Kalshi

Kalshi Review

Kalshi is a blend of a stock exchange, sports betting site and innovative prediction markets, operating legally in the US and beyond. Our Kalshi review will cover multiple aspects of the prediction market platform and what you can expect to find there.

What Is Kalshi?

Kalshi is an online prediction market trading platform. It works like a financial exchange, allowing users to buy and sell contracts. These contracts are focused on future events, covering everything from everyday life: politics, weather, finance, the entertainment industry, and so on.

Kalshi gives people an opportunity to trade contracts on real-life events. They work on a simple yes or no proposition, so you actually choose whether an event will happen or not and purchase your contracts accordingly.

The company was founded in 2018 by Tarek Mansour and Luana Lopes Lara, two fellow MIT alumni who spotted a market gap for a place where people could trade contracts on future outcomes. The website launched in 2021, and the sports markets were added in January 2025.

Read our Kalshi review below to learn more about the platform.

Is Kalshi Legit and Secure?

Kalshi’s operations are regulated by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The company legally operates an exchange prediction market platform in all 50 US states and in multiple countries around the world in accordance with US trade regulations and compliance requirements.

Since it’s not a gambling company, it doesn’t require a gambling licence to operate on US soil, but that sometimes raises questions about its legitimacy. So is Kalshi legit and safe to use? A simple answer is yes, as it technically doesn’t require a licence, and it is regulated by the CFTC.

There have been concerns and even lawsuits against Kalshi for offering elections-related and sports markets, but they have been resolved in the company’s favour.

One of the latest incidents involved Kalshi withholding payouts on certain NFL markets, but the company eventually paid out all winnings. We could find complaints like these in users’ Kalshi reviews.

How to Sign Up and Get Started

You have three options when signing up for a Kalshi account: using an email address, your Google account, or your Apple ID. Here are the steps you need to follow:

• Choose your preferred sign-up method (we used an email address)
• Set up a password for future logins into your account
• Provide all the information Kalshi requires from you
• Verify your account
• Make your first deposit to fund the account
• Browse the available markets to decide what contracts you wish to purchase
• Get ready to trade

If there is a bonus you can claim, you will need to make a deposit first to receive the bonus funds. You can then purchase your contracts by selecting a Yes or No option on the market you pick. How does that work, or even better, how does Kalshi work?

Each market you wish to predict has a Yes or No option whose prices add up to around $1. For example: Will Jannik Sinner win the Australian Open?

Since the odds based on people buying and selling their contracts are about 50-50, you will need around 50 cents to purchase one contract on either the Yes or No option. If you pick the Yes option and Sinner wins the tournament, you will get a $1 for every contract you own.

This is not a sportsbook, so it’s not officially a Kalshi betting platform we are talking about here, but a trading platform.

Available Markets and Event Types

Since the majority of users come from the US, many Kalshi markets are about something that’s happening in the USA at the moment or in the future. Categories are very varied, so you can find anything from politics, economics and financials to entertainment and weather.

You can also predict the price of various cryptocurrencies at a certain point, for example. You can buy a Yes or No contract on the market predicting whether the Bitcoin price will be above $100,000 in January/February, or at any given period.

It’s Kalshi’s sports prediction markets that have caused the most controversy, with many accusing the company of running illegal sports betting operations. While Kalshi’s sports markets are not exactly like the ones you find in sports betting, you can still predict the outcome of sporting events.

Fees and Payouts: What Does It Cost?

Payouts are determined by the outcome of the event you have contracts on, or by trading your contracts with other participants. If you wish to sell your contracts, you do so at the market price, determined by other people’s purchasing activities.

If you wish to wait for the event’s outcome, and your contracts end up being the winning ones, you get $1 per contract. You can calculate your profit by subtracting what you paid for those contracts from the payout you received. Note that Kalshi charges a $2 flat fee per withdrawal via bank cards.

Payouts should be instant for all payment options except for bank transfers. There have been some complaints about Kalshi refusing to pay out on some NFL sports markets, but all of them have been successfully resolved.

User Experience: Platform, App, and Interface

Whether you use Kalshi on a computer or your phone, you are in for a seamless user experience. The website is intuitive, and you can filter markets by category, search for a specific event in the search bar, or choose to see only live markets.

The Help Centre and FAQ section are only a click away, just like all available markets you can trade on. Both the website and iOS and Android mobile apps are responsive and well-designed, so we found them easy to use and navigate. You can trade 24/7 at Kalshi.

Customer Support

The best way to contact customer support is to email them with a detailed explanation of your issue and the questions you have. Alternatively, the support team is available on Discord and social media channels, but there is no live chat option.

Deposits, Withdrawals, and Payment Methods

Kalshi accepts the deposit methods you would expect to find at a US sportsbook. You can fund your account using your bank card, Google or Apple Pay, or via a bank transfer. If you prefer cryptocurrency, USDC, Ethereum, and Solana are also available for deposits.

As we have already mentioned, most deposits and withdrawals should be processed instantly, but bank transfers can take up to three days. Don’t forget the Kalshi fees we mentioned earlier, and add the 2% processing fee for bank card deposits.

The minimum deposit for most fiat methods is $10, with a maximum of $2,500.There are no minimum limits for cryptocurrency, and the maximum is capped at $500,000 in the chosen currency.

Final Thoughts: Who Should Use Kalshi?

Everybody who wishes to make some money by trading contracts on their interests and have fun in the meantime can try Kalshi. Also, bettors who don’t have access to legal sportsbooks, especially in the US, can try Kalshi for making their sports predictions.

However, you should understand that Kalshi is not a betting site, and you can’t find the variety of betting markets you can at a regular sportsbook.

Another interesting thing about Kalshi, especially if you are a beginner, is that you can trade in small amounts. High-volume traders can also find their fun here, but the trading on some markets could be limited to $25,000.

Crypto enthusiasts are also welcome at Kalshi, as they can use cryptocurrencies for deposits and trading and predict future crypto coin prices. Remember that Kalshi operates a legal exchange market platform in all US states and beyond.