// GLOSSARY

Maker rebate

A payment (or fee discount) some exchanges give makers for providing liquidity. On Kalshi and Polymarket the standard schedules mostly feature zero maker fees rather than cash rebates — though venues run liquidity/rewards programs that can function like rebates.

In equities and crypto, maker-taker pricing often pays makers a small rebate per filled share funded from taker fees. In prediction markets the same idea appears in a milder form: making is cheaper than taking, but usually via a zero fee rather than a cash payment.

On Kalshi and Polymarket

On Kalshi's standard schedule, resting orders on most markets pay no trading fee while takers pay the formula-based taker fee — so the "rebate" is really the fee you didn't pay. (Kalshi has designated some markets with maker fees; check the current fee schedule.) Polymarket charges no exchange trading fee on most markets for either side, and has at times run liquidity-rewards programs that pay market makers for quoting — terms change, so verify current programs on the venue's docs.

Why it matters

Zero-fee making versus formula-fee taking is a real, compounding edge: capturing the spread and skipping the fee is the economic core of market making. The full fee picture is in Kalshi fees explained.