Atlantic City casinos reported a decline in in-person gambling revenue in September, even as New Jersey’s overall gaming market grew. Strong online casino revenue results lifted the statewide total, highlighting the different paths of digital gaming and traditional casino play.
The latest figure from the Division of Gaming Enforcement shows that nine Atlantic City properties generated $227.8 million from in-person gambling, down 1.3% from September 2025. Meanwhile, New Jersey online casino revenue climbed 13% to $274.8 million.
The contrast tells the main story of the month: New Jersey’s gambling industry expanded, but that growth did not reach every part of the market.
Word comes as discussions are underway to possibly start ferrying people to Atlantic City from New York City. Tropicana also recently announnced that it is now offering live roulette streamed directly from a physical table in Atlantic City.
Atlantic City Casinos: September Revenue at a Glance
September’s results varied across the state’s three main gambling categories.
Atlantic City casinos generated $227.8 million in in-person gaming revenue, down 1.3% from September 2025.
New Jersey online casino revenue rose 13% to $274.8 million, while sports wagering revenue fell 14.3% to $77 million. Despite the declines in in-person casino gaming and sports wagering, strong online gaming growth helped push New Jersey’s total gaming revenue to $579.6 million, a 2.8% increase from a year earlier.
Online gaming gains more than offset the declines in casino-floor and sports wagering revenue. As a result, the statewide total rose even though two of the three categories moved lower.
These figures measure gaming revenue, not the total amount customers wagered or the profit operators kept.
Online Gaming Outpaces Atlantic City Casino Floors
Internet gaming brought in approximately $47 million more than in-person casino gambling during September.
Its $274.8 million monthly total was close to the reported record of $276.9 million set in July 2026. Through September, online gaming revenue reached $2.40 billion, up 13.2% from the same period a year earlier.
By comparison, Atlantic City casinos generated $2.24 billion in year-to-date in-person gaming revenue, an increase of 1.4%.
Both categories were ahead for the year, but online gaming grew much faster. That distinction helps explain why rising statewide revenue can exist alongside a difficult month for physical casinos. Adding housing units near the marina may also help.
Slots Increase While Table Games Struggle
The casino-floor results were not uniformly weak.
Slot revenue increased 4.6% to $177.9 million in September. Table-game revenue, however, fell 17.6% to $49.9 million.
The table-game decline outweighed the improvement in slots, pushing total in-person casino revenue below the previous September’s result.
That split also shows why a single headline number cannot tell the whole story. Atlantic City’s casino floors included both a growing segment and a sharply declining one.
How Borgata, Hard Rock, and Ocean Performed
Among the properties highlighted in the supplied figures, Borgata remained the revenue leader, while Ocean posted growth.
- Borgata generated $55.7 million in in-person gaming revenue, down 11.3% from a year earlier.
- Hard Rock reported $43.5 million, a decline of 4.3%.
- Ocean brought in $42.6 million, up 7.6%.
These results show that Atlantic City casinos did not all experience September the same way. The overall market declined, but individual property performance varied.
Sports Betting Revenue Also Declines
Sports betting added to September’s weaker results outside internet gaming.
Revenue fell 14.3% to $77 million, compared with $89.8 million a year earlier. Through September, sports wagering revenue totaled $748.4 million, down 6.3%.
That left internet gaming as the only major category to post a year-over-year revenue increase for the month.
What the Results Mean for Atlantic City Casinos
September’s figures show that online gaming is becoming increasingly important to New Jersey’s gambling revenue. They do not, on their own, prove that customers are choosing online play instead of visiting Atlantic City casinos, although second quarter casino revenue in America's Playground was also down.
Revenue totals show what changed, but they do not fully explain why. Establishing a direct shift in customer behavior would require more evidence, such as visitation figures and player research.
Seasonality also needs careful treatment. September follows the summer tourism season, but these results compare September 2026 with September 2025. The end of summer alone therefore does not explain the year-over-year decline.
Through September, New Jersey’s total gaming revenue reached $5.39 billion, up 5.1%. The broader market remained ahead of last year, while Atlantic City casinos faced a more mixed picture: modest year-to-date growth, a weaker September, and an online segment expanding much faster than in-person play.
