Is Online Gambling More Addictive Than Gambling At Traditional Casinos?

All forms of gambling come with risk. That’s part and parcel of the pastime as it involves you risking some money to try and gain a profit. But the pursuit of such profit can often lead punters to overreaching on what they can afford to gamble with.

This can lead people down a slippery slope, and that is due to the pressure of the finances that are involved. It can be a difficult situation for a person to find themselves in, but there is help available for gambling issues.

Gambling is more widely available to people now thanks to the explosion of internet sportsbooks and online casinos. The boost has come with sites having fast and secure payment options like, for instance, those at the best Revolut casinos.

But is online gambling more addictive than its traditional casino counterpart? Here we have a look at this intriguing question.

The Statistics

It was reported by the Gambling Commission in 2023 that 43% of the UK population gambles every month. That’s a staggering amount of people, but not all of it happens online. Only 26% per cent were doing their gambling on the internet.

But still, that number has risen drastically since 2018 when the percentage of players gambling online was at 19%. But with so many people still betting at physical locations, gambling problems can’t be solely attributed to online play.

In-Person Gambling Risks

Brick-and-mortar casinos still have huge appeal. It gives people a destination for a night out, where drinks, food and entertainment are available. It’s very often a social event whether that’s hitting the slots, the poker table or some bingo.

For anyone who has walked around the floor of a casino, the risks are obvious. The noises, the flashing lights, the atmosphere – it’s all designed to keep people there and to keep parting with their money.

The sheer volume of gambling options in front of you can mean that you dip into your wallet or purse more often than planned. It becomes extremely tempting to just have another few spins on the reel as you have convinced yourself the jackpot is going to drop any second.

With cashless gaming becoming more popular, play can be done through digital wallets on the phone, or with the tap of a bank card. This makes the slots even more appealing, and especially when alcohol is involved, things can get a little out of control.

Online Gambling Pitfalls

But the same thing can be said of online gambling. Load up any sportsbook or online casino and the first thing you will notice is all the options for play. The gaming options at one casino site are just staggering, with slots often numbering in the hundreds.

Online gambling means that you don’t even have to get off the sofa to play. There’s no drive to the casino, no extra expenses with tipping and spending on things like food and drink. Because the money you are playing with has been translated into numbers on a screen, it can cause a sense of detachment.

But arguably there is little difference though, between the risks of spending more time online than walking around a brick-and-mortar casino. They can perhaps be looked at as two sides of the same coin. Both have their risks.

Responsible Gambling

All good regulated online casinos will offer Responsible Gambling tools to help players. Features like setting deposit or bet restrictions, limiting playing hours and even putting yourself into a temporary time-out are all designed to help.

Some casinos will also track your spending and get in touch if they notice a potential issue with gambling getting out of control. So there are some checks and balances in place. Some land-based casinos offer self-exclusion forms for potentially vulnerable players.

There are warning signs about gambling problems, like being secretive about doing it, not being able to walk away or going on a relentless pursuit of trying to chase previous losses. Organisations like Gamble Aware and Gamstop can help players to get things back under control.

In Conclusion

When asked, 78% of all UK gamblers in 2022 responded that they do it because it is fun, with only 36% saying that it was because of a chance of winning something. That’s the way it should be, a fun-oriented enterprise.

As soon as the stresses over losses come into play, then it has moved beyond that. Set up a bankroll balance so that you only ever gamble with what you can afford to lose, and remember that most casino games at the end of the day are sheer luck and beyond your control. So understand the risks going in.