Is Kalshi legal in Pennsylvania?

Is Kalshi legal in Pennsylvania? Yes, for now. Kalshi and Polymarket were offering sports contracts in Pennsylvania in late October 2026, and Pennsylvania sits in the Third Circuit, the federal appeals court that ruled for Kalshi in April 2026. That ruling is now before the US Supreme Court. This guide sets out where things stand, as of October 28, 2026.

At a glance

What’s happened

• In April 2026 the Third Circuit, which covers Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware, ruled 2–1 for Kalshi in New Jersey’s case. It upheld a preliminary injunction on the basis that Kalshi’s sports contracts are swaps under federal law, so state gambling law is preempted. It’s the main federal appeals ruling in Kalshi’s favour.
• New Jersey asked the Supreme Court to review that ruling on September 2, 2026 (Flaherty v. KalshiEX, No. 26-299). Kalshi’s response is due November 9, 2026, and the Court hadn’t decided whether to take the case when we checked. A Supreme Court ruling would settle the question for Pennsylvania too.
• We found no Pennsylvania enforcement action against prediction markets when we checked.

Sources, checked October 28, 2026:

• CBS Sports: prediction market legal states (Oct 27, 2026)
• InGame: New Jersey’s Supreme Court petition and the Third Circuit ruling (Sep 4, 2026)
• US Supreme Court docket 26-299, Flaherty v. KalshiEX (checked Oct 28, 2026)
• Novig developer docs: access and blocked states (checked Oct 28, 2026)

Why it matters

Pennsylvania is one of the biggest regulated sports betting markets, and the federal appeals court that covers it has sided with Kalshi, at least until the Supreme Court says otherwise. The national picture, including the split between federal appeals courts, is in Is Kalshi legal? Next door, see New Jersey.

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