What if I told you a lucrative career in the casino gambling industry can be secured for less than $1,000 and only a month’s worth of study and training? No, I’m not talking about some fraudulent craps system promising to teach you the secrets of dice control to become a millionaire overnight.

Of course it depends on where you work.minimum wage in the state of Nevada is 8.25 the casinos get away with paying us 7.25. If you're in one of the top 5. The average Dealer salary in Las Vegas, NV is $17,867 as of January 29, 2021, but the range typically falls between $15,414 and $20,964. Salary ranges can vary widely depending on many important factors, including education, certifications, additional skills, the number of. Salary estimates based on salary survey data collected directly from employers and anonymous employees in Las Vegas, Nevada. An entry level casino dealer (1-3 years of experience) earns an average salary of $24,800. On the other end, a senior level casino dealer (8+ years of experience) earns an average salary of $38,066. Dealers earn hourly wages from around $9 to $15 per hour. Not enough to afford a cardboard box to live in LV. The real money makers are a very limited number of cocktail waitresses. They all make minimum wage for tipped employees.

Instead, I’m referring to the thriving casino dealer industry, which continues to offer a growing slate of steady jobs for anybody willing to learn the ropes. Casino dealers are the backbone of the gambling industry.

Tourists who convene in Las Vegas every year wouldn’t be able to enjoy their favorite table games without an army of highly-trained dealers to supervise the proceedings.

If you’ve ever played table games or poker in the Sin City casino setting, you know just how valuable dealers are to the entire proceedings. They gently guide inexperienced gamblers and make it all seem so effortless and easy.

You likely have plenty of experience dealing with casino dealers from the player’s perspective, but have you ever thought about flipping that script and working from behind the table? If so, this page was written with you in mind.

Below, you’ll learn everything an aspiring casino dealer needs to know about attending training courses in the gambling mecca of Las Vegas. I’ll cover the best schools, pricing plans, and curriculums for your casino dealer education.

Becoming a Casino Dealer Is a Great Idea in Any Economy

Dealers are the lifeblood of the casino industry, which in turn serves as the lifeblood of Las Vegas’ economy through thick and thin.re

According to the popular job search website Recruiter.com, demand for professional casino dealers has remained on a positive upswing for 15 consecutive years. Vacancies within the profession have increased by 3.48% since 2004, averaging 0.58% annual growth to create nearly 23,000 new openings last year alone.

Those statistics have a nationwide scope, mind you, but seeing as how Sin City is the undisputed capital of America’s gambling industry, you can imagine how many jobs await here.

Because every casino requires dozens, or even hundreds, of dealers on the staff to keep the gambling floor humming, it doesn’t take long to find a multitude of open positions.

And those open positions, even at the entry-level tier, aren’t anything to sneeze at either. Based on data from salary aggregator Indeed.com, the average casino dealer in Las Vegas earns nearly $38,000 in annual base salary.

But when you factor in the $138 in average daily tips dealers haul in, their compensation climbs to more than $72,000 ($138 x 261 working days yearly = $34,191).

Casino Dealer Training Courses Can Be Completed in Just a Few Weeks

To become qualified for an audition at your favorite casino, the best way to begin is by attending dealer school.

Fortunately, Las Vegas is home to no shortage of reputable and accredited casino dealer schools, including the city’s top three contenders—Casino Education Group (CEG), Personalized Casino Instruction (PCI), and Crescent School of Gaming and Bartending.

To get an idea of how thorough and in-depth these casino courses really are, take a look below to see what the blackjack class at CEG Dealer School entails.

Casino Education Group (CEG) Dealer School’s Blackjack Curriculum

• 2 Decks of Cards
• Course Manual
• Blackjack Class Orientation
• Game Mechanics
• Cheque Cutting & Sizing
• Bank Management
• Game Protection
• Shuffles
• Pitching
• The Shoe
• Making Change & Color
• The Hole Card / Insurance
• Fills, Markers & Credits
• Payoffs & Color
• Side Bets
• Practice, Rinse and Repeat
• Peer Review x 3
• In-House Blackjack Audition

And that’s just one game. You’ll also need to learn the other staple games like baccarat, craps, and casino roulette games, along with a few of the specialty games that have become so popular in recent years.

That list might appear to lead to a full semester of study, practice, and testing, but you’d be surprised at how soon casino dealers can graduate. The schools listed earlier tend to pass students in one month or less, even while attending part-time and working a day job.

You Don’t Need to Take on Loan Debt to Attend a Top-Tier Dealer School

Don’t worry though, because casino dealer schools in Las Vegas make sure to offer “bundled” pricing plans that cover all of the bases at an affordable cost.

As you can see in the tables below, the PCI Dealer School specializes in linking two or three games together in a coursework bundle, along with single-game courses for folks who need to round out their education.

Personalized Casino Instruction (PCI) Dealer School Course Pricing

Multiple Game Bundle Courses

Blackjack + Roulette = $399.00

Blackjack + Baccarat = $399.00

Blackjack + Pai Gow Poker = $399.00

Blackjack + Dice (Craps) + $449.00

Poker (excluded from 3-game special) = $599.00

Dice (Craps) + Roulette = $699.00

Blackjack + Dice (Craps) + Pai Gow Poker = $699.00

Blackjack + Dice (Craps) + Roulette = $799.00

Single Game Courses

How Much Do Poker Dealers Make In Vegas

Carnival Games = $149.00

Blackjack = $299.00

Baccarat = $299.00

Pai Gow Poker = $299.00

Dice (Craps) = $399.00

Roulette = $399.00

In most cases, total newcomers to the casino world can enroll in a comprehensive course that touches on all of the necessary table games for under $1,000. That might seem like a steep price to pay, but remember, you’ll earn that tuition expense back (and then some) with only a week’s worth of tips during your first days on the job.

