No house edge
A betting app with no house edge.
There is no bookmaker margin because there is no bookmaker. The two sides agree the terms, and the pot is whatever the two sides put in.
Where the edge normally hides
It is priced into the line
The margin is not a line item you can see. It is baked into the number you are offered.
It applies every single bet
You pay it on the way in, on every wager, regardless of how the bet turns out.
The book cannot lose
A balanced book profits either way. That is the business, and it is working as designed.
How a bet with no house edge works
- 01
Write the question
Any yes or no question. Name the two sides in your own words and set the stake. There is no list of approved markets to pick from.
- 02
Share the link
Send it to the group chat. A private bet opens only through that link, so it stays between the people you sent it to.
- 03
Everyone stakes to join
Taking a side means putting the money in. The stake is held until the bet settles, so nobody is owed anything at the end.
- 04
The group calls it
Everyone who wagered votes on the result and the majority decides. The pot pays out onchain, with no bookmaker taking a cut of the line.
What we charge instead
No margin in the price
Nobody quotes you a number, so there is no margin to bury in it. The terms are whatever you and the other side agree.
A fee on winnings only
Poll takes a small percentage from winning payouts. Cancelled and tied bets carry no fee at all.
The pot is the pot
What the group staked is what gets paid out, minus that fee. There is no third party on the other side of your bet.
Questions people ask
So how does Poll make money?
A small percentage of winning payouts. Adding funds is free, and cancelled or tied bets carry no fee. Withdrawals cost $1 to $2.
Is no house edge the same as no fees?
No, and it is worth being precise. There is no margin built into a price, because there is no price. There is still a fee on winnings.
Could the other side and I just settle between ourselves?
You can, and plenty of groups do exactly that. The difference is that here the stake is already in, so nobody has to be chased.
Does anyone else do this?
Several apps cut out the bookmaker. They differ on whether real money is involved and whether the stake is held. There is an honest comparison of each.
See it with a real occasion
The same bet, applied to something your group actually argues about.
- Telegram groupsTelegram group betting poolAdd Poll to the chat, open a cash bet, and let members wager and settle without leaving Telegram.
- Fantasy seasonFantasy league side-pot trackerRun weekly rivalries and season-long challenges as separate private cash bets.
- Draft dayFantasy league buy-in collectionCollect the league buy-in up front so the commissioner stops chasing anyone on Venmo.
- Season longFantasy punishment and last-place betsBack who finishes bottom, with the stake settled by the group instead of argued over.
- Matchup weekFantasy head-to-head side betsPut a cash side bet on the league mate you play this week, settled when the week ends.
- KnockoutNFL survivor poolRun the weekly knockout as separate private cash bets: one pick a week, last one standing.
- Game dayNFL squares poolKeep the 10x10 sheet where it is and run the cash bets around it on Poll.
- Fight nightUFC group betting poolCreate one private cash bet for the fight-night question your friends cannot agree on.
- Office footballPremier League sweepstakeTurn each fixture into a separate private cash bet for the work group chat.
- PreseasonPredict the Premier League tableCall the title, top four and the drop before kickoff, each as its own private cash bet.
How Poll compares
Against the other ways people do this, including where they win.
- ComparisonPoll vs WagerLabOne tracks the bet. One settles it.
- ComparisonPoll vs RounderSame argument. One of them pays out.
- ComparisonPoll vs FinalCallA tracker remembers. It does not pay you.
- ComparisonPoll vs BroThrowOne suspends you. One already has the money.
- AlternativePolymarket alternativeTheir team picks the markets. You pick yours.
- AlternativeKalshi alternativeAn exchange lists contracts. You have an argument.
- No longer availableBetU alternativeThe app is gone. The bets do not have to be.
- ComparisonPoll vs a group chat and a spreadsheetThe chat is fine. Collecting is the problem.
- AlternativeWagerLab alternativeUnits are fun. Cash is the point.
- AlternativeBettorEdge alternativeA marketplace lists markets. You have an argument.
- ComparisonPoll vs BetOpenlyA scoreboard settles one. Your group settles the other.
- ComparisonPoll vs BettorEdgeNo house either way. Different other side.
Settle it properly.
Write the question, share the link, and let the group decide.