Vardan KhachatryanPrediction markets in Michigan
12 of the 15 apps we rank are open here, and 3 offer sports contracts.
- Apps restricted or contested
- Kalshi, Polymarket US, OG, Robinhood, Coinbase, Webull, Novig, DraftKings Predictions, Fanatics Markets, FanDuel Predicts, PrizePicks, Underdog Predict
- Rulings and actions in Michigan
- 5 on record, listed in the timeline
- Legal sports betting
- Online since January 2021, at 21 and over
- Minimum age
- 18 on most apps; 21 at sportsbooks
- Federal appeals court
- Sixth Circuit: ruled against Kalshi on September 25, 2026
- Last change
- September 25, 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 Michigan
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 federal oversight is why the apps need no Michigan license for elections, the economy or the weather.
Sports are another matter. Michigan licenses its own sportsbooks, and it says a sports event contract is a wager that needs one.
Michigan has pressed that view in court. It sued Kalshi, won an order against it, and got Robinhood to stand down.
Here is who offers what, and where the risks sit.
Which prediction market apps work in Michigan
Most apps we rank accept Michigan residents. Sports are where the lines are drawn.
Kalshi's sports contracts are blocked by a state court order. Brokers that sell them, such as Coinbase and Webull, lose them too. Our page on whether Kalshi is legal in Michigan has the case.
Robinhood stopped new sports contracts on September 9 under a court-approved deal. See whether Robinhood is legal in Michigan.
Polymarket US has no order against it, but it lost its bid to block enforcement. Is Polymarket legal in Michigan? covers where that leaves it.
DraftKings and FanDuel run licensed sportsbooks here, so their prediction apps skip sports. ProphetX and Gemini Predictions publish no Michigan restriction.
The table lists each app in our ranking order, with its status here and a link to our review.
| App | Status in Michigan | More |
|---|---|---|
| Kalshi | Not available for sports contracts | Is Kalshi legal in Michigan? |
| Gemini Predictions | Available, sports included | Gemini Predictions review |
| Polymarket US | Contested for sports contracts, with no restriction in force | Is Polymarket legal in Michigan? |
| OG | Available, but not for sports contracts | OG review |
| Interactive Brokers | Available; it lists no sports contracts anywhere | Interactive Brokers review |
| Robinhood | Not available for sports contracts | Is Robinhood legal in Michigan? |
| ProphetX | Available, sports included | ProphetX review |
| Coinbase | Available, but not for sports contracts | Coinbase review |
| Webull | Available, but not for sports contracts | Webull review |
| Novig | Not available | 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 | Not available | Underdog Predict review |
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 Yes side of a Michigan Senate contract costs 60¢ on Kalshi. You buy 100 contracts for $60, plus a $1.68 fee.
If Yes wins, you collect $100, a $38.32 profit. If it loses, you are out $61.68.
You can also sell before the result. New to this? Start with what prediction markets are.
What Michigan has said about prediction markets
Michigan's attorney general, Dana Nessel, is the loudest voice. “Corporations cannot circumvent state gaming laws,” she said when she sued Kalshi in March.
The Gaming Control Board moved first, though quietly. In October 2025, it warned its licensees that joining sports event contracts could cost them their licenses.
The board sent more than 100 cease-and-desist orders to offshore sites in 2025. It announced none against prediction markets. Michigan went to court instead.
Its director, Henry Williams, put it plainly in September. “Sports wagering products should only be offered by operators who are licensed, regulated, and held accountable under Michigan law.”
The court cases that shape Michigan's rules
Four cases matter, and they split along one line. Michigan sued Kalshi in state court. Three other platforms sued Michigan in federal court.
The state case came first, on March 3, 2026. On September 1, Ingham County Judge Rosemarie Aquilina blocked Kalshi's sports contracts until the case ends.
Breaking her order can cost $500,000 a day. She also made Kalshi send it to every broker selling its sports contracts.
Coinbase sued Michigan's gaming regulator in December 2025. Polymarket US and Robinhood followed on March 4, 2026.
Polymarket and Robinhood lost bids for preliminary injunctions on June 17, before Judge Paul L. Maloney. Both appealed, and so did Coinbase.
The Sixth Circuit now holds all three appeals. On September 25, 2026, it ruled against Kalshi in Ohio and Tennessee, rejecting the same argument.
What Michiganders can trade
Politics leads this fall. Michigan elects a governor and a US senator on November 3, 2026, and both races trade.
The Senate race pits Mike Rogers against Abdul El-Sayed. See the live Michigan Senate odds.
Kalshi's governor market lists Jocelyn Benson, John James and Mike Duggan, who is running as an independent.
Economics, crypto and weather round it out. Local sports teams are off the menu on the biggest apps.
The risks for Michigan traders
Positions can close on short notice. Robinhood's Michigan customers got a month: open sports contracts must be closed by October 9.
Location counts, not just your address. Kalshi's order covers anyone physically in Michigan, including visitors.
You can lose everything you put into a contract. A 90¢ favorite that loses pays nothing.
Taxes apply. Michigan taxes income at a flat 4.25%, 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 Michigan traders
Three things could. The first is the Kalshi case in Ingham County. A final judgment could end the order or make it permanent.
The second is the Sixth Circuit, with appeals from Robinhood, Polymarket US and Coinbase. Its September 25 ruling suggests which way it leans.
The third is the Supreme Court. New Jersey has asked it to settle the question for every state, and Kalshi's reply is due November 9.
Robinhood's pause ends when those appeals finally end, or when the Kalshi order does. Our litigation tracker follows each case.
Michigan prediction market timeline
Every change to prediction markets' standing in Michigan, newest first. Each entry links the ruling or report behind it.
Prediction markets vs sports betting in Michigan
Sports betting is legal in Michigan. Lawmakers passed the Lawful Sports Betting Act in December 2019, and online books launched in January 2021.
Each sportsbook partners with one of the three Detroit casinos or one of 12 tribes. The tribes also run 24 casinos across the state.
The money is real. Online sportsbooks earned $671.3 million in revenue in 2025, taxed at 8.4%.
That is the heart of the fight. Sportsbooks pay that tax and turn away anyone under 21. The apps do neither.
You trade against other people on an exchange, not against a sportsbook's house odds. If a dispute comes up, you complain to the app, then to the CFTC.
How to choose a prediction market app in Michigan
Start with what you want to trade. For Lions games, a licensed sportsbook is the clear legal route in Michigan today.
For politics and the economy, Polymarket US and Kalshi list the widest range, and neither is restricted here outside sports.
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.