Robinhood is an investing app recognized for trading stocks, crypto, and ETFs. However, it has expanded into prediction markets covering sports, politics, economics, and culture. My Robinhood review takes a closer look into this prediction market app.
For starters, only US traders aged 18+ can sign up and trade on prediction markets. The prediction markets don’t work like traditional sportsbook bets. Instead, you’ll buy event contracts tied to specific event outcomes. In this review, I’ll explain how these event contracts work, the top prediction markets, and the fees and commissions. Keep on reading to find out more.
| Support Types | E-Mail, Live Chat, Hotline |
|---|
Based on other Robinhood reviews, it offers two bonuses in the form of free stocks. Here’s what you need to know:
When you sign up for Robinhood, you’ll get a welcome bonus in the form of a free stock, worth between $5 and $200. The catch is that you can’t just sell that bonus stock and use the money to buy Robinhood event contracts. Instead, Robinhood lets you reinvest it by purchasing fractional shares of another stock you actually want to own.
To claim the offer, I didn’t need to make an initial deposit or apply a promo code. Once my account was verified, I received the stock bonus. As I confirmed in other Robinhood reviews, the stock bonus is randomized, but most new traders usually receive $5 worth.
Robinhood also has a referral program for existing players. Similarly, you get a free stock for every friend who signs up through your unique referral code. After they complete the verification requirements and link their bank account, you’ll receive your free stock. The referral stock bonus is also worth between $5 – $200.
To reiterate, none of these stock bonuses can be used to purchase event contracts for Robinhood prediction markets.
Before discussing the available markets for trading at Robinhood, let’s take a closer look at how the prediction markets work.
Much like traditional sportsbooks, you’re making predictions about how certain events will turn out. These events are usually tied to sports, politics, pop culture, the economy, and more.
Unlike traditional sportsbooks where odds are fixed by the house, Robinhood matches your predictions with other traders. For every prediction market, you’ll purchase event-based contracts.
These markets are structured in a simple Yes/No format: Will this happen? Yes or No. “Yes” means you’re predicting the outcome will happen, but “No” indicates you’re against it. If your prediction matches the outcome, your contract pays out.
It’s worth mentioning that having a Robinhood account doesn’t give you immediate access to its prediction markets. I had to apply for a Derivatives account first, which also required having an opened individual investing account.
Once your account is set up and funded, you can start buying event contracts across a variety of markets.
As I explained in the previous section, Robinhood prediction markets are built entirely on event contracts. You buy “Yes” or “No” positions based on whether you think the event will occur. These contracts settle at either $1 or $0 and are priced between $0.01 and $0.99.
If you’re correct at settlement, you receive $1 per contract; if you’re wrong, you’ll get nothing. I noticed that Robinhood doesn’t set contract prices because it acts as a broker. However, Robinhood partners with Kalshi, a regulated exchange that lists the available event contracts.
Each contract price you see reflects the market’s implied probability on the likelihood of the event outcome. For instance, if a “Yes” contract costs $0.80, the market is signalling an 80% probability that the event will occur.
Robinhood prediction markets cover a wide range of events, including sports, politics, elections, technology, culture, economics, climate, crypto, and more. Below, I’ll be discussing its top prediction markets: sports, politics, economics, and culture.
Robinhood’s sports prediction markets are among its most popular and volatile. However, I have to admit that its sports market depth isn’t as broad as what you’ll find in traditional sportsbooks.
However, I found contracts listed for major US sports leagues, including the NFL, NCAAB, NBA, and MLB. It also covers 10+ sports, including top categories like college football, pro hockey, men’s college basketball, golf, racing, soccer, and tennis.
The common types of markets you’ll find include:
Being a major tennis fan, I checked out the predictions. I found a prediction market on who will win the Davis Cup. The options were between Italy and Spain. Then I had to purchase “Yes” or “No” contracts on who I believed would win.
Again, these contracts aren’t for Robinhood sports betting because the outcomes aren’t based on odds formats. Instead, you’re trading contracts tied to sports events based on simple “Yes” or “No” questions.
Robinhood politics prediction markets revolve around election outcomes, candidate performance, legislative milestones, and approval rating thresholds. Note that these markets don’t imply Robinhood election betting because the prediction outcomes are also tied to Yes/No formats.
Here are some of the current Robinhood politics prediction markets I found:
Robinhood economics prediction markets align with traditional financial forecasting. These markets feature GDP growth, inflation outcomes, Federal Reserve policies, unemployment rate, and price data.
Common economic prediction markets include:
The culture markets at Robinhood are based on pop culture outcomes. I discovered prediction markets under the Grammys, Oscars, Golden Globes, music, movies, games, and streaming. Here are the examples of pop culture markets Robinhood offers:
Other pop culture markets include people and TV. For instance, predicting the most-searched person on Google this year and how many subscribers Mr Beast will get this year.
