Fourteen apps now offer event contracts in the US, but only six run their own exchange; the rest are brokers routing your orders to Kalshi or CME. That matters because it decides whose rules settle your contract, whose fee you pay and whose state fight you're exposed to. Our picks: Kalshi as the default, Polymarket for politics and world events, Novig for pre-game sports, Robinhood or Coinbase if you already live in those apps and want the same Kalshi markets with one login. Everything below is as of October 15, 2026.
The table
| App | Who runs the market | Markets | Fee on a 50¢ contract | Age | Availability | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kalshi | Own CFTC exchange (since 2020) | Everything | ~1.75¢ taker; makers free | 18 | Nationwide; sports pulled in NV, MI, WA | Default pick; sports, combos, economics |
| Polymarket | Own CFTC exchange (US, since Dec 2025); global crypto site | Everything | 1–1.75¢ by category; geopolitics free | 18 | Most states; NV blocked; sports restricted in several | Politics, world events, macro |
| Novig | Own CFTC exchange (since June 2026) | Sports only | Free pre-game; 0.75¢ live | 21 | 47 states (not AZ, MI, NV) | Cheapest sports singles |
| Robinhood | Broker; routes to Kalshi | Sports, crypto, climate, culture, some elections | Up to ~2¢ (1¢ Robinhood + 1¢ exchange) | 18 | Most states; sports restricted in some | Existing Robinhood users |
| Coinbase | Broker; routes to Kalshi | Politics, sports, culture, economics | Not published; $1 minimum trade | 18 | All 50 states (Jan 2026) | Crypto holders who want USD/USDC in one place |
| FanDuel Predicts | FCM; contracts listed on CME | Finance, economics, crypto, culture; sports in non-sportsbook states | 2% of potential payout (2¢ per $1) | 18 | All 50 for finance; sports only where sportsbooks aren't legal | Sports in CA, TX, GA, FL |
| DraftKings Predictions | FCM; CME at launch, own Railbird exchange later | Sports, finance, expanding | Not published as a schedule | 18 | 38 states; sports in CA, FL, GA, TX among others | Same as FanDuel; DK ecosystem |
| ProphetX | Own CFTC exchange + clearinghouse (June 2026) | Sports only | 2% of net profit on winning singles; makers free | 19 | 48 states + DC (not NV) | Sportsbook-style odds, RFQ parlays |
| Underdog Predict | Own exchange + clearinghouse (acquired March 2026) | Sports, politics, economics, entertainment, weather | 2¢ per contract at purchase | 18 | ~36 states + DC | Underdog fantasy users |
| Crypto.com | Own CFTC-licensed derivatives exchange | Sports, crypto, politics, news | Built into price; not itemised | 18 | Excludes ~11 states incl. NY, IL, MA, MD, MI, NV, OH | Crypto-funded traders |
| Gemini Predictions | Own CFTC exchange (Gemini Titan) | Sports, crypto, economics, politics | Maker/taker, variable | 18 | All 50 states + DC | Gemini users; NFL hub |
| OG.com | Crypto.com's dedicated platform (Feb 2026) | Sports, politics, finance, culture | 2¢ per $1 on open | 18 | Not AZ; sports restricted in several | Social features, chat |
| Fanatics Markets | FCM (Morton St. Trading, via Paragon) | Sports, entertainment, politics, finance | Not published | 21 | ~23 states | Fanatics / FanCash users |
| Plus500 | CFTC-regulated event contracts via broker | Sports, finance, economics, politics | 1¢ commission + 1¢ exchange fee | 18 | Nationwide; sports varies | Simple yes/no, no combos |
Fees are what we could verify from fee schedules, help centers or consistent third-party reporting; "not published" means the operator doesn't show a simple schedule. Every platform in the table links to its own review.
How we rank
- Who runs the exchange. An operator with its own CFTC registration controls its rules, its liquidity and its legal fights. A broker routing to Kalshi gives you Kalshi's markets with the broker's fee on top, and Kalshi's state problems.
- Fee on a real trade, not the marketing. Most exchanges charge a curve that peaks at 50¢; we quote that peak.
- Liquidity where you trade. A 1¢ fee saving is irrelevant if the spread is 4¢.
- Availability, by state and by category, today.
- Track record. Kalshi has five years of settlements; half this list has fewer than twelve months.
The platforms, one by one
Kalshi: the default
The first CFTC-registered event-contract exchange (2020), the biggest by volume, and the plumbing behind Robinhood, Coinbase and Moomoo. Every category, web and mobile, deposits by card, ACH, PayPal, Venmo, Cash App, crypto or wire from $10. Taker fee 7% × P × (1 − P), free resting orders. The downside is that it's the lead defendant in every state lawsuit, so sports boards go dark where courts order it (Nevada, Michigan, Washington so far). Full review.
