Vardan Khachatryan
Kalshi in Massachusetts
Contested for sports contracts, with no restriction in force.
- Sports contracts
- Available, but contested
- Other contracts
- Available
- Regulator
- CFTC: a designated contract market (DCM) and derivatives clearing organization
- Rulings and actions in Massachusetts
- 1 on record, listed in the timeline
- Legal sports betting
- In person since January 31, 2023; online since March 10, 2023
- State appeal
- SJC-13906, argued May 4, 2026
- Federal appeals court
- First Circuit: has not ruled on the question
- Last change
- June 30, 2026
Each entry on this page links the ruling or report it rests on. Nothing here is legal advice.
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Why Kalshi is still legal in Massachusetts, for now
Kalshi is a federally regulated exchange. The CFTC designated it a contract market in 2020.
Massachusetts says that does not let it sell sports contracts without a state license. Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell sued on September 12, 2025.
She won the first round. On January 20, 2026, a Superior Court judge ruled Kalshi needs a license for sports contracts.
Then Kalshi won a pause. An Appeals Court justice stayed the order on February 17, before it took effect.
So nothing stops you from trading today. The state's highest court now holds the answer.
What you can trade on Kalshi from Massachusetts
Everything Kalshi lists: sports, politics, economics, crypto, culture and weather. You must be 18 or over and pass its ID checks.
The case is about sports alone. The injunction covers Kalshi's sports-related contracts, not its politics or economics markets.
Local teams are on the board. The Red Sox even named Kalshi their official prediction market partner in August 2026.
College games are a sore point. Massachusetts sportsbooks cannot take bets on in-state college teams unless they play in a tournament.
Kalshi lists them anyway. Its October 3 slate includes football games for UMass, Boston College, Harvard and Holy Cross.
If the injunction takes effect, location will decide. It reaches “any person located in Massachusetts,” wherever they live.
How Kalshi works for Massachusetts traders
Every Kalshi 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 market's odds. A contract at 60¢ means traders put the chance at about 60%.
Say the Patriots are 60¢ to win on Sunday. You buy 100 contracts for $60. Kalshi's standard fee on that trade is $1.68.
If the Patriots win, you collect $100, a $38.32 profit. If they lose, you are out $61.68.
You trade against other people, not the house. Kalshi earns its fee either way, so it has no stake in who wins.
The fee is highest near 50¢ and shrinks toward either end. Our Kalshi fees guide has the full schedule.
What Massachusetts has said about Kalshi
Massachusetts was the first state to take this fight to its highest court.
Campbell's complaint says Kalshi runs sports wagering without a license from the Gaming Commission. It also says Kalshi lets 18- to 20-year-olds trade.
Massachusetts sportsbooks must turn away anyone under 21.
After the January ruling, Campbell called it “a major step toward fortifying Massachusetts' gambling laws.”
She widened the case in June. On June 30, 2026, the court let her add seven consumer protection counts, including claims about users under 21.
The Gaming Commission backs her. Chair Jordan Maynard said prediction markets “may be even more harmful than the offshore books.”
Commonwealth v. KalshiEX, explained
The case is Commonwealth v. KalshiEX LLC, No. 2584CV02525, in Suffolk Superior Court. Kalshi moved it to federal court, but it came back on October 28, 2025.
On January 20, 2026, Judge Christopher K. Barry-Smith granted the preliminary injunction and refused to dismiss the case.
He rejected Kalshi's claim that federal law shields its sports contracts. “Kalshi chose to take that risk head-on,” he wrote.
The injunction was entered on February 6, with 30 days to comply. Kalshi appealed the same day.
On February 17, Appeals Court Justice Sabita Singh stayed it.
She did so “without suggesting any view on the merits of the disposition of this litigation.”
The Supreme Judicial Court took the case directly on March 5. It heard argument on May 4, 2026, as No. SJC-13906.
The justices pressed hard. “I just feel like you're swimming upstream here,” Justice Scott Kafker told the lawyer arguing for preemption.
Both sides drew support. The CFTC filed a brief for Kalshi, and 37 states and DC filed one for Massachusetts.
The court has not ruled. When it does, the injunction either takes effect or falls away.
What could change Kalshi's status in Massachusetts
The SJC ruling comes first. If the court sides with the state, Kalshi would have to stop sports contracts for anyone in Massachusetts.
Kalshi could then look to the US Supreme Court. New Jersey has already asked it to settle the federal question for every state.
The First Circuit, which covers Massachusetts, has not ruled. Robinhood's appeal there is fully briefed, with no argument date set.
The trend is not Kalshi's friend. The Ninth Circuit ruled against it on August 28, and the Sixth Circuit on September 25.
Other cases wait on the SJC too. Federal suits by Polymarket and Novig are on hold until it rules.
Our litigation tracker follows each case.
Kalshi in Massachusetts: timeline
Every change to Kalshi's position in Massachusetts, newest first. Each entry links the ruling, filing or report behind it.
How Kalshi compares to sports betting in Massachusetts
Massachusetts legalized sports betting on August 10, 2022. In-person betting began on January 31, 2023, and mobile apps followed on March 10.
Seven online sportsbooks are licensed and live, including DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM and Fanatics. The state taxes their revenue at 20%.
Bettors must be 21. Sportsbooks may not take bets on in-state college teams outside tournaments, or on any college player's stats.
Kalshi fits none of that. It holds no state license, takes traders from 18 and lists in-state college games.
That is the heart of the case. The judge wrote that requiring a license “serves the public interest.”
Other prediction market apps in Massachusetts
The sportsbook brands keep sports out of their prediction apps here. In November 2025 the Gaming Commission barred its licensees from offering sports event contracts.
Others are fighting. Polymarket, Novig and Underdog have each sued the state in federal court.
Here is where each app we rank stands in the state. See Robinhood in Massachusetts and prediction markets in Massachusetts for the full picture.
| App | Status in Massachusetts | More |
|---|---|---|
| Gemini Predictions | Available, sports included | Gemini Predictions review |
| Polymarket US | Contested for sports contracts, with no restriction in force | Is Polymarket legal in Massachusetts? |
| OG | Available, but not for sports contracts | OG review |
| Interactive Brokers | Available; it lists no sports contracts anywhere | Interactive Brokers review |
| Robinhood | Contested for sports contracts, with no restriction in force | Is Robinhood legal in Massachusetts? |
| 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, but not for sports contracts | DraftKings Predictions review |
| Fanatics Markets | Not available | Fanatics Markets review |
| FanDuel Predicts | Available, but not for sports contracts | FanDuel Predicts review |
| PrizePicks | Available, but not for sports contracts | PrizePicks review |
| Underdog Predict | Available, sports included | Underdog Predict review |
How to use Kalshi in Massachusetts
Sign up with your email, confirm your identity with a driver's license or passport, and fund the account.
Kalshi takes bank transfers, debit cards, Apple Pay, PayPal, Venmo, wires and crypto, among others.
Think about timing before you buy long-dated sports contracts. An SJC ruling for the state could end sports trading here.
Before you fund it, read our Kalshi review for its fees, payouts and the lawsuits against it. New to all this? Start with what prediction markets are.