Gambling in Kansas

Overall, Gambling in Kansas offers gambling-friendly laws. In many ways, gambling in Kansas mirrors general attitudes across the U.S. towards gaming over the past few decades.

In the mid-1800s during pioneering days, gambling was accepted. The state banned gambling in 1868, and gambling laws grew throughout the early 20th century.

Since then, Kansas has slowly legalized many forms of gambling. You can now enjoy many forms of land-based gaming in Kansas to go along with sports betting, Daily Fantasy Sports and Horse and Greyhound Racing as the online options.

Kansas has a unique system where the state lottery owns and operates Vegas-style commercial casinos. In 2007, State Legislation (SB 66) was passed allowing four casinos to be built and operated by private companies in so long as the state lottery retained 100% ownership. Revenue is split with 27% going to the State and the remainder to the builder-operator licensee.

Combine those commercial casinos with a healthy network of Tribal Casinos, and its apparent that Kansas has a wide range of options for the state’s land-based casino gambling aficionados.

In total, Kansas has 11 land-based casinos (both commercial and tribal) across the state, offering almost 11 500 slots and gaming machines, and more than 160 table games in total.

With the colorful and adventurous 19th-century history of Kansas’ saloons in Dodge City and the associated vices on offer there in the 1880’s, and the rich and varied Native American gambling games dating back centuries, it’s clear that the current casino culture in Kansas is following in the state’s storied gambling heritage.

Kansas Gambling Law statutes do not specifically mention online casino laws, however, the encompassing guideline and implicit understanding is that it doesn’t need to. In Kansas, any form of unsanctioned and unregulated (as gambling online is in Kansas) gambling is considered to be illegal. It is a misdemeanor offense to participate as an online casino player with a punishment of up to six months in jail and a fine of up to $1000. All of which underlines that the arrival of something in the style of online casinos in NJ is still someway off in Kansas’ future.

We recommend that online players in the state of Kansas should refrain from playing both off-shore and U.S. based online casinos until online betting is ratified by the State legislature.

Players wishing to gamble online in Kansas for the time being, have the possibility for legal online greyhound and horse racing betting and to play in real money DFS competitions.

Tribal casinos and the state lottery-owned commercial casinos offer excellent options for legal live poker in Kansas. Social gambling for fun at home is allowed, however, home poker games played even for small stakes are not permitted in the state.

Poker Rooms

Kansas has a total of almost 50 poker tables spread across the state’s three poker rooms. At those facilities, Poker Game Types available include Pot Limit Hold’em, Casino Hold’em, Omaha 8 or better, Texas Hold’em, Caribbean Stud Poker, No Limit Hold’em among others.

Online Poker Laws

Kansas’ online players are unable to play Poker online in the Sunflower State, however, it is not all bad news for the future. There seems to be sweeping acceptance of online gambling now that sports betting has been legalized in Kansas.

Online poker may just end up coming along for the legislative ride.

• In any given year, Kansas’ state-owned casinos contribute between $700 million to $1 billion annual to the state’s economy.
• Tribal Casinos offer a much-need revenue stream and form of job creation for Native Americans in Kansas.
• In Kansas, almost 4500 people are employed directly in the gambling sector (with total combined incomes of almost $200 million) with many more employed in associated service industries (estimated to be as many as 1800 indirect jobs).
• 30% of Kansas’ State Lottery proceeds go to good causes like; the Economic Development Initiatives Fund, Juvenile Detention Facilities Fund, Correctional Institutions Building Fund, and the Problem Gambling Grant Fund.
• High-tech companies with Kansas-based locations are assisting in the development of online casino technology for other states (where online gambling is legal) providing jobs and payroll tax revenue for the state.

1880’s; According to the Wall Street Journal; ‘in the 1880’s, Dodge City, Kansas was the wickedest little city in America’. Casinos, brothels and saloons were plentiful in Dodge City and high-stakes poker games were common.

Late 1800’s; Gambling deemed illegal in Kansas.

1903; Slot machines become illegal in Kansas.

1974; Charitable Gaming legalized in Kansas, beginning with Bingo.

1987; Kansas State Lottery created.

1992; Simulcast horse and greyhound racing betting legalized in Kansas.

1996; First Tribal Casinos open in Kansas.

2007; Approval granted to allow the Kansas State Lottery to independently operate 4 Land-Based Casinos.

2015; DFS contests fully legalized in Kansas with State Governor, Sam Brownback signing bill HB 2155 into law in the Sunflower State.

2021; Kansas passes state law to legalize sports gambling (both land-based-and-online) through the state-lottery-owned commercial casinos.

Visit our Sports Betting in Kansas Page to read more about the laws in The Sunflower State or to find Reviews of the states top online sportsbooks.