U.S. State Gaming Revenue & Tax Statistics 2026
National and state-level commercial gaming revenue, tax collections, and the growing gap between regulated and unregulated gambling — sourced directly to the American Gaming Association and named state/industry reporting, with every figure dated.
Last updated August 2026
A Sixth Straight Record Year
U.S. commercial gaming just posted its sixth consecutive annual revenue record — and the tax take grew even faster than revenue did.Sports Betting and iGaming Are Growing Far Faster Than Casinos
Land-based casino revenue is still the largest slice of the market by dollar value, but its growth rate is being lapped by the newer, digitally-delivered verticals.From 493 commercial casino locations across 27 states — traditional slot machines and table games.
Excludes tribal-casino sportsbooks and Florida mobile betting (conducted as tribal gaming there). Growth is now slowing — see the prediction-market section below.
Pennsylvania, Michigan and New Jersey account for roughly 90% of the national total. In both Pennsylvania and New Jersey, iGaming revenue exceeded land-based casino revenue for the first time in 2025.
Nevada Still Leads, But Its Share of the Market Is Shrinking
The five largest commercial gaming markets by total revenue, 2025.| Rank | State | 2025 Commercial Gaming Revenue |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nevada | $15.8B |
| 2 | Pennsylvania | $7.7B |
| 3 | New Jersey | $7.0B |
| 4 | New York | $5.7B |
| 5 | Michigan | $5.0B |
Sources: PlayPennsylvania and PlayNJ, March 2026, both citing AGA/state regulator data.
These five states account for roughly 52% of all U.S. commercial gaming revenue ($41.2B of the national $78.62B total) — but Nevada’s individual share has been gradually declining for years as digitally-native markets like Pennsylvania and New Jersey’s iGaming operations scale in states that never had large land-based casino industries to begin with.
From a Pandemic Low to Six Straight Records
Annual U.S. commercial gaming revenue, 2019 through 2025 — covering the pre-pandemic peak, the 2020 collapse, and the sports-betting-driven recovery.| Year | Commercial Gaming Revenue | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | $43.6B | ▲3.7% |
| 2020 | $30.0B | ▼31.3% — lowest total since 2003 |
| 2021 | $53.0B | ▲76.7% |
| 2022 | $60.42B | ▲13.9% |
| 2023 | $67.01B | ▲10.9% |
| 2024 | $72.0B | ▲7.5% (approx.) |
| 2025 | $78.62B | ▲9.1% |
Sources: AGA State of the States reports, 2020–2026 editions (each year’s figure from that year’s report). 2020’s contraction was the first since 2014 and the largest on record, driven by pandemic casino closures.
Why Some States Tax Gambling at 6.75% and Others at 51%
State sports betting and iGaming tax rates vary more than almost any other state tax — and the rate a state picks shapes which operators bother to enter that market.| State | Sports Betting Tax Rate | iGaming Tax Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Nevada | 6.75% | N/A — no legal iGaming |
| Michigan | 8.4% | 20–28%, graduated by revenue |
| New Jersey | 19.75% | 19.75% |
| Pennsylvania | 34% | Slots 52%; table games/P2P 14% |
| Illinois | Up to 40%, progressive | N/A |
| New York | Online 51%; retail 10% | N/A |
| Tennessee | 1.85% of total handle — the only state that taxes handle instead of revenue | N/A |
Source: CASPR (Center for Addiction Science, Policy, and Research), State Gambling Tax Scorecard, updated May 29, 2026 — each rate independently cited to the underlying state statute.
Nevada and New York represent opposite bets on tax policy. Nevada’s 6.75% rate — among the lowest in the country — prioritizes attracting operators and land-based investment over maximizing per-dollar tax revenue. New York’s 51% online rate does the reverse: it accepts that some operators may find the market less attractive in exchange for capturing the largest possible share of the revenue that is generated. Pennsylvania’s approach is split by product — a relatively steep 34% sports betting rate alongside an even steeper 52% rate specifically on online slots.
Sports Betting Revenue Just Fell for the Second Month Running
May 2026, the most recent month with published data — and the first visible sign of prediction-market competition showing up in the regulated numbers.| Vertical | May 2026 Revenue | YoY / MoM Change |
|---|---|---|
| Land-based casino | $4.68B | ▲4.5% |
| — Slot machines | $3.39B | ▲4.6% |
| — Table games | $933M | ▲3.9% |
| Sports betting | $1.34B | ▼1.8% (on handle of $12.06B, ▼0.4%) |
| iGaming | $1.03B | ▲14.7% |
| State gaming tax revenue (all verticals) | $1.53B | ▲0.7% |
Source: AGA Commercial Gaming Revenue Tracker, May 2026 data, published July 16, 2026.
