Net Gaming Revenue (NGR)

TL;DR: NGR is GGR minus bonus cost, jackpot contributions, gaming taxes and provider fees, and represents the revenue an iGaming operator actually keeps.

What it means

NGR is the truthful top line of an iGaming P&L. GGR looks impressive on a pitch deck, but NGR is what funds salaries, marketing, and EBITDA. Definitions vary slightly by company — some include payment processing costs in NGR, others class them below — so contractual NGR (used in affiliate revenue share) needs to be defined explicitly in every deal.

For affiliates on rev-share, NGR is usually GGR minus: bonus cost, chargebacks, gaming duty, and royalties to game providers, before operator overhead.

Formula / How it's measured

NGR = GGR − Bonus Cost − Jackpot Contribution − Gaming Tax − Provider Royalties (− optionally Payment Costs and Chargebacks)

Example: a month with $2.1M GGR, $380K bonus cost, $50K jackpot, $210K gaming tax (10%), $180K provider royalties → NGR = $1.28M (61% of GGR).

Worked NGR example (monthly P&L)

At a 30% affiliate revenue-share rate, the affiliate earns 30% of that $1.28M NGR — $384,000 — not 30% of the headline $2.1M GGR. This is why contractual NGR must be defined line by line in every deal.

What you actually earn on an NGR deal

The short answer for an affiliate on revenue share: your earnings are your rate multiplied by NGR, not by GGR, and the gap between the two is typically 30–45%. On the P&L above, a 30% deal pays $384,000 rather than the $630,000 a naive 30%-of-GGR reading would suggest.

Three clauses decide what an NGR deal is really worth, and they are where most disputes start:

• Which costs get deducted. Bonus cost and gaming tax are near-universal. Payment processing fees, chargebacks, affiliate commissions paid to *other* affiliates, and administrative fees are the contested ones. Each extra deduction line moves earnings down several percentage points.
• Negative carryover. If a player wins big and the month closes negative, does that deficit roll into next month? With carryover, one lucky high-roller can zero out an affiliate's earnings for a quarter. Without it, each month settles clean. This single clause swings annual earnings more than the headline rate does.
• Bonus cost attribution. Whether bonuses are charged at issue or at conversion, and whether operator-wide promotional campaigns are charged against your cohort, changes the deduction materially.

A 25% rate with no negative carryover and a short deduction list routinely pays more than a 40% rate with carryover and an open-ended cost schedule. Compare NGR definitions before comparing percentages.

NGR vs GGR at a glance

GGR describes the size of the operation. NGR describes whether it works.

Why it matters for operators

NGR is the basis for board reporting, EBITDA forecasting, and most affiliate rev-share contracts (typically 25–45% of NGR). LTV models that don't use NGR are misleading. Margin compression at the NGR line — often via aggressive bonusing — is the most common cause of unprofitable iGaming brands.

Common benchmarks (2026)

• NGR / GGR ratio: 55–70% mature brand, 35–50% scaling brand burning bonuses
• NGR margin healthy target: 60%+ post bonus
• Casino NGR/GGR is usually higher than sportsbook (lower bonus cost as % of GGR)

Common mistakes

• Quoting GGR externally while internal models use NGR — creates investor confusion
• Excluding bonus cost from NGR to inflate it for affiliate disputes
• Not netting jackpot contribution, which can be 1–3% of slot GGR

FAQs

What does NGR mean in iGaming?

NGR (Net Gaming Revenue) is what an operator keeps after deducting bonus cost, jackpot contributions, gaming taxes and game-provider royalties from GGR. It is the figure most affiliate revenue-share contracts pay against and the figure operators use for EBITDA and board reporting.

How is NGR calculated?

NGR = GGR − bonus cost − jackpot contribution − gaming tax − provider royalties, and optionally minus payment processing costs and chargebacks. The optional deductions vary by operator, which is why every contract should define NGR line by line rather than referring to it generically.

What is the difference between GGR and NGR?

GGR is stakes minus player winnings — the headline revenue figure. NGR subtracts the direct costs of generating that revenue. NGR typically runs 55–70% of GGR at a mature brand and 35–50% at a brand scaling hard on bonuses.

How much does an affiliate earn on NGR?

The affiliate's rate applied to NGR, commonly 25–45%. On $2.1M GGR that nets to $1.28M NGR, a 30% deal pays $384,000. The deduction schedule and whether negative carryover applies affect real earnings more than the headline percentage does.

What is negative carryover in an NGR deal?

Negative carryover means a month that closes negative — usually because a referred player won large — rolls that deficit forward against future earnings instead of resetting. Deals without negative carryover settle each month independently and are materially more valuable to the affiliate.

Is NGR the same at every operator?

No. Bonus cost and gaming tax are deducted almost everywhere, but payment fees, chargebacks and administrative charges differ operator by operator. Two 30% NGR deals can pay very differently depending on what each contract lets the operator deduct.

See also

• GGR — Gross Gaming Revenue
• LTV — Lifetime Value
• Hold Percentage
• Revenue Share Deal
• ARPU — Average Revenue Per User