And don’t worry about pounding the pavement and filling out job applications either. Las Vegas casinos work closely with the city’s top dealer schools, scouting talent directly and taking advantage of job placement programs to fill open positions on the fly.

Students Attain Successful Careers After Graduating From Casino Dealer School

I’ve never worked as a casino dealer myself, so don’t take my word for it when it comes to the satisfaction dealer school students feel upon graduation.

Instead, hear from graduates who successfully completed the courses.

Personalized Casino Instruction (PCI) Dealer School
“This is the place where everything started in Vegas for me. Five years ago, I was new in town and knew nobody. Luckily, I found PCI Dealer School and spent two weeks here – and got a job soon after. I have been in the gaming industry ever since then, from dealer to floor supervisor, and Operations Manager.”
-Angel S. from California

Casino Education Group (CEG) Dealer School
“Going to CEG is the best money I ever spent. If you are looking for an affordable, flexible, realistic way to get training for a job that you can get, I highly recommend CEG Dealer School. I just got my first paycheck from my first casino dealing job and it covered my cost. I got more out of CEG than I ever expected and will forever be grateful.”
-Joseph B. from Texas

Crescent School of Gaming and Bartending
“With no prior poker experience and with the help of my instructor Tony, I am on my way to the WSOP audition. The mornings and evening classes allow for great flexibility. The team of instructors are very patient and friendly. The atmosphere is not intimidating at all for a newbie like myself. I highly recommended this school over the others as it is the only accredited gaming and bartending school in Vegas.”
-Rissa S. from Nevada

As you can see, these students realized their dreams and ambitions immediately after attaining their certification from a top Las Vegas dealer school. Today, they’re working steady, well-paying jobs in the industry they love, and in many cases, climbing their casino’s corporate ladder to pursue management positions.

How Much Money Do Dealers Make In Vegas

Conclusion

Becoming a casino dealer might seem like a lark at first, a fleeting dream to occupy yourself with while grinding out another day at a job you hate. But upon closer inspection, enrolling in a casino dealing school and completing your table game education is an investment in your future. More money, job security, opportunity for advancement, and a fun-filled workplace environment make dealing at a Las Vegas casino a dream career.

Questions & Answers

How Much Do Blackjack Dealers Make In Vegas

Date: January 9, 2019Written By: Heather Ferris
I’ve had a lot of questions and curiosity over the years on the topic of dealer’s tokes and how much they make. There’s so much information to talk about that I can’t fit it all into one Q&A video, so I’ll just briefly go over the basics and if you want more information I have an entire chapter dedicated to this topic in the book I’m currently writing. The most important thing to keep in mind is the variety and range that is involved, whereas, not only is every casino is different but the toke numbers are different for every dealer as well depending on how many hours they worked, if they were on the toke committee that night, if they have more games under their belt then other dealers, plus the toke numbers themselves will fluctuate on a daily basis. Since every casino is different, there’s a wide variety of factors to consider when figuring out toke numbers. And with that disclaimer over, let’s proceed.
You’ll often hear Las Vegas dealers refer to their tips as tokes. So why would they use the word “Toke” instead of “Tip” when they’re exactly the same thing? Well, historically speaking, Las Vegas dealers used to refer to their tips as “Tokens of Gratitude” but over the years that phrase was shortened to “Tokes”, so when you hear casino dealers talk about their tokes you know that they’re actually referring to their tips. But a dealer’s salary isn’t based solely on tips, since they get minimum wage as well. How much minimum wage they get depends on the dealer’s location.
Dealer’s toke averages also depend on the location, with houses having a wide range of what’s normal when it comes to tips. The properties where dealers make the most money in Las Vegas include Caesar’s Palace and Mandalay Bay. At Caesar’s Palace dealers average $200 to $300 on the weekdays and $300 to $400 on the weekends, with a “Good Day” translating to $400. Dealers at Mandalay Bay average around $150 to $250 on the weekdays and $250 to $350 on the weekends with a “Good Day” also translating to $400. And then there are the break-in houses and local’s casinos where dealers tend to make the least amount of money in Las Vegas, including the El Cortez and Circus Circus. The El Cortez is one of the worst break-in houses averaging around $25 a day on the weekdays and $50 on the weekends. Circus Circus ranks a bit higher in this category, since dealers average around $50 to $75 per day on the weekdays and $75 to $100 on the weekends, with a “Good Day” translating to $150. So what’s the average for Las Vegas? The Paris and the Hard Rock are good representations of what’s normal. Both properties average around $150 on the weekdays and $200 on the weekends, with a “Good Day” being around $300.
Dealers commonly keep this information a secret and that’s why it’s so difficult to find out these numbers, because there’s no public record of this data. That’s why, years ago, I started collecting and posting that information on my website, making it public for everyone to see. At first it was only Las Vegas numbers, but now it’s grown into something much larger, the 1st World Toke Board, now sharing toke numbers from casinos all around the world. Again, since there’s no official public record, the best we can do is look at actual toke numbers from the past, provided to us by the dealers who work in those casinos, and use those samples in order to give us an accurate impression of what dealers make. Go check out my website at Vegas-Aces.com and in the Resources section, you’ll see the World Toke Board. Scroll to the location that you want to check out to see how much dealers make in that area.
Now I can’t be everywhere at once… So the only way I can keep this going is if I have casino dealers from all around the world, give me a sample of their tip numbers. It can be one random week out of the month, it can be a day total for an event or holiday or it can just be an average, whatever you feel comfortable giving out. Email me at Heather@Vegas-Aces.com. Thanks! I appreciate it.