Regarding TV shows prediction markets, I purchased contracts under:
Remember, the cost to buy Robinhood event contracts ranges from $0.01 to $0.99. After purchasing Yes/No positions on my desired prediction markets, I had two choices:
Closing a position simply means exiting your trade by taking the opposite side of the same contract. For example, if you’re holding “Yes” contracts and decide you want out, you’ll sell those contracts, which, in practice, is the same as someone else buying “No”.
To clarify, closing a contract doesn’t mean you’ve changed your prediction; it just means cashing out early. The outcome of your positions depends on whether you hold until settlement or close early.
Every contract I held till the final settlement that was correct got me $1. If you close early, your gain or loss comes from the difference between the price you paid when you opened the contract and the price you receive when you close it. Here’s a clear example:
Suppose you buy 50 “Yes” contracts at $0.40 each for Arsenal to win the UEFA Champions League, spending a total of $20. One of the three outcomes below will likely suffice:
Your 50 “Yes” contracts settle at $1 each, giving a payout of $50. The net gain will be calculated as the starting price ($50) minus the initial cost ($20), for a $30 gain (excluding fees).
You’ll receive $0, meaning your contracts expire worthless, and you’ll lose the $20 spent.
If the market price later for Arsenal rises for “Yes” contracts, you can close early. That means selling your 50 contracts and locking in the profit. For instance, if it rises to $0.70 before the outcome, you can sell the 50 contracts to receive $35 back.
Your gain would be calculated by the difference between the closing price ($35) and the initial cost ($20). The resulting payout from selling the contracts will be $15 (excluding fees).
In my Robinhood review, I observed that a commission fee is charged on event contract trades. From my experience, Robinhood charges a minimal commission of $0.01 per contract whenever you buy or sell.
Likewise, you may encounter an extra fee on your contracts depending on the exchange that lists it. It could either be an exchange fee or a spread built into the contract price. Your maximum gain per contract is the difference between the price you paid and $1, minus any fees or spreads.
Here’s a detailed summary of how each fee works:
With an exchange fee, the exchange also charges $0.01 for every event contract bought or sold. For example, if you buy a “No” contract trading at $0.50 per contract, you’ll pay both Robinhood fees ($0.01) and the exchange fee ($0.01), making your total cost $0.52.
If the event outcome is correct, the contract settles at $1, giving you a maximum gain of $0.48 per contract, calculated as ($1 – $0.52).
The exchange combines the costs of a “Yes” and a “No” position when a spread is included in an event contract. In this situation, the total price of a “Yes” and “No” contract might be slightly over $1 (usually $1.01). The spread amount is how the exchange obtains revenue without charging a separate fee.
For instance, if you buy a “Yes” contract at $0.70, the exchange embeds a $0.01 spread into the prices so that “Yes” and “No” together equal $1.01 instead of $1.
No exchange fee will be charged, but you’ll still pay Robinhood’s $0.01 commission, bringing the total cost to $0.71 per contract. If the event outcome is correct, the contract settles at $1, meaning your maximum payout is $0.29 per contract.
Although event contracts incur a fee, I still find Robinhood prediction market fees to be the lowest among other operators.
For starters, Robinhood prediction markets are only available through the mobile app, not the site. The app can be downloaded from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store and provides access to all Robinhood products, including prediction markets.
It features a dark background with green accents and white fonts for easy readability. Since the app has all its products, it was hard to find the “Prediction Markets” hub right away. However, once I landed on it, I had no issues finding my way around.
The prediction markets are organized into various sections such as college football, golf, economics, politics, pop culture, and more. Tapping any prediction market reveals the listed contracts. You’ll see ongoing and even future contracts within each category.
For sports prediction markets, you’ll see real-time updates and live scores as the match progresses. This feature allowed me to make informed decisions about my contracts, because with the match progress, I could decide whether to hold or close them.
Performance-wise, the app loads fast, and I didn’t encounter any glitches during my trades. The only disadvantage is that Robinhood prediction markets are only available on the app. For traders hoping to use a laptop, you can’t access its prediction markets from a browser.
All things considered, Robinhood provides a user-friendly, intuitive app for prediction markets.
I had to fund my Robinhood Derivatives account through my investing account. The options for deposits include:
Standard bank transfer (ACH)
Debit cards (Visa and Mastercard)
Instant bank transfer
Robinhood doesn’t support payments from credit cards or prepaid cards. Only Visa and Mastercard debit cards issued by a US bank are supported. To link your debit card, you’ll be charged $1.95 to confirm it. After confirmation, Robinhood will remove the charge.
For withdrawals, you can use the same options above. There are no fees attached to standard bank transfers (ACH). However, instant withdrawals to your debit card or bank account include a 1.75% processing fee ranging from $1 to $150 per transaction.
