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This page covers common errors you might encounter when using the Polymarket CLI and how to resolve them.

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Installation Issues

Symptoms:
$ polymarket --help
bash: polymarket: command not found
Causes:
  • The polymarket CLI is not installed
  • The binary is not on your system PATH
  • Installation failed or is incomplete
Solutions:
  1. Install the CLI (macOS/Linux via Homebrew): 
    brew tap Polymarket/polymarket-cli https://github.com/Polymarket/polymarket-cli
brew install polymarket
  2. Verify installation: 
    which polymarket
# Should output: /usr/local/bin/polymarket (or similar)

polymarket --help
# Should display help text
  3. Check your PATH: 
    echo $PATH
# Ensure the installation directory is included
  4. Restart your terminal after installation to refresh the PATH.
Symptoms:
$ python3 scripts/chart.py
python3: command not found
Solution:The chart script requires Python 3.9 or later.
  1. Check Python version: 
    python3 --version
# Should be 3.9 or higher
  2. Install Python 3.9+:
    • macOS: brew install [email protected]
    • Ubuntu/Debian: sudo apt-get install python3.9
    • Fedora: sudo dnf install python3.9
  3. Use the full path if needed: 
    /usr/bin/python3 scripts/chart.py <TOKEN_ID>

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Lookup Errors

Symptoms:
$ polymarket events get my-market-slug
Error: 404 Not Found
Cause: Using the wrong command namespace for the resource type.Solution:Use the command that matches the URL path:
  • Event URL (/event/) → polymarket events get <slug>
  • Market URL (/market/) → polymarket markets get <slug>
Examples:
# For https://polymarket.com/event/democratic-presidential-nominee-2028
polymarket events get democratic-presidential-nominee-2028  # ✓

# For https://polymarket.com/market/will-biden-run-in-2024  
polymarket markets get will-biden-run-in-2024  # ✓
Ambiguous slug? Try events get first. If that returns 404, try markets get.
Symptoms:
Error: Invalid slug format
Cause: The slug contains invalid characters or formatting.Solution:
  1. Extract the slug correctly from the URL:
    • Take only the last path segment
    • Example: https://polymarket.com/event/democratic-presidential-nominee-2028
    • Slug: democratic-presidential-nominee-2028
  2. Don’t include:
    • The domain (polymarket.com)
    • The path prefix (/event/ or /market/)
    • Query parameters (?anything=value)
    • Trailing slashes
Correct:
polymarket events get democratic-presidential-nominee-2028
Incorrect:
polymarket events get /event/democratic-presidential-nominee-2028
polymarket events get https://polymarket.com/event/democratic-presidential-nominee-2028

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Search and Query Errors

Symptoms:
$ polymarket markets search "election" --order volume_num
Error: 422 Unprocessable Entity
Cause: Using snake_case instead of camelCase for the --order parameter.Solution:Use camelCase for all order values:
# Correct (camelCase)
polymarket markets search "election" --order volumeNum  # ✓
polymarket markets search "election" --order liquidityNum  # ✓

# Incorrect (snake_case)  
polymarket markets search "election" --order volume_num  # ✗
polymarket markets search "election" --order liquidity_num  # ✗
Valid order values:
  • volumeNum
  • liquidityNum
  • endDate

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Token ID and Price History Issues

Symptoms:
$ polymarket clob price-history --interval max 0x1a2b3c4d
Error: No price history found
Causes:
  1. Using hex token ID instead of decimal
  2. Invalid token ID
  3. Market has no trading history
Solutions:
  1. Get the decimal token ID from CLOB market command: 
    # First, get the decimal token ID
polymarket -o json clob market <CONDITION_ID>
# Look for "token_id" in the "tokens" array

# Then use the decimal value
polymarket clob price-history --interval max 123456789012345678
  2. Don’t use hex format: 
    # Wrong
polymarket clob price-history --interval max 0x1a2b3c4d  # ✗

# Right  
polymarket clob price-history --interval max 123456789  # ✓
  3. Verify the token ID exists: 
    polymarket -o json clob market <CONDITION_ID>
# Check that the token_id appears in the output
Symptoms: Incorrect or mismatched token IDs when converting from hex to decimal.Solution:Don’t convert manually. Always get decimal token IDs directly from the CLOB API:
polymarket -o json clob market <CONDITION_ID>
The tokens array contains decimal token_id values you can use directly.If you must convert from hex:
python3 -c "print(int('0xYOUR_HEX_HERE', 16))"
Remove the 0x prefix and any leading zeros:
# Correct
python3 -c "print(int('0x1a2b3c4d5e6f', 16))"

# Incorrect
python3 -c "print(int('1a2b3c4d5e6f', 16))"  # Missing 0x
python3 -c "print(int('0x0001a2b3c', 16))"   # Leading zeros ok, but unnecessary

