US Online Gambling Poised for Major 2025 Growth

by Kevin Lentz, 3 December 2025

US online gambling is heading for another major jump in 2025 as mobile bettors, fast-growing iGaming states, and newly legal sports betting jurisdictions push the industry past its already record-setting $115B in 2024.

US online gambling numbers are expected to surpass the 2024 figure of $115 billion. © u_6416973wxr, Pixabay

Key Facts:

• US gambling revenue totaled $115B in 2024 across casinos, sports betting, and iGaming.
• Mobile wagering now accounts for over 80% of all sports betting handle.
• iGaming is projected to reach up to $9B in 2025 revenue alone.

US gambling may have broken records in 2024, but with one month still to go, there can be little doubt that this year will be another record-breaker. The American Gaming Association (AGA) put iGaming, land-based casinos and sports betting at all-time highs, but the fastest-growing market remains mobile betting.

More than 80% of all sports bets are now made through an app. And that number grows more every year as digital wallets like Apple Pay and PayPal make betting on sports nearly frictionless.

While the US still has a way to go before catching up with Europe, there can be no doubt that we are quickly becoming a mobile-first gambling nation.

Mobile Sports Bets Drive Growth

Industry analysts, such as Eilers & Krejcik, believe that most of the sports betting growth this year will come from the recently launched mobile betting in states like North Carolina and Vermont. These markets initially skipped retail sports betting altogether. Currently, nearly three dozen states offer legal mobile sports betting.

Online sports betting handle in states like New Jersey and Pennsylvania continues to climb, showing that fully mobile markets remove barriers and increase participation, even in states with well-established retail markets. With convenience comes volume, and from volume comes revenue.

Based on current forecasts, the US sports-betting market is expected to increase from roughly $18 billion in 2024 to mid-$20 billion by the end of the decade, growing at an annual rate of approximately 11%.

iGaming: Small Footprint, Big Impact

Seven states have legal iGaming, including two of the smallest states in the Union, Rhode Island and Delaware. Throw in West Virginia with its 1.7 million sparsely populated residents, and the core iGaming market narrows to Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Michigan and New Jersey.

While pundits have been eagerly tossing names of the next likely legal states into the ring for some time, no new contenders have managed to get that legislation across the finish line in several years. Still, the industry, despite reaching only a small part of the total addressable market, generated $6 billion in 2024 and will probably contribute closer to $8 billion in 2025.

These states generate far more revenue per monthly user than any sports-betting-only market has ever done.

Brick and Mortar Remains Rock Solid

Nevada has had some very public struggles with both revenue and visitor volume in 2025. This is important of course, because Nevada still accounts for about $15 billion in total gambling revenue every year, about 13% of the total.

But the contagion hasn’t yet spilled over into regional markets. New Jersey’s boardwalk empire is expected to finish the year slightly higher, although growth has been uneven. Most other local markets continue to see solid local visitation numbers and surprisingly resilient slot play.

While booming would be a bit of an overstatement, growth in the high single digits still seems possible for the land-based component of the total gambling market.

Conclusion

While records are nice, the real story of both 2024 and into 2025 is that all three verticals of the overall gambling business are firing at once. Sports betting continues its expansion, albeit at a slower pace, yet still posts a growing handle and attracts new users, indicating a healthy market.

iGaming is stagnant, but where it’s legal, it consistently grows by double digits year after year. While Nevada stumbled a bit due to potential pricing issues, it now accounts for a much smaller portion of the overall market.

Furthermore, the broader land-based market continues to show strength, not fade.

If this last month of the year can stay on pace, 2024 will likely be a distant memory as people celebrate a fresh record for 2025, as digital seems ascendant, but all parts of the market are strong.