How to Bet on Polymarket

Polymarket is a prediction market — think of it as a stock exchange for real-world events. Instead of buying shares in Apple or Tesla, you buy shares in outcomes like “Arsenal to beat Chelsea” or “Over 2.5 goals in Liverpool vs Man City.” Each share is priced between $0.01 and $0.99. If you're right, it pays out $1. If you're wrong, it pays $0.

If you've used a bookmaker before, Polymarket will feel familiar but with a different wrapper. The core idea is the same: you're putting money on what you think will happen. The mechanics are different — there are no odds in the traditional sense, no betting slips, and no bookmaker setting the prices. Instead, prices move based on what other traders are willing to buy and sell at, similar to how stock markets work.

Polymarket runs on blockchain technology (specifically the Polygon network), but you don't need to understand any of that to use it. The interface handles everything. You fund your account, pick a market, and trade. The blockchain part just means your trades are settled transparently and the platform can't change the rules after the fact.

Signing up is straightforward. Head to Polymarket and you'll see options to sign up with your email address, Google account, or an existing crypto wallet. If you don't have a crypto wallet and don't know what one is, just use email or Google — Polymarket will create a wallet for you behind the scenes.

Once you verify your email, you'll land on the main dashboard. No KYC (identity verification) is required for basic trading, though Polymarket may ask for verification if you're depositing or withdrawing larger amounts. The process takes a few minutes at most.

One thing to note: Polymarket's availability varies by region. It's widely accessible but not available in every country due to local regulations. If you can access the site and create an account, you're good to go.

Polymarket uses USDC — a “stablecoin” that's pegged 1:1 to the US dollar. Think of it as digital dollars. 1 USDC = $1, always. You're not exposed to crypto price swings. The reason Polymarket uses USDC instead of regular dollars is because it makes the blockchain settlement work, but from your perspective it behaves exactly like cash.

To deposit, click the “Deposit” button on Polymarket. You'll see several options depending on your region:

If you've never bought crypto before, the credit card option is the simplest. You'll pay a small processing fee, but the funds appear in your Polymarket balance within minutes. Start with a small amount ($20–$50) to get comfortable before depositing more.

Polymarket's homepage is dominated by politics and current events. To find sports markets, use the search bar or navigate to the Sports category. Football (soccer) markets are typically listed under match names like “Arsenal v Chelsea” with outcomes for each team to win and the draw.

The easiest way to find football markets is through Odds Comparison on wagerbase. We already match Polymarket events to their bet365 equivalents and show you side-by-side comparisons. Click “Trade on Polymarket” on any match card and you'll go directly to the relevant Polymarket event page.

Sports markets on Polymarket cover major European leagues (Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, Champions League) and some lower divisions. Coverage isn't as comprehensive as a traditional bookmaker — you won't find every League Two match — but the major fixtures are usually listed, especially at weekends.

This is the most important concept to grasp. On Polymarket, prices are displayed as a number between $0.01 and $0.99. This number represents two things at once: the cost per share and the implied probability.

A price of $0.52 means it costs 52 cents to buy one share. If the outcome happens, that share pays $1 — giving you a profit of 48 cents per share. In bookmaker terms, that's equivalent to decimal odds of 1.92 (which is roughly 1/1 or evens). The price is the probability, expressed as a decimal.

Quick mental shortcut: if you see a price of $0.65, the market thinks there's a 65% chance it happens, and you'd need to risk $0.65 to win $0.35 profit. To convert to decimal odds, divide 1 by the price: 1 ÷ 0.65 = 1.54.

Every market on Polymarket has two sides: YES and NO. The YES and NO prices always add up to $1.00. So if “Arsenal to Win” YES is priced at $0.60, then NO is priced at $0.40.

Buying YES at $0.60 is the equivalent of backing Arsenal at 1.67 decimal odds. If Arsenal win, your share pays $1. If they don't, it pays $0.

Buying NO at $0.40 is the equivalent of laying Arsenal — you're betting they won't win. If Arsenal fail to win (draw or loss), your NO share pays $1. This is similar to “lay” betting on exchanges like Betfair.

Football matches on Polymarket are typically split into three separate markets: one for each team to win and one for the draw. This is different from a bookmaker where you pick from a single 1X2 market. On Polymarket you're trading each outcome independently.

Once you've found a market and decided which side you want, placing a trade takes about three clicks:

There are two order types. A market order buys at whatever the current best price is — this is the default and what you'll use most of the time. A limit order lets you set the price you're willing to pay. If you think $0.60 is too expensive but you'd take it at $0.55, you can set a limit order at $0.55 and it'll fill automatically if the price drops to that level.

For beginners, stick with market orders. They're simpler and you know exactly what you're getting. Move to limit orders once you're comfortable with how the order book works.

This is one of the biggest advantages Polymarket has over traditional bookmakers: you can sell your position at any time before the market settles. With a bookmaker, once your bet is placed you're locked in (unless they offer cash-out, which usually has terrible terms). On Polymarket, you simply sell your shares back to the market.

Say you bought “Arsenal to Win” YES shares at $0.55 and the price has since moved to $0.75 (maybe Arsenal scored early). You can sell your shares at $0.75, locking in a $0.20 profit per share without waiting for the match to finish. You don't need Arsenal to actually win — you've already taken your profit.

This also works as a risk management tool. If you bought at $0.55 and the price drops to $0.40 (maybe Arsenal's striker got injured in the warm-up), you can sell at $0.40 and limit your loss to $0.15 per share instead of potentially losing the full $0.55 if Arsenal lose.

To sell, go to your Portfolio, find the position, and click “Sell.” Enter how many shares you want to sell and confirm. The USDC goes straight back to your balance.

Polymarket's fee structure is different from a bookmaker. With bet365, the “fee” is hidden in the overround — the margin built into the odds. With Polymarket, what you see is closer to the true probability, but there are explicit costs to be aware of:

Overall, Polymarket's total cost of trading on high-liquidity markets is typically lower than a bookmaker's margin. But on thin markets with wide spreads, the effective cost can be higher. Always check the order book depth before placing larger trades.

Neither platform is objectively better — they serve different purposes. Polymarket shines when you want lower margins, the ability to sell positions before settlement, and no risk of account restrictions. bet365 is better for breadth of markets, speed of price updates, and ease of use for anyone already familiar with traditional betting.

The sweet spot for many is using both. Check the odds on bet365, check the price on Polymarket, and place your trade wherever the value is better. Odds Comparison does this comparison for you automatically — it shows every match where bet365 and Polymarket disagree, sorted by the size of the gap.