Below are the processing times for Robinhood deposit and withdrawal:
| Payment options | Deposit time | Withdrawal time |
|---|---|---|
| Standard bank | Up to 5 business days | 1-5 working days |
| Debit card (Visa and Mastercard) | 30 minutes | Within 24 hours |
| Instant bank transfer | Instant | Instant |
Please note that you may undergo a verification process before deposits and withdrawals are processed. You’ll be required to submit your Social Security Number (SSN) and a photo of a valid ID.
For support at Robinhood, I had access to 24/7 live chat, phone, and email. Phone support is only available on weekdays (excluding holidays) from 7 am – 9 pm ET. Plus, you can’t call the team directly. Instead, I had to place a call request for the team to call me.
Regarding live chat, you can access it at any time of the day. Initially, a bot will try to provide answers for your queries, but you can switch to an agent. I tested the live chat at odd hours and still received swift, clear responses from a human agent.
On the other hand, email support isn’t as fast as the other two methods. However, you can expect your issues to be resolved within 24 hours.
Besides these options, there’s a help center addressing Robinhood prediction market questions. I got answers to event contracts, fees, deposit timelines, and eligibility conditions here. You can just check out this section first before contacting the support team.
Robinhood is a legitimate prediction market app for US traders interested in trading event outcomes . It’s legal in all US states, but sports event contracts aren’t accessible to Maryland residents. Despite its wide coverage, most people still believe that its prediction markets are a form of gambling.
However, that’s not the case because Robinhood is a financial brokerage regulated by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). It also partners with Kalshi, which the CFTC also regulates for its event contracts. Each event contract is treated as a financial derivative, not a traditional bet.
In accordance with US financial laws, only traders aged 18 or older can access Robinhood prediction markets. Robinhood also follows standard Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) procedures to ensure the legal age requirement is met. You’ll be asked to submit a valid government-issued ID to prove you’re of legal age.
Yes. Robinhood is safe for prediction trading. It utilizes industry-standard security measures to keep your prediction market trading activities safe. For instance, the app is secured using the Transport Layer Security (TLS) protocol.
This encryption technology helps ensure your personal and financial data remains private. The app also supports two-factor authentication (2FA) to prevent unauthorized users from invading your account.
In the app, you can also enable biometric logins, such as fingerprint and Face ID. This extra security ensures you’re the only one with access to your account.
My 2026 Robinhood review covers that it’s safe and legitimate for trading on prediction markets. It applies a simple structure for trading on prediction markets. All I had to do was purchase contracts based on “Yes” or “No” questions tied to an event outcome.
Its prediction markets cover events across sports, politics, pop culture, and economics. For every contract traded, I was charged $0.01, which, in my opinion, is one of the lowest fees I’ve seen.
Another aspect I noticed is that Robinhood prediction markets are only available through its app. You can easily download it on your Android or iOS phone. The app is well-secured and offers 2FA as an extra layer of protection against unauthorized access.
If you’ve considered the Robinhood pros and cons and still want to sign up, click the on-page banners to get started.
Robinhood prediction markets focus on event outcomes tied to contracts. These contracts are traded at simple “Yes” or “No” questions rather than traditional odds. If you purchase a “Yes” contract, that means you believe an event will occur; “No” means you’re against it.
Yes. You’ll get a free stock bonus up to $200, but you can’t use it on prediction markets.
To start trading on Robinhood prediction markets, you have to be 18 years old or older.
Yes. Robinhood prediction markets are available in all US states. However, Maryland residents aren’t allowed to purchase event contracts for sports prediction markets.
Yes. Robinhood charges a low commission of $0.01 per contract bought or sold. You might also receive an extra fee of $0.01 from the exchange offering the contract.
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| 1. 🥇Kalshi
Kalshi Review | Kalshi Promo Code | $10 Bonus |
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Crypto.com Crypto.com Review | Crypto.com Promo Code | 100% up to $250 |
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Polymarket
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OG.com OG Prediction Market Review | OG Promo Code | up to $100 Bonus |
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FanDuel Predict FanDuel Predict Review | FanDuel Predict Promo Code | N/A |
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UnderDog Predict UnderDog Predict Review | UnderDog Predict Promo Code | No Bonus Available |
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PrizePicks Predict
PrizePicks Predict Review | PrizePicks Predict Promo Code | No Bonus Available |
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Fanatics Markets
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Coinbase Predictions
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| 10. 👑 DraftKings Predicts (Review upcoming) | N/A |
| 11. 😴 Sleeper Markets (Review upcoming) | N/A |
| 12. 🐄 MooMoo
MooMoo Review | MooMoo Promo Code | No Bonus Available |
| 13. 🚀 ROLR
ROLR Review | ROLR Promo Code | N/A |
| 14. ♊ Gemini (Review upcoming) | N/A |
| 15. 🐂 WeBull (Review upcoming) | N/A |
| 16. 📈 Interactive Brokers (Review upcoming) | N/A |
| 17. ⚡ Novig (Review upcoming) | N/A |
| 18. 🔮 ProphetX (Review upcoming) | N/A |
| 19. 🦅 TruthPredict (Trump platform launch, on hold) | N/A |
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