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Introduction to Maryland Slot Machine Casino Gambling in 2020

Map showing location of casinos and racetracks in Maryland with hotel room discounts and information on slot machines, blackjack, craps and poker plus amenities like casino entertainment, golf. .the state the ability to issue up to five video lottery permits and place up to 15,000 slot machines throughout the state at five distinct locations.

Maryland slot machine casino gambling consists of six land-based casinos with video lottery terminal (VLT) slot machines. Cruise ships traveling in international waters also offer onboard gambling options.

A minimum theoretical payout limit was been set by Maryland law. However, no actual return statistics are publicly available.

This post continues my weekly State-By-State Slot Machine Casino Gambling Series, an online resource dedicated to guiding slot machine casino gambler to success. Now in its third year, each weekly post reviews slots gambling in a single U.S. state, territory, or federal district.

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Relevant Legal Statutes on Gambling in Maryland*

The minimum legal gambling age in Maryland depends upon the gambling activity:

• Land-Based Casinos: 21
• Poker Rooms: 21
• Bingo: 18
• Lottery: 18
• Pari-Mutuel Wagering: 18

Further, the minimum gambling age is 18 for cruises shipping out of Baltimore.

In 2008, Maryland voters approved having slot machines at five locations. This constitutional amendment included a licensing and regulatory legal framework for casino operators, employees, and contractors as well as specifying where to allocate state gaming income tax revenue.

In 2012, Maryland voters further approved a gaming expansion bill allowing table games at Maryland’s casinos as well as another Maryland casino. This sixth gambling license, awarded in December 2013, resulted in MGM National Harbor’s opening 3 years later.

*The purpose of this section is to inform the public of state gambling laws and how the laws might apply to various forms of gaming. It is not legal advice.

Slot Machine Private Ownership in Maryland

It is legal to own a slot machine in Maryland privately if it is 25 years old or older.

The state gaming commission is Maryland Lottery and Gaming, responsible for overseeing gaming regulations compliance, employee background checks, the day-to-day operation of machines at each casino, and more.

Gaming Control Board in Maryland

There are six non-tribal casinos and two international cruise ships based in Maryland.

The largest casino in Maryland is Live! Casino Hotel Maryland with 3,853 gaming machines in January 2020.

The second-largest casino is MGM National Harbor with 3,135 gaming machines in January 2020.

Casinos in Maryland

Commercial Casinos in Maryland

Maryland’s six land-based casinos are:

1. Hollywood Casino Perryville located 44 miles northeast of Baltimore.
2. Live! Casino Hotel Maryland in Hanover located 11 miles southwest of Baltimore and 30 miles northeast of Washington, DC.
3. MGM National Harbor in Oxon Hill located 14 miles southwest of Baltimore.
4. Ocean Downs Casino in Berlin located 133 miles southeast of Baltimore on the Delaware border.
5. Rocky Gap Casino Resort Golf in Flintstone located 132 miles west of Baltimore near the Pennsylvania border.

Tribal Casinos in Maryland

Maryland has no tribal casinos due to having no federally-recognized American Indian tribes.

Other Gambling Establishments

As an alternative to enjoying Maryland slot machine casino gambling, consider exploring casino options in a nearby state. Bordering Maryland is:

• North: Pennsylvania Slots
• East: Delaware Slots
• South: Virginia Slots and the District of Columbia Slots
• West: West Virginia Slots

Each of the links above will take you to my blog for that neighboring U.S. state to Maryland.

Our Maryland Slots Facebook Group

Are you interested in sharing and learning with other slots enthusiasts in Maryland? If so, join our new Maryland slots community on Facebook. All you’ll need is a Facebook profile to join this closed Facebook Group freely.

There, you’ll be able to privately share your slots experiences as well as chat with players about slots gambling in Maryland. Join us!

Payout Returns in Maryland

Maryland gaming regulations require a minimum theoretical payout of 87%, on average over its lifetime, for each VLT gaming machine. Further, overall for all VLTs at a casino, the minimum and maximum theoretical payouts must average between 90% and 95%.

Unfortunately, monthly revenue statistics from the gaming commission excludes amount returned to players. Therefore, actual return statistics are not publicly available.

Summary of Maryland Slot Machine Casino Gambling in 2020

Maryland slot machine casino gambling consists of VLT-style slot machines at six casinos. Further, two cruise ships offer slot machines when sailing out of the Port of Baltimore to international destinations.

Maryland gaming regulations set a minimum theoretical payout of 87%. Also, overall for each casino averaged over all slot machines, they’ve set minimum and maximum payout returns of 90% and 95%.

Annual Progress in Maryland Slot Machine Casino Gambling

Over the last year, there has been no change in the slots gaming industry in Maryland.

Other State-By-State Articles from Professor Slots

• Previous: Maine Slot Machine Casino Gambling
• Next: Massachusetts Slot Machine Casino Gambling

Have fun, be safe, and make good choices!
By Jon H. Friedl, Jr. Ph.D., President
Jon Friedl, LLC

For many years, Nevada was the only place in the US to play a slot machine. The one-armed bandit has been synonymous with the state for decades.

