How to Start an Online Casino in 8 Steps (June 2022 update)

Today, the iGaming industry is big business, and if you happen to know all the ingredients needed on how to start an online casino business, you can combine them to create a recipe for success!

Not sure how to start a casino online? Top Casino Solutions can help provide you with this useful 8 Steps guide and knowledge you need to take your first steps into the internet gambling world.

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Online gambling is a vast marketplace that offers countless lucrative opportunities. According to a Statista report, the market size of the global online gambling industry in 2021 was estimated to be US$59 billion and is anticipated to be valued at over US$92.9 billion in 2023. If this forecast is correct, this means the market will double in size by next year!

With its constant state of growth, the reality is that the industry opens up a myriad of possibilities for entrepreneurs who have the drive, interest, passion and money it takes to make what they create stand out from the sea of competitors.

That said, we’re going to be honest with you. While it is more than possible to build a successful business that will eventually yield excellent profits, if you want to be a profitable online casino operator, it will take time, money and work. This means:

• You will need to be prepared to pay high costs to start your business
• You will need the necessary license(s) to operate within your target market(s)
• You will need to be fully compliant with the licensing laws of the regulator you choose
• You will need to provide exciting and engaging game content
• You will need to use the latest cutting-edge software, payment and security technologies
• You will need a sound marketing strategy to build and retain your customer base
• You will need to continue to evolve your brand over time to remain competitive and keep customers engaged

The reality is that anyone can start an online casino business, an online sportsbook, or any other type of gambling-related company and any one of these could be a highly profitable opportunity. However, building and running these types of enterprises isn’t for everyone and that’s okay too.

With that in mind, if you think you have what it takes and the desire to run an online casino, or if you’re interested in learning more about what is involved in starting an online gambling business, here are 8 steps on starting your own online casino.

*Note: As we are committed to providing you with the most current and relevant information, this content is continuously updated to ensure you are always receiving top value.

Step 1 – Discover Your Target Market

Online gambling is a global industry. However, this doesn’t mean that when you open an online casino you should target players around the world. On the contrary, it’s often best to focus on one major market first, and expand your reach only after you’ve established a solid foothold in your initial targeted region.

Choosing a target market is one of the most important initial steps when starting a casino. The reason is it will help you to know:

• What license you need
• Who your competitors are
• What size budget you need to operate in the region

Here are some things to consider when selecting a target market.

Choose a region

Every continent has an online gambling industry with revenues in the billions.

Revenues aside, each region has its own regulations on how it governs gambling within its jurisdiction. In fact, some regulations differ within countries, with certain states, provinces, counties or even cities having their own laws.

White, Black and Grey Markets

If you want to be a successful online casino operator for the long-term, it’s important to target regulated markets (e.g. UK, Sweden, Spain, Italy, etc.). Also known as “White Markets”, regulated markets are those that require you to have a license from a legitimate regulator to be able to offer your gambling services to local residents.

You should avoid regions where gambling is prohibited. Also known as “black markets”, these are regions that have strict laws prohibiting online gambling (e.g. Singapore, United Arab Emirates, Turkey, etc.). If you are caught offering your products to residents from these regions, you can face stiff fines, legal action and business closure.

There are also grey markets. These are markets where authorities do not license gambling operations, but also do not stop residents from playing at offshore sites (e.g. Canada, Austria, Japan, several Eastern European countries, etc.). Although there is nothing wrong with targeting grey markets, it’s important to remain vigilant of changing laws in jurisdictions where you don’t have a license.

Learn about your target audience

Once you’ve found a region that you’d like to target, the next step is to learn as much as you can about your primary market. This includes the following analysis to determine potential revenues and marketing strategies:

• Numbers – Find out how many potential players are in the market
• Demographics – Learn the average age and gender of players
• Income – Discover the average salary of players and how much disposable income they have
• Interests – Find out what type of gambling activities are the most popular among your targeted audience
• Payment methods – Learn what the most popular types of payment options are for deposit and withdrawal and the preferred currency
• Platform – Discover how the average player access online gambling – desktop, mobile or both
• Trends – Check for any common gaming, playing, and technology trends

Study your competitors

You’re a small fish in a massive ocean. The competition in the online gambling market is huge and it only becomes bigger with more iGaming sites launching every year.

