Nevada casinos win $1.27 billion in January despite lower numbers on Las Vegas Strip
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LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Nevada casinos won $1.27 billion from gamblers in January, a month sandwiched between big resort openings in December and Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas on Feb. 11.
After casinos shattered records in December with $1.43 billion in winnings, January’s numbers were a step back, falling outside the Top 10 highest gaming wins on record. Casinos on the Las Vegas Strip, usually the biggest driver for the entire state’s economy, had a down month with $686.2 million in winnings — far below December’s $905.4 million record.
“This is the Strip’s first decrease since June 2023, ending a streak of six consecutive increases,” according to Michael Lawton, senior economic analyst for the Gaming Control Board.
He said it’s a safe assumption that tourists avoided the Strip in November and December, when construction related to the F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix made a mess of things. “Customers deferred trips from January to February for the Super Bowl. Additionally, the timing of Chinese New Year also influenced January’s results,” Lawton said.
But other areas including downtown Las Vegas, the Boulder Strip and off-Strip locals casinos bounced back from December. The casinos in the “Balance of Clark County” category set a record with $169.3 million in winnings.
That includes Durango Casino & Resort, which opened in early December and provided some of the punch from off-Strip properties.
The state is 4.77% ahead of last year’s pace, and the Strip is doing even better at 6.78%. Those figures compare the gaming wins so far in the fiscal year, which runs from July 1 to June 30.
Slot machines fueled the off-Strip numbers, bringing in $135.8 million.
Comparisons to January 2023 show the state performed 0.51% better this year, while the Strip was 3.79% below levels from a year ago. Casinos in the balance of Clark County helped cover that, along with a big jump in Reno. Winnings in the Reno market were 55.0% higher than a year ago — partly because bad weather put a dent into casino business last January.
With numbers from the Super Bowl expected to pump up the gaming win for February, Nevada casinos are expected to come in above $1 billion for three years — 36 consecutive months.
Nevada’s percentage fee collections for February (through Feb. 27) hit $99.7 million, a 3.74% increase over February 2023.
