The entirety of the New Jersey online gambling industry witnessed its second-best month ever in May 2023 after recording a whopping $470.9 million in revenue. Not only did the state almost break its monthly revenue record, but it also saw an impressive jump of almost 10% from the previous year.
According to figures published by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement, total aggregate revenue from Atlantic City crossed $2 billion in May. In the past decade, this five-month pace was the fastest it has taken the industry in the state to reach that milestone. Unfortunately, in-person gambling couldn’t contribute much as it flopped again in May.
Online Casino Revenue Up by Approximately 19% As Brands Record Double Digit Growth
Revenue from online casinos in New Jersey rose by 18.7% year-over-year from May 2022. This meant that the stay was just 2.4% shy of its best monthly outing of $165.7 million recorded as recently as March this year. Most of the $161.4 million revenue generated from NJ casinos came from individual sites that recorded double-digit growths.
Bally’s stayed ahead of all other licensees as it recorded a 50.8% jump in revenue compared to last year. Ocean Resorts and Golden Nugget were the three other operators with a double-digit growth in May. On the flip side, Caesars reported a sharp 13.6% decline in online gambling revenue from the same period last year.
Jane Bokunewicz, a director at Stockholm University attributed the increasing revenue growth of online casinos to demand for new gaming experience.
“Traditional gaming products like slots and table games are not growing as quickly as newer products, for example, online slots and mobile sports betting,” she said. “This hints at a lasting change in consumer behavior as casino patrons have made these newer products part of their regular casino experience.”
Retail Casinos Maintain Status as Largest Contributor to New Jersey Gambling Revenue in May
Caesars’ fortunes didn’t smile with in-person gambling either as the operator came short 9.5% from a year ago. This drop represented that segment of the market as general retail casino gambling slipped by 2.4%. However, in-person gambling remained the largest contributor to New Jersey revenue with $227.3 million pooled in May.
Also, the trajectory of retail casino gaming over the first five months of the year is up 3% compared to the similar time frame in 2022. This increase comes thanks to Bally’s and Ocean avoiding year-over-year revenue declines unlike the other operators. Ocean was a particularly big winner with a massive 14.9% improvement in May.
From the statistics revealed by the NJDGE, most casinos are now returning to pre-pandemic financials. Hard Rock and Borgata were some of the operators that won more this month than they did in the comparable month before the pandemic.
Sportsbooks Handle Almost $780 Million With Online Betting Sites Accounting for 95% of that Figure
May saw New Jersey bettors wager a total of $778.8 million on sports. Just like in previous months, online sports betting operators accounted for more than 95% of the total sports wagers made in May. From the total betting handle, the revenue accruing to sportsbooks in the state totalled about $82 million.
The difference between the revenue posted in May 2022 and May 2023 was an increase of about 33.4%. Tropicana, Hard Rock, and Ocean all doubled their winnings year-over-year in what turned out to be a super productive month.
Monthly taxes also grew with revenue. Licensees paid a total of $48.8 million worth of tax revenue to the state, 11.3% more than they did in May 2022. All of these metrics cemented May as one of the best months ever for the New Jersey gambling industry.
