Iowa has been in the sports betting game longer than many states, with mobile betting launching back in August 2019 byy March 2021, the market had already seen two full years of operation, making it a solid period for analysis.

What stands out is a state where growth in handling has stalled, revenue swings are largely driven by the volatility in hold rates, and while the shift from retail to online betting is ongoing, it hasn’t yet fully materialized. In March 2026, Iowa reported a record state tax collection of $1,658,159—its best March ever.

However, this figure came from a handle of $268.2 million, marking the lowest March volume since 2024 and falling $19.6 million short of last year’s high.

This indicates that Iowa is not on a path of automatic revenue growth; rather, it is a market that occasionally benefits from favorable hold rates, despite a handle that has plateaued. The rapid growth in handle seen in Iowa’s early days of mobile betting seems to be a thing of the past. The handle skyrocketed by an impressive 44.6% between 2021 and 2022, indicating brisk market growth from a modest starting point.

However, since then, the numbers have stabilized: $233.5 million in 2022 and $232.6 million in 2023 show hardly any change. Following that, there was a two-year bump with $272.4 million in 2024 and $287.8 million in 2025, but March 2026 saw a significant decline to $268.2 million, which is now below the levels from 2024.