Montana Casinos

Montana gambling is no different that what people think of when the term “Wild West” is said. Montana has a unique array of legalized gambling.

There are hundreds of places to gamble in Montana, but these are only loosely described as casinos. These Montana casinos are basically bars with a poker table and video lottery machines inside; some have an off-track betting facility. Table games are illegal in the state, but it is not from a lack of trying.

The state lottery offers typical games, including scratch-offs and lotto drawings. It goes a step further than any other state except Delaware. Montana offers a form of sports betting through its state lottery. NASCAR and NFL daily fantasy sports contests are available.

Types of Montana Online Gambling Allowed

The only form of legal online gambling in Montana is off-track betting on horses. TVG and TwinSpires are the two largest sites that accept this type of action from Montanans. Montana state law forbids all other forms of online gambling. This includes daily fantasy sports. No daily fantasy sports sites accept Montana players. There are poker, casino and sports betting sites that accept players from Montana. These are all unlicensed and illegal.

Types of Live Montana Gambling

Popular Games

• Slots: Yes
• Blackjack: No
• Poker: Yes
• Craps/Roulette: No
• Horses: Yes
• Lottery: Yes

There is an unusual variety of live Montana gambling offered. There are live horse racing tracks. These also offer off-track betting, where bars may also operate race books.

Poker is allowed in bars. It is the only state that allows live poker rooms outside of a traditional casino setup. Nearly two dozen taverns have a poker table or two, ready for when the locals come to play some Texas Hold’em. Bars may spread video lottery machines. These can have video poker and keno. There are hundreds of establishments that go by Montana casinos, as they offer games that you could find in casinos in other states.

The Montana Lottery sells three types of tickets. There are scratch-off tickets. Lotto tickets are also sold. There is another game offered that is unlike any other state lottery. The Montana Lottery operates two forms of daily fantasy sports. One is NASCAR and the other is NFL.

Daily fantasy sports sites that operate throughout the country set a prize pool that is not based solely on the number of participants. That is not the case in Montana. Lottery daily fantasy contests are pari-mutuel. That means that the prize pool directly reflects the amount of money wagered on it. The Montana Lottery only pays the top three places in a contest, regardless of the number of tickets sold. While that may seem like an advantage, the lottery holds 26 percent of the prize pool. That is more than most pari-mutuel pools tied to horse racing.

Montana Gambling Laws

Montana gambling laws allow licensed taverns to operate poker tables. It is as close to Wild West saloons as it gets these days. Texas Hold’em, Omaha, Omaha High/Low, Seven Card Stud, Seven Card Stud High/Low and draw games are the only approved games. The largest pot allowed in Montana is $800. All players are all-in once the pot reaches this size. Bets are backed out of the pot to put it in correct proportion. All poker games must be dealt by a live dealer. Electronic poker tables are not legal.

By offering these games, these Montana casinos can use that term loosely to describe what they are. You will find over 200 Montana casino locations throughout the state.

Montana has a statewide video lottery. These games may offer poker and keno. The maximum bet is $2. The maximum win per hand is $800.

Montana is exempted from the federal Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act. This law prevents the spread of sports betting. Montana was excluded because of its sports pool laws. This includes betting squares on sporting events. Pig, gerbil and hamster races may also be bet on through pools as long as the event is in a small town or outside city limits.

The Montana Lottery takes advantage of the sports pool laws. It spreads daily fantasy sports contests where the players’ money is entered into a pari-mutuel pool. It is the only one of its kind in the country. The Montana Lottery takes 27 percent of the prize pool. NASCAR and NFL are the only sports available.

Live horse racing and off-track betting are legal in Montana. Race books may also be located in taverns.

Online gambling in Montana is illegal. This includes daily fantasy sports sites. The only exception is simulcast betting on horse races.

List of Montana Casinos

There are hundreds of places to gamble in Montana. Virtually any place that serves alcohol by the drink will have video lottery machines that have video poker and keno for real money. Bars may have up to 20 video lottery machines. The tax rate on these devices is 15 percent.

Larger taverns have race books and a poker table. There are 14 Native American Montana casinos within state borders. The only differences between taverns and Indian casinos are that tribes may have more than 20 machines and certain slot machines are allowed. Table games are not legal at Native American casinos in Montana.

Below you can find the Montana casinos, locations, directions of where they are located, and a website if they have one. To make sure you live near one, you can check our Montana casinos map for accurate location of the nearest ones.

History of Montana Gambling

The original Montana Constitution outlawed all gambling when it was written in 1889. Table games were briefly legalized in 1937. Slot machines appeared in bars during this era. The Montana Supreme Court ruled these devices to be illegal in 1950. A constitutional referendum was created to reverse this decision. It lost by a 4-1 margin.

In 1972, voters handed over their right to approve gambling to the state legislature. Lawmakers passed a bill that legalized bingo, live poker, and keno the following year. Electronic keno was added in 1976 through a Montana Supreme Court ruling.

Video poker machines started to appear in the state around 1980. Operators claimed that the devices fell under the keno ruling. The state Supreme Court disagreed in 1984. The legislature overrode this decision the following year. The maximum payout was $100 at the time.

Video poker machines did not have a tax when first rolled out. There was only an annual licensing fee. The state started taxing the machines at a rate of 15 percent in 1987.

A state lottery was created in 1986. Gaming compacts with tribes began in 1994. The maximum payout on video poker and keno machines increased to $800 in 1995.

The early 2000’s saw attempts to create Montana casinos that offered table games. The last attempt failed in 2003, keeping all Montana casinos to video lottery and poker. In 2005, the state legislature banned all forms of online gambling. Horseracing enjoys an exemption under this law.

The Montana Lottery rolled out NFL daily fantasy sports cards in 2008. NASCAR pools were added the following year. The NCAA was not happy with Montana’s fantasy sports contests, even though the games did not include college events. The NCAA threatened to boycott the state for major events. The threat was never acted upon.

Montana Casinos & Gambling FAQ