Gambling Commission survey: 2.5% of UK online gamblers used an illegal gambling site in past four weeks

New estimates from the Gambling Commission show that about 2.5% of adults in Great Britain who gambled online in the past year had used an illegal gambling website in the four weeks before they were surveyed. A further 1.5% had used one during the previous 12 months but not in the most recent four weeks. Across the whole adult population, including people who do not gamble, the equivalent figures were 0.6% and 0.4%.

The data comes from the first year of added questions in the Gambling Survey for Great Britain, covering four quarterly waves from April 2025 to April 2026. The analysis drew on 14,257 online respondents, of whom 3,569 had gambled online in the previous year. According to the regulator, 94.4% of respondents showed no sign of using an illegal site, while 4.6% showed some indicators but not enough to be classed as users.

The Commission's index looks at seven behaviours linked to the likelihood of illegal-site use. They include playing on a site known not to be registered with Gamstop, signing up where age or identity checks are not required, cancelling a withdrawal, and using a VPN to reach a site not available in Great Britain. Among those classed as users, 58% said they had used a site they knew was not on Gamstop, and 56.6% had cancelled a withdrawal before the money arrived. Licensed operators have been barred from letting customers cancel withdrawals since 2021. Nearly 47% said they chose a site because it would not require age or identity verification.

Men reported higher engagement than women, at 0.9% against 0.4% of the adult population for the previous four weeks. Among 18-to-24-year-olds, 2.2% were classed as having engaged with illegal sites in the past year, mostly more than four weeks earlier. For those aged 25 to 34, the four-week estimate was 1.1%. The Commission cautioned that only 128 respondents were classified as users, which limits the analysis.

Sue Young, the Commission's executive director for operations, said engagement with the illegal market appears low and stable overall, but a cohort of online gamblers uses these sites and research suggests they are more likely to experience harm. The regulator plans to add questions in 2027 to track groups identified in earlier research, and will keep working with government, industry, technology firms and financial services to disrupt illegal gambling.

The issue has drawn attention in recent months. Greater Manchester Police carried out an operation against an illegal gambling set-up in the city centre in September, making arrests and seizing more than £20,000 in cash. Ismail Vali of Gaming Compliance International pointed to data suggesting the unregulated share of UK online gross gaming revenue rose from 0.43% in 2020 to an estimated 9% by the end of 2025.