Back in 2013, a report from the National Center for Responsible Gaming stated that according to the American Gaming Association, nearly 3,000 Internet gambling sites across the globe offered wagering on casino games, sports, poker, bingo, lottery and other games.

Now, nearly a decade later, with gambling legal in over 85 countries, there are thousands of more sites, 4,000+ of which are active white label operators. Needless to say, studying the strengths and weaknesses of your top competitors who’ve already established their brands in your desired market, is vital to your start-up getting off the ground.

With insight into your competitors’ operations, you’ll have the knowledge to design a brand that not only appeals to your targeted audience, but will keep them returning.

Step 2 – Create a Business Plan

Before you start an online casino, you need to create an actual business plan. This plan is integral to your operation to provide you with a clear strategy to help you understand how much capital you’ll need for your initial investment. It’s also integral because it will be necessary for you to have this plan laid out when you apply for a license or if you wish to attract investors.

The following are the main sections that you’ll need to outline in your plan.

Purpose of business

• Describe the goals of your operation
• Explain the organization of your business
• Outline the needs of the market you plan to target, including providing an analysis of the market
• Outline your business’ sales and marketing approach

Corporate structure/management

• Outline the corporate structure of your business (e.g. partnership, corporation or limited liability corporation)
• Provide information on stakeholders
• Provide information about the key persons in your operation, including staffing projections

Market analysis

• Explain how your business fits into the industry landscape
• Show the demand for your gambling product or service
• Provide an analysis of the target market and industry trends
• Outline of pricing plan and budget for marketing, detailing how you will market your brand and what marketing channels you intend to use

Revenue projections

• Work out revenue projections for the first three years (minimum) of operation.
• Include expectations of what your company should be able to achieve

Finance

• Outline your financial plan
• Provide an estimation of all the numbers, including projections of annual income, personal financial contribution, break-even worksheet, balance sheet, and cash flow statement projections.

Establish a corporate structure

You will need to establish a local business in whatever jurisdiction you obtain your license. You may choose to run an operation that is a partnership, corporation, or limited liability corporation. The type of operation you run often depends on the regulations of the licensing authorities you choose or any other jurisdictions where parent or subsidiary companies are situated.

One of the most common types of business operations for online casinos are limited liability corporation. In this setup, shareholders are liable only for the value of their shares. This means they will not lose everything if the business venture folds and the business’ debts are more than its capital.

In some circumstances, you may need to establish more than one company to be able to comply with a licensing jurisdiction’s regulations, the market your targeting, and other countries where any third-party companies (e.g. payment processing firms) may be located.

Also, part of knowing how to launch your own casino internationally will require you to navigate restrictions and requirements in a number of countries, which can make business operations even more complex. This is where employing the expertise of third-party jurisdictional services can be very handy, as they can asset you in ensuring your gambling operations remain compliant across different regions.

Consider the staff you need to hire

Opening an online casino requires staff. The best online casino company is one that is run with a team of professionals, all of whom are skilled at specific tasks to ensure a smooth, secure, compliant, criminal-free, and profitable gambling operation. Here’s a look at some of the specialists you’ll need:

Where can you find specialists to hire?

One of the best places to look for talent is in the licensing jurisdictions where you intend to apply for a license. Many jurisdictions like Malta, Curacao, Alderney, and Gibraltar have thriving iGaming sectors and are a hub for the types of specialists you need.

Step 3 – Understand Your Budget – Gather Funds

One of the most common questions new entrepreneurs to the iGaming industry ask is: how much does it cost to start an online casino? The short answer is it costs hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Every aspect of starting an online casino business costs money. For this reason, it is vital that once you’ve looked into how to open an online casino, you focus on how much capital you require to start a casino.

