Every US and Canadian Gambling Regulator, With Its Official Register
A casino's licence badge is an image the casino chose to put on its own page. The regulator's list of authorised operators is the one copy of that information the operator cannot edit — which makes it the only version worth checking. This page collects the official list for every US state that licenses online casino play and every Canadian provincial regulator, so you can confirm in about thirty seconds whether the site in your other tab is actually allowed to take your money. Government sources only. No rankings, no recommendations.
01 United States — states that license online casino play
Seven states license real-money online casino games. Nevada licenses online poker but not casino games. Everything else you see advertised to a US audience is either sports betting only, a sweepstakes site, or offshore.
| State | Regulator | Scope | Official list of authorised operators |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Jersey | Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) | Casino | Internet Gaming Authorized Sites — grouped under the Atlantic City licensee each brand runs through |
| Pennsylvania | Gaming Control Board (PGCB) | Casino | PA Licensed Online Gaming Operators |
| Michigan | Gaming Control Board (MGCB) | Casino | Authorized Online Gaming and Sports Betting Platform Providers |
| West Virginia | West Virginia Lottery | Casino | WV Lottery business portal — open the "i-Gaming License List" and "i-Gaming Registrant List" |
| Connecticut | Dept. of Consumer Protection, Gaming Division | Casino | Verify a License — Connecticut's market is limited to the two tribal operators and the lottery |
| Delaware | Delaware Lottery | Casino | Delaware Lottery iGaming — a single state-run platform, not a competitive market |
| Rhode Island | Rhode Island Lottery | Casino | RI Lottery online casino — one authorised platform, run with Bally's |
| Nevada | Gaming Control Board / Gaming Commission | Poker only | gaming.nv.gov — Nevada permits online poker but has never legalised online casino games |
02 Canada — one open market, nine monopolies
Canada's structure confuses people because it looks like one country and behaves like ten. Ontario runs the only competitive licensed market in the country. Everywhere else, the province itself is the operator, through its lottery corporation, and there is no list of licensed private operators because private operators are not licensed.
| Province | Body | Model | Official page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ontario | iGaming Ontario | Open market | Live operators and gaming sites — the definitive list of legal sites in Ontario |
| Ontario | Alcohol and Gaming Commission (AGCO) | Regulator | AGCO gaming — registration, standards and enforcement behind the iGO market |
| British Columbia | Gaming Policy and Enforcement Branch | Monopoly | Gambling in B.C. — PlayNow, operated by BCLC, is the only legal option |
| Québec | Régie des alcools, des courses et des jeux | Monopoly | RACJ — the regulator; Loto-Québec runs Espacejeux |
| Alberta | Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis | Monopoly | AGLC gaming — Alberta has legislated toward an Ontario-style open market; check for changes |
| Manitoba | Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries | Monopoly | MBLL |
| Saskatchewan | SK Liquor and Gaming Authority | Monopoly | SLGA |
| Atlantic provinces | Atlantic Lottery Corporation | Monopoly | ALC — NS, NB, NL and PEI |
| Kahnawà:ke | Kahnawake Gaming Commission | Offshore-style | KGC — a First Nation commission licensing operators worldwide; not a provincial licence and not equivalent to one |
03 How to use these lists properly
- Search the land-based property, not just the brand. In most US states the online licence is tethered to a physical casino. On New Jersey's list the brands are grouped under Borgata, Golden Nugget, Hard Rock and the rest. Searching only for the app name can return nothing even when the site is fully authorised.
- Check the licence covers the product you are about to play. "Sports wagering" and "internet gaming" are separate authorisations in every state that has both.
- Confirm the domain, not just the name. Cloned sites copy branding and licence numbers wholesale. If the state lists
casino-brand.comand you are oncasino-brand-us.net, you are not on the licensed site. - If the operator is not on the list, that is the answer. These registers are maintained by the regulator and updated when licences are granted, suspended or surrendered. An absence is information, not an oversight.
Or let the check happen automatically
BetScan runs this lookup against the regulator's register on every casino site you open, and shows you the result before you deposit.
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Every URL above returned a live page when checked on 1 September 2026. Several US state sites block non-US traffic outright; those were verified through a US-based request rather than assumed. We link the regulator or the state's own operator list in every case — never an affiliate page, a comparison site, or a casino's own licence page. Where a province is a monopoly we link the regulator rather than the operator, because the regulator is the body that answers a complaint. Regulators do reorganise their sites; if you find a dead link here, tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it. This page is a reference for verifying licences and is not legal advice.
Frequently asked questions
Seven states license real-money online casino games: New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Michigan, West Virginia, Connecticut, Delaware and Rhode Island. Nevada licenses online poker but not online casino games. Many more states license online sports betting, which is a different licence — a sportsbook licence does not authorise slots or table games.
Open your state regulator's official list of authorised operators, linked in this directory, and look for the site you are about to use. In most states the online brand is tethered to a land-based casino licensee, so search for the land-based property as well as the brand name. If the brand does not appear on the state's own list, it is not authorised there, regardless of what its homepage says.
No, and confusing the two is the most common mistake players make. A state can license online sports betting while online casino games remain illegal there — that is the situation in most US states with legal betting. An operator authorised only for sports wagering is not authorised to offer you slots or blackjack, and playing casino games with them puts you outside the regulated framework.
Ontario is the only province with an open, competitive licensed market: the AGCO registers operators and iGaming Ontario runs the commercial framework, and it publishes the list of live sites. Every other province operates a government monopoly through its own lottery corporation — BCLC, Loto-Quebec, AGLC, MBLL, SLGA and the Atlantic Lottery Corporation. Commercial sites serving those provinces from offshore are not provincially licensed.
Because a licence badge on a casino's own site is just an image the operator chose to put there. Cloned-site scams copy a real licensee's branding and licence number wholesale. The regulator's register is the only copy of that information the operator cannot edit, which makes it the only version worth trusting.
Independence: BetScan is a free browser extension. It carries no operator links, bonus offers or sign-up promotions, and has no commercial relationship with any operator it rates. Every score is calculated from license registries and independent public reviews only. Every link on this page points to a government or regulator source and none is an affiliate link.