Shares & Payouts
Shares & Payouts
How shares are valued, redeemed, and calculated.
When you trade on Polymarket, you are buying and selling Outcome Shares.
What is a Share?
A share is a digital token (specifically, a Conditional Token based on the ERC-1155 standard) that represents a claim on a future payout.
- Collateral: Every share is fully backed by USDC locked in the smart contract.
- Safety: Because it's fully collateralized, the winner is guaranteed to be paid. The loser's money pays the winner.
Payout Example
Let's look at a market: "Will it rain tomorrow?"
- Alice bets $60 on Yes.
- Bob bets $40 on No.
- Total Pool: $100.
Scenario A: It Rains (Yes wins)
- Alice holds "Yes" shares. They are now worth $1.00 each.
- Bob holds "No" shares. They are worth $0.00.
- Alice gets the full $100 (her $60 + Bob's $40).
Scenario B: It's Sunny (No wins)
- Alice's shares -> $0.
- Bob's shares -> $1.00.
- Bob gets the full $100.
Redeeming
Once a market resolves (the event happens and the oracle confirms it):
- Your positions will show as "Ready to Redeem".
- You click Redeem.
- Your shares are burned, and USDC is sent to your wallet.
Note: Sometimes redemption is automatic, or you can simply sell your shares for 99.9¢ right before resolution if you don't want to wait.