Do not make the mistake of planning your budget after setting up your online casino site. Plan it before. As a start-up, you need to know that your costs will be higher in the beginning because you’ve yet to earn the trust of players and the industry. A relationship must be built.

Gather capital

As is the case with just about everything in the iGaming industry, initial investment and operating costs vary across markets. Therefore, the amount of funding you have will greatly influence your decision on where you want to set up virtual shop.

When gathering capital, you need to calculate the approximate budget you will require to cover the various aspects of your business operation, including:

• Gambling license (application, fees, taxes, renewal, etc.)
• Business registration
• Software setup
• Staff
• Marketing
• Operating expenses

Essentially, opening an online casino results in two types of expenses: pre-launch expenses and after-launch expenses.

The above-mentioned expenses and percentages are meant only to provide you with an overall general example. However, as you can see, percentage wise, the pre-launch expenses are higher than the after-launch expenses, which are more about maintaining what has already been created.

That being said, remember that every jurisdiction has its own features and sets of rules and you might not be able to afford every jurisdiction. Stick to what you can afford, even if the jurisdiction you pick isn’t your first choice. There’s always room to grow later.

Finally, in general, it is often thought that for a new company entering the iGaming industry for the first time, the best option is to create a budget for at least your first 3 years of operation.

Step 4 – Decide on the Content You Want for Your Online Casino

The second major step of the process is to decide what type of content (gambling entertainment) you want to provide your customers. Your business needs to be clear on what it can deliver and it is important to emphasize the diversity of your content.

Customers want to know exactly what they can play and on what device they can play it. This means that your site needs to have the most exciting and popular content as well as support effortless integration.

Popular iGaming content offered at today’s successful online casinos include:

• Slots
• Poker
• Table & Card Games – Blackjack, Roulette, Baccarat, etc.
• Other Casino Games – Keno, Video Poker, Scratch Cards, Arcade
• Live Casino
• Bingo

Some online casino operators will even go that extra mile and offer a sportsbook and virtual sports betting as well.

Of course, you don’t need to (and shouldn’t necessarily) offer everything. It’s important to know what is available to you and then choose the content that makes the most sense to your brand and the experience you wish to offer your target market.

Using their expertise, a reliable iGaming software provider can help you narrow down your choices and provide you with the best sources of entertainment from their top software games partners.

Game quality and variety is key

Having a wide selection of online casino games is important to remain competitive, but so is the quality of the game content you provide. Games need to keep players engaged and satisfied. This is achieved by offering:

• Games with state of the art graphics and sounds
• Popular and new games that appeal to your target market
• Slots with special features (e.g. free spins, wild symbols, unique spinning mechanics, bonus buys, bonus games, etc.)
• Slots with varying themes
• Slots with different volatility levels
• Games with different sized betting limits to suit a variety of budgets and playing styles (e.g. low and high limit card and table games)
• A live casino that includes a variety of games beyond table and card games (e.g. money wheels, lotteries, bingo, etc.)

One of the best ways to ensure that you will always provide the best and most compliant gaming content is to partner with the industry’s top licensed and certified game providers. Offering games from the most respected game developers in the industry will also boost players’ trust and confidence in your site. Of course, in order to deliver on game variety, you will need to partner with more than one developer.

Naturally, the more partners you have, the more money you’re shelling out and the more contracts you need to mange. One of the best ways to lower costs and save time, while still getting great game content and variety, is to choose an online casino white label solution, a turnkey solution, or an API solution that uses a game content aggregator. These options allow you to integrate games from multiple game developers in one session and with one contract.

