Records were made to be broken, and New Jersey online casinos wasted no time bringing in over $150 million for the second consecutive month.
The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement reported $152.9 million in online casino revenue in January, beating December’s previous record of $151.5 million. Revenue was up 10.9% year-over-year after last January’s $137.8 million set the table for a record $1.66 billion annual revenue.
That record looks like it’s made to be broken, too.
Three operators carry the bulk
Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa again held the top spot among online casino operators in New Jersey with its BetMGM and Borgata online casinos. Its $40.8 million in revenue represented a 4.3% YoY increase.
However, Borgata was not alone at the top, as two other operators in Golden Nugget Atlantic City and Resorts Digital came within $600,000 of overtaking it.
Golden Nugget, whose brands include BetRivers, FanDuel and Golden Nugget Online Casino, reported $40.6 million in revenue, up 11.3% YoY.
Resorts (DraftKings, Barstool and Resorts Online Casino) finished third with $40.2 million in revenue, riding a 21.8% YoY boost to enter into the discussion with Borgata and Golden Nugget.
Combined, these three operators accounted for nearly 80% of January’s iGaming revenue.
NJ online casino revenue breakdown
Here is a breakdown of the December NJ online casino revenue results by AC casino license.
Licensee Total Revenue Slots & Tables Poker Taxes
Bally's Atlantic City $5,140,854 $5,140,854 $ - $771,128
Borgata $40,798,884 $39,981,656 $817,228 $6,106,276
Caesars Atlantic City $8,272,822 $7,470,882 $801,940 $1,241,953
Golden Nugget Atlantic City $40,596,496 $40,596,496 $ - $6,090,192
Hard Rock Atlantic City $6,047,782 $6,047,782 $ - $907,167
Ocean $3,937,612 $3,937,612 $ - $593,003
Resorts Atlantic City $40,222,698 $39,131,642 $1,091,056 $6,033,090
Tropicana Atlantic City $7,849,669 $7,849,669 $ - $1,177,450
Total $152,866,817 $150,156,593 $2,710,224 $22,920,259
Mixed results from the rest of the pack
While the top three operators each surpassed $40 million in revenue, none of the remaining five cracked $10 million.
Caesars Atlantic City came the closest, with $8.3 million. Its revenue dropped 17.6% from Last January’s $10 million. Only Tropicana ($7.8 million) got hit harder, down 18.5% YoY, primarily due to Virgin Casino migrating off of its platform.
Bally’s, the benefactor of Virgin, PointsBet Casino and its own Bally Casino, recorded $5.1 million, a 327% boost from last January’s $1.2 million. It was still not enough to catch Hard Rock ($6 million; -6.2% YoY), though.
Like Bally’s, Ocean Casino Resort continued its upward trend. Despite having the lowest monthly revenue of $3.9 million, it posted gains of 106.5% YoY.
Online casino market continues to mature
Online casino revenue has increased steadily in the Garden State over the last two years.
The first half of 2021 returned figures in the $100 to $110s of millions before reaching $120 million in the fall. They eclipsed $130 million in December for the first time, creating a benchmark until October 2022.
Since October, casinos have been raising the bar once more:
- October: $147.2 million
- November: $146.2 million
- December: $151.5 million
- January: $152.9 million
If the last two years’ trend continues, New Jersey online casinos will generate at least $150 million in revenue most months of the year, with a chance to reach $170 million by the end of the year.
Furthermore, Pennsylvania and Michigan have kept pace with New Jersey throughout the same period, despite having much younger markets.
But even with a decade of operations, New Jersey is still “new” in the big picture of today’s U.S. online casino market. Its first $50 million month came in January 2019, and it first hit $100 million in January 2020.
With this in mind, NJ only had a one-year head start over PA and two years over MI. All three states’ markets continue to grow, and evidence suggests their ceilings are still to be determined.
