Macau VS Las Vegas: Demographics Makes a Difference

Giuseppe Faraone
Senior Author
clock badge 3 Min Read

For years the world has been fascinated with playing gambling games for big wins. Las Vegas and Macau are among the most popular cities to visit for a gambling trip.   

Las Vegas VS Macau 

Las Vegas has been the ultimate go-to for the majority of the population in need of casino fun.  

The Smaller city of Macau on the South East Coast of China has pulled in millions for its gambling offering. This smaller city has been dubbed the Vegas of the East. The surface area of Macau might be three times smaller than that of Las Vegas but interestingly enough the population is almost the same.  

Difference in Revenue 

While Macau might be a smaller city than Las Vegas is generates gambling revenue three times higher.  

According to the statistics Las Vegas generates $6.4 billion per year in Gross Gaming Revenue with 34% of that being from casino games. The rest of the Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR) comes from the hotel rooms and restaurants.  

Macau on the other hand generates an average GGR of $28.4 billion per annum with the city receiving $12 billion. That’s twice as much Las Vegas earns in total per year.  

Macau’s profits also keep growing as there has been a 23.7% rise in profit from last year. This is well over the 15 to 20 per cent projected growth they expected for the year.  

Location & Demographics 

The key factor is the demographics which play a large role in the profit difference for these two popular gambling cities. Nearly two-thirds of the visitors in Macau come from China. The latter is a growing economy where people have more disposable income to spend. With a population of 1.3 billion, it drastically increases the number of visitors to Macau’s popular casinos.  

Las Vegas on the other hand has to rely on those who visit from the Western United States and other foreign countries such as Western Europe. The main reason for the difference in the demographics is that most visitors are families and sightseers who are a little more cautious regarding their gambling activities.  

Las Vegas get visitors from all across the world who gamble small stakes at a time. While Macau gets high stakes gamblers from across Asia who enjoys the rush of betting for big wins.  

Each unique in their own way 

While Macau might be in the lead when it comes to generating revenue one can argue that it’s thanks to demographics and location. With Macau being easier to access by the many visitors from China it enables them to generate much larger profits yearly.  

Las Vegas on the other hand might not be generating massive scale profits yearly but they’ve remained solid over the years. Las Vegas remains a popular city that is visited by many for wild or leisurely gambling activities.  

Both Las Vegas and Macau have the best casino games on offer to those who enter these popular gambling cities.

Giuseppe Faraone

Giuseppe Faraone

Author & Online Gambling Expert

1149 Articles
Being so close to the action in iGaming, Giuseppe is on top of any new developments the minute they come through the door, as his book is testament to. Published in October 2022, his first book; The Untold Story of Online Gambling is available on Amazon.
Expert On:
Gambling Laws
Responsible Gambling
Players Rights
Online Casinos
Casino Licences

Fact-checked by Julia Attard

info

Experienced Senior Author & Online Casino Expert

Unlock casino offers

Get offers, spins, bonuses and news to your inbox with our newsletter. Remember, all the promotions are subject to T&Cs you must accept before playing.