# What A Polymarket Trading Bot Must Do > Before you begin, be sure to create your FRESH Polymarket account via THIS link: https://polymarket.com?via=alphastack-eymx This guide is the base layer. It is not a tour of the Polymarket Wizard UI. The Wizard app is only one working prototype. The important thing is the checklist every Polymarket trading bot has to solve before it can place real orders. Use a fresh wallet. Keep the funding tiny. This is hot-wallet infrastructure, not a place for personal funds. The frontend app repo is here: . ## The Whole Bot Flow ```mermaid flowchart TB A["Fresh bot wallet"] --> B["Polymarket account"] B --> C["Builder access"] C --> D["Builder API vars"] B --> E["CLOB API vars"] D --> F["Backend functions"] E --> F F --> G["Deposit wallet"] G --> H["Approvals"] H --> I["Fund pUSD"] I --> J["Read market data"] J --> K["Risk check"] K --> L["Submit order"] L --> M["Track position"] ``` That is the build. Everything else is app design. ## 1. Create A Dedicated Bot Wallet Make a new wallet just for the bot. Do not use your main wallet. Do not use a wallet with meaningful funds. The backend needs signing power, so this should be a small tool wallet. The bot wallet needs: - A Polymarket account. - A little POL on Polygon for gas. - Collateral that can become pUSD for trading. - The same address used for Builder and CLOB credentials. ## 2. Connect That Wallet To Polymarket Go to Polymarket and connect the bot wallet. ![Polymarket wallet login](./assets/setup/01-polymarket-wallet-login.png) Use this same wallet for the whole build. Do not create Builder credentials with one wallet and CLOB credentials with another. ## 3. Create Builder Access Builder access is needed for the relayer/deposit-wallet side of the app. In Polymarket, create a Builder profile and confirm it with the bot wallet. ![Create Builder profile](./assets/setup/02-create-builder-profile.png) ![Confirm Polymarket account](./assets/setup/03-confirm-polymarket-account.png) Copy the Builder Code. ![Copy Builder Code](./assets/setup/04-copy-builder-code.png) Then create Builder API credentials and save: - Builder API key. - Builder secret. - Builder passphrase. - Builder code. ![Builder API key created](./assets/setup/05-builder-api-key-created-masked.png) These are backend secrets. Never put them in frontend code. ## 4. Create CLOB API Credentials The bot also needs CLOB credentials for order and market operations. Save: - CLOB API key. - CLOB secret. - CLOB passphrase. These must match the bot wallet. If the wallet and keys do not match, order creation will fail. ## 5. Run The Backend From A Working Region Private trading actions should run on a backend, not in the browser. For this prototype, Netlify Functions worked with the Functions region set to Dublin, Ireland. ![Netlify Functions region](./assets/setup/06-netlify-functions-region-dublin.png) This matters because Polymarket sees the server request location. Your browser location is not the only thing that matters. The Wizard repo uses: ```txt Build command: npm run build Publish directory: dist Functions directory: netlify/functions Functions region: Dublin, Ireland ``` ## 6. Set The Required Environment Variables These are the important backend variables for this prototype: ```txt POLYGON_RPC_URL= POLYMARKET_BUILDER_API_KEY= POLYMARKET_BUILDER_SECRET= POLYMARKET_BUILDER_PASSPHRASE= POLYMARKET_BUILDER_CODE= POLYMARKET_CLOB_API_KEY= POLYMARKET_CLOB_SECRET= POLYMARKET_CLOB_PASSPHRASE= BOT_MNEMONIC= AUTH_SECRET= ``` Useful optional variables: ```txt BOT_ACCOUNT_INDEX=0 POLYGON_RPC_FALLBACKS= POL_GAS_RESERVE=0.5 AUTH_ALLOWED_WALLETS= ``` Rules: - `BOT_MNEMONIC` is the hot wallet seed phrase. Never commit it. - `AUTH_SECRET` should be a separate random secret for session signing. - Polymarket keys stay server-side. - Anything prefixed with `VITE_` is browser-visible and must not contain secrets. Old variables that this repo no longer uses: ```txt MAX_DAILY_LOSS_USD MAX_OPEN_POSITIONS MAX_SPREAD_CENTS MAX_TRADE_USD MIN_HOURS_TO_RESOLUTION MIN_LIQUIDITY_USD POLYMARKET_RELAYER_API_KEY POLYMARKET_RELAYER_API_KEY_ADDRESS ``` Risk limits in this prototype live in code, not in those old env vars. ## 7. Create The Deposit Wallet A Polymarket trading bot does not only need a normal wallet. It also needs the Polymarket deposit wallet used for trading collateral. The backend should: 1. Derive the deposit wallet address. 