Canada's online gambling market keeps setting records while the share of Canadians who gamble at all keeps shrinking
Canada's online gambling market keeps setting records while the share of Canadians who gamble at all keeps shrinking.
Ontario's regulated online casino sector generated CA$2.9 billion in gaming revenue in 2024-25, its third full year and a 32% jump on the year before, according to iGaming Ontario's audited annual report.
Yet the last national study found 64.5% of Canadians gambled in the past year, down from 76% in 2002. The two facts are not a contradiction: they show a market where fewer, more engaged players are spending far more, almost all of it online. The Record: Ontario By The Numbers
Ontario opened Canada's first competitive, privately run online market on April 4, 2022, and it now dwarfs every other province. In 2024-25, iGaming Ontario reported CA$82.7 billion in total wagers, up 32%, producing CA$2.9 billion in gaming revenue.
Online casino did most of the heavy lifting at 75% of revenue, followed by sports betting at 25% and a sliver from peer-to-peer poker (iGaming Ontario).
iGaming Ontario 2022-23 (Yr 1) 2023-24 (Yr 2) 2024-25 (Yr 3)
| Total wagers | ~CA$35bn | CA$63.2bn | CA$82.7bn |
| Gaming revenue | ~CA$1.3bn | ~CA$2.2bn | CA$2.9bn |
| Active operators | 12 | ~47 | 50 |
The money that reaches the province is smaller than the headline. After operator payments, iGaming Ontario's net gaming revenue was CA$574 million, net income was CA$219 million and it paid a CA$181 million dividend to Ontario.
Revenue sharing with the Ontario First Nations (2008) Limited Partnership rose 73% to CA$41.45 million.
Why Revenue Rises As Participation Falls
The drop in gambling participation is real but old, and it predates regulated online play.
(Statistics Canada) found that three-quarters of Canadians aged 15 and over gambled in 2002. By 2018 that had fallen to 64.5%.
The decline was steepest in casual formats such as lottery tickets, bingo and slot machines.
Inside the regulated online market the trend runs the other way.
Ontario has grown from roughly 277,000 active accounts at launch to about 2.6 million active player accounts across 2024-25. The story is concentration, not contraction:
Spending is deepening: iGaming Ontario reported average monthly spend of around CA$308 per active account in one 2024-25 quarter.
Regulated play is sticky: a joint AGCO and iGaming Ontario survey in early 2025 found 83.7% of Ontario online gamblers were on regulated sites.
Casino, not betting, drives the totals: casino games took 84% of all wagers in Ontario in 2024-25.
So the paradox dissolves. Nationally, fewer Canadians dabble in a lottery ticket than a generation ago. Online, a growing base of committed players is generating record revenue. The National Picture, Province By Province
Online gambling in Canada is a patchwork. Ontario is the only open, private-operator market. Most other provinces run a single government platform, and a large grey market sits alongside all of them.
| Province | Model | Latest figures |
|---|---|---|
| Ontario | Open, private operators | CA$2.9bn revenue, CA$82.7bn wagered, 50 operators (2024-25) |
| Alberta | Open, private operators | Launched July 13, 2026; about 24 operator sites live; 20% of net revenue to the province |
| British Columbia | Monopoly (BCLC PlayNow) | PlayNow holds an estimated 51% of online spend; about CA$316.5m a year flows offshore |
| Quebec | Monopoly (Loto-Quebec) | Total revenue CA$2.99bn in 2024-25, up 2.1% |
| Atlantic Canada | Monopoly (Atlantic Lottery) | Revenue CA$890.9m in 2024-25; iLottery profit up 29% |
Alberta is the market to watch. It became Canada's second open jurisdiction on July 13, 2026, using a dual structure modelled on Ontario. The province estimates unregulated operators held about 70% of Alberta's online play before launch, and it will keep 20% of net revenue (Alberta iGaming strategy).
British Columbia shows the cost of the closed model: Finance Minister Brenda Bailey told budget estimates that BCLC's PlayNow holds only about 51% of the province's online gambling, leaving an estimated CA$316.5 million a year outside the tax and player-protection net.
What To Watch
Alberta's first full quarter of data will test whether an open market repeats Ontario's channelization gains. If it does, pressure will build on British Columbia and others to open up.
The national lesson is already clear: Canadians are not gambling in greater numbers, but those who do are spending more, moving online, and increasingly doing it on regulated platforms where the choice exists.
https://www.gambling.com/ca/news/canada-s-online-gambling-puzzle-revenue-climbs-to-record-highs-while-fewer-canadians-gamble