Step 5 – Obtain a License for Your Targeted Jurisdiction

To run a legitimate online gambling operation, you will require the necessary licenses for the jurisdictions in which you intend to operate. As you familiarize yourself with the industry, you will come to understand that some countries…

• Regulate online gambling markets and have a monopoly
• Regulate online gambling within their territories without a monopoly
• Prohibit gambling activities within their jurisdictions
• Have no country-wide regulations on gambling activities in place

Many first-time operators tend to choose lower-cost jurisdictions where a license can also be obtained quickly, such as Curacao. However, an established casino with greater financial resources can afford the costs and the time it takes to obtain a highly desired license like Malta, which gives them access to more markets.

Every jurisdiction has its own licensing application process. That said, all of them are extremely complex and high bureaucratic. In addition to cost and providing a detailed business plan, you (and any other key personnel, shareholders, etc.) will be subject to due diligence checks, which can include thorough background checks conducted though international law enforcement organizations. Expect to complete a lot of paperwork and be prepared to do everything perfectly, or your application will be rejected, resulting in a loss of money and time, and the headache of having to go through it all again.

Today, among the most popular online gambling license jurisdictions are:

• Curacao
• Malta
• Alderney
• Gibraltar
• The Isle of Man
• Kahnawake
• Antigua & Barbuda
• The UK

Choose your licensing option

As a new online casino operator, you will have two choices when it comes to obtaining the necessary licensing. You can:

1. Obtain a gambling license yourself – You are in charge of going through the complex licensing process, including obtaining the application, ensuring you meet licensing requirements, opening a bank account, making agreements with payment providers, fees and taxes, etc.
2. Become a licensee of your iGaming software provider – If you choose an iGaming provider’s white label solution, you do not have to apply for a license and will lease the provider’s software as well as the gaming license and financial infrastructure, allowing you to operate your casino under your own brand but using the provider’s ready-to-launch infrastructure. In other words, they take care of all the licensing for you.

There are a number of benefits for new operators who choose the white label option, however, there are a few drawbacks as well.

Step 6 – Pick Your Payments Provider System

After you’ve acquired a license, you will need to set up a payment system that will allow you to accept deposits from players, payout money prizes to players, and withdraw money from the casino back into your business.

Since this is the case, you’ll want to make sure that your casino supports integrate with major online payment systems. Without it, your players won’t be able to make deposit or withdrawals at your casino, which negates the entire point of running a profitable online gambling business!

The more online casino payment methods and different types of banking solutions that you can offer your customers, the better. This includes:

• Credit Cards
• Debit Cards
• eWallets
• Bank transfers
• Prepaid cards
• Mobile payments
• Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies*

Securing verified payment methods for your iGaming business is also important. As such, you will need to ensure you sign multiple agreements with only those payment system providers who are committed to transaction security.

While you can secure these agreements on your own, an iGaming software provider can help to simplify this process by providing you with a flexible and secure payments system platform. Such a platform can deliver payment processing, easy integration with all online merchants, multiple currency support, fraud detection, advanced risk management, etc.

Learn more about traditional forms of payment processing.

*Bitcoin and Crypto Casinos

Although traditional casino payment methods such as credit/debit cards, eWallets and prepaid cards remain the popular choice, cryptocurrencies continue to be a ruling trend. Many people continue to buy, trade, mine and spend cryptocurrency, such as Bitcoin, Litecoin and Ethereum as well as others that continue to pop up.

Offering cryptocurrencies can be a benefit to both an online casino operator and a player. For operators, money is received quickly and there are no intermediaries. For players, there is no greater security or anonymity. If you are interested in a cryptocurrency casino, you have two options:

• You can integrate a payment system that supports cryptocurrencies
• You can create an entire casino project based on the blockchain system

Although you will still require a respective license in either case, a Bitcoin casino can save on license application costs as well as monthly fees.

More and more projects are emerging on the market that are building their own gaming systems on blockchain. With increasing interest in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, these types of iGaming projects have huge success potential and may be worth considering.

Learn more about crypto casinos.

Step 7 – Brand and Website Creation

Potential customers will not only judge your casino based on what it offers, but also how it looks and on its user-friendliness.

