Kalshi event contracts allow you to buy and sell positions on several real-world events, including sports outcomes and election results.
We have compiled this comprehensive guide to unpack the trading experience on Kalshi, including the key terms you should note.
Remember, there is no betting on Kalshi since it is not a traditional sportsbook, but you are allowed to buy and sell contracts. Therefore, it is essential to understand how event contracts work on the exchange.
Besides explaining how to purchase contracts, we also detail the trading fees and share a few tips you can use when using the exchange.
Kalshi is not a traditional online sportsbook, so don’t expect Kalshi election betting or sports betting. Instead, Kalshi is a prediction market site where you can trade on the outcome of future events.
All trades are in binary form (yes or no), with contracts costing from $0.01 to $0.99. Winning Kalshi event contracts payouts are settled at $1, while losing contracts are settled at $0.
Unlike traditional sportsbooks, which set fixed odds by the house, Kalshi does not set prices on future events or contracts. Instead, the value of each contract is based on the trades made by other users on the likelihood of an event occurring. As long as there are two sides for every trade, you are allowed to buy and sell contracts.
The higher the contact price, the more likely users are to think an event will occur. For example, if the LA Rams are $0.75 to reach the Super Bowl, the price implies that traders predict a 75% likelihood of the Rams reaching the Super Bowl.
To illustrate how and what Kalshi is, below you’ll find a live prediction market, out of hundreds available, for the 2028 election:
Kalshi was the first prediction market to be regulated in the US. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) regulates the derivatives market in the US, and Kalshi is CFTC-regulated, operating as a Designated Contract Market (DCM).
At the time of writing this guide, Kalshi is available in all 50 US states; however, ongoing discussions are underway regarding the legality of Kalshi in some US states. Should the availability of the exchange change in the future, we will update this guide to include the restricted US states.
You can only join Kalshi if you are 18 years or older. You can click the banners on this page to sign up at the prediction site using either the Kalshi app or the desktop site. Below is a step-by-step guide on creating a new trading account:
Click any banners on this page to access the prediction site.
Select the Sign Up button at the top of the page.
Choose whether you want to sign up with your Google, Apple or email account.
If you selected email, complete the registration form by entering your email address and creating a password.
Read and accept the terms and conditions and submit your registration.
As we covered earlier, Kalshi is not a sportsbook, so you will not find traditional Kalshi sports betting markets and odds. The prediction market site allows you to trade contracts on several future event outcomes. Below is an overview of Kalshi event contracts, fees and the payout process.
You are allowed to trade on the outcomes of several real-world events. The Kalshi event contracts range from political and sports outcomes to awards shows and election results.
As long as there are two sides to a trade, you will be permitted to buy and sell contracts. The table below details some of the Kalshi event contracts:
| Event contracts on Kalshi | Details |
| Elections, legal and political outcomes |
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| Cultural and entertainment predictions |
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| Company and technology forecasts |
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| Economic, social and environmental events |
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| Sports outcomes |
|
Check out the current prediction market for the price of Bitcoin:
Since you can buy and sell event contracts provided that there is sufficient market volume, there are associated Kalshi fees for every trade. Generally, there are two trading fees: a taker fee and a maker fee.
The taker fee is a fee incurred when buying a contract, and if you are trading on long shots, your fees are much lower compared to buying shares with 50/50 outcomes. At the time of writing this guide, the highest taker fee incurred when purchasing 100 contracts is $1.75.
The maker fee is a cost when you are selling a contract. This fee is incurred when your contract is resting on the order book.
Usually, when there is not enough volume or liquidity for your contract, it means that your contract will not be bought immediately.
If you are selling contracts that are not bought immediately, you will be charged a taker fee once the trade is executed.
| Cost per 1 contract | Trading fees (per 1 contract) | Cost per 100 contracts | Trading fees (per 100 contracts) |
| $0.01 | $0.01 | $1.00 | $0.07 |
| $0.05 | $0.01 | $5.00 | $0.34 |
| $0.10 | $0.01 | $10.00 | $0.63 |
| $0.15 | $0.01 | $15.00 | $0.90 |
| $0.20 | $0.02 | $20.00 | $1.12 |
| $0.25 | $0.02 | $25.00 | $1.32 |
| $0.30 | $0.02 | $30.00 | $1.47 |
| $0.35 | $0.02 | $35.00 | $1.60 |
| $0.40 | $0.02 | $40.00 | $1.68 |
| $0.45 | $0.02 | $45.00 | $1.74 |
| $0.50 | $0.02 | $50.00 | $1.75 |
| $0.55 | $0.02 | $55.00 | $1.74 |
| $0.60 | $0.02 | $60.00 | $1.68 |
| $0.65 | $0.02 | $65.00 | $1.60 |
| $0.70 | $0.02 | $70.00 | $1.47 |
| $0.75 | $0.02 | $75.00 | $1.32 |
| $0.80 | $0.02 | $80.00 | $1.12 |
| $0.85 | $0.01 | $85.00 | $0.90 |
| $0.90 | $0.01 | $90.00 | $0.63 |
| $0.95 | $0.01 | $95.00 | $0.34 |
| $0.99 | $0.01 | $99.00 | $0.07 |
After you have bought a contract, you are allowed to close your position early. If there is sufficient market volume for your contract, you can sell it before the real-world event closes to either take your profit or mitigate your losses. Thereafter, you can withdraw your winnings to your bank account or crypto wallet. Please note that a $2 fee applies to all debit withdrawals. Below is a guide on how to cash out event contract winnings on Kalshi:
Click the Transfers tab.
Select Withdraw from Kalshi.
Choose your preferred withdrawal method.
Confirm the withdrawal.
If you need help with your Kalshi event contracts trading, we have shared three tips you can follow. Keep the following in mind when buying and selling contracts:
Kalshi offers several future events for trading, allowing traders to buy and sell contracts on sports outcomes, election results, award shows, and even weather forecasts.
While there are diverse trading options available, it is important that you are responsible when trading on the exchange.
As with most prediction sites, there is an array of resources available to get the latest updates on real-world events, so ensure you are kept up to date with the current happenings before buying and selling contracts.
If you are ready to place trades on Kalshi, you can fast-track your registration by clicking the banners on this page to sign up. All the best and trade responsibly.
Yes. Currently, Kalshi is CFTC-regulated, operating as a Designated Contract Market (DCM), and is available in all 50 US states.
Future events are contracts on real-world activities where you can trade on the outcome of a specific event. For example, you can buy and sell shares on sports outcomes, election results and economic forecasts.
If there is sufficient market volume for your contract, you can sell it before the real-world event concludes to either take your winnings or mitigate your losses.
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