Student Gambling Spending Increases
by James Gibson,
2 April 2026
Students are spending more money but less time gambling due to money pressures.
Key Facts:
- A study was carried out to look at the gambling habits of UK students
- It found that the frequency of gambling has gone down, though spending has increased
- Many students who gamble do so because they want to make money from it
A study looking at the gambling practices of UK students has recently been carried out. What it found was that despite the rate of gambling among students falling, those who continue to gamble have spent more money on it.
Details About the Study
The study and its results were published in March 2026. A total of 2,000 students from a number of universities across the UK were interviewed for it and asked questions about their gambling practices.
Approximately 65% of those involved in the study said they’d gambled at least once in the previous year. This figure was lower than the previous year, which shows that slightly fewer students are gambling.
However, the amount of money that students collectively spend on gambling has increased. Among those who gamble, the average weekly spend is around £50. This figure is double the previous year’s.
The study also found that male students were much more likely to gamble than female students. Roughly three quarters of male students said they gambled, whereas just over half of female students did the same.
The most popular type of gambling among male students is sports betting. When it comes to placing bets online or at real-world locations, placing bets online was the more common of the two.
Reasons for Increased Gambling Spending
More than half of the students involved in the study said they wanted to make money from gambling. The problem with this, of course, is that profits are never guaranteed and you’re more likely to make a loss than win.
It’s believed that students are taking the risk because of the ongoing cost-of-living crisis and limited access to financial resources. Despite the obvious risks, some students see gambling as a way of alleviating their financial problems.
The Negative Effects of Gambling
Around 20% of the students who took part in the study reported experiencing negative side-effects because of gambling. Others are at various levels of risk of developing problems related to gambling in the future.
In other words, students who aren’t being negatively affected by gambling now could find themselves facing consequences further down the line. Another point to make is that gambling hasn’t just affected students’ finances.
Some students who participated in the study said that gambling had affected their academic performance. Disruption to social lives was another consequence of gambling that was brought up by some.
Why Students Are Driven to Gambling
Along with the chance to make money, students have been encouraged to gamble because of online content. A third of students agreed that their involvement in gambling was encouraged by content they’d seen online.
Some also highlighted peer pressure as another factor that drove them to start gambling. Also, there’s the fact that gambling is often seen as a regular, harmless activity amongst students, which can encourage even more people to gamble.
Help for Students
One of the study’s more positive findings was that more students are aware of support services. Compared to last year, a greater percentage of students know how to get help for gambling-related problems.
Those behind the study called for more effective preventative measures to be put in place. Increased awareness is encouraging, but it would be better if students didn’t develop gambling problems in the first place.
A suggestion is that support organisations and universities work more closely to help tackle the problem of student gambling. The study recommended a few measures that could help students.
These include examining the effects of digital advertising, especially on social media, and improving students’ ability to understand and manage finances. Another point made was to integrate gambling education into students’ wellbeing programs.
Pragmatic Play's games have proven a huge hit with both our readers and the review team! Thanks to a direct line to their workshop, we can now share the hottest new releases launching this April:
Gates of Olympus combines real dealer play with exciting bonus round graphics.
Student Gambling Spending Increases
2026 World Snooker Championship’s Seeded Players Confirmed
Give the New Gates of Power Slot Game a Spin on 1 April
Ladbrokes Is Set to Close a Third of Its Irish Retail Betting Shops