Polymarket Fees Explained

Which Polymarket trades have fees?

At this guide's August 2, 2026 review, Polymarket.com International charged a fee when a trader removed liquidity from a fee-enabled prediction market. An order that rests on the book and later fills as a maker had a zero trading fee.

The market determines whether fees are enabled. An integration or trader should check the current market metadata rather than assume that every market in a broad topic has the same treatment.

The coefficient is not a flat percentage of the trade value. Calling the crypto entry a simple “7% fee,” for example, would be inaccurate.

How to calculate the taker fee

Polymarket documents this formula:

fee = shares × fee rate × price × (1 − price)

The price × (1 − price) term is largest at 0.50. The monetary fee therefore peaks near a 50% market price and declines as a share price approaches 0 or 1.

Worked example: one category, two prices

Assume a Politics market with a 0.04 coefficient and a taker execution for 100 shares.

• At 0.50: 100 × 0.04 × 0.50 × 0.50 = 1.00 pUSD.
• At 0.90: 100 × 0.04 × 0.90 × 0.10 = 0.36 pUSD.

The second trade has a larger gross value but a lower formula-based fee. Use the actual matched price for each fill, not a midpoint seen before the order executed.

Maker versus taker is about execution behavior

A maker adds liquidity by leaving an order on the book. A taker immediately matches liquidity already available. The distinction is not identical to “limit” versus “market.”

A limit order can rest and become a maker order. If its limit crosses the spread and fills immediately, it acts as a taker order and can incur the taker fee. A market order removes available bids or asks and is therefore a taker execution. The limit-order guide explains resting, crossing, and partial fills in more detail.

Fees are assessed when an order matches. An unfilled resting order has not executed and has not generated a trading fee.

Trading cost is more than the fee

Polymarket says it does not add a direct platform fee to deposits or withdrawals. A transfer can still cost money because of the route components above. See the separate deposit and withdrawal guides for route-level checks.

Maker rebates and liquidity rewards are separate programs

Fee-enabled markets may use part of taker-fee revenue for maker rebates. Polymarket also operates liquidity-reward programs for qualifying resting orders. Eligibility depends on market-specific size, spread, duration, and program rules.

A zero maker trading fee does not guarantee a rebate. Official pages also currently conflict on the exact portion of sports taker fees allocated to maker rebates, so a fixed sports rebate percentage should not be relied on without checking the live program terms.

Why a fee may differ from a hand calculation

1. Confirm whether the order removed liquidity. A marketable limit order can be a taker.
2. Check the market's actual category and current fee-enabled status.
3. Use each matched price rather than the displayed midpoint or last trade.
4. Account for partial fills at different prices.
5. Separate the fee from spread, price impact, and transfer-route costs.
6. Recheck the first-party schedule before using a saved coefficient.

Rates, fee-enabled markets, and reward programs can change. Market-specific metadata and the current official schedule control when they differ from a general example.