Kalshi fees explained: maker, taker, and withdrawals

Published 2026-05-17 · Last reviewed 2026-08-07

Catie Di StefanoFounder & Editor-in-Chief

Reviewed by Catie Di Stefano

TL;DR

Kalshi trading fees are a function of the contract's distance from $0.50 — the closer to 50¢, the higher the fee. Roughly 1–7% per trade.
Deposits via ACH and debit card are free. Wire transfers cost $10. Withdrawals via ACH are free; wires cost $30.
No platform fee on settlement, no inactivity fee, no monthly minimum.

New to this? Read this first

Prediction markets price events in cents, not odds. Here is the vocabulary used on this page, in plain English.

Price = probability: A contract that pays $1 trading at 12¢ means the market thinks there's a 12% chance.
YES / NO share: YES pays $1 if it happens. NO pays $1 if it doesn't. You can never lose more than you paid.
+609 (American odds): Sportsbook shorthand. Bet $100, win $609 profit. That's about a 14% implied chance.
Vig: The book's built-in margin. Sportsbook percentages add up to more than 100%; market prices don't.
Liquidity: How much money is in the market. More money means you can get in and out at the price you see.

Kalshi's fees aren't "free" — they're just hidden behind a formula. Once you see it, you can price any trade in your head.

The fee formula

Kalshi's trading fee for any order is:

fee = round_up(0.07 × contracts × price × (1 − price))

That formula has one important property: fees peak in the middle of the price range. A contract trading at 50¢ has the highest fee per contract; one trading at 5¢ or 95¢ has almost none. Practically:

100 contracts at 50¢ → ~$1.75 fee (≈3.5% of the $50 outlay)
100 contracts at 10¢ → ~$0.63 fee (≈6.3% of the $10 outlay)
100 contracts at 90¢ → ~$0.63 fee (≈0.7% of the $90 outlay)

Deposit and withdrawal costs

ACH deposit — free, 1–3 business days
Debit card deposit — free, instant
Wire deposit — $10
ACH withdrawal — free, 1–3 business days
Wire withdrawal — $30

How to keep fees low

Trade contracts priced far from 50¢ when you can — the fee structure rewards conviction. Use ACH for funding unless you need same-day liquidity. Size orders deliberately; many small round-trips add up faster than a single larger position.

How this compares to Polymarket

Polymarket charges 0% on trades but moves all funds on Polygon, so you pay gas on every deposit and withdrawal (typically pennies, but not free). For an active US trader running many small positions, the net cost on Kalshi and Polymarket usually lands within a percent or two of each other.

Open a Kalshi account →

Fee schedule current as of 2026. Kalshi can update its fee table; always check the latest on their site before sizing a position.

Fees only matter if you can trade there, so check if Kalshi is available in your state first.

Odds → probability → payout

Sportsbook odds (e.g. +609 or -150)Your stake ($)

Implied chance: 14.1%
Fair market price: 14¢
Pays back: $141.80
Profit if right: $121.80

Sportsbook odds include the book's margin, so the implied chance shown here is slightly higher than the true probability. A prediction-market contract priced below this number is the better deal. Reverse check: 14.1% ≈ +609.

Your first trade, step by step

Fund a small balanceOpen an account, verify your ID, and deposit $10–$20 by debit or ACH. You must be 18+ and in an eligible state.
Find the marketSearch the event by team, player or headline. Check the price and the volume — thin markets move a lot on small orders.
Read the price as a probabilityA 23¢ YES contract means the market gives it about a 23% chance. If you think it is higher than that, YES is the value side.
Place a limit orderEnter the price you want rather than taking the market. You buy shares, not a bet slip — the most you can lose is what you paid.
Decide your exitYou can sell any time before the event resolves, or hold to settlement where each winning share pays $1.

Ready to try it: open Kalshi. 18+, eligible states only. Trade what you can afford to lose.

Sources & further reading

Kalshi fee scheduleKalshi
Kalshi — official siteKalshi

Frequently asked questions

How much does Kalshi charge per trade?

Kalshi's trading fee is calculated as 0.07 × contracts × price × (1 − price), capped at 0.0175 × contracts. In plain terms: 1–7% of your trade size, with the highest rates near the middle of the price range (around 50¢).

Are makers and takers charged the same?

Yes. Unlike traditional crypto or equity exchanges, Kalshi applies the same fee to limit orders and market orders. There is no maker rebate.

Do I pay a fee when a contract settles?

No. Settlement is free. Kalshi only charges on order execution, not on resolution to $1 or $0.

What does it cost to deposit and withdraw?

ACH and debit card deposits are free. Wire deposits cost $10. ACH withdrawals are free; wire withdrawals cost $30. There are no minimums or inactivity fees.

Are Kalshi fees lower than Polymarket?

Polymarket charges 0% on trades but you pay Polygon gas to fund and withdraw. For small frequent trades Polymarket is cheaper; for larger deposits held longer, Kalshi can be cheaper once you factor in gas and on-ramp fees.

What does the price actually mean?

A contract settles at $1 if the event happens and $0 if it doesn't, so the price is the market's probability. A contract at 23¢ means roughly a 23% chance, and $1 buys about 4.3 shares.

How much money do I need to start?

You can place a real trade with $10–$20. Contracts are priced in cents, so a $20 balance buys dozens of shares on a cheap market. Start small until you have seen a position settle.