When you’ve reached this phase of the process, once again you’ll have two options:

1. Design your own unique template (do it yourself or hire someone)
2. Use a pre-designed template

Regardless of the template option you choose, you’ll need to make decisions that represent the theme of your brand. Beyond selecting a name for your casino, these decisions may include:

• Colour scheme
• Graphical elements
• Mascot
• Logo
• Slogan

To start, obtain the best software that you can afford, one that has decent technical support and the potential to improve. Your objective is to design a website that is visually appealing, unique, sensibly laid out, and responsive. It should be fast to load, simple for customers to use, easy for them to interact with the content and provide the appropriate integration between the front end and database.

The server you choose to host your platform must have a high bandwidth, as it needs to be able to handle a large number of players simultaneously and, at the same time, ensure a fast load speed. Every second counts. Even the tiniest lag can result in a player bouncing from you site to your competitions. The user interface (UI) must be smooth and responsive.

You never want to leave the impression that your website is overly complicated to use, that it’s slow, or that it is unsafe. If you make players work too hard or doubt your reliability, they will take their money to any one of your other thousands of competitors out there. A mediocre user experience (UX) is not an option if you want to succeed.

Consider choosing a professional software solution

First things first. You need to choose an iGaming software provider that is reliable, innovative and that you can trust to help you make your business a success. When starting your own casino, you essentially have two options when it comes to providers:

1. Suppliers that develop games and platforms themselves (e.g. NetEnt, Microgaming, Playtech, etc.)
2. iGaming business providers that that offer packages which feature the gaming content of other suppliers as well as additional products and services. This is known as a business-to-business (B2B) model (e.g. EveryMatrix, FinnPlay, SoftGamings, SkillOnNet, etc.).

The majority of newcomers to the industry tend to choose the B2B option, such as the companies TCS reviews.

Why? Quite simply put, these iGaming software providers help to take the guess work out of how to successfully launch your online casino. They offer solutions and products that can help you either design and build your brand with turnkey solutions or self-services, or provide you with a white label casino solution that lets you easily launch a casino using ready-to-launch products and services that operate under their license.

Choose a software company that suits your goals

Whatever the path you choose, these companies are your link to the iGaming world and help to make your launch and running your operations a smoother process.

Since the goal is to create a long-term partnership with the provider you choose, it is important for you to do your research and take the necessary time to evaluate all your options and make sure that what a B2B company has to offer fits with your business ideas, goals and budget.

While every online casino operator has different requirements, it is typically in your best interest to look for a software provider that can deliver:

• Gambling licence(s) (either an included license or support for obtaining one)
• A wide range of gambling markets
• A diverse array of payment options
• Support for multiple currencies
• Support for multiple languages
• Client and player customer service options
• A large selection of casino games, including live casino entertainment
• Support for multiple platforms, including desktop, tablet and mobile
• Customizable front end
• Access to a strong back end
• Affiliate support and/or options
• CRM (marketing, bonus systems, loyalty programs, etc.)
• Interactive web design
• Visual appeal
• Security (KYC – Know Your Customer – measures, anti-fraud and anti-money laundering tools and safeguards to prevent underage gambling and other criminal activity)
• Competitive pricing
• Flexible and fully customizable software solutions that let you control the entire process if you’re not choosing a white label option

Make sure that the software provider you choose not only has profound understanding of the online gaming industry, but also has experience in launching online casinos that have found success.

Step 8 – Market Your Casino to Your Customers

A successful online casino is one that is built around the pleasure and satisfaction of its customers. Keeping your players continuously happy is how you survive and thrive in the highly competitive online gambling marketplace.

For customers to even know that your online casino exists, you need to employ marketing strategies that will capture their attention and interest. More importantly, these strategies need to be compelling enough to make potential customers take that next step and actually act on that interest and give your business a chance.

