Penn State Study Finds 20 Percent of Pennsylvania Adults Gamble Online
Posted on: February 7, 2025, 08:45h.
Last updated on: February 7, 2025, 12:52h.
Penn State researchers found in their 2024 Pennsylvania Interactive Gaming Assessment that online gaming participation continues to increase in the commonwealth.
The annual Online Gambling Report shines a light on how many Pennsylvanians aged 21 and older who are physically located within the commonwealth are taking to the internet to gamble. Conducted by researchers at the university’s Criminal Justice Research Center in partnership with the Pennsylvania Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs, the survey of 1,400 residents established that more Pennsylvanians than ever before are making bets via the internet.
The 2024 summary reports that nearly 20% (19.8%) of Pennsylvania adults gambled online at some point over the past 12 months. That’s up almost 4% from the 16% participation rate the study found last year.
This year’s report highlights the need for ongoing monitoring of online gambling in Pennsylvania,” said Glenn Sterner, associate professor of criminal justice at Penn State Abington and the lead author of the report. “With increased revenues and prevalence of online gambling, we need to be sure we are adequately educating Pennsylvanians about risks of illegal sites that may seek to take advantage of this surge in activity.”
Sports betting was the most popular online gambling format for internet participants. About 8% of Pennsylvania adults made at least one online sports bet last year. Online slots, interactive table games, and instant lottery were also popular.
The Penn State report was the fourth interactive gaming assessment since the university began monitoring the online gambling market in 2021.
Responsible Gambling Concerns
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) reported that 2024 gross gaming revenue (GGR) from iGaming, exclusive of online sports betting, amounted to $2.18 billion. A new record, the iGaming revenue represented a more than 25% year-over-year surge.
Oddsmakers generated GGR of $510.7 million, also an all-time high, or 11% richer than 2023. More than 90% of the sportsbook revenue comes from online wagers.
The record online gaming revenue, while a major win for the operators and state, the latter which collects 54% of the online slot money, 16% of the online table win, and 36% of the sportsbook keep, represents a major concern for responsible gaming advocates.
Unlike a physical casino where staff is trained to detect intoxicated players and those who are perhaps gambling irrationally, monitoring online players’ habits is much harder. Though operators have some controls in place, such as allowing bettors to implement cooling-off periods and deposit limits, Penn State researchers say more work could, and should, be done.
“Knowing what the current online gambling trends are helps to inform our path forward in addressing compulsive and problem gambling within the commonwealth,” said Latika Davis-Jones, secretary for the Pennsylvania Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs.
Penn State researchers said gamblers who play in-person and online have the highest risk of problem gambling, while those who only gamble in-person have the lowest risk. The report said those findings suggest the need for targeted interventions focused on iGaming to educate the public on the risks of gambling, including the increased risk of gambling across multiple formats.
iGaming Not Poaching Play
Penn State’s interactive gaming assessment found that while iGaming and online sports betting participation rates continue to increase, visitation to the state’s 17 brick-and-mortar casinos has remained stable. The survey reported that offline gambling participation increased from 62.4% to 63.1% of Pennsylvania adults.
The PGCB says its regulated gaming industry — the nation’s third-richest behind Nevada and New Jersey — generated a record tax benefit last year of more than $2.66 billion. The state collected $209.3 million more in gaming taxes in 2024 than it did in 2023.
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Last Comments ( 3 )
A perfect article, Devin! Especially since Ira Lubert's casino in State College will be open for business by January 2027. Online gambling will be cited as the major factor why Lubert's 24/7 slot machine venue will not be successful in Happy Valley. It is "way cooler" to brag out parlayed online sports betting success than to admit you spent your weekend in State College playing charming slot machines for hours. Tell your friends you spent last night in a casino just down the road from Penn State University and watch for them to roll their eyes within seconds. Make a note of this now and then anticipate watching it unfold in 2027. Really.
How many online gamblers actually WITHDRAW their accrued winnings from their online gambling accounts? Very few. Who in their "right mind" would build up a high balance of winnings throughout the NFL playoffs and then not GO ALL IN on the Super Bowl? Nobody. You can never bet too much on a winner! Who would even consider withdrawing their winnings prior to the Super Bowl in order to pay off a high balance of gambling-fueled credit card debt? Again, nobody!
The report also highlights that the percentage of Pennsylvania residents who are gambling illegally online has increased to 6.2%, and the prevalence of problem gambling in the state is currently between 7.8 - 8.7%. These figures contradict the gambling lobby's claims that the regulated gambling market is "safe" and that the legalization of gambling reduces the number of people who gamble illegally. In reality, the legalization of gambling gives more people license to gamble, which increases the prevalence of gambling - and increased gambling prevalence results in more people becoming addicted to gambling, because gambling is inherently addictive. It also results in more people seeking out illegal gambling options, because once they have started gambling, they want to gamble where the odds are better, the payouts are bigger, and the winnings are not subject to taxation. All of this is simple common sense, and all of it has already been validated by prior research. All of us have a part to play in this story. When you one day look back on America's gambling epidemic, will you be proud of the role that you played?