Polymarket Takes on Kalshi With Free NYC Grocery Store

• Polymarket will open a free grocery store in NYC on February 12.
• This comes days after Kalshi drew block-long lines with a $50 grocery giveaway.
• The move comes as prediction markets are banned from Super Bowl ads.

Polymarket is opening a free grocery store in New York City next week, days after rival Kalshi handed out $50 worth of groceries to shoppers in Manhattan. Both companies run prediction markets that allow users to bet on real-world outcomes, and both are now using food to attract attention and users.

The timing is deliberate as the Super Bowl is set for February 8, one of the biggest betting events of the year. At the same time, prediction markets are banned from advertising during the game, limiting traditional marketing options. Free groceries offer a way to stay visible without running ads.

Kalshi’s giveaway drew immediate crowds. Lines formed 30 minutes early and stretched more than a city block. Nearly 1,800 people signed up, and media reports estimated thousands showed up. Many attendees had never heard of Kalshi but knew grocery prices were high, and the offer was free.

Polymarket’s Store Is Bigger 

Polymarket responded by announcing it had signed a lease for a physical store called “The Polymarket.” Unlike Kalshi’s one-day promotion, this will be a company-run grocery store stocked with staple items and staffed entirely by Polymarket. The store opens on February 12 at noon and will run through February 15. The address has not yet been disclosed.

The company says the store has been planned for months and will be open to all New Yorkers with no sign-up or purchase required. Alongside the store, Polymarket donated $1 million to the Food Bank for New York City.

This move follows Polymarket’s recent return to the US market, with its US app launched this week, marking a full regulatory comeback.

Why Polymarket Is Really Doing This

Beyond goodwill, the grocery store generates national media coverage at a time when paid advertising is restricted. It drives brand recognition among non-crypto users and positions Polymarket as a community-facing company.

Critics on social media have been blunt, calling the store a calculated marketing stunt designed to spike user growth ahead of the Super Bowl and justify multibillion-dollar valuations. Others argue it is a defensive move aimed at buying time and public support as city and state regulators debate how aggressively to tax and oversee prediction markets.

Grocery prices are up about 30% since 2020, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. A March 2025 survey showed nearly 90% of New Yorkers believe food prices are rising faster than their income.

That issue helped propel Zohran Mamdani to the mayor’s office after he pledged city-run grocery stores across all five boroughs. According to critics, Polymarket’s initiative favors Mamdani’s policies, who’d tax the company “into oblivion” if not for this new move. 

Related: Ukraine Officially Blocks Access to Polymarket Platform