Massachusetts has always been liberal about gambling. The state works around regulating the industry and it takes online games into consideration. Of course, by the time we were ready to roll out this review, online casino games were still not allowed in Massachusetts. However, the state already made some significant steps in liberalizing online sportsbooks.

Also, the residents of the state have access to land-based casinos, lottery, online and offline sports betting, as well as charitable gambling. This latter includes bingo, raffles, pull-tabs, and Bazaars. What’s worth mentioning is Massachusetts is one of the few states that taxes the revenues on charitable gambling, and the rates are actually quite high, between 5% to 10%.

Residents can also own slot machines under the condition that these should be at least 30 years old, and used for decorative or recreational purposes. Plus, social gambling is possible as long as the house does not take the rake.

Residents can also own slot machines under the condition that these should be at least 30 years old, and used for decorative or recreational purposes. Plus, social gambling is possible as long as the house does not take the rake.

Best Online Live Casinos for Massachusetts

Online gambling is currently not allowed in Massachusetts. this means that the state does not issue licenses for online operators within the state and can even prosecute players that play at non-certified websites. There is a fine that is double the amount of what a player won. Unless it is 5 USD or less at a time that we are talking about — then, a player is off the hook.

All of this being said, 100s of locals still head to offshore gambling lobbies to play live and non-live games. The market is growing and more brands are coming to the niche every year. Plus, there are quite a few established platforms with years of experience and outstanding reviews online.

Choosing live casinos for Massachusetts

The first advice we would like to give is to always choose a licensed online operator. A casino with a license is a guarantee of quality. Such platforms have better live games, faster services, better help desk representatives, and lower risks of non-payments.

Normally, online operators targeting Massachusetts will have licensing from the jurisdiction of Curacao. There are also quite a few great brands with permits from Panama and Costa Rica. However, because these jurisdictions are considered less strict there is also a higher percentage of potentially rogue casinos. You won’t find any questionable lobbies in our database, but if you decide to search on your own, always check the feedback for particular brands on online gambling forums.

Recommended deposit methods

All of the popular payment methods, including cards and bank transfer, will normally be available at offshore online operators. For cards, Visa and American Express will be the most frequent option. Unfortunately, we don’t see to many prepaid vouchers and e-wallets popular in the USA being offered at such online casinos. The only exception would be PayPal.

Alternatively, we can recommend using cryptocurrencies. They are very easy to understand, purchase, exchange, and store. Digital e-wallets are safe, secure, fast in terms of transactions, and also cheap to use. While it might take up to 3 days to receive payouts to a card, via a crypto-wallet a payout can reach a winner in less than 24 hours. Plus, there are lots of cryptocurrencies to choose from, including LTc, DGC, and ETH, as well as XPR and BTC Cash.

The gross gambling turnover in Massachusetts reaches 25 billion USD per year on gaming, and 63 billion USD per year on sports betting. Out of all forms of wagering activities, the residents of the state seem to like casino games the most. The yearly gross gambling turnover on the revenue to up to 8 billion USD.

Here is the breakdown of what the state offers to its residents when it comes to games of chance and sports betting.

Land-Based Casinos in Massachusetts

The state is home to three commercial land-based casinos, which are huge resorts bringing in billions of dollars yearly. The list of betting options allowed in the brick-and-mortar casinos includes video poker games, slot machines, table games, and Keno.

At the same time, one of the most liberal states in terms of gambling has zero tribal casinos even though the Native American community in the state has been lobbying for a chance to launch tribal casinos for years now. Many would argue that this is an artificially created limitation because three of the already existing casinos would prefer to avoid competition.

Pari-Mutuel Betting in Massachusetts

Horse racing, pari-mutuel betting, and simulcast wagering are allowed in the state. The high seasons for this type of betting activity are summer and fall. There are two racetracks in the state, as well as the Three County Annual Fair.

Land-based casinos are allowed to host sportsbooks and there are also online services. It is currently taxed at 10%. However, Massachusetts is also actively discussing a possibility to allow launching sportsbook services outside land-based casinos. If this happens, the reviewed state will quickly become one of the most liberal in the USA in terms of regulating sports betting. Also, if this happens, such online sportsbooks will be taxed up to 12.5% on revenues.

Lotteries in Massachusetts

Lottery’s been live in the state since 1971. It is a state monopoly and it offers Instant Tickets and keno. Plus, the state participates in the national draws. Overall, the industry generates up to 5 billion USD per year. Out of this, the lowest RTP is on national draws where it does not exceed 75%. Still, this is one of the highest percentages when compared to other states that we’ve reviewed where RTPs barely climb over 65%.

On the other hand, sales driven by Instant Tickets and Keno, generate truly decent RTPs of up to 86%. The revenue from the lotteries is distributed between the state’s city budgets and most of its goes to fund education.