However, for 21 years, from 1947 to 1968, Americans could find legal slot play in Maryland too.

In terms of significance, this fact makes Maryland one of the only states to ban gambling, then bring it back.

This history likely set the stage for Maryland’s moderate but passionate reintroduction back into the world of slot machines and table games.

The state has also become a pro-sports betting state. Voters overwhelmingly voted yes on Question 2 to legalize Maryland sports wagering during the state’s November 2020 election.

Sweepstakes casinos in Maryland

Social casino options

Marylanders have all of the typical options for social gaming. Double Down, Big Fish, Slotomania, Zynga, and MyVegas are all available through Facebook or mobile devices. Interestingly, the Hollywood Casino in Perryville does not feature its own social casino option. This is unusual for casinos branded by Hollywood.

Marylanders may want to pay slightly more attention to MyVegas than other states because of its proximity to Borgata in New Jersey. Although it’s not walking distance, Borgata is a short trip from Maryland and does have options for redemption through the MyVegas site. Maryland residents might do well to investigate the slot options on MyVegas.

Maryland sports betting

Just after the calendar flipped to 2020, Sen. Chris West pre-filed SB 58, which would allow horse tracks and casinos to offer regulated Maryland sports betting.

Fast forward to November 2020, when a large majority of voters voted yes on statewide ballot measure Question 2, finally legalizing Maryland sports betting.

Whether that will include online sports betting is still unclear. Lawmakers will likely convene in 2021 to hammer out the details.

Online gambling

Like many states, Maryland does not have a strict law for or against playing games of chance online. However, the state is rather restrictive when it comes to funding those games. Many banks and other financial institutions are closely monitored for any kind of interactions with gambling websites or operators.

The bright spot is that there are three nearby states (New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware) that either have or are about to have online gambling. It is certain that the Maryland Legislature will be monitoring those states’ successes closely. It is also possible that Maryland could decide to get in on the online game in the near future. Below is a table of likely operators based upon the companies that already have a foothold in the state.

Likely online gambling operators

State casino operator history

In 1947, four counties in southern Maryland ignored a veto from Maryland’s governor at the time and installed 9,300 gaming machines in their counties. These counties raked in millions of dollars each year. It was estimated to be over $24 million in 1963 alone, and the scene was so hot that it became the main tourist attraction for the area.

However, all good things must come to an end, and in 1968 Maryland outlawed the slot machines. But the fire for gambling in Maryland continued to smolder. In 2008, residents approved a constitutional amendment to allow slot machines in five specific state locations.

Things went well, and in 2012 voters elected to expand the allowed games to include table games at the five casinos. They also voted to extend the operating hours at the casinos and to authorize a sixth casino. The six casinos are in six different Maryland locales – Anne Arundel, BaltimoreCity, CecilCounty, AlleganyCounty, WorcesterCounty, and Prince George’s County. The sixth casino, MGM National Harbor, just opened last December.

Casino revenue

So far, the appeal of these facilities is strong and on the rise. Total revenue for February 2017 alone was over $128 million. The addition of the sixth property is certainly contributing to that figure. MGM National Harbor made $48.8 million in revenue in its first month of operation and its effect on the overall take has been a net positive for the state.

All of this has occurred since 2010, when Hollywood Casino Perryville opened its doors. By the standards of the rest of the state’s casinos, it is a rather modest property. There are 850 slots, 20 table games, and an off-track betting facility (there is no poker room). Yet, four years later, the profile of the state’s gaming industry expanded fivefold – four more casinos opened their doors by August 2014.

The largest of these casinos (and still the largest – MGM National Harbor could only take second place) is Maryland Live! Casino. This massive casino offers its patrons almost 4,000 slot machines, over 200 table games, and a gigantic poker room with 52 tables. There are eight restaurants for patrons to dine, a posh hotel with 310 rooms and 52 suites to reserve, and a 1500-seat entertainment venue. This casino is enough to warrant a stop on the World Poker Tour each year, despite the casino only having been open since June 2012.

Maryland Slots Locations

Location, location, location

Maryland Live! and the five other Maryland properties are finding such success because of the tremendous location they enjoy. Maryland is a fairly populous, but small state, which means it is close to many surrounding areas in addition to its own cities and localities. For instance, Maryland Live! is a 15-minute drive from downtown Baltimore and also only a 50-minute drive from Washington D.C.

It is also less than a two-hour drive from both Philadelphia and Dover, Delaware. These two cities have their own options to be sure, but Maryland casinos are close enough to draw from those areas for a change of pace or special events (like the aforementioned WPT). All in all, the future looks bright for Maryland casinos, because even with the saturation of the northeastern casino market, Maryland enjoys a roughly central location from many parts of this area of the country.

Maryland Slots Locations Michigan

Land-based casinos

Maryland Slots Locations Illinois

State legal environment