How To Legally Bet On The 2026 Oscars In The U.S. Using Sportsbooks, Prediction Markets
The 2026 Oscars ceremony airs on Sunday, March 15, starting at 7 p.m. EDT on ABC. The Oscar nominations were announced Thursday morning. "Sinners" leads the way with 16 nominations. People in all 50 states can legally trade on the outcome of multiple categories, while some states allow legal betting on their outcomes. Here's our guide on How To Legally Bet & Trade On The 2026 Oscars In The U.S. With Sportsbooks and Prediction Markets.
Traditional wagering on the Oscars has been legal in the United States since 2019. Betting sites in New Jersey, Michigan, Indiana, Arizona, Kansas, Massachusetts and Louisiana take bets on Hollywood’s biggest night of the year. Legal sports betting sites in Ontario are also booking action.
RELATED: 2026 Oscars Betting Guide: Odds, Best Bets, Analysis
The trading markets such as Kalshi, Polymarket, and Robinhood offer multiple markets on several 98th Academy Awards outcomes as well, including Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Director. Oscar voting begins on Saturday (Feb. 28) and ends on March 5.
FanDuel and DraftKings offer betting in 23 major categories. But not all operators offer Oscar betting markets where available. For example, BetMGM is approved for Academy Awards wagering in Indiana, Michigan, and Louisiana. DraftKings and Caesars Sportsbook had betting available in all states where it was allowed in 2024.
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Some States Limit The Amount Of Oscar Wagers
The allowed amount of sportsbooks wagers varies by state. DraftKings Director of Race and Sports Johnny Avello told Bookies.com that most Oscars bets taken by his book range between $5-$500. He wrote his first ticket in Las Vegas in 1984 and invented the Oscars betting market during his days on the Las Vegas Strip in the 1980s.
Oscars-related trades on prediction markets such as Kalshi, Polymarket and Robinhood are legal throughout the United States. Prediction market trades differ from traditional sports betting in that you are not making a bet against an operator but rather trading on a specific outcome against others who are on the other side of the trade.
The payouts offered on prediction markets depend on when the trade was made, in the same way, one locks in their odds when they wager on a legal sports betting app.
Depending on the prediction market platform, trades can be funded via debit card, bank transfer, crypto or wire transfer.
2026 Oscars Trading Volume On Kalshi
Here's a look at the top Oscar trading markets on Kalshi as of February 10.
| MARKET | FAVORITE | ODDS | TOTAL VOLUME |
| Best Picture | One Battle After Another | 78% | $10,766,775 |
| Best Director | Paul Thomas Anderson | 92% | $1,617,581 |
| Best Actress | Jessie Buckley | 91% | $1,418,254 |
| Best Actor | Timothee Chalamet | 72% | $5,901,732 |
| Best Supporting Actress | Teyana Taylor | 51% | $1,690,862 |
| Best Supporting Actor | Sean Penn | 67% | $2,439,296 |
| Best Cinematography | One Battle After Another | 72% | $973,877 |
| Best Animated Feature | KPop Demon Hunters | 92% | $397,804 |
| Best Original Screenplay | Sinners | 93% | $508,911 |
| Best Adapted Screenplay | One Battle After Another | 93% | $302,106 |
| Best Film Editing | One Battle After Another | 77% | $300,064 |
| Best Costume Design | Frankenstein | 9``1% | $180,918 |
| Best Music (Original Score) | Sinners | 93% | $150,590 |
| Best Music (Original Song) | Golden | 90% | $260,578 |
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Trading On The Oscars - Prediction Markets Join Conversation
Since moving into both entertainment and sports-event contracts, prediction markets such as Kalshi, Robinhood and Polymarket (limited availability the U.S.) have seen millions in trades on the upcoming Oscars. This allows more options in "How To Legally Bet & Trade On The 2026 Oscars."
"The culture markets on Kalshi are incredibly popular. People are putting money behind their predictions when it comes to everything from award shows and music, to reality shows and movies to celebrity news and more," a Kalshi spokesperson told Bookes.com.
The total volume for culture markets on Kalshi grew 4X from December 2025-December 2026 and the number of traders participating in these markets during that time period grew 10X, the platform says.
Kalshi trading on the Golden Globes grew 165% compared to 2025. The site's traders correctly predicted the winner in over 85% of the categories.
‘Anora’ Won 'Best Picture' As Betting/Trading Favorite
"Anora" topped the market as the favorite for best picture in 2025 before winning top honors.
Before the Oscars, “Anora” traded at 65 cents per share on Kalshi. That means a share you purchased for 65 cents was worth $1 after “Anora” won the Best Picture award. It closed at -200 (or 66.7% probability) across most sportsbooks as the prohibitive favorite. The payout on a trade for 65 cents, thus, was marginally higher than on a wager at -200.
The price history of “Anora” offers a recap of the film’s progress during the awards season. In November 2024, it was trading at 48.4 cents per share. That price tumbled to 18 cents after the film was shut out at the Golden Globes. It surged from 27.2 cents per share to 61.3 cents per share after its big Super Bowl weekend at the Directors Guild of America, Producers Guild of America, and Critics’ Choice awards. It got another boost after “Conclave” won both the BAFTA and SAG awards, as “The Brutalist” all but fell out of favor.
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