Yes, as long as you use the right Polymarket. The global site has blocked US users since a 2022 settlement with the CFTC. The Polymarket US app, launched December 3, 2025, runs on a CFTC-registered exchange and is legal to use in most states. Nevada is blocked by court order, sports contracts are restricted in a shifting group of states, and a few attorneys general have sent cease-and-desist letters. What follows is the state of play on October 15, 2026.
Two products, two answers
| polymarket.com (global) | Polymarket US app | |
|---|---|---|
| Legal for US residents? | No: geoblocked since 2022 | Yes: CFTC-regulated exchange (QCX LLC) |
| Currency | USDC on Polygon | US dollars |
| Identity checks | Light | Full: ID, selfie, SSN, proof of residence |
| Platform | Web + app | Web (polymarket.us) + app |
| Markets | Everything | Narrower; sports restricted by state |
How the US app became legal
In January 2022 the CFTC found Polymarket had operated an unregistered swaps platform, fined it $1.4 million and took a promise to exclude US customers. In July 2025 the CFTC and DOJ closed their investigations, and Polymarket bought QCEX, a company that already held the CFTC registration needed to list event contracts, for $112 million. The CFTC amended that registration in November 2025 and the US app launched the following month. Legally, the app is now in the same category as Kalshi: a Designated Contract Market under federal commodities law.
Where it's blocked or restricted
- Nevada: blocked. The Gaming Control Board sued in January 2026 and won a preliminary injunction on May 29, 2026. Polymarket US geoblocks Nevada.
- Sports markets restricted. Third-party trackers list sports contracts as unavailable in several states, with Arizona, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Montana and Ohio recurring; the lists disagree with each other and change, so treat the app's own availability notice as final.
- Cease-and-desist letters. Connecticut (December 2025, objecting to sports contracts for under-21s), Tennessee (January 2026, demanding a halt to sports markets), Arizona (March 2026), Massachusetts (Polymarket sued pre-emptively), and others. The CFTC and DOJ have sued some of these states on the platforms' side.
- Minnesota. Passed a statutory ban in May 2026 effective August 1; the Justice Department sued the next day and a federal judge blocked the law.
- Maryland, Tennessee, Connecticut. Reported as blocked for Polymarket at various points in 2026; status moves with the litigation.
Non-sports markets (politics, economics, world events) are mostly unaffected outside Nevada and Washington state, which is also where the money is on Polymarket.
The bigger legal fight
Polymarket's US app lives under the same question as Kalshi: can a federally regulated exchange offer sports contracts in states that license sports betting? Appeals courts have split (Third Circuit for the exchanges in April 2026, Ninth Circuit for Nevada in August 2026), and the Supreme Court has been asked to decide. Nothing in that fight threatens the app's existence; it decides which sports markets you see in which state. Full rundown: Is Kalshi gambling?, which applies equally here.
What to do
- Use polymarket.us (web or app), not the global site. From a US connection, polymarket.com redirects you there anyway.
- Be 18+, complete identity verification, and be physically in a state where it operates (the app checks location).
- Expect sports to be missing in some states; politics and economics almost never are.
- Don't VPN into polymarket.com.
Sources: CFTC orders (2022, 2025), Nevada district court injunction (May 29, 2026), state AG letters as reported by CBS Sports, Saturday Down South and Casinos.com (updated October 2026). Lists of restricted states differ between sources; we've flagged where.