list](https://www.cftc.gov/IndustryOversight/IndustryFilings/TradingOrganizations?col=Status&dir=DESC&page=1)) Kalshi and Polymarket are the two largest general prediction markets. Both now have a CFTC-designated US exchange, and both use the same fee curve, coefficient x contracts x P x (1 - P). The coefficients, maker terms and volume tiers are what separate them. ## Fees Fees per the platforms' own fee pages, checked 12 Nov 2026 | Fees (checked 12 Nov 2026) | Kalshi | Polymarket US | Polymarket international | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Taker coefficient | 0.07 on most markets | 0.095 below $10,000 trailing 30-day taker volume, falling to 0.0695 at $250,000+ | Sports 0.05; crypto 0.07; politics and finance 0.04; geopolitics 0 | | Maker | Multiplier 0 by default; combos 50% of taker | Rebate from $10,000,000 maker volume | No fee; rebates funded by taker fees | | $100 of payout at 50% | $1.75 | About $2.38 at Tier 1; $1.74 at Tier 4 | $1.25 on sports | | Rounding | Rounded up | Per its execution-report rules | 5 decimal places | | Novig, for reference | 0.06 taker, in-game only on game markets | | | So, are Kalshi fees higher than Polymarket? Against the international venue, yes: 0.07 against 0.05 on sports. Against Polymarket US, it depends on volume: a new account pays 0.0695 for its first seven days, then a small trader below $10,000 of monthly taker volume pays 0.095, above Kalshi's 0.07. ## Coverage Coverage, checked 12 Nov 2026 | Coverage (checked 12 Nov 2026) | Kalshi | Polymarket | | --- | --- | --- | | Sports | Yes | Yes | | Other categories | Economics such as CPI, commodities, weather, politics and more | Crypto, finance, politics, economics, culture, weather, tech, mentions, geopolitics | | Regions | US exchange | Polymarket US for US users; separate international venue | | Regulator | Kalshi, CFTC-designated 3 Nov 2020 | QCX LLC doing business as Polymarket US, CFTC-designated 9 Jul 2025 | ## Data access Data access, checked 12 Nov 2026 | Data access (checked 12 Nov 2026) | Kalshi | Polymarket | | --- | --- | --- | | Official API | Yes: docs.kalshi.com | Yes: docs.polymarket.com and docs.polymarket.us | | Fee data per market | Fee schedule published by series | Each market's fee parameters are in its market details | | History | Not covered by the pages we read | Not covered by the pages we read | | What novigapi.com adds | Nothing: novigapi.com covers Novig only | Nothing: novigapi.com covers Novig only | If you compare either of them with Novig, the third sports venue in many of these searches, Novig's free daily CSVs and [novigapi.com](https://novigapi.com/novig-api) give you its side of the price. ## A worked example Take $100 of payout at 50% on a sports market. Kalshi charges 0.07 x 100 x 0.5 x 0.5 = $1.75. The international Polymarket venue charges 0.05 x 100 x 0.25 = $1.25. Polymarket US charges $2.375 at Tier 1, which its rounding rules then settle, or $1.74 at Tier 4. Novig, for comparison, charges $1.50 if the fill matches in-game and nothing if it matches pregame on a game market. Polymarket US also pays weekly taker rebates of 3% to 30% of taker fees once your qualifying taker volume passes $250,000, and offers an Accelerated Tier Placement if you can prove volume on another prediction market. Kalshi's page lists non-standard series with their own multipliers, so check the series before you trade. ## Who should use which - **Small US traders**: Kalshi's 0.07 beats Polymarket US's 0.095 Tier 1 once the new-account week ends. - **High-volume US traders**: Polymarket US Tier 4 at 0.0695 edges Kalshi's 0.07. - **Sports-only traders**: also look at Novig, which charges 0.06 and only in-game on game markets. - **Non-US traders**: Polymarket's international venue has the lowest sports coefficient of the three, 0.05. Both venues publish their fees as data, which makes automated cost checks possible. Polymarket documents a fee schedule object on each market with a rate, an exponent and a taker-only flag. Kalshi lists non-standard series and multipliers on its fee schedule page. Read the current values at trade time rather than hardcoding them, since both have changed their schedules during 2026. ## Verdict Kalshi has the longer US track record and a simple single coefficient; Polymarket US rewards volume with lower tiers and rebates. For sports specifically, check Novig too: on the published schedules it is cheaper than both in-game and free pregame on game markets. ## Questions ### Is Kalshi a copy of Polymarket? No. Kalshi received its CFTC designation on 3 Nov 2020, years before QCX LLC, now Polymarket US, was designated on 9 Jul 2025 (CFTC list checked 12 Nov 2026). Both use a similar P x (1 - P) fee curve. ### Is Kalshi or Polymarket legal in the USA? Both run CFTC-designated contract markets for US users: Kalshi, and QCX LLC doing business as Polymarket US (checked 12 Nov 2026). Polymarket's international venue is a separate exchange. ### Are Kalshi fees higher than Polymarket? Than the international venue, yes: 0.07 against 0.05 on sports. Than Polymarket US, it depends on volume: Polymarket US charges 0.095 below $10,000 of monthly taker volume and 0.0695 at $250,000 or more (checked 12 Nov 2026). ### Is Kalshi more regulated than Polymarket? Kalshi and Polymarket US are both CFTC-designated contract markets. Kalshi has held its designation longer, since 3 Nov 2020; the international Polymarket venue is not a CFTC exchange (checked 12 Nov 2026). ## Sources - [Kalshi: Fee schedule](https://kalshi.com/fee-schedule) - [Kalshi: Fee schedule PDF (July 2026 update)](https://kalshi.com/docs/kalshi-fee-schedule.pdf) - [Kalshi API docs: Fee rounding](https://docs.kalshi.com/getting_started/fee_rounding) - [Polymarket docs: Fees](https://docs.polymarket.com/trading/fees.md) - [Polymarket US docs: Fee Schedule](https://docs.polymarket.us/fees) - [CFTC: Designated Contract Markets list](https://www.cftc.gov/IndustryOversight/IndustryFilings/TradingOrganizations?col=Status&dir=DESC&page=1) - [Novig docs: Trading Fees](https://docs.novig.com/fees.md) --- Get a free API key: https://novigapi.com/sign-up . Docs: https://novigapi.com/docs . MCP: https://novigapi.com/api/mcp . Operated by Stunning Couches LLC. Independent. Not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by Novig.