2. Check if it is already deployed. 3. Deploy it if needed through the Builder relayer. 4. Store or return the deposit wallet address. In the Wizard repo, this logic lives in `netlify/functions/_polymarket.ts`. ## 8. Set The Required Approvals After the deposit wallet exists, the bot needs approvals before it can trade smoothly. The prototype sets approvals for: - pUSD to the main Exchange. - pUSD to the Negative Risk Exchange. - pUSD to the Negative Risk Adapter. - Conditional Tokens approval for the main Exchange. - Conditional Tokens approval for the Negative Risk Exchange. If approvals are missing, orders or exits can fail even if the wallet has funds. ## 9. Fund Trading Collateral The bot needs pUSD available in the deposit wallet. The prototype can: - Use POL in the bot wallet. - Swap POL to USDC.e. - Wrap USDC.e into pUSD. - Transfer pUSD into the deposit wallet. You can fund a bot in a different way, but the end state is the same: the deposit wallet needs enough pUSD to cover the order. ## 10. Read Market Data Before Trading Before placing an order, the bot needs live market data. Typical data sources: - Gamma API for market metadata, images, outcomes, and token IDs. - CLOB API for live prices, order book, spread, history, and order submission. Do not trust stale frontend data for a real order. The backend should re-check the market before submitting. ## 11. Run A Risk Check Every bot needs a final server-side risk check. At minimum, check: - Market is active and accepting orders. - Token IDs are available. - Liquidity is high enough. - Spread is not too wide. - Trade size is inside your limit. - The market is not too close to resolution. - Deposit wallet has enough pUSD. The exact limits are strategy choices. The existence of the checks is not optional. ## 12. Submit The Order Once the wallet, credentials, deposit wallet, approvals, collateral, market data, and risk checks are ready, the backend can create and submit a signed CLOB order. The browser should not sign with the bot key. The browser can ask for an order. The backend decides whether that order is allowed. ## 13. Track Positions And Transactions After an order, store enough history to explain what happened. Track: - Orders submitted. - Positions opened. - Sells or exits. - Deposit wallet deployment transaction hashes. - Approval transaction hashes. - Funding and withdrawal transaction hashes. CLOB orders are not always shown like a normal Polygon transfer. Setup, approval, deposit, funding, and withdrawal transactions are the cleanest Polygonscan proof points. ## How This Repo Fits Polymarket Wizard is a working implementation of this base layer. The app adds: - A React frontend for testing. - Wallet-gated controls. - Market search. - Live chart and order book. - A small order ticket. - Positions and activity views. - Netlify Functions for all private actions. You can redesign the frontend completely. The base layer above is the part that matters for any real Polymarket bot. ## Files To Study | File | Why | | --- | --- | | `netlify/functions/_polymarket.ts` | Builder relayer, deposit wallet, approvals, funding, CLOB client, buy/sell flow. | | `netlify/functions/_market.ts` | Gamma/CLOB market reads and validation helpers. | | `netlify/functions/_env.ts` | Required env checks and risk limits. | | `netlify/functions/_wallet.ts` | Hot wallet derivation and Polygon clients. | | `src/App.tsx` | One possible testing UI for the backend flow. | The repo proves the path works. The guide shows the path you need to rebuild in your own bot.