Where to Find the World's Biggest Casinos

When you think of casinos, does Las Vegas immediately spring to mind? If so, you might be surprised to know that not a single one of the casinos in Las Vegas ranks among the top ten highest-grossing casinos in the world in the GBGC (Global Betting and Gaming Consultants) 2015 report.

In fact, none of the high rollers were even located in America. If you'd like to check out the world's biggest casinos, you'll have to visit Asia. Here are the specifics:

The World's Highest-Grossing Casinos

According to the GBGC, all of the world's top-grossing casinos were located in Asia in 2014. You can find eight of the top earners in Macau, while the other two are in Singapore. Here are the best of the best:

First Place: The Galaxy Macau

Many of the world's biggest casinos are located in Macau. Macau was once a Portuguese colony, and it now belongs to China. In colonial times, it attracted British gamblers from nearby Hong Kong because of its more relaxed gambling laws. Even today, it contains seven of the top ten casinos by gross profit, so it's no wonder that about half of Macau's economy centers around gambling.

The Galaxy Macau drips luxury. Opened in May of 2011, it cost nearly $2 billion to build. Aside from its casino, it offers plenty of other things for visitors to do. You can choose among six hotels to stay in, dine at one of over 120 restaurants, swim in the largest pool in Macau, be pampered at a luxurious spa, book a private movie showing with your own butler in attendance, or go to numerous shows, bands, and other performances.

If you go to a casino to gamble, the Macau Galaxy offers everything you could want. It has over 1,500 slot machines and 650 table games spread over 400,000 square feet.

All of this has made the Galaxy Macau the most successful casino in the world, in terms of revenue. In 2014, it brought in $5.85 billion dollars.

Second Place: The SJM Grand Lisboa, Macau

To reach the second highest-grossing casino in the world, you won't have to travel far from the Galaxy Macau. The SJM Grand Lisboa is also located in Macau. Opened in February of 2007, it's the tallest, and one of the most striking, buildings in Macau.

If you love fine dining, the SJM Grand Lisboa is the only place in the world to have four Michelin-starred restaurants under one roof, according to their website. They have 400 hotel rooms available, 14 dining establishments, and an assortment of shows and concerts. While you're there, you can also view The Star of Stanley Ho, the world's largest cushion-shaped diamond.

Their casino offers 1,000 slot machines and 850 gaming tables. The casino brought in $3.82 billion dollars in 2014.

Third Place: City of Dreams, Macau

City of Dreams opened in Macau in June of 2009. It currently has four hotels with more than 1,400 guest rooms and suites. There are 20 restaurants and bars and a two-level, 175,000 square foot shopping area.

Among the special features are a gigantic virtual aquarium with a mermaid show, a dome-shaped theater called The Bubble, and the House of Dancing Water show. There's an indoor and outdoor play area just for kids located in one of the hotels.

When it comes to gambling, there are 520 gaming tables and 1,350 slot machines spread across 420,000 square feet. Find more information on their website.

These features helped the City of Dreams draw in gross profits of $3.72 billion in 2014.

Highest-Grossing Casino in the United States

If you want to visit the top-grossing casino in the United States, pack your bags and head to Las Vegas. In terms of pure revenue numbers, the United States' biggest casino lags behind its Asian competitors, but you can still have a blast there.

Biggest Casino in the United States: The Wynn Las Vegas

The Wynn Las Vegas, which spreads across 215 acres of the Las Vegas Strip, cost $2.7 billion to build. It opened in April of 2008.

Among its features are more than 4,750 hotel rooms, which puts the Wynn among the biggest hotels in the world.

Among the dining options is the country's first Michelin-starred Chinese restaurant. For entertainment, you can choose to see a Cirque du Soliel show or see top musicians and comedians perform. At night, you can enjoy two indoor night clubs or party at the outdoor beach club. In the heart of the desert, the Wynn has built an enormous waterfall which flows into a three-acre lake.

The casino offers 189,000 square feet of playing room with over 165 table games and 2,000 slot machines.

In 2014, the Wynn brought in $0.69 billion dollars. This may seem anemic compared to its competitors in Macau, but it's still an enormous amount of money.

Why U.S. Casinos Don't Rank in Gross Profits

According to Business Wire, the United States is the world's business market for casino gambling. So why don't its casinos outmatch their Asian counterparts?

The reason why the United States doesn't have any of the top-ranking casinos in the world may well be because there are so many casinos in total. According to Business Wire, "Thirty-nine states have casino gambling of some kind and twenty states have big, stand-alone casinos." That's a lot of competition for gambling dollars.

If you look at casino management groups instead of individual casinos, the United States ranks well. In 2017, Statistica placed the top-ranking casino group as Las Vegas Sands, which owns MGM Resorts. US-based companies took six of the top ten spots, with the others going to Malaysia and China.