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US online casino revenue is undergoing its traditional summer slump, but the annual growth rate looks like it might dropping back toward 23%, where it hovered for most of 2023.
The national US online casino revenue total for June was just shy of $632 million. That means regulated iGaming sites have earned nearly $4 billion in the first half of 2024, almost 4% more than PlayUSA projected coming into the year.
The year-over-year growth rate for June was 24.0%, down from 28.3% in May but still 1.2 percentage points higher than the 2023 average.
Conventional wisdom would have growth slowing as state markets mature. Yet, only two states—Pennsylvania and Connecticut — have averaged slower growth in H1 2024 than full-year 2023. That’s particularly surprising in the case of the New Jersey online casino market, now in its second decade but seeing growth accelerate from an average of 15.7% in 2023 to 25.2% in June.
Was 2024’s Fast Start Just Making Up for Slow Q4 2023?
Significant month-to-month swings in the growth rate are common. Yet, averaging over a rolling three-month period, the rate was remarkably stable throughout 2023.
The exception was a slow period in the final quarter of the year, which extended into the beginning of 2024. From October 2023 through January 2024, annual growth averaged only 20.8%.
Following those slow months was a four-month period in which the growth rate averaged 25.9%. Taking all eight together, the average is 23.4%, almost identical to the first three quarters of 2023.
In other words, with June showing a return toward that same growth rate, the period from October to May just looks like a patch of volatility. Economic factors may have deferred some of the growth that otherwise would have happened in Q4, but the industry appears to have made up for lost time.
PlayUSA’s revenue projections for 2024 assumed that the apparent late-2023 slowdown would be lasting. If growth does stabilize around 23% again for the remainder of the year, full-year revenue may beat the projection by 4-5% and should easily exceed $8 billion.
That said, a slowdown is inevitable. In the retail sector and longer-standing European online gambling markets, single-digit percentages are normal, and 23% growth isn’t sustainable indefinitely.
Online Gambling Revenue Highlights — June 2024
Pennsylvania
- PA online casinos and poker rooms won $195.6 million in June 2024, up 19.0% year-on-year. That’s a big drop from 27.0% in May and the lowest it has been since January.
- The daily average revenue was $6.5 million, down 6.6% from May. That’s the sharpest drop in three consecutive months of decline.
- Pennsylvania continues to conform closely to PlayUSA’s revenue projections. Although June revenue came up 1.5% short of the forecast, the total for H1 is spot on at $1.26 billion.
- The new Mohegan Sun Online Casino was unable to keep its hot streak going. Its market share dropped back below 1% after having doubled from March to May.
- FanDuel Casino once again suffered the bulk of the losses in the state, perhaps due to the sports-dependence of its brand. Its market share dropped to 23.7%, the lowest since it has been since October.
Michigan
- Michigan’s seasonal decline continued, with its online gambling sites winning $183.2 million in June. The annual growth rate plunged from 31.9% to 21.3%, though even that is faster than the PlayUSA forecast.
- Daily average revenue for Michigan online casinos slipped to $6.1 million, a month-on-month decline of 4.7%. That’s the worst June slump in state history, though it comes on the heels of a good performance in May.
- Even with a weak month, Michigan beat the projection by 5.8%. Year-to-date, it is 5.7% ahead of its expected pace and still on course to reach $2.3 billion for the full year.
- BetMGM Casino has reclaimed the market lead with $47.9 million GGR in June, to FanDuel’s $45.6 million. However, as in Pennsylvania, that may be due to seasonality and FanDuel’s reliance on crossover from its sportsbook. Come NFL season, we may see FanDuel rise to the top again.
New Jersey
- New Jersey’s casino and poker sites earned $186.8 million in gross revenue in June. The annual growth rate surged to 25.2%, higher than any month in 2023 and second only to February this year.
- NJ’s revenue continued to average $6.2 million per day in June. It bucked the seasonal trend and rose slightly from May but is still roughly where it has been for several months.
- New Jersey has overtaken Michigan to become the state that’s beating the PlayUSA forecast by the widest margin. It exceeded expectations by 8.7% in June and is 6.1% ahead of the projection year-to-date.
- WSOP received a substantial boost from the live World Series of Poker taking place in Nevada, which includes bracelet events playable in Michigan. Although its share of total iGaming revenue remained below 1%, it held over 40% of the online poker market in June. Even its casino product benefited, doubling its revenue for the month, though this was a tiny amount to begin with.
- As in the other Big Three states, FanDuel shed more than a full point of market share in June, dropping from 20.8% of revenue to 19.3%.
