Vardan KhachatryanPrediction markets in California
All 15 apps we rank are open here, and 14 offer sports contracts.
- Apps restricted or contested
- Kalshi
- Rulings and actions in California
- None on record
- Legal sports betting
- None, apart from horse racing
- Minimum age
- 18 on most apps, 21 on three
- Federal appeals court
- Ninth Circuit: ruled against Kalshi on August 28, 2026
- Last change
- September 24, 2026
Each entry on this page links the ruling or report it rests on. Nothing here is legal advice.
Why prediction markets are legal in California
Prediction market apps sell event contracts: yes-or-no questions that pay $1 if the answer is yes. The CFTC regulates the exchanges that list them.
That is federal oversight, so the apps need no California license. It is how they offer sports in a state where sportsbooks are banned.
The apps say only the CFTC can police their contracts. Courts are split on that. The Ninth Circuit, which covers California, has ruled against them twice.
For now, nothing stops Californians from trading. Here is who offers what, and where the risks sit.
Which prediction market apps work in California
Every app we rank accepts California residents. All but one offer sports contracts. Interactive Brokers lists none anywhere.
The sportsbook brands are here too. DraftKings, FanDuel and Fanatics cannot run a sportsbook in California, so they sell sports contracts instead.
Age rules differ. Most apps take traders from 18. Novig, Fanatics Markets and Interactive Brokers require 21.
The table lists each app in our ranking order, with its status here and a link to our review.
| App | Status in California | More |
|---|---|---|
| Kalshi | Contested for sports contracts, with no restriction in force | Is Kalshi legal in California? |
| Gemini Predictions | Available, sports included | Gemini Predictions review |
| Polymarket US | Available, sports included | Polymarket review |
| OG | Available, sports included | OG review |
| Interactive Brokers | Available; it lists no sports contracts anywhere | Interactive Brokers review |
| Robinhood | Available, sports included | Robinhood review |
| ProphetX | Available, sports included | ProphetX review |
| Coinbase | Available, sports included | Coinbase review |
| Webull | Available, sports included | Webull review |
| Novig | Available, sports included | Novig review |
| DraftKings Predictions | Available, sports included | DraftKings Predictions review |
| Fanatics Markets | Available, sports included | Fanatics Markets review |
| FanDuel Predicts | Available, sports included | FanDuel Predicts review |
| PrizePicks | Available, sports included | PrizePicks review |
| Underdog Predict | Available, sports included | Underdog Predict review |
Is Polymarket legal in California?
Yes, through Polymarket US. It runs on a CFTC-designated exchange and accepts California residents.
No California action against Polymarket is on record. It is not a defendant in the tribes' case, which names Kalshi and Robinhood.
The Ninth Circuit's reasoning is not limited to Kalshi, though. It turns on where the user stands, not on which exchange lists the contract.
The international site is a different product. Polymarket.com runs on crypto, is not CFTC-regulated and is close-only for Americans.
Our Polymarket review covers its fees, payouts and how the US app works.
How a prediction market trade works
Every contract is a yes-or-no question. It pays $1 if the answer is yes and nothing if it is no.
The price is the crowd's odds. A contract at 60¢ means traders put the chance at about 60%.
Say the Dodgers are 60¢ to win tonight on Kalshi. You buy 100 contracts for $60, plus a $1.68 fee.
If they win, you collect $100, a $38.32 profit. If they lose, you are out $61.68.
You can also sell before the result, at whatever the market pays then. New to this? Start with what prediction markets are.
What California has said about prediction markets
California has not sued a prediction market app or ordered one to stop. We found no cease-and-desist letter or regulator notice.
It has taken a side in court, though. Attorney General Rob Bonta joined 26 other states and DC in a brief backing the tribes against Kalshi.
Crypto is a separate question. California's Digital Financial Assets Law began requiring licenses on July 1, 2026. It covers crypto exchanges, wallets and kiosks.
We found no case applying that law to a prediction market.
The court cases that shape California's rules
Two Ninth Circuit rulings matter most. Both went against Kalshi, and both bind federal courts in California.
The first came on August 28, 2026, in Nevada's case. The court held Nevada's gaming law likely applies to Kalshi's sports contracts.
The second came on September 16, in a suit by two California tribes. The court found them likely to win their claim over sports contracts bought on their land.
A trade happens where the user stands, it held. Kalshi then switched off its markets on three tribes' lands, its first voluntary geofence.
Robinhood, which sells Kalshi's contracts, is a defendant too. Our page on whether Kalshi is legal in California covers the case in full.
What Californians can trade
Sports lead. Game, season and player markets cover the Dodgers, Giants, Lakers, Warriors, 49ers, Rams and more.
Politics is close behind this year. California elects a governor on November 3, 2026, and Kalshi lists the race. See the live California governor odds.
Los Angeles picks a mayor the same day, and that race trades too: Los Angeles mayor odds.
Economics, crypto and weather markets round it out. Kalshi even lists the daily high temperature in Los Angeles.
The risks for California traders
The law could shift. The Ninth Circuit has twice ruled against Kalshi. A state action or a Supreme Court ruling could close sports contracts here.
Location matters. On the three tribes' lands where Kalshi has switched off, you cannot trade on Kalshi at all.
You can lose everything you put into a contract. A 90¢ favorite that loses pays nothing.
Taxes are unclear. California taxes the profits as income, but how the IRS treats event contracts is not settled.
Trade only what you can afford to lose. Our responsible trading guide covers limits and where to get help.
What could change for California traders
Three things could. The state could act, and the Ninth Circuit has left it room to. So far it has only backed the tribes.
The tribal case could widen. The ruling gives other California tribes a path to the same claim over their own lands.
Or the Supreme Court could settle it. New Jersey has asked it to, after the circuits split. A ruling there would apply in every state.
Our litigation tracker follows each of these cases.
California prediction market timeline
Every change to prediction markets' standing in California, newest first. Each entry links the ruling or report behind it.
Prediction markets vs sports betting in California
Betting on sports is not legal in California, apart from horse racing. Voters rejected both 2022 measures, and Proposition 27 lost with 82% voting no.
Prediction markets fill that gap. You trade against other people on an exchange, not against a sportsbook's house odds.
The prices look alike, as the Ninth Circuit noted. The oversight does not: the CFTC supervises the exchange, not a state gaming regulator.
So if a dispute comes up, you complain to the app first, then to the CFTC.
How to choose a prediction market app in California
Start with what you want to trade. Almost every app covers sports. For politics and the economy, Polymarket US and Kalshi list the widest range.
Then compare fees. They vary more than prices do. Our fee comparison works out each app's cost on the same trade.
Our app rankings score every app on the same six criteria. Each review covers fees, payouts and the lawsuits against it.
If you use Kalshi, read whether Kalshi is legal in California first. It covers the tribal geofence.