Is Online Gambling Legal in Idaho?

Is Online Gambling Legal in Idaho?

Online gambling in Idaho is legal for just a few forms. Charitable bingo and raffles are fine, but only when qualified charities run them. Here’s how everything else stands.

Online Casino

There’s no licensed Idaho online casino. However, the ban wasn’t always this specific. A 1992 amendment added a clause that names the banned casino games.

It includes blackjack, craps, roulette, poker, keno, and slot machines, plus electronic imitations. Our online casino hub covers the states where these games are legal.

Sportsbooks

Is sports betting legal in Idaho? It’s not legal, and it applies to both online and in person. No lawmaker has filed a bill to change that since the federal ban fell in 2018. You can check where legal sportsbooks operate on the link.

Fantasy Contests

Paid contests are gone, but free ones with prizes are still allowed. Notably, that distinction confuses many readers. 

Prediction Markets

The 2016 exit came after then-Attorney General Lawrence Wasden said paid daily contests “constitute gambling under Idaho law.” Still, here’s how fantasy sports work in states that license them.

These platforms sit under the federal Commodity Futures Trading Commission. And Idaho doesn’t license them either way. 

If you're curious, our prediction markets guide explains how they’re regulated.

Minimum Ages

You need to be 18 for the lottery and pari-mutuel betting. Most tribal gaming floors also start at 18. 

Coeur d’Alene Casino, for example, posts that rule on its own site. Still, some venues set their limit at 21, so always check before you go.

Who Regulates Gambling in Idaho

Three Bodies, No Casino Regulator

With casinos and sportsbooks off the table, Idaho never needed a regulator for either. The Idaho State Lottery runs the lottery, and its director enforces the tribal gaming compacts. 

Horse racing falls to the Idaho Racing Commission, which is housed within the Idaho State Police. Prediction markets answer to the CFTC.

Where to Take a Complaint

What if you have a problem with a fantasy app? The Attorney General’s office negotiated the 2016 exit, so start there.

What You Can Legally Play in Idaho

No Licensed Online Casino Operators

There are no Idaho casino apps and no licensed sportsbook apps. Four tribes run seven land-based casinos, built around video gaming machines, bingo, and video versions of table games.  Live dealer tables and true slot machines aren’t part of it. Idaho voters approved Proposition One in 2002, which allowed the aforementioned video machines.

Online Horse Racing Is the Exception

One thing does work online. Licensed advance-deposit platforms can legally offer pari-mutuel horse betting.  Moreover, the Idaho Racing Commission oversees it under the state’s racing laws. It’s the only legal form of online gambling in Idaho. Our state legalization tracker will flag any change.  

Tax on Gambling Winnings in Idaho

One Flat Rate, Recently Cut

For 2026, Idaho taxes income at one flat 5.3% rate. Governor Brad Little signed HB 40 on March 6, 2025. It cut the rate from 5.695%, and the new rate applied back to January 1, 2025.  Any Idaho online gambling winnings, like horse racing payouts, count as income. A tax pro can help with your own return.  

General information only; not tax advice.

Idaho Gambling Bills to Watch

Nothing Has Been Introduced

Idaho sports betting hasn’t made it onto the agenda at all.  The 2026 session ended without a single bill. So Idaho online sports betting isn’t close either.

What a Change Would Take

It would take a constitutional amendment. Two-thirds of the House and two-thirds of the Senate would have to back it first. After that, it goes to voters.  Fantasy could move faster, though. Under the 2016 deal, either company can resume paid contests. It just has to give the Attorney General 30 days’ written notice first. Our legalization tracker will show it the moment anything moves.