Kalshi 1099 Doesn't Match Your Numbers? How to Reconcile It

If your Kalshi 1099 doesn't match the profit you calculated, the cause is usually not an error. Kalshi's forms and its annual P&L statement measure different things: the 1099s cover interest, rewards and crypto transfers, while event-contract results sit on a separate P&L statement computed with FIFO, net of fees and rebates. Line those up and most gaps disappear.

OddsFile is software, not tax advice. The IRS has not issued guidance on how prediction-market contracts are taxed. This article explains how Kalshi's documents are built and how to reconcile them; a tax professional can tell you how to report the result.

What Kalshi actually sends you

According to Kalshi's help center, members who meet IRS reporting thresholds can receive:

Two things stand out. First, Kalshi's help center does not describe a trade-level 1099 for event-contract results; the P&L statement is the document for that. Second, the forms are threshold-based. The 1099-MISC threshold rose to $2,000 for payments made in 2026 (it was $600), so a smaller rewards balance may produce no form at all even though the income is still reportable.

That means the most common "mismatch" is comparing two documents that were never meant to agree. A 1099-B showing crypto-transfer proceeds tells you nothing about whether your election markets made money. For more on the forms themselves, see Kalshi taxes and the 1099.

Seven reasons your numbers differ

1. Lot method: FIFO vs yours

Kalshi says it uses first-in, first-out to compute profit and loss. If you built positions at different prices and sold part of them, any other method (HIFO, average cost, specific identification) produces a different realized number for the year, even though the lifetime total is the same.

Example: you buy 100 YES at $0.40, then 100 YES at $0.60, then sell 100 at $0.70 in December.

• FIFO (Kalshi): gain = 100 × ($0.70 − $0.40) = $30
• HIFO: gain = 100 × ($0.70 − $0.60) = $10

The remaining 100 contracts carry the other basis into the next year. Neither number is "wrong"; they assign the same total profit to different years.

2. Fees and rebates

Kalshi's P&L "includes fees and any rebates." If your spreadsheet uses gross trade prices, your profit will be higher than Kalshi's by roughly your total fees. If you trade enough to earn rebates, the reverse can happen.

3. Monthly update timing

Kalshi updates trading activity on the first morning of each month. A statement downloaded on December 20 will not include December. Download the annual statement in January, after the final update.

4. Time zones and year boundaries

Settlements and fills just after midnight UTC on January 1 belong to a different calendar day in US time zones. A New Year's Eve market that settles at 7 p.m. Eastern is already January 1 in UTC. Check which time zone each source uses before chasing small differences.

5. Open positions at December 31

A position you still hold on December 31 has no realized gain under FIFO-based P&L. If you count its mark-to-market value, your number will differ. (Section 1256 treatment, if it applied, would mark open positions to market at year end. Whether it applies is disputed; see Section 1256 and prediction markets.)

6. Deposits and withdrawals are not profit

"Withdrew $12,000, deposited $10,000, so I made $2,000" is a cash-flow view, not a P&L view. It ignores your opening and closing balances and open positions, and it mixes in interest and rewards.

7. Interest and rewards live elsewhere

Interest arrives on 1099-INT and rewards on 1099-MISC. If you folded them into trading profit, your total will exceed the P&L statement by exactly those amounts.

A worked reconciliation

Suppose your bank-and-spreadsheet math says you made $4,850 on Kalshi in 2025, and Kalshi's P&L statement says $4,212.40.

When every line has a reason, the gap is explained. A residual you can't explain usually means a missing fill or settlement, a position still open, or a transfer counted as income.

What to do with the reconciled number

Reconciling tells you what happened. It does not tell you how to report it. The same $4,212.40 can be described as other income, capital gain, gambling winnings or (more aggressively) Section 1256 gains, and each choice changes which forms you use and whether losses count. Those options are compared in gambling vs capital gains for event contracts and in our pillar on whether prediction market winnings are taxable.

If a professional prepares your return, give them the Kalshi P&L statement, every 1099 you received, your own trade export, and the reconciliation table above. That package answers most of the questions they would ask.

OddsFile imports Kalshi fills and settlements with a read-only API key, applies FIFO, HIFO or specific identification, and is building a Kalshi P&L reconciliation report for the 2026 season (planned for launch). To see how the treatments compare on public wallets today, run the free OddsFile check.

FAQ

Does Kalshi send a 1099-B for event contract profits?

Kalshi's help center describes its 1099-B as covering proceeds from crypto transfers, not event-contract trading results. For trading results it provides an annual P&L statement. If you received a different form, read the form's own description and keep it with your records.

Why didn't I receive any 1099 from Kalshi?

Forms are issued only when IRS thresholds are met. Not receiving a form does not mean the income is not taxable. Your P&L statement is still the starting point.

Kalshi's P&L is lower than mine. Which one is right?

Usually both, measured differently. Fees, FIFO timing, and interest or rewards counted as trading profit explain most gaps. Work through the seven causes above before assuming an error.

Can I use a method other than FIFO?

For property, specific identification is generally allowed if you can identify lots adequately, but how event contracts are classified is unsettled. Ask a professional before departing from the method your venue reports, and apply whatever method you use consistently.

When should I download the Kalshi P&L statement?

After the first-of-month update in January, so December activity is included.

Where do Polymarket and Robinhood fit?

Polymarket's international exchange historically issues no 1099s (see does Polymarket send a 1099), and Robinhood's event contracts are covered in Robinhood prediction market taxes.