Connecticut
- Connecticut’s two online casinos won a combined $39.6 million in June, up 25.6% year-on-year. That’s the slowest growth rate in state history.
- Daily average revenue fell to $1.3 million, down 11.6% month-over-month, though this comes on the heels of an unseasonable 8.1% increase from April to May.
- Connecticut’s performance has been volatile this year. In June, it fell 6.6% short of the PlayUSA forecast, but there have been months where it was ahead by nearly as wide a margin. All told, its revenue for H1 came in 1.9% below the projection.
- Mohegan Sun put its foot back on the promotional gas pedal in June, ramping up spending by 45.5%. It appears the effort produced the desired effect, as it grabbed 3.2 percentage points of market share from DraftKings Casino. Historically, DraftKings has held an average of 57.5% of the market, but that fell to 51.8% in June, only the second time it has been below 52%.
West Virginia
- The West Virginia online casino market produced $19.1 million in gross revenue in June, its second-highest monthly total this year. As a result, the annual growth rate increased to 58.5%, the highest it has been since last June.
- Daily average revenue rose 9.9% to $635,417, making West Virginia the only state to see a substantial upswing in this ordinarily slow season.
- Even more than other states, West Virginia has been seeing growth accelerate when the historical trend suggested a slowdown. It exceeded the projection for June by a staggering 28.2% and is now 11.7% ahead of the forecast for the year to date.
- The Greenbrier license (FanDuel, BetMGM & Golden Nugget) and Charles Town (DraftKings, Fanatics) continue to trade the market share lead back and forth. Charles Town’s revenue was almost stagnant in June, while the Greenbrier boosted its daily average by more than 20%. As a result, Greenbrier’s share surged almost four percentage points to 39.4%, while Charles Town’s dropped to 37.9%.
Delaware
- Delaware’s BetRivers-operated online casinos brought in over $5 million in June. That’s a remarkable number, as the state never reached $1.5 million under its previous contract with 888 Holdings. Its first-ever million-dollar month was only in 2020, during the pandemic, and it had slipped back into six-digit territory as recently as October.
- Daily average revenue surged 33% to $167,573, more than making up for a 15% drop in May.
- Slots still accounted for less than 70% of total revenue in June. That’s unusually low compared to other states and may drop further still thanks to the arrival of Evolution’s live dealer games on July 3.
Rhode Island
- Rhode Island’s sole iGaming operator, Bally Casino, earned $2.3 million in June.
- As a daily average, that represents a 7% increase from May, but is still only half of what PlayUSA project and even further behind what state lawmakers were promised when considering legalization.
US Online Gambling Revenue Summary Table
| State | GGR - June 2024 | Monthly Change | Annual Change | Month vs. Forecast | Full Year Total | Year vs. Forecast |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pennsylvania | $195,604,854 | -6.6% | +19.0% | -1.5% | $1,261,986,788 | +0.2% |
| New Jersey | $186,847,052 | +0.5% | +25.2% | +8.7% | $1,126,301,376 | +6.1% |
| Michigan | $183,204,916 | -4.7% | +21.3% | +5.8% | $1,159,804,087 | +5.7% |
| Connecticut | $39,624,061 | -11.6% | +25.5% | -6.6% | $256,941,561 | -1.9% |
| West Virginia | $19,062,500 | +9.8% | +58.5% | +28.2% | $109,300,305 | +11.7% |
| Delaware | $5,027,201 | +33.3% | +338.8% | +235.1% | $25,272,342 | +180.8% |
| Rhode Island | $2,335,173 | +7.0% | N/A | -4.92.% | $7,882,774 (est.) | -51.2% |
| US Total | $631,770,584 | -3.7% | +24.0% | +4.1% | $3,947,554,060 | +3.8% |
Notes on the Data
Raw data for this article comes from reports issued by the state regulators: the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement, Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, Michigan Gaming Control Board, West Virginia Lottery, Delaware Lottery, and the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection.
The 2024 online gambling revenue projections are original calculations performed by Alex Weldon as a collaboration between Bonus.com and PlayUSA. Please cite PlayUSA and Alex Weldon if reporting projected numbers or market performance compared to the projections.
Monthly growth figures are adjusted for the number of days in the month. That is, they represent the change in daily average revenue, not full-month gross revenue.
West Virginia reports revenue weekly, not monthly. Its monthly totals are an estimate, assuming that revenue for partial weeks is distributed evenly between the seven days.
Pennsylvania only reports adjusted revenue (gross revenue, less promotional spending). Gross slots revenue is calculated by subtracting payouts from wagers, but no such data is available for table games and poker. Therefore, actual gross revenue is probably somewhat higher than what we report.
