Gambling statistics

Evidence about the incidence and prevalence of gambling harm in the New Zealand population, drivers of gambling behavior and service use is the foundation for informed policy and operational decision-making.

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Department of Internal Affairs gambling industry statistics

The New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) is the mandated regulator for gambling activities in New Zealand. As part of its activities, it collects and publishes a range of data about gambling and gaming from the gambling industry.

Data is collected on a wide range of gambling industry activities. Key statistics include:

  • time series data about the amount spent on the four main types of gambling activity in New Zealand
  • various reports on non-casino gaming machine venues, numbers and expenditure by territorial authority/district
  • tables showing the total number of gaming machines, licensed societies, and venues
  • reports by suburb about electronic gaming machine proceeds
  • pie charts showing the total number of gaming machines by society
  • a line graph showing gaming machine numbers at three-monthly intervals (from June 1994)
  • tables of summary data such as gaming machine proceeds.

The information is updated at quarterly intervals. The data represents a ‘snapshot’ of the current state of affairs at the time the statistics were collated. Much of the data is available in various formats, including downloadable Excel CSV files. The information can be found on the DIA website.


Health and Lifestyles Survey – Monitoring gambling harm and knowledge

The most complete set of information about the incidence and prevalence of gambling harm in the total New Zealand population, and people’s gambling knowledge and behaviours, is captured by Te Hiringa Hauora/the Health Promotion Agency’s Health and Lifestyles Survey.

Health and Lifestyles Survey Gambling Module – Incidence and prevalence of gambling harm and behaviour in the total New Zealand population

The Health and Lifestyles Survey (HLS) is conducted every two years and is a nationally representative, face-to-face, in-home survey that facilitates the monitoring of a range of health behaviours and attitudes (including tobacco control, mental health, alcohol use and gambling) of New Zealanders aged 15 years and over. The latest survey is HLS 2020.

HLS gambling questions were designed to assess experience, knowledge and opinions about gambling and gambling-related harm among New Zealand adults, both overall and among different social and population groups. Where relevant, results are compared with those from earlier surveys.

Because of the design features of the HLS, it provides the best source of information about the incidence and prevalence of gambling harm in the total New Zealand population.

Also for people who want to get right to the numbers, the Kupe Data Explorer presents the most recent results from Te Hiringa Hauora surveys, including the Health and Lifestyles Survey, to monitor health and wellbeing behaviours and attitudes of New Zealanders.

Methodology reports and questionnaire from past HLS years can be found on Te Hiringa Hauora’s website.

Additional research publications from Te Hiringa Hauora, including detailed results from the HLS can be found on their website.

It is recommended that the findings from the suite of HLS Gambling reports be read in conjunction with the suite of National Gambling Study (NGS) gambling reports.


Gambling and Problem Gambling: Results of the 2011/12 New Zealand Health Survey

Gambling and Problem Gambling: Results of the 2011/12 New Zealand Health Survey provides an in-depth quantitative analysis of gambling and problem gambling data from the 2011/12 New Zealand Health Survey (NZHS). 


Intervention service data

The Ministry collects data on the numbers of clients who received gambling treatment services and who have identified to the service provider a primary problem gambling mode causing them harm. Insights about service utilisation are used to inform operational decision-making.

Intervention service data is available back to 2004, and represents a snapshot at a point in time for the period reported. The reported statistics are subject to slight variation from time to time as the Ministry updates client data elements in accordance with the data collection and submission rules required of treatment service providers.

Data is available in downloadable figures and Excel table on:

The data indicates that the levels of service utilisation have remained static in recent years, even though the numbers of at risk gamblers in the population has grown due to population growth.


National Gambling Study – Understanding gambling behaviour

Internationally longitudinal studies into understanding gambling behavior are a relatively new area of endeavor. The New Zealand National Gambling Study is a significant contribution to the research field.

The National Gambling Study (NGS) is the first New Zealand population representative longitudinal study into gambling, health, lifestyles, and attitudes about gambling. The NGS started in 2012 with an initial randomly selected national sample of 6,251 people aged 18 years and older living in private households, who were interviewed face-to-face with computer assistance. Participants remaining in the study have been re-interviewed in 2013, 2014 and 2015. Because of the unique design of the study, changes in the behaviour of individual gamblers can be studied over time.

Survey questionnaires include questions on leisure activities and gambling participation, past gambling and recent gambling behaviour change, problem gambling, life events, attitudes towards gambling, mental health, substance use/misuse, health conditions, social connectedness, level of deprivation and demographics. The study complements the information from the Health and Lifestyles Survey.

A suite of research reports from the study have been published by the AUT-Gambling and Addictions Research Centre. The reports include information on:

  • national-level epidemiological changes in gambling participation in New Zealand
  • problem gambling in New Zealand
  • risk and protective factors
  • groups such as Māori and Pacific peoples who historically have had high rates of problem gambling
  • attitudes towards gambling
  • new cases of problem gambling and the factors that influence peoples transitions to and from risky levels of gambling
  • patterns of changes over time in gambling behaviour (including relapse) and harm, and explanations for the changes.

The published reports and questionnaires can be found on the AUT website.

Related publications


Youth 19 Gambling Brief

The Youth 19 Gambling Brief is an output of the Youth19 Rangatahi Smart Survey (Youth19), which is the latest in the Youth2000 series of health & wellbeing surveys. The brief provides a summary of the key findings on student gambling experiences, weekly spend, and attitudes towards gambling harm prevention.

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