Illegal and Offshore Gambling Costs States Over $15 Billion a Year
The AGA’s own analysis of unregulated gaming devices, offshore sportsbooks, and illegal online casinos — and it doesn’t even include the newest threat to state tax revenue.Unregulated gaming devices (“skill games”), offshore sportsbooks, and illegal online casinos generate an estimated $53.9 billion in revenue annually in the U.S. — money moving entirely outside any state’s regulatory or tax system.
The same AGA analysis estimates that unregulated gaming deprives states of more than $15 billion in tax revenue every year — and this figure doesn’t include the separate, newer losses from sports event prediction markets below.
Prediction markets are a fast-moving, separate problem. Platforms like Kalshi now offer sports event contracts that function as sports bets but operate outside state gaming licensure, regulated as commodities rather than gambling. The AGA estimates prediction markets have cost state governments over an estimated $1 billion in potential gaming tax revenue since the start of 2025 — with Kalshi alone handling nearly $15 billion in sports betting volume in a single recent month. Sixteen states took enforcement action against prediction market platforms in 2025, including cease-and-desist orders and lawsuits.
A related but distinct enforcement trend: five states — California, Connecticut, Montana, New Jersey and New York — passed new legislation in 2025 specifically to prohibit sweepstakes-model gambling platforms that mimic licensed online casinos or sportsbooks. Regulators in Florida, Michigan, Mississippi and Tennessee separately took action against illegal offshore sportsbooks and casinos over the same period.
Source: AGA, State of the States 2026 (enforcement activity section).
Frequently Asked Questions
Commercial gaming generated $17.86 billion in direct state and local gaming tax revenue in 2025, up 12.3% from 2024. That figure covers only taxes applied directly to gaming activity — it excludes the additional income, sales, payroll and corporate taxes the industry pays, and excludes federal excise tax on sports betting.
Nevada, at roughly $15.8 billion in 2025 commercial gaming revenue — more than double the second-place state, Pennsylvania, at $7.7 billion. Nevada’s lead has narrowed over time as digitally-native markets like Pennsylvania and New Jersey’s iGaming operations grow faster than Nevada’s largely land-based industry.
Yes, according to the AGA’s own analysis — sports event prediction markets have cost states over an estimated $1 billion in potential gaming tax revenue since the start of 2025. Because these platforms are regulated federally as commodities trading rather than as gambling, they don’t pay the state gaming taxes that licensed sportsbooks do, even though they offer functionally similar sports-outcome contracts. Sixteen states took enforcement action against prediction market operators in 2025.
The AGA estimates unregulated gaming devices, offshore sportsbooks and illegal online casinos generate about $53.9 billion in annual revenue in the U.S., depriving states of more than $15 billion a year in tax revenue that a licensed, regulated market would have generated. That estimate doesn’t include the separate losses attributed to prediction markets.
Rates range from 6.75% in Nevada and Iowa to 51% in New York, New Hampshire and Rhode Island. Lower-tax states generally prioritize attracting operators and land-based investment; higher-tax states accept a less crowded operator market in exchange for capturing more revenue per dollar wagered. There’s no consensus “right” rate — Tennessee even taxes total handle instead of revenue, the only state to do so.
From $43.6 billion in 2019 to $78.62 billion in 2025 — roughly 80% growth over six years, despite a 31.3% collapse in 2020 that was the industry’s steepest decline since 2003. Sports betting and iGaming, both largely unavailable nationally before 2018, account for most of that growth; land-based casino revenue alone has grown far more modestly over the same period.
Cite This Page
NoDeposit.Guru. “U.S. State Gaming Revenue & Tax Statistics 2026.” August 2026. https://www.nodeposit.guru/state-gaming-revenue-tax/
Sources & Methodology
- American Gaming Association — State of the States 2026 (annual report, developed with VIXIO Regulatory Intelligence), published May 12, 2026. Covers CY 2025 for all 38 commercial gaming jurisdictions.
- American Gaming Association — Commercial Gaming Revenue Tracker, May 2026 data, published July 16, 2026.
- American Gaming Association — Illegal/unregulated gaming market analysis, released August 2025 ($53.9B revenue / $15B+ tax loss estimate).
- PlayPennsylvania — state gaming revenue ranking, March 2026, citing AGA/state regulator data.
- PlayNJ — state gaming revenue ranking, March 2026, citing AGA/state regulator data.
- American Gaming Association — State of the States annual reports, 2020 through 2026 editions (source for each year in the 2019–2025 revenue trend table).
- CASPR (Center for Addiction Science, Policy, and Research) — State Gambling Tax Scorecard, updated May 29, 2026, each rate cited to the underlying state statute.
This page is reviewed against AGA’s tracker as new monthly and annual data is published. Every figure on this page is externally sourced and dated — no internal estimates.