The home to the most famous strip in the world, Las Vegas, Nevada found itself having a strong fiscal year in 2024 when it came to land-based casino revenue, despite US online casinos being on the rise.
Although statewide profits fell by almost a quarter (24.4%), when compared to 2023’s figures, Nevada still reported a net income of more than $2.6bn – which is obviously better than reporting a net loss.
More importantly, though, gaming revenue grew by 3.4% across the state, with total revenue increasing by 5.5% year-over-year (Y-o-Y).
Let’s take a closer look at the report, and what it means for Nevada.
2024 Nevada gaming financial report
The state of Nevada made a net profit of $2.6bn from its land-based casinos in 2024, but as impressive as that seems, it’s actually 24.4% lower than the figures recorded in 2023.
Despite this, statewide revenues grew year-over-year (Y-o-Y). While the US made $49.89bn in land-based casino revenue in 2024, Gaming revenue improved 3.4% to $11.28bn in Nevada, while the state’s total revenue clocked in at $31.51bn – a rise of 5.5%.
However the Las Vegas Strip saw a particularly steep decline in profits, posting an $820.2m net income. Not exactly chump change, but still a very large drop of 40.4% on 2023’s numbers.
Nevada casino profits 2024
Here are some other interesting net income details plucked from the report regarding net income/losses:
- Clark County: $2.3bn (down 24%)
- Washoe County: $169.8m (down 25.4%)
- Elko County: $91.9m (down 7.7%)
- Carson Valley Area: $23.8m (down 20.3%)
- South Shore Lake Tahoe: -$30.3m (up 695.4%)
The bulk of the state’s profits came from Clark County, which boasts 179 casinos grossing more than $1m in profit overall, generating $2.3bn in profit from a total revenue of $28.53bn. However the county saw a 24% decrease in profits when compared to 2023’s annual results.
Additionally, Washoe County has 33 casinos, while there are 15 in Carson Valley and 21 casinos in Elko County. All three areas recorded inferior numbers compared to the previous year, down 25.4%, 20.3% and 7.7% respectively.
The only actual loss came from the six casinos found in South Shore Lake Tahoe, Douglas County. However, things are wildly trending upward there, with an increase of 695.4% compared to 2023.
Nevada gaming revenue 2024
Gaming revenue ed for 35.8% of total revenue in 2024, but how did each county do? We broke it down:
- Clark County: $9.75bn (up 4.3%)
- Washoe County: $752.4m (down 1.9%)
- Elko County: $304.1m (down 4.6%)
- Carson Valley Area: $121.2m (up 2.3%)
- South Shore Lake Tahoe: $172.6m (down 2.9%)
In something of a mixed bag, Clark County managed to grow its revenue from 2023 by 4.3% and the Carson Valley casinos were also up 2.3%.
However, each of the other three named regions suffered a slight decline. Washoe County’s numbers fell by 1.9%, with 4.6% and 2.9% dips recorded for Elko County and South Shore Lake Tahoe, respectively.
Additionally, out of the 307 casinos, 53 casinos made up 62.8% of the total gaming revenue statewide.
Nevada total revenue 2024
Looking at total revenues, which includes the performance of a venue’s food and beverage departments, accommodation and other streams, we see the following figures:
- Clark County: $28.5bn (up 6.2%)
- Washoe County: $1.68bn (down 1%)
- Elko County: $461.7m (down 0.9%)
- Carson Valley Area: $178.5m (up 0.2%)
- South Shore Lake Tahoe: $389m (down 1.6%)
With an increase of 6.2% from 2023, Clark County was the big winner here. However, most figures from other counties were slightly down.
Washoe County recorded a drop of 1%, with Elko County and South Shore Lake Tahoe falling 0.9% and 1.6%, respectively.
Carson Valley showed a tiny amount of growth, improving on 2023’s numbers by 0.2%.
Nevada land-based casino tax revenue 2024
The 307 casinos featured in the report paid almost $1.16bn in gaming taxes and fees – which works out at an overall 10.3% of their combined gaming revenues.
Despite most regions overseeing a decline in profits since 2023, the overall taxes were broadly similar…
In 2023, 300 casinos that grossed more than $1m, paid a combined $1.09bn in taxes and fees, representing exactly 10% of their gaming revenue.
Land-based commercial casinos are taxed at a rate of 6.75% in Nevada on all gross gaming revenue that exceeds $134,000 per month. Those casinos earning less than that will be taxed at a lower rate.
The majority of tax raised ends up in the Silver State’s general fund, which s a number of public services.
How it’s used is determined by the Nevada Legislature, but ultimately the tax revenue is divided into: education, transportation services and general budgetary needs whereas additional funds will get redistributed to schools and county governments.
Nevada land-based casino trends
So, what can we learn from the Nevada Gaming Control Board’s 2024 abstract? Well, first of all, there’s a clear downward trend in of profits.
Even though almost every county posted significant profits, all of those figures are much lower than 2023, falling as much as 40.4% in the case of the Las Vegas Strip.
In turn, 2023’s numbers were also down on the year before, which shows that land-based casino gambling is on the decline year-on-year in Nevada.
Despite this, total revenues continue to climb, suggesting that Nevada’s casinos are becoming smarter away from the tables, and are generating revenue through other aspects like hotel rooms, food, entertainment and refreshments etc.
A statewide total revenue increase of 5.5% follows on from the progress made in 2023, which saw a gain of 8.9% on 2022’s figures. Therefore, while profits decrease, revenues are on the rise – so it’s not all bad.
What is the Nevada Gaming Abstract?
At the end of every fiscal year, which runs from July to June, the Nevada Gaming Control Board releases an abstract. This document briefly summarizes the performance of every casino that grosses more than $1m in gaming revenue.
The 2024 report includes 307 such casinos, detailing the following figures: net income/loss, total revenue and gaming revenue.
While gaming revenue focuses purely on the casino element of each venue, ‘total revenue’ includes attractions, hotel rooms and food and beverage performance.
How the data is organized
Each of the three key areas has its own column, recording an overall ‘statewide’ figure, followed by a breakdown of every county. This is further split into smaller regions, such as the Las Vegas Strip, Boulder Strip or Downtown Las Vegas.
Alongside each total, the percentage increase or decrease from the previous year is also noted.
The full report also details a comprehensive breakdown of non-casino gaming data, including the average number of employees, rate of room occupancy and daily revenue earned per room.
Who is the Nevada gaming abstract for?
In short, this document is for anyone with an interest in the overall health of Nevada’s casino industry.
The figures are obviously great for casino executives to see, as it allows them to benchmark the performance of their own individual businesses. But it’s equally useful for potential investors, lawmakers and the general public to understand what’s going on in their state.
Summary
Despite a decline of almost 25% in net income, 2024 was another good year for Nevada’s casinos.
A statewide profit of $2.6bn was largely driven by a total revenue of $31.5bn, which grew 5.5% Y-o-Y. In addition, gaming revenue rose by 3.4% to an impressive $11.28bn.
Even though the state struggled to sur 2023’s profit figures, overall the state saw a mix of rises and declines but it averaged out and ended with a profit and increases in revenue along the way.
