New York

Mobile sports betting has been legal in New York since January 2022, after four sportsbook apps were approved for launch in the states. From there, the number of betting apps rose to nine, giving bettors plenty of wagering options and promotional offers.

Within the state, no restrictions on the type of sports players can bet on are in place — essentially, players can enjoy betting on both professional and collegiate leagues. However, players cannot place bets on college teams from New York or on any NCAA event that takes place in the state. Horse race betting is also completely legal in The Empire State.

In addition, even though eSports online betting hasn’t yet become available in NY, bettors can still place eSports wagers on any of the retail sportsbooks found on tribal land. For those looking for a sports betting alternative, daily fantasy sports apps are fully legal in NY, and individuals can find some of the most prominent DFS apps on the market.

Online sports betting in The Empire State

Over the years, New York has gradually moved to legalize sports betting in various forms. Though online sports gambling took a little longer to arrive, in-person sports wagering has been legal since 2019. At this point, it was already possible to place bets at one of the four commercial and five-plus Tribal casinos within the state.

The path to online sports betting in New York had already been made much easier by lawmakers pushing for land-based domestic sports wagering. This finally came into force in 2019 through a referendum that gained a majority and allowed sports betting to occur in casinos upstate. In 2021, this shift made online sports betting legal in the state too, which allowed bets to be placed via smartphones and mobile apps.

After this, the first sportsbook apps went live in the state at the beginning of 2022. Overseeing all of this is the New York State Gaming Commission, which checks out each of the applications, provides licenses and continues monitoring the operation of each casino to ensure they comply with state laws.

Interestingly, while it took a while for sports betting to get off the ground here, land-based casinos have been around for a lot longer. Casinos were made legal back in 2013, and before this, the only casinos available in the state were the tribal casinos, and the state limited sports gambling to horse racing only.

Now, with sports betting fully operational, players in NY have full access to a wide range of betting options.

All legal NY sports betting apps in 2024 (from newest to oldest):

Sports betting & gambling legislation in NY

With sports gambling legal within New York, players must remain mindful of any restrictions that are in place. To wager at domestic land-based or mobile betting sites, players must be 21 years old. The age limits remain the same across all sports, though making it easy to monitor.

While players don't have to live in the state to access the sports betting apps, players do need to be within the state borders when placing bets and playing. All sportsbooks tend to have both an app and a desktop platform, allowing players to switch between the two or choose which option they prefer. Bettors can create accounts on these apps from anywhere within the state, as NY offers remote registration.

The tax rate on sports betting or gambling in general in New York is a bit complicated. New York’s state tax system works on a graduated income tax, so an individual’s tax rate is based on their tax bracket. Since gambling winnings are considered taxable income, they could affect which tax rate a bettor pays, as these tax rates start at 4% on the low end and go all the way up to 10.9% for the highest tax bracket.

In terms of future gambling legislation updates in New York, the public attention is firmly on online casinos, as the advocates of legalized iGaming and online gambling are aiming for the legalization of NY online casinos in the 2024 calendar year.

Most recent updates from the NY sports betting scene

• May 7, 2024: Jalen Brunson scored 43 points in the Knicks game one win over the Pacers, which gives him four straight playoff games with 40+ points. The Knicks are now (+290) to win the Eastern Conference.

• May 2, 2024: After dropping game five at home, the New York Knicks went into Philadelphia and won their first-round series 4-2. The Knicks are now (+320) to win the Eastern Conference and (+1100) to win the NBA Finals.

• April 28, 2024: The New York Rangers completed a first-round sweep over the Washington Capitols. They are now (+650) to win the Stanley Cup.

• April 25, 2024: After much debate about what they would do, the New York Giants selected LSU wide receiver Malik Mabers with their first pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. He is currently (+1400) to win Offensive Rookie of the Year.

• February 29, 2024: Fanatics Sportsbook has officially launched in the Big Apple, as they have taken over operations in the state for PointsBet.

• February 15, 2024: According to the New York State Gaming Commission, BetMGM reportedly lost $4.8 million from Super Bowl bets alone.

• February 13, 2024: PENN Entertainment has purchased WynnBet’s mobile betting license in New York, which allows for PENN to launch ESPN Bet in the Big Apple at some point in the near future.

• November 2, 2023: PointsBet's New York platform, now known as PointsBet, a Fanatics Experience, unintentionally permits New York residents to wager on in-state college teams, which goes against state regulations.

In-person sports betting sites and locations

In 2013, the New York Gaming Economic Development Act paved the road for sports betting. In 2019, several licensed casinos could offer sports betting, but only once the State changed the federal law. As soon as this happened, legislation was passed allowing these established casinos to operate sportsbooks.

At the time, New York has multiple retail sportsbooks, with four commercial casinos and seven tribal casinos operating their own betting facilities. However, the inconvenience for New Yorkers in NYC is that all these casinos are upstate.

Sports betting in neighboring states

If traveling across state lines, you might want to know the up-to-date sports betting legislation regarding NY's neighboring states. Here's a quick recap of the situation.

Clicking the state's name from the list below will bring up more information about its sports gambling legislation and all the available betting apps.

Sports betting revenue impact on New York's economy

Only four commercial and five tribal casinos hold sportsbook licenses in New York. These nine operators have 10-year permission from the New York State Gaming Commission. The actual application fee to get a license in the state is not known.

However, a final tax rate of 51% has been announced for all online sports betting, and with this rate, the state was able to gather nearly $80 million in tax revenue in just five weeks. In addition, there are recent bids to offer sportsbooks in NY from at least five more operators, but these were not approved at the end of 2021.

Since the launch of mobile sports betting in New York in 2022, the state has frequently exceeded over a billion dollars in the monthly handle. The old saying “City that never sleeps” seems to apply to the entire state regarding gambling, as New York has generated the second-most revenue and the most tax income from sports betting in the country.

Top 3 sportsbooks in the state in April 2024:

1. FanDuel (Handle: $780.5m, Revenue: $91m)

2. DraftKings (Handle: $737m, Revenue: $63.2m)

3. Caesars Sportsbook (Handle: $158.8m, Revenue: $10.4m)

New York sports betting record months:

• Sports betting handle: November 2023 ($2,109,294,400)

• Revenue: January 2024 ($211,706,706)

• Tax income: January 2024 ($107,887,645)

NY sports betting revenue in 2024