Latest Tennessee Sports Betting Handle and Taxes Information
The experts at BetTennessee.com have developed this guide to help you better understand the terms used when discussing Tennessee sports betting handle and taxes. The state releases those figures monthly.
Tennessee lawmakers passed a bill to legalize sports betting in April 2019, and the law officially took effect on July 1, 2019. The first sportsbooks opened in the state in November 2020. The Volunteer State was the first to legalize online wagering only and exclude brick-and-mortar establishments from setting up shop.
Currently, there are 13 operators, some with Tennessee sportsbook promos available, licensed to take wager in the state. The most recent was ZenSports, which was approved in May 2023.
Tennessee Sports Betting, January vs. December
| Total Handle | Privilege tax |
January | $534.585M | $9.890M |
December | $536.157M | $9.919M |
Change | Down 0.3% | Down 0.3% |
Tennessee sportsbooks had a very slight dip in form to start the new year, according to figures that the state’s Sports Wagering Council posted on Feb. 17.
January’s sports betting gross handle was $534,585,161 for January, down 0.3% from December ($536,157,003).
The privilege tax derived from statewide online sports wagering was $9,889,825, the same slight dip in a month-over-month comparison with December’s $9,918,905 figure.
Tennessee has not reported revenue numbers in more than two years, only handle and taxes.
Tennessee Mobile Sports Betting History
Tennessee Sports Betting Handle and Revenue FAQs
Tennessee sports betting operators accepted about $5.82 billion in wagers in 2025. That represented a 10.6% increase from the $5.265 billion in wagers in 2024 at Tennessee sportsbook apps.
When Tennessee lawmakers first legalized sports betting, they established a 20% tax on revenue. However, they passed a new bill during the General Assembly’s 2023 session that changed how the state generates revenue from sports betting. Starting in July 2023, Tennessee is charging a 1.85% tax on the handle, or the amount wagered in a month, minus the 0.25% federal handle excise tax. The Volunteer State is the first sports betting state in the nation to raise revenue in such a fashion. The state no longer reports revenue generated, only handle and taxes.
Tennessee no longer releases its revenue figures every month, instead, they share handle and tax info and the data is posted on the state’s Sports Wagering Council’s website (tn.gov/swac).
Author
Jim Tomlin has more than 30 years of experience at such publications as the Tampa Bay Times, FanRag, Saturday Down South and Saturday Tradition. He now lends his his expertise in sports, betting and the intersection of those two industries to BetTennessee.com, among other sites.