Once again, the Nevada Gaming Control Board is reporting that casinos throughout the state collected over $1 billion from gaming in April. This is a record gambling revenue total for the month of April in Nevada.
April was the 26th consecutive month that Nevada casinos surpassed $1 billion.
The multimillion-dollar win is only the sixth time Nevada casinos have crossed this milestone in the month of April. Interestingly, three of the five occurrences have happened since 2021.
The downtown area Vegas internet casinos saw larger percentage enhance than Deprive casinos
The state of Nevada online gambling is restricted to online poker, as online casinos are still prohibited in the state. With casinos regularly earning over $1 billion per month, it may be time to allow online casinos, which would further contribute to the casinos’ revenue.
In total, Nevada casinos collected $1.2 billion in winnings from bettors in Nevada during April. This represented a modest 2.8% increase compared to the same period last year.
Once again, Vegas Strip casinos led the way with $624.7 million in gambling revenue for the month, showing a 3.2% increase from a year ago.
While the overall gaming revenue on the Las Vegas Strip may be higher, downtown Las Vegas casinos experienced a larger percentage increase. Downtown Las Vegas casinos generated $74.5 million in revenue, marking a significant 10.6% increase from last year.
Certain areas of Northern Nevada did not perform as well. Northern Lake Tahoe saw an 18.18% decline in gaming revenue in April, partly due to the closure of the Tahoe Biltmore last April. Southern Lake Tahoe experienced an even larger decline of 26.05% in gaming revenue compared to the previous year.
So far this calendar year, Nevada gaming revenue is up 6.6% from the same period last year. Vegas Strip casino revenue has increased by 12.7% for the first four months of the year compared to 2022.
Precisely why Vegas Deprive gaming income continues to enhance
There continue to be two significant reasons why Las Vegas Strip casinos are seeing such a healthy increase in gaming revenue over the past two years.
Table game minimums are higher than ever at these casinos. For example, blackjack games on the main casino floor at Mirage during the day on Memorial Day weekend ranged from $100 to $1,000. Carnival games like Three Card Poker had a minimum bet of $25.
Table game minimum wagers during holiday weekends are higher than usual. And Mirage is not alone in having high table game limits. Properties like Wynn and The Venetian rarely, if ever, have a blackjack game with a minimum bet lower than $25.
Additionally, most casinos on the Vegas Strip are almost exclusively offering 6:5 blackjack games instead of the traditional 3:2 game.
Furthermore, more casinos have roulette with three “zero” slots. Last year, casinos began adding crapless craps and more Face Up Pai Gow Poker to the casino floor.
The increased house edge for all of these games makes it more difficult for players to hold onto their money. When players lose, casinos win.
Sports and entertainment continue to drive Las Vegas tourism and gambling revenue. Various concerts and residencies have helped boost the destination. Meanwhile, the Vegas Golden Knights’ playoff push has attracted locals and tourists to the Vegas Strip.
Las Vegas visiting up a bit in Apr
While Las Vegas Strip gaming revenue was up over 5% in April, Las Vegas saw 2.4 million visitors for the month. This is a 0.1% increase from last year, according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.
The flat visitation for the month resulted in a 2.3% decrease in hotel room rates for the month. The average hotel rate in Las Vegas was $171.05 in April.
Downtown Las Vegas hotel room rates saw a 12.8% decrease in April to $92.17. Las Vegas Strip hotel rooms were down just 2.6% to $182.76.
The state of nevada slots a lot outpace scratch cards in income
April was a fairly typical month for gaming revenue in Nevada. The usual games remained at the top of the list.
As usual, slots were the biggest winner for the casinos with $837.9 million. The rest of the top five revenue generators for Nevada casinos were all table games:
- Blackjack: $94.9 million
- Baccarat: $44.1 million
- Craps: $30.6 million
- Roulette: $34.3 million
Sports betting revenue fell just outside the top five with a win of $32.4 million for Nevada casinos. While not the highest revenue generator for casinos, it was 28.8% higher than last year.
Nevada casinos accounted for 5.4% of all money wagered on sports in April. While this is lower compared to the rest of the US, it’s up from 4.4% last year.
There was $395.2 million wagered on Nevada gambling apps in April. This was down 7% from last year. Mobile gambling accounted for 66.1% of wagers placed at Nevada sportsbooks for the month.
Nevada sports betting hasn’t changed all that much in the last five years. The percentage of money casinos win from bettors hasn’t either. This is one of the few advantages of stagnation in technology and betting options for Nevada sports bettors.
Marc grew up on the mean streets of the South Bronx. He’s the rare combination of a Yankees and Jets fan, which often explains his often contrarian point of view. Marc is an independent writer and social media expert. Writing about meat, booze, gambling, and Vegas is a challenging job, but somebody needs to do it.
