21+ only. Gambling problem? Call or text 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2573). Chat available at ncpgambling.org/chat
Kalshi is a CFTC-regulated prediction-market exchange where you trade yes/no contracts on real-world events, including a deep slate of US sports markets. It is not a sportsbook in the conventional sense. Is Kalshi legit? Yes — it operates under federal CFTC oversight as a Designated Contract Market, with segregated customer funds and KYC on every account. Prices are quoted as cents on the dollar, every contract settles at $1 or $0, and the platform is available in all 50 states. New users can claim a Trade $10, Get $10 Bonus on sign-up. We trade Kalshi for futures, season-long markets, and the kind of edge plays that traditional books do not price cleanly.
What is Kalshi?
Kalshi is a federally regulated prediction-market exchange where users trade yes/no contracts on the outcomes of future real-world events, including a deep slate of US sports markets. Unlike a traditional sportsbook, Kalshi does not act as the house. Instead, traders take the opposite side of each other’s positions on a central exchange, with prices reflecting the market’s collective view of how likely an event is.
The platform is regulated by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) as a Designated Contract Market, the same regulatory category as the major commodities exchanges. Customer funds are held in segregated accounts and every user goes through identity verification. Kalshi is available in all 50 US states.
Every Kalshi contract settles at either $1 (the predicted outcome happened) or $0 (it didn’t). Prices are quoted in cents between those two endpoints and effectively represent the implied probability of the outcome. A contract trading at 65¢ means the market thinks there is a 65% chance the event will resolve yes. Traders can buy, sell, and close positions before settlement, the same way you would trade any other financial instrument.
This is a Kalshi review built for US bettors weighing prediction markets against sportsbooks. Below: how the pricing model differs, what is and is not legal in your state, the sports markets you can actually trade, fees, the welcome offer, sign-up steps, and our verdict on who Kalshi suits best.
Is Kalshi legit?
Short answer: yes. Kalshi is a federally-regulated Designated Contract Market (DCM) licensed by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). That is the same regulatory tier as the major US futures exchanges — about as legitimate as an event-contract platform gets in the United States.
The practical safeguards that come with that status:
- Segregated customer funds — your deposits are held separately from Kalshi’s operating capital, so customer money is ring-fenced if the company ever runs into trouble.
- KYC identity verification on every account — state-issued ID and SSN at sign-up. No anonymous trading.
- Federal oversight — the CFTC supervises market integrity, settlement, and contract design. State-level legal challenges to Kalshi’s sports markets have been filed in Nevada and New Jersey, but Kalshi remains operational nationally while those cases work through the courts.
- Form 1099-B tax reporting — gains reported as short-term capital gains rather than gambling winnings.
- Real volume — Kalshi clears tens of millions of dollars across political, economic and sports markets daily, with public order books and live pricing.
The risks on Kalshi are market risks, not platform risks: you can lose your stake on any contract that resolves against you, and thinner markets carry wider spreads. None of that makes Kalshi a scam — it makes it a regulated exchange, which is exactly what it sets out to be.
Kalshi referral code: Trade $10, Get $10 bonus
New Kalshi users can claim a Trade $10, Get $10 Bonus credit. The mechanics are simple: register, fund the account, place qualifying trades totalling $10 within 30 days of sign-up, and the bonus credit lands in the account.
The bonus is tradable on any Kalshi market and can be withdrawn after the qualifying trade settles. There is no rollover requirement of the sort sportsbook welcome offers carry. The $10 size is modest compared with sportsbook welcome bonuses that run to $1,000 in bonus bets, but Kalshi’s bonus terms are cleaner. No 1x rollover, no expiry cliff, no specific-market restrictions on use. Full T&Cs are listed on the operator page at sign-up.
Click through to Kalshi via the link above and you will land on a co-branded welcome page reading “SQUAWKA sent you $10 on Kalshi.” That confirms the referral tracking is in place and your $10 bonus is queued behind your first qualifying trade.
No code to copy or remember — the $10 bonus is automatically applied through the Squawka referral link. New users will see “SQUAWKA sent you $10 on Kalshi” on the Kalshi sign-up screen. Trade $10 within 30 days of registration to unlock the bonus.
How Kalshi works
Every Kalshi market is a yes/no question about a real-world event. “Will Arsenal win the Premier League?” “Will the New York Knicks win the NBA Championship?” “Will the US national team reach the World Cup quarter-finals?” Each market resolves at a specific date based on a defined outcome.
Prices are quoted between 1¢ and 99¢. A price of 65¢ means the market collectively prices the yes outcome at a 65% implied probability. Buy a yes contract at 65¢ and if the event happens, the contract settles at $1.00, paying out 35¢ profit on a 65¢ stake. If it does not happen, the contract settles at $0 and the 65¢ is lost. You can also buy the no side, or sell your position at any time before expiry at whatever the market is currently quoting.