With that said, the following strategies are important to an online casino business’s success:

• Appeal to your target market(s) – Once you know who your audience will be, learn about them. Understand what motivates them and what their goals are. What do they like? Once you know which countries you want to target the most, you can set up local marketing campaigns to target the customers from these jurisdictions. Depending on local laws and your marketing budget, this may include radio ads, TV ads, magazine ads, SEO focused on cities within the country, favourite games, etc.
• Understand customer behaviour – Employing a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) strategy can provide you with valuable information about your customers’ individual behaviours and preferences. This information can be integrated with marketing strategies to help you put the right type of promotions and content in front of the right type of customer, to keep them returning.
• Unique content and an engaging UX – Exclusive games and/or promotions are always a crowd pleaser. The same goes for providing a smooth and gamified user experience. If you can offer something that the competition can’t, players will be interested.
• Bonus systems – Sign up bonus, free spins, match bonuses, cashback, tournaments, daily perks, seasonal promotions, etc. are great ways to attract new players and keep regular players interested.
• Loyalty programs – Loyalty rewards systems and VIP programs provide players with incentive to continue returning to your casino, especially the big spenders who enjoy receiving special treatment. Loyalty schemes are ongoing and are excellent retention for frequent bettors as these systems are designed to reward players the more that they play.
• Affiliate management programs – Setting up an effective affiliate system can help enable website engagement and boost traffic to your site. Affiliate use a number of techniques to drive new customers to your casino, including SEO tactics, trackable ads and links. Many iGaming software providers offer these systems or support their integration, helping to make the recruiting of affiliates easier.
• Marketing tools – Push notifications, SMS, email, and news letters help to keep an open channel between you and your players. Not only does it keep players informed about your latest’s promotions and offers, helping with retention and conversion, it can also help you to keep track of player betting behaviour.
• Customer service – Providing reliable and responsive online casino customer support is a must. This means having a staff of professionally trained individuals who know how to handle common customer complaints. It also means offering 24/7 support and different communication channels, especially live chat. If your intention is to offer a VIP/Loyalty program, a separate customer service department should be dedicated to caring for your high-level VIPs (your biggest spenders). It may also be prudent to provide multi-lingual support if you are targeting areas that speak multiple languages.

The bottom line is that the right marketing and customer satisfaction strategy is integral to any company’s success – casino or otherwise – and you should be prepared to spend a lot of time, energy and money on it.

Gamification is becoming increasingly important

It is no longer enough to offer a standard online casino experience. Players are all too familiar with the marketing strategies of online casinos. So many brands have used the same old promotional materials and layouts that the experience has become predictable, tired and boring.

Gamification strategies help to take the dull and boring process out of a site and make it more engaging and user-friendly. Think of it as making the casino experience a game with the goal of capturing player interest and incentivizing them to play more. In other words, combining certain elements of traditional gaming with gambling.

Example of gamification elements include:

• Badges
• Points
• Leaderboards
• Competitions
• Rules of play

The more the product you create is feature rich and interactive, the more engaging it is for players.

Building a gamification strategy requires you to know who your players are, know what their goals are and learn their triggers and motivations. Once you know that, you can introduce gamification elements and monitor the effect of the strategy you’ve put into place.

Helpful Online Casino Business Tips 

Now that you know the basics of what’s involved in launching a successful online casino, here are a few extra helpful tips to keep in mind:

Ultimately, remember that if you want to achieve the success you expect from starting an online casino business, you have to be prepared to invest a lot of time, hard work and money into your enterprise. Knowing how to start is only the first step in making your dream a reality.   

How to Start an Online Casino Business FAQ

How can TCS help?

At Top Casino Solutions, we can connect you with the top iGaming business solution experts in the industry who can help you bring your goals of operating an online casino or online sportsbook business a reality.

Whether it’s a white label, turnkey or self-service (API) solution you seek to accommodate your budding business goals, we can guide you down the most ideal path to help you achieve your objectives.

Have more questions about where to begin? Check out our other pages, or drop TCS a line! We’re here to support you on your journey toward finding success!