How does Kalshi make money? Market revenue explained
Kalshi makes money mainly by charging transaction and listing-related fees on its regulated event contracts and by offering an exchange venue. Like other exchange-style prediction markets, Kalshi’s revenue comes from fees collected on trades and possibly from product or listing services. Below I contrast that model with Polymarket’s mechanics and explain where a tool like PolyArb fits for traders.
Kalshi’s basic revenue levers
Kalshi operates as a regulated exchange where users trade contracts tied to binary outcomes. The platform earns revenue from fees charged on trades and from any platform services around listing, market-making, or specialized products. Fees can be explicit taker fees, maker rebates, or fixed per-contract charges depending on the exchange’s rules.
Because Kalshi is a regulated, fiat-native venue, its fee structure and compliance overhead differ from crypto-native protocols. That affects pricing, latency, and which third-party tools integrate easily with the market.
How that compares to Polymarket
Polymarket runs on Polygon and uses the CLOB model with pUSD settlement and UMA for resolution. Revenue on Polymarket comes through variable taker fees (0%–1.8% depending on category); maker fees are zero. The underlying mechanics—CTF outcome tokens, split/merge/redeem, and relayer gas sponsorship—change operational costs compared with a fiat exchange.
For arbitrageurs the practical differences are latency, available instruments, and fee bands. Polymarket’s gasless relayer and ERC-1155 tokens mean you interact differently than on Kalshi.
Where PolyArb helps traders
PolyArb is an arbitrage bot built for Polymarket markets. It runs at 40ms latency, provides Telegram and Discord alerts, is non-custodial, and is live today. The product is $99/month and guarantees a $7.62 minimum edge per trade as part of its service framing.
If you’re comparing venues because you hunt spreads, the choice isn’t only fees. Execution speed, market depth, and tooling matter. PolyArb targets intra-market arbitrage on Polymarket where those variables are optimized for rapid capture.
Practical considerations for traders
Don’t treat exchange fee schedules as the only cost: consider slippage, partial fills, resolution disputes (UMA), and settlement timing. Those risks can erase apparent fee-driven advantages whether you trade on Kalshi or Polymarket.
Also respect geo restrictions and terms of service for each platform. For execution-focused strategies, the right bot and connectivity often beats tiny fee differentials.
Start capturing Polymarket spreads with PolyArb
Subscribe to PolyArb for $99/month to run a low-latency, non-custodial arbitrage bot with Telegram and Discord alerts and a $7.62 minimum guaranteed edge.
FAQ
- Does Kalshi charge maker or taker fees?
- Kalshi’s public model centers on trade fees; specifics vary by contract and regulatory setup. Exact maker/taker splits depend on Kalshi’s current fee schedule rather than a single universal rate.
- Is trading on Kalshi cheaper than Polymarket?
- Not directly comparable. Kalshi is fiat and regulated; Polymarket uses pUSD on Polygon with variable taker fees (0%–1.8%) and zero maker fees. Execution speed, liquidity, and tooling influence effective cost more than a headline fee.
- Can I use PolyArb on Kalshi markets?
- PolyArb is built for intra-Polymarket arbitrage and integrates with Polymarket mechanics. It does not route orders to Kalshi, which is a separate regulated exchange.
- What non-fee risks should I consider?
- Key risks include slippage and partial fills, UMA resolution disputes, settlement timing, smart-contract risk on-chain, and geo-restrictions. All can affect realized profit margins.