Event contracts explained
The legal framework here matters. Kalshi event contracts are classified by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission as commodity derivatives, not gambling instruments. That is the regulatory wedge that lets Kalshi operate where sportsbooks cannot. It is also the reason gains are typically reported as short-term capital gains on Form 1099-B rather than as gambling winnings.
How pricing differs from sportsbook odds
A sportsbook builds its margin into the price. American odds of +110 / -130 on a two-way market sum to an implied probability above 100%, with the gap going to the book as overround. Kalshi has no overround built in. The yes and no prices on a true two-way market should sum to roughly 100¢, with the small remainder going to platform fees. For a sharp bettor, the absence of built-in juice is the single biggest structural difference.
Is Kalshi legal in the US?
Kalshi operates under federal CFTC regulation as a Designated Contract Market. That federal status means Kalshi is available in all 50 states, including states where sports betting is not legal. For US bettors in Florida, Georgia, Texas, Utah, California, Idaho, Alabama, Minnesota and other states without legal sportsbooks, Kalshi is the only regulated route to trade event outcomes on major sports.
State-level challenges to Kalshi’s sports markets have been filed, most prominently in Nevada and New Jersey, where regulators have argued the offering encroaches on state gaming jurisdiction. As of writing, Kalshi remains operational nationally while those challenges work through the courts. For the long-form regulatory background, see our Kalshi explainer.
Tax treatment is one of the practical upsides. Kalshi issues a Form 1099-B for net gains, treating event-contract profits as short-term capital gains. That is materially different from gambling winnings, which carry their own reporting rules and cannot offset losses against winnings outside the same calendar year. Always consult a tax professional for your specific situation. This is not legal or tax advice.
Sports markets covered on Kalshi
Kalshi’s sports coverage has expanded sharply through 2026. The main markets readers will trade:
- NFL — game winners, weekly totals, conference championship futures, Super Bowl outright, MVP, regular-season win totals
- NBA — game winners, championship futures, MVP, Finals MVP, conference winners
- MLB — game winners, World Series outright, league championship futures, MVP
- NHL — game winners, Stanley Cup futures, Conn Smythe
- Soccer — Premier League title, Champions League winners, FIFA 2026 World Cup outright, MLS Cup, Liga MX winner
- Tennis — Grand Slam winners (Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, US Open)
- Golf — major championship winners (Masters, PGA, US Open, Open Championship)
- Player awards — Ballon d’Or, Heisman, Hart Trophy, Cy Young (see our Ballon d’Or predictions for live Kalshi pricing)
Where Kalshi lags sportsbooks is in-play markets and prop depth. Kalshi has been adding live markets through 2026, but a sportsbook still beats it on volume of in-game lines and player props during a televised match. For pre-event futures and outrights, Kalshi pricing is often sharper than the sportsbook equivalent because the no-overround structure compresses the spread.
Live example: Kalshi’s World Cup 2026 outright winner market — one of the deepest sports event-contracts on the platform right now.
Kalshi
Who wins the 2026 World Cup?
Live implied probability from 48 nation markets · 12 Jun 2026, 16:19 UTC
Movement · last 90 days
Top 5 favourites now
Claim offer → What to trade on this week with Kalshi
These are Match Result calls drawn from our full World Cup 2026 previews. Kalshi prices them as cent-denominated contracts (a “Mexico Wins” contract at 58¢ pays $1 if Mexico win, $0 if not), so use the link below to see the live price before committing capital. Kalshi is regulated by the CFTC and is available to verified users in all 50 US states.
| Date | Match | Pick |
|---|---|---|
| 15/06 | Spain vs Cape Verde | Spain to Win |
| 17/06 | England vs Croatia | England to Win |
Trade these markets on Kalshi →
Fees and spreads
Kalshi charges a small per-trade fee that scales with position size. The fee is typically a fraction of a cent per contract, well below the implied juice on a sportsbook two-way market. Withdrawals process via bank ACH and are free, settling in one to three business days. Instant withdrawal to debit card is available with a small processing fee.
