Getting Started
The fastest path from opening PolyLab to a useful market shortlist, with the exact things to watch first.
This page is intentionally explicit and implementation-first. If the product or upstream APIs change, the current behavior described here can change with them.
What PolyLab is
PolyLab is a scanner for Polymarket markets. It does not place orders, it does not stream a live order book, and it does not try to predict outcomes for you. It helps you search, rank, and compare markets using a snapshot of public market data plus holder and wallet-PnL enrichment.
What PolyLab is not
- It is not a brokerage interface.
- It is not a live execution terminal.
- It is not financial advice.
- It is not a guarantee that a high-APR or high-dominance market is mispriced.
First 10 minutes
- Open
/appand keep the default sort by volume. - Narrow the universe with tags, price range, and a spread ceiling.
- Sort by one variable at a time so you know what is moving the list.
- Open a market detail panel and verify the market link, category, dates, and holders context.
- Cross-check timing and market structure on Polymarket before acting.
Recommended first workflow
Start with liquid markets
Raise Min Volume and Min Liquidity first. This removes a large amount of thin and noisy inventory before you look at more interpretive metrics.
Add a spread ceiling
Use Max Spread early. Spread is one of the fastest ways to filter out markets that look interesting on paper but are costly to enter or exit.
Use price range as a scenario filter
Price in PolyLab is the displayed market price for a specific outcome. In practice:
0.95to1.00isolates very high-probability outcomes.0.45to0.55isolates near-coinflip outcomes.0.00to0.15isolates long shots.
Use APR carefully
APR is an annualized expression of the current price and time to expiry. It is a useful ranking hint, not a standalone decision rule. Read APR Methodology before using it aggressively.
Use Smart Money as context, not proof
Smart-money fields in the scanner are counts derived from top holder rows plus wallet PnL sign. They are not a direct model of trader conviction. Read Smart Money Methodology before treating them as signal.
Common mistakes
Treating snapshots like live tape
PolyLab works from hourly market snapshots rather than a live order book stream. A number can already be stale by the time you see it.
Reading counts as edge
yes_profitable_count and related fields only mean that currently sampled holders on one side map to wallets with positive or negative tracked PnL. That is a much weaker claim than “smart money is betting this side”.
Ignoring expiry context
A market with attractive metrics but only a few hours left behaves very differently from a market with months left. Always pair price, spread, and APR with time to expiry.