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Chart Generation Issues

Symptoms: Chart script runs successfully but no browser window opens.Solution:Open the HTML file manually:
$ python3 scripts/chart.py 123456789 --title "Market Name"
Chart saved to: /path/to/chart_123456789.html
# Browser doesn't open

# Open manually
open /path/to/chart_123456789.html  # macOS
xdg-open /path/to/chart_123456789.html  # Linux
The chart script prints the full path to the generated HTML file. Copy and paste it into your browser.
Symptoms:
$ python3 scripts/chart.py 123456789
ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'requests'
Cause: Missing Python dependencies.Solution:Install required modules:
pip3 install requests plotly
Or if using a virtual environment:
python3 -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: venv\Scripts\activate
pip install requests plotly
python3 scripts/chart.py 123456789 --title "Market"
Symptoms: Chart opens but is blank or shows “No data available.”Causes:
  1. Invalid token ID
  2. Market has no trading history
  3. Network connectivity issues
Solutions:
  1. Verify the token ID: 
    polymarket -o json clob market <CONDITION_ID>
# Confirm the token_id you're using appears in the output
  2. Check price history manually: 
    polymarket -o json clob price-history --interval max <TOKEN_ID>
# Should return an array of price points
  3. Check network connectivity: 
    curl -I https://clob.polymarket.com
# Should return 200 OK or similar

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Data Analysis Errors

Symptoms:
$ polymarket -o json data trades 0xa5Ef39C3D3e10d0B270233af41CaC69796B12966
[]
Causes:
  1. Wallet has no trading history (might be an infrastructure wallet)
  2. Invalid wallet address
  3. Wallet hasn’t traded on Polymarket
Solution:Check if it’s an infrastructure wallet:Some wallets show large positions but no trades because they’re infrastructure/collateral wallets, not trader wallets.Signals of an infrastructure wallet:
  • Empty trades array []
  • Very large portfolio value (millions or billions)
  • Only YIELD activity in history
  • Average price of $0 on all positions
  • Identical token amounts across all outcomes
Example:
polymarket -o json data value 0xa5Ef39C3D3e10d0B270233af41CaC69796B12966
# Returns: ~$11.9B (Polymarket's neg-risk escrow contract)

polymarket -o json data trades 0xa5Ef39C3D3e10d0B270233af41CaC69796B12966  
# Returns: [] (no trades)
These wallets obtained tokens via CTF splits, not purchases, so they have no trade history.
Symptoms: Top holders show unexpected addresses or values.Cause: Data includes infrastructure wallets alongside real traders.Solution:Filter out infrastructure wallets when analyzing holders:
  1. Get holder data: 
    polymarket -o json data holders <CONDITION_ID>
  2. For each holder, check trade history: 
    polymarket -o json data trades <WALLET_ADDRESS>
  3. Skip wallets with:
    • Empty trades array
    • Identical YES/NO position sizes
    • Billions in total value
Example filtering logic (Python):
def is_trader(wallet_address):
    result = subprocess.run(
        ['polymarket', '-o', 'json', 'data', 'trades', wallet_address],
        capture_output=True, text=True
    )
    trades = json.loads(result.stdout)
    return len(trades) > 0  # True if wallet has trades

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Network and API Issues

Symptoms:
Error: Connection timeout
Error: Could not resolve host
Solutions:
  1. Check internet connectivity: 
    ping polymarket.com
  2. Verify Polymarket API is accessible: 
    curl https://clob.polymarket.com/
curl https://gamma-api.polymarket.com/
  3. Check for firewall/proxy issues:
    • Corporate networks may block Polymarket APIs
    • VPNs may interfere with connections
    • Try temporarily disabling VPN/proxy
  4. Increase timeout (if CLI supports it): 
    polymarket --timeout 60 markets get <slug>
Symptoms:
Error: 429 Too Many Requests
Error: Rate limit exceeded
Cause: Making too many API requests in a short time period.Solutions:
  1. Add delays between requests: 
    for slug in market1 market2 market3; do
  polymarket markets get $slug
  sleep 2  # Wait 2 seconds between requests
done
  2. Reduce request frequency in scripts
  3. Cache results to avoid repeated lookups
  4. Wait and retry: 
    # Wait 60 seconds if rate limited
sleep 60
polymarket markets get <slug>

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Getting Help

If you’re still experiencing issues:
  1. Check the CLI help: 
    polymarket --help
polymarket <namespace> --help
polymarket <namespace> <command> --help
  2. Review the official documentation:
  3. Check for updates: 
    brew upgrade polymarket  # If installed via Homebrew
  4. Common debugging steps:
    • Run with -o json for structured output
    • Check the exact error message
    • Verify all prerequisites are installed
    • Test with a known-working example
  5. Create a minimal reproduction: 
    # Document the exact command that fails
polymarket events get example-slug

# Include the full error output
# Include your CLI version
polymarket --version

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