Polymarket: the politics market
The largest prediction market on earth, with two faces: a global crypto site that blocks US users and a US product (polymarket.us, web and app) on a CFTC exchange since December 2025. Deepest politics and world-event markets anywhere, free trading on geopolitics, 4% rate on politics and finance, 5% on sports. US sports availability trails Kalshi's and Nevada is blocked outright. Full review.
Novig: cheapest sports singles
Sports only, 21+, live since August 4, 2026 on its own CFTC exchange. No fee on pre-game market orders, 3% rate in-play, parlay fee built into the price. Excludes Arizona, Michigan and Nevada. Young and thinner than Kalshi beyond the main lines. Full review.
Robinhood: Kalshi inside your brokerage
Event contracts live in the regular Robinhood app, routed to Kalshi. Commission 10% × P × (1 − P) per contract (5% with Gold), capped at 1¢, plus up to 1¢ exchange fee. Simpler interface, no API, narrower catalogue than Kalshi, plus odd extras like tuition markets. Sports restricted in Connecticut, New Jersey enforcement letters, Nevada. Full review.
Coinbase: Kalshi for crypto holders
Launched December 2025 and nationwide by January 28, 2026, Coinbase's prediction markets are Kalshi's contracts in the Coinbase app, tradeable from $1 in USD or USDC, next to your crypto balance. Fees aren't published as a schedule. The convenience is real if you already keep money there. Full review.
FanDuel Predicts: the sportsbook's workaround
A separate app launched December 2025. Contracts are listed on CME Group exchanges and your account sits with FanDuel Prediction Markets LLC, a registered futures broker. Finance and economics everywhere; sports only in states where FanDuel's sportsbook can't operate, which is the point. Fee 2% of potential payout. 18+, reuses your FanDuel verification. Full review.
DraftKings Predictions: same idea, own exchange coming
Also a separate app, also December 2025, also CME at launch, with DraftKings' own acquired exchange (Railbird) due to take over. 38 states, sports in California, Florida, Georgia and Texas among others. DraftKings doesn't publish a simple fee schedule; the cost is in the order ticket. Full review.
ProphetX: the betting exchange that became an exchange
Approved as both a CFTC exchange and clearinghouse on June 11, 2026, relaunched as ProphetX 2.0 in September. Sports only, 19+, prices shown as American odds, parlays built by request-for-quote. Charges 2% of net profit on winning singles, nothing to liquidity makers. Everywhere but Nevada. Full review.
Underdog Predict: fantasy app, real exchange
Underdog bought a registered exchange and clearinghouse in March 2026 and bolted prediction markets onto its fantasy app. Sports plus politics, economics, entertainment and weather, 2¢ per contract at purchase, roughly 36 states. Promotions are fantasy-style deposit matches with restrictions on straight picks. Full review.
Crypto.com: crypto-funded, opaque fees
Crypto.com holds its own set of CFTC derivatives licences (completed September 2025) and offers sports, crypto, politics and news contracts funded from your crypto balance. Fees are built into pricing rather than itemised, and the excluded-state list is long (about eleven states including New York, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada and Ohio). It is also a party in the Ninth Circuit fight. Full review.
Gemini, OG, Fanatics, Plus500, Moomoo
- Gemini Predictions runs on Gemini's own CFTC exchange (Gemini Titan), covers sports, crypto, economics and politics, and claims all 50 states; it launched an NFL hub in September 2026.
- OG.com is Crypto.com's dedicated prediction platform, launched February 2026, with chat rooms, leaderboards and 8-leg combos; 2¢ per $1 on open.
- Fanatics Markets is a 21+ FCM product in about 23 states with FanCash promotions; fees not published.
- Plus500 added simple yes/no event contracts to its trading app at 1¢ commission plus 1¢ exchange fee; no combos.
- Moomoo offers Kalshi's markets inside its investing app since June 2026; fees not yet published. Review.
Picking one
| If you want… | Use |
|---|---|
| One account for everything | Kalshi |
| Politics, elections, world events | Polymarket |
| Cheapest pre-game sports | Novig (21+) |
| Big parlays / combos | Kalshi |
| Sports in California, Texas, Georgia, Florida | Kalshi, FanDuel Predicts, DraftKings Predictions, Novig |
| Already on Robinhood / Coinbase | Stay there (it's Kalshi underneath) |
| Sportsbook-style odds and interface | ProphetX or Novig |
| Aged 18–20 | Anything but Novig, ProphetX (19) and Fanatics (21) |
Sources: platform fee schedules and help centers; Legal Sports Report (Oct 14, 2026), VegasInsider (Oct 2026), SI (Oct 11, 2026), The Block (Jan 28, 2026), WSN (Aug 26, 2026). Promotional claims from affiliate pages are not repeated here.