Ohio Casinos

Ohio’s commercial gambling market opened in 2012 following voter approval of a constitutional amendment in 2009 that authorized casino gaming in the state’s four largest cities. Today, four full-service commercial casinos operate in Cleveland, Columbus, Toledo, and Cincinnati under the oversight of the Ohio Casino Control Commission. A separate tier of seven racinos serves Ohio’s horse racing corridor, operating video lottery terminals under the Ohio Lottery Commission. Unlike Michigan, Ohio has no tribal gaming operations.

There is no tribal gaming in Ohio. The state has no federally recognized Native American tribes with Indian Gaming Regulatory Act gaming compacts, so every casino and gaming facility in Ohio is a commercial operation subject to state law — a simpler regulatory picture than most states with significant gambling markets.

Ohio added legal sports betting in January 2023 and quickly became one of the higher-volume sports betting markets in the country by handle. Both in-person and mobile wagering are authorized through licensed operators.

Ohio’s Four Commercial Casinos

All four Ohio commercial casinos are full-service Class III gaming floors with slot machines, live table games, and poker rooms. All operate 24 hours a day, offer valet and self-parking, and require guests to be 21 or older.

Ohio's four full-service commercial casinos

J

Jack Cleveland Casino

Cleveland

24/7 · Poker Room

H

Hollywood Casino Columbus

Columbus

24/7 · Poker Room

H

Hollywood Casino Toledo

Toledo

24/7 · Poker Room

J

Jack Cincinnati Casino

Cincinnati

24/7 · Poker Room

Hollywood Casino Columbus is located on the west side of Columbus at West Broad Street, operated by PENN Entertainment. The table game floor includes craps, roulette, mini-baccarat, three-card poker, four-card poker, Mississippi Stud, fortune pai gow, casino war, crazy-4 poker, and Ultimate Texas Hold’em. The poker room runs no-limit hold’em, Omaha, pot-limit Omaha, limit hold’em, and a regular tournament schedule.

Hollywood Casino Toledo is PENN Entertainment’s western Ohio property. The table game floor is one of the broadest in the state: craps, roulette, blackjack, mini-baccarat, pai gow, free-bet blackjack, Let It Ride, high-card flush, 3-card poker, and progressive 3-card poker. The poker room runs no-limit hold’em, limit hold’em, Omaha hi-lo, 7-card stud, mixed games, and pot-limit Omaha — the most varied poker room of the four Ohio commercial casinos.

Jack Cincinnati Casino is VICI Properties’ downtown Cincinnati property, steps from the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center on the Ohio River waterfront. The floor runs blackjack, craps, roulette, 3-card poker, four-card poker, crazy-4 poker, fortune pai gow, Mississippi Stud, Ultimate Texas Hold’em, and Let It Ride alongside a retail shopping component not found at the other Ohio properties. The poker room handles no-limit hold’em, limit hold’em, and Omaha.

Games at Ohio Commercial Casinos

Ohio’s four commercial casinos offer the full range of Class III games: live table games including craps and roulette, slot machines, video poker, and live poker rooms. This distinguishes them from the racinos, which operate only video lottery terminals and have no live table game floors.

Ohio Racinos: Video Lottery at the Track

Ohio’s seven racinos combine active harness or thoroughbred racing seasons with floors of video lottery terminals. The VLTs operate like slot machines but are regulated as lottery products under the Ohio Lottery Commission. No live table games or live poker are available at any Ohio racino.

MGM Northfield Park (Northfield) is the largest and most amenity-complete Ohio racino, operated by MGM Resorts International. A bar, buffet, multiple restaurant outlets, valet, and self-parking accompany a harness racing season and year-round simulcast program. MGM Northfield is located in Summit County about 20 miles southeast of downtown Cleveland.

Scioto Downs Racino (Columbus), now branded as Eldorado Gaming Scioto Downs, is the Columbus-area racino on the south side of the city off US-23. Harness racing and simulcast wagering accompany the VLT floor, which includes electronic keno alongside standard terminal gaming.

Jack Thistledown Racino (North Randall), operated by JACK Entertainment, is a thoroughbred racino in the southern Cleveland suburbs. The VLT floor runs alongside live and simulcast horse racing.

Hollywood Gaming at Dayton Raceway and Miami Valley Gaming (Turtlecreek Township) both serve the greater Dayton area with harness racing and VLT floors. Belterra Park Gaming and Entertainment Center (Anderson Township) serves the Cincinnati area with thoroughbred racing, off-track betting, and video poker alongside VLTs. Hollywood Gaming at Mahoning Valley Race Course (Austintown) covers the Youngstown-Warren corridor with thoroughbred racing and simulcast.

Ohio Gambling Law and Regulation

Ohio’s casino framework rests on Issue 3, passed by voters in November 2009, which amended the Ohio Constitution to authorize casinos in Cleveland, Columbus, Toledo, and Cincinnati. The Ohio Casino Control Commission was created to license and regulate those facilities. Racinos were authorized separately by the Ohio Legislature in 2012, placing them under Ohio Lottery Commission oversight with a separate regulatory structure.

Gaming tax revenue from the four commercial casinos flows into the Ohio Casino Revenue Fund, which is distributed to county governments, municipalities, school districts, and problem gambling treatment services. The racino VLT revenue operates under Ohio Lottery financial rules.

Quick Visitor Reference

• Closest casino to Cleveland: Jack Cleveland Casino (downtown Cleveland) or Jack Thistledown Racino (North Randall, VLTs only)
• Closest casino to Columbus: Hollywood Casino Columbus (West Broad Street) or Scioto Downs Racino (south Columbus, VLTs only)
• Closest casino to Cincinnati: Jack Cincinnati Casino (downtown Cincinnati)
• Closest casino to Toledo: Hollywood Casino Toledo
• Closest casino to Dayton: Hollywood Gaming at Dayton Raceway or Miami Valley Gaming (both VLTs only)
• Best poker room: Hollywood Casino Toledo (widest game variety) or Jack Cleveland Casino (most game types, downtown location)
• Sports betting: Legal statewide — in-person at all four commercial casinos and licensed retail locations; mobile available
• Minimum age: 21 at all casinos and racinos
• No tribal gaming: Ohio has no tribal casinos or gaming compacts