You may not be able to predict the future, but Polymarket is making sure you can bet on it. With its Ethereum-based prediction market, you can put wagers on the outcomes of a wide-range of real-world events, such as presidential elections, the Olympics, box office openings, crypto ETF approvals, and much more. Intrigued? Read on to learn everything you need to know to turn your predictions into profits.
What is Polymarket?
Launched in 2020, Polymarket is a prediction market, or betting site, built on Ethereum. Similar to traditional betting sites, it offers betting markets on a broad range of categories, such as politics, crypto, pop culture, business, science, and more. As to be expected, Polymarket rewards you for making correct predictions, or bets, on future events—which are priced between zero and $1 per share. When you’re right, you profit $1 times the number of shares you bought (minus the cost of those shares). And when you’re wrong, you lose your initial bet.
Although Polymarket looks and functions like traditional betting sites, with a sleek interface reminiscent of a web2 app, it’s a crypto app. This means it offers blockchain benefits such as transparency and self custody. On Polymarket, you can see real-time activity, such as who is buying what shares and how much, as well as general insights, such as the betting volume, top holders, and more. Plus, when you buy your own shares (e.g. bet on the outcomes of events) and receive a payout, your rewards are deposited in your self-custody wallet, ensuring you maintain full control of your funds.
Other than its betting mechanics and blockchain-based tech, Polymarket also offers a gamified rewards system. When you participate in bets, and provide liquidity to the market, you’re rewarded. With what? Money and recognition. The more volume and profit you generate through correct predictions, the higher you’ll climb the leaderboard. And the more orders you place within the spread for eligible markets, the more daily rewards you’ll earn in USDC.
With such a well-developed app, which has become the darling of the 2024 US presidential election, you may be surprised to find out that Polymarket’s founder and CEO is only 26 years old.
After dropping out of New York University (NYU), and trying his hand at entrepreneurship with a decentralized finance (DeFi) staking startup, Shayne Coplan founded Polymarket in 2020.
The catalyst? The pandemic. Coplan wanted to know when New York City, his home city, would reopen, and thus, created Polymarket’s first market. Since then, Polymarket has offered hundreds of markets, generated more than one billion in trading volume, and been referenced by top media outlets such as Fox and CNN for the 2024 US presidential election.
Why use Polymarket?
Turn your predictions into profits
Think you know your stuff? If so, put your money where your mouth is. Whether it’s politics, pop culture, sports, or something else, you’re sure to find a market for it on Polymarket. Got alpha on the first Trump memecoin to hit one billion? Bet on it. Think you know the gender of Justin Bieber’s unborn baby? Bet on it. Want to prove to your friend that you know more about sports? Bet on it. Just remember, on Polymarket, it pays to be right. There are no participation trophies…
Get unbiased insights on current events
Tired of fake news, rage-inducing clickbait, and hot takes from pundits? Cut through the noise with Polymarket. Unlike traditional media, which relies on views and clicks, Polymarket’s prediction markets are powered by real people putting up real money. This means it can serve as a more accurate representation of public opinion. Want to know where people stand on the presidential election, big sports game, or fed rate cuts? Go to Polymarket and browse its available markets. You’ll see real-time probabilities, historical activity, top holders, and more.
Even if you don’t bet any money, it’s still a good way to gather information on the world’s most important events.
See who has skin in the game
Want to know who really has a vested interest in what they say? You can on Polymarket. With its user profiles, you can see other people’s positions, activity, and key stats such as positions value, profit and loss, volume traded, and more. The best part? Their positions aren’t just tucked away in their profile, they follow them. Every time someone engages and comments on a market, you’ll see their position displayed next to their profile, which lets you know who’s really betting on their beliefs.
Earn daily rewards by helping the market
What would a crypto app be without rewards? On Polymarket, you can earn money by placing orders within the spread. Why? Because it helps keep the market active and balanced.
To maximize your daily rewards, place orders—with size—close to the market’s average price, also known as its “midpoint.” But heads up, not all markets are eligible for rewards. Be sure to check the Rewards page to see which markets are eligible, how much the spread is, what the daily reward is, and more. After supplying liquidity to the market, you’ll receive your payout in your connected wallet every day at midnight (ET).
How to get started with Polymarket?
You can get started on Polymarket for less than one dollar. No, seriously. Here’s how…
- Step 1: Go to polymarket.com
- Step 2: Connect your Phantom wallet
- Step 3: Add funds
- Buy, or transfer in, USDC on Polygon to get started.
- Step 4: Select a market you want to bet on
- Step 5: Select your outcome (yes or no)
- Step 6: Set your desired number of shares
- FYI: One share won’t cost more than one dollar, but if you buy more than one share, it may cost more than one dollar, depending on the odds.
- Step 7: Confirm
That’s it. Once the outcome is determined, you’ll either received your winnings right in your Phantom wallet or lose the money you waged. Either way, you’ll have bet on your beliefs.
Disclaimer: Polymarket may not be available in all jurisdictions.
