Is Kalshi Legal in Texas? (2026) Polymarket & Novig Too

Is Kalshi legal in Texas? Can you use Polymarket in Texas? Yes to both, for now. Sports betting is illegal in Texas, but prediction markets operate there under federal CFTC rules, and as of late October 2026 no Texas court order or state enforcement action had blocked them. State lawmakers are studying the issue ahead of the 2027 session. This guide explains where things stand, as of October 27, 2026.

At a glance

Platform	Texas status (Oct 2026)
Kalshi	Available, including sports contracts
Polymarket US	Available
Novig (sports only, 21+)	Texas isn’t among Novig’s excluded states
Traditional sportsbooks	Illegal in Texas

Availability from recent state-by-state reporting and each platform’s published exclusions, checked October 2026. Apps can change what they offer at short notice.

What Texas is doing

March 2026: Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick directed the Texas Senate State Affairs Committee to study what he called the “sudden inundation of prediction market gambling”.
September 15, 2026: the committee held a hearing at which Kalshi and the American Gaming Association testified.
Next: the Texas Legislature doesn’t meet in regular session until January 2027, so any new law would come after that.

Texas’s attorney general hadn’t taken public action against prediction markets when we checked.

Why it’s available when sports betting isn’t

Prediction markets argue that their contracts are federal event contracts regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, not state-licensed bets. Federal appeals courts elsewhere have split on that argument for sports, and Texas sits in the Fifth Circuit, which hadn’t ruled on it when we checked. See Is Kalshi legal?

Texas markets on the board

Texas political markets

Texas Senate winner? James Talarico+1 65% ▼1 1.9M ct Kalshi Texas Governor winner? Greg Abbott+1 67% ▼2 1.1M ct Kalshi Texas Senate Election Winner James Talarico (D)+1 68% ▲1 $215K Polymarket Maine-Texas Senate Combo James Talarico and Troy Jackson+5 52% ▲4 137K ct Kalshi Texas Senate margin of victory James Talarico, 1+ pts+8 63% ▲2 57K ct Kalshi What will Trump say during his Midterm Rally in Lubbock, Texas? Two Percent+9 80% ▲56 $31K Polymarket

Latest price for “Yes”, shown as an implied chance. Polymarket volume in USD, Kalshi in contracts. Updated 2 min ago.

Race pages: Texas Senate · Texas governor

FAQ

Is Kalshi legal in Texas?

Kalshi was available in Texas, including sports contracts, as of October 2026. State lawmakers are studying prediction markets, so this could change after the 2027 session.

Is Polymarket legal in Texas?

Texans can use the CFTC-regulated Polymarket US app. Polymarket’s main exchange isn’t open to US residents anywhere.

Is sports betting legal in Texas?

No. Texas hasn’t legalised sports betting, which is why the debate over sports prediction markets there is so heated.