Funding methods are limited to ACH bank transfer and debit card. Kalshi does not accept credit-card deposits, e-wallets, or cryptocurrency. That is intentional, reflecting Kalshi’s status as a regulated futures exchange rather than a payment-flexible sportsbook. For comparison with the crypto-native alternative — now live for US real-money trading with a 100% deposit match up to $50 (code ACQUIRE05), available in all states except nine — see our Polymarket review.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Available in all 50 states, including states without legal sportsbooks
- CFTC-regulated, providing federal-level oversight
- No overround built into pricing, so true probability sits closer to the quoted price
- Position selling lets you exit before expiry rather than holding to settlement
- Tax treatment as capital gains is cleaner than gambling-winnings reporting
- Welcome bonus has no rollover requirement
Cons
- Liquidity is thinner than sportsbooks on smaller markets, which can widen the spread
- Pricing model takes adjustment for bettors trained on American odds
- Fewer in-play and player-prop markets than a mainstream sportsbook
- Welcome bonus of $10 is small compared with sportsbook offers
- Funding limited to ACH and debit card; no credit card, no e-wallet, no crypto
How to sign up for Kalshi
- Go to the Kalshi sign-up page via our welcome offer link
- Register with Google sign-on (the primary path Kalshi offers from the welcome lander) or with an email address and password
- Verify your identity by uploading a state-issued ID and providing your Social Security number for tax reporting
- Connect a bank account or debit card and fund the account with at least $10
- Place qualifying trades totalling $10 within 30 days to unlock the bonus credit
- Trade on any open market: NFL, NBA, MLB, soccer, tennis, golf, awards, futures
Kalshi vs Polymarket: which to use?
The two big prediction-market platforms are now both live for US real-money trading, so the choice comes down to how they work rather than which one you can use. Kalshi is federally regulated as a CFTC Designated Contract Market, trades in all 50 states, and funds direct from your bank. Polymarket leads on global liquidity and runs a broader event-type catalogue (sports plus politics, culture, economics), funds in USDC over crypto rails, and is available across the US except for nine states (AZ, IL, MA, MD, MI, MT, NJ, NV, OH) following its 2025 QCX acquisition. New Polymarket users can claim a 100% deposit match up to $50 with code ACQUIRE05 — full breakdown in our Polymarket review. For the broader background, the Polymarket explainer covers the mechanics. Live soccer prediction-market pricing is tracked in our soccer predictions hub.
Final verdict
Kalshi is the cleanest legal route for US bettors who want regulated access to sports event outcomes, particularly in states without legal sportsbooks. The pricing model is sharper than sportsbook odds on long-dated futures and outright markets. It is not a like-for-like replacement for a sportsbook on a live NFL Sunday, where market depth and prop volume still matter. For the right reader, Kalshi is a serious tool rather than a curiosity.
Kalshi review FAQs
Is Kalshi gambling?
Legally, no. Kalshi operates as a CFTC-regulated commodity-exchange platform, with event contracts treated as derivatives rather than wagers. Gains are reported as short-term capital gains via Form 1099-B, not gambling winnings.
Is Kalshi legal in my state?
Kalshi is available in all 50 US states because it operates under federal CFTC regulation. State-level challenges have been filed in Nevada and New Jersey but as of writing Kalshi remains operational nationally while those cases proceed.
How do I withdraw money from Kalshi?
Withdrawals process via bank ACH free of charge, settling in one to three business days. Instant withdrawal to debit card is available with a small processing fee. All withdrawals require identity verification on first request.
How are Kalshi gains taxed?
Kalshi issues a Form 1099-B for net gains, treating event-contract profits as short-term capital gains. That tax treatment differs materially from gambling winnings. Consult a qualified tax professional for your specific situation.
Can I day-trade on Kalshi?
Yes. Kalshi markets are continuous: you can buy a contract at one price and sell it at a different price before expiry. Active market participants treat Kalshi much like a futures-exchange book rather than a sportsbook.
What is the minimum deposit on Kalshi?
The minimum deposit is $10. The Trade $10, Get $10 Bonus welcome offer requires a qualifying $10 trade within 30 days of sign-up.
Does Kalshi have a promo code or referral code?
No — Kalshi does not use promo codes or bonus codes. The $10 sign-up bonus is unlocked by joining via a referral link (you will land on a welcome page reading “SQUAWKA sent you $10 on Kalshi”) and trading at least $10 within 30 days of registration. There is no code to enter; the referral attribution comes from the link itself.
How does Kalshi compare with a sportsbook?
Kalshi is sharper on long-dated futures and outright markets thanks to no built-in overround, but sportsbooks beat Kalshi on in-play depth, player props, and welcome-bonus size. Many active bettors run both: sportsbook for live and prop volume, Kalshi for futures and structurally sharper pricing.
Must be 18+. Trading event contracts involves risk of loss. Past performance is not indicative of future results. This page is informational and is not investment advice. If you or someone you know has a problem with gambling, help is available at 1-800-GAMBLER.
Squawka may earn a commission from links on this page at no additional cost to you. Welcome offer terms vary; check the operator’s site for current T&Cs.