Robinhood Event Contracts Promotions 2026: Rewards, Terms and Eligibility

Robinhood has no promo code for event contracts. Its offers attach to your account and appear in the app, and the value differs from one customer to the next. As of October 2026, two rewards apply to new prediction-market users: a prediction-markets referral reward and Robinhood's standard stock reward for new accounts. Neither has a fixed published value. We earn nothing from Robinhood, and no link on this page changes what you are offered.

Current offers

Checked against Robinhood's own pages in October 2026.

Limits on the referral reward, per Robinhood: a referrer is paid for at most 10 successful referrals, each invitee can claim the reward once, and an unclaimed reward expires on the date shown in the app. The reward is paid as cash into your Robinhood brokerage account and can be delayed while Robinhood verifies eligibility.

We do not quote a dollar value. Robinhood does not publish one, and third-party pages that do disagree with each other.

Past offers

These have ended. They show the kind of promotion Robinhood runs.

• World Cup 2026. From June 8, 2026, customers who referred five friends to prediction markets got uncapped $0 commissions on World Cup trades (Robinhood newsroom, June 4, 2026). The tournament ended in July.
• Gold perks. Around the World Cup, Robinhood tied prediction-market discounts and sweepstakes to Gold, its $5-a-month or $50-a-year subscription (InvestmentNews, June 2026). Gold's lower commission rate, covered below, is permanent rather than a promotion.

How to claim

1. Open a Robinhood brokerage account, through a friend's invite if you want the referral reward. You need an SSN, a US address and a government ID.
2. Link a bank account or debit card. This is the condition for the standard stock reward.
3. Apply for a Robinhood Derivatives account. Event contracts need this second approval. The application asks about income, net worth and trading experience. Answer truthfully. Robinhood can decline it, and you can reapply.
4. Complete the prediction-markets learning screens. The referral reward requires them.
5. Check the reward in the app. Robinhood shows the value and expiry date on the promotional screen. Claim it before that date.

Neither reward requires you to trade, but the referrer must have placed at least one prediction-markets trade to earn theirs.

Who qualifies

Robinhood's event contracts page sets these requirements, as of October 2026:

• Age: 18 or older.
• Residency: US resident.
• Account: an individual brokerage account plus an approved Robinhood Derivatives account.
• State: sports contracts are not available in Maryland or Nevada, and Michigan residents cannot open new sports contracts since September 9, 2026. Robinhood says "additional state restrictions may apply". OddsAssist reports that Maryland residents cannot use the prediction-markets hub at all (OddsAssist).

If the prediction markets section does not appear or will not let you trade, the cause is usually one of three things: the Derivatives application is missing or was declined, your state restricts the category, or your account has an open issue such as unverified identity. VPNs and false addresses break Robinhood's terms and can get the account closed.

What a reward is worth after fees

A sign-up reward does not change the cost of trading. Every event-contract trade on Robinhood carries two fees: Robinhood's commission and the exchange's fee.

Source: Robinhood event contracts overview. On 100 contracts at 50¢ that is $1.00 in commission plus up to $1.00 to the exchange. At 90¢ it is $0.90 in commission ($0.45 with Gold) plus up to $1.00. The Robinhood review has the full fee table and compares it with trading on Kalshi or Polymarket's US app directly.

How payouts work

Each contract pays $1.00 if the event happens and $0 if it does not. The price is the market's estimate of the chance.

An example with fees at their maximum. You buy 10 Yes contracts at 63¢:

• Yes wins: you receive $10.00, a profit of at least $3.50.
• No wins: you receive nothing and lose up to $6.50.
• You sell early at 78¢: you receive $7.80 less a second commission and exchange fee, about $0.20 at most, for a profit of roughly $1.10.

Settled winnings are cash in your brokerage account. Rewards and winnings carry no playthrough requirement. Settlement timing depends on the event and the exchange's rules. A game contract usually settles soon after the official result; an economic contract settles when the data is published. The contract page lists the settlement source.

Buying power and withdrawals

Your event-contract buying power is the cash in your Robinhood brokerage account. A few points follow from that:

• Cash from settled contracts is available to trade again.
• Cash from stock sales becomes available on the normal settlement cycle.
• Part of a bank deposit is available right away; the amount depends on your account type, and Gold raises it.
• Money in open contracts is locked until they settle or you sell. $500 in open positions is $500 you cannot spend on stock.

Because contracts are paid in full, your largest possible position is your cash divided by the price. $1,000 buys about 1,500 contracts at 65¢ once fees are included.

To withdraw, go to Account, then Transfers, then transfer to your bank. Standard bank transfers are free and take a few business days; instant transfers cost a fee. You cannot withdraw money tied up in an open contract. Sell it first.

Taxes

Gains are taxable. Robinhood lists fees in your annual statement under total fees and commissions and publishes a separate help article on event-contract tax forms. How the IRS treats event-contract gains is unsettled. Some advisers argue for Section 1256 treatment and others for ordinary income. Promotional rewards are generally reportable income too. See our tax guide and ask a tax professional. Bellwether does not give tax advice.

Is the reward a reason to choose Robinhood?

Not on its own. The reward is a one-off and its value is not published. The fees apply to every trade. If you already use Robinhood, the reward is a small extra on an app you know. If you do not, compare the costs first:

• Kalshi charges about $1.75 per 100 contracts at 50¢, pays 3.50% variable interest on balances of $250 or more, and lists more markets. We earn nothing from Kalshi.
• Polymarket's US app charges takers at most $1.74 per 100 contracts, as of October 2026, and pays makers a rebate, but is not available in AZ, IL, MA, MD, MI, MT, NV or OH. We earn a commission on Polymarket sign-ups.

The Polymarket vs Robinhood comparison sets the three side by side.

Visit Robinhood →

Frequently asked questions

Is there a Robinhood event contracts promo code?

No. Robinhood's offers attach to your account and appear in the app. A friend's invite link is the only code-like route, and it unlocks the referral reward.

How much is the Robinhood prediction-markets reward?

Robinhood does not publish a value. Its referral page says the reward's value "may vary by customer and time" and is shown in the app on the promotional screen.

Do I need to trade to get the reward?

Not as the invitee. You need a new Robinhood Derivatives account and to complete the prediction-markets learning screens. The referrer must have made at least one prediction-markets trade.

Can I withdraw the reward?

It is paid as cash into your Robinhood brokerage account. Robinhood can delay it while it checks eligibility. Once it is in your account it behaves like any other cash.

Why can't I see prediction markets in my Robinhood app?

Usually because your Robinhood Derivatives account is not approved yet, or because of where you live. Sports contracts are unavailable in Maryland and Nevada, and Michigan residents cannot open new ones.

Does Robinhood Gold change the fees?

Yes. Gold halves Robinhood's commission rate, from 10% to 5% of price × (1 − price). Both tiers are capped at 1¢ per contract, so the saving only shows at prices below about 28¢ or above about 72¢.

Are event contracts gambling?

Federally they are CFTC-regulated derivatives. Several states disagree for sports contracts, and federal appeals courts have split on the question. Robinhood and New Jersey have both asked the Supreme Court to decide it. Treat any money you put in as money you can afford to lose.

Sources

• Robinhood: Invite friends to prediction markets, Event contracts overview (both checked October 2026), World Cup and Rothera announcement (June 4, 2026)
• InvestmentNews on Robinhood Gold and the World Cup (June 2026)
• OddsAssist: Robinhood prediction markets states (October 2026)