Penny Wise? Rounded-Up Payouts Benefit Players at Caesars, MGM Casinos

^{Slot players at MGM and Caesars casino properties in Las Vegas are receiving rounded-up payouts as a result of America's penny shortage. (Photo: Norman Pogson / Alamy)}

LAS VEGAS – If you're visiting Las Vegas soon and enjoy playing slot machines, then you will likely win more and lose less than usual for a limited time at Caesars and MGM casino properties. Cash payouts are now being rounded up to the nearest nickel and dime at Strip casinos such as Caesars Palace,  MGM Grand and Mandalay Bay.

Company policies for two of the largest casino brands reportedly center on the United States government's decision to stop minting pennies starting in 2025, creating a coin shortage. Representatives of both Caesars and MGM have confirmed their properties will “round up” cash transactions to benefit players and avoid paying out pennies for convenience. 

Payouts between 1-4 cents will round up to a nickel, and 6-9 cents will round up to a dime.

Rounding Up Still Costly for Casinos

While Caesars and MGM are doing the right thing by growing their customers' wallets, that does not mean it won't cost them a lot of money each year. According to MGM estimates, the company will lose 2.5 cents per cash transaction based on the new “Interim Penny Transition Plan,” which took effect last month.

That may not seem like much, but the losses exceed $100,000 per property per year for those with 11,000 or more daily cash transactions. Of course, casinos hope this is a temporary solution for cash transactions only, with credit cards and other digital payments unaffected. Mobile apps will also continue to pay out exact amounts.

As for other casinos and how they will address the penny shortage, only time will tell. The Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) put out a statement that addressed the situation as a whole in November 2025:

“The Nevada Gaming Control Board is aware that the Department of the Treasury intends to phase out production of pennies and will monitor the situation for federal feedback and work with our industry partners to address any questions.”

Penny Slots Not Going Away Anytime Soon

The U.S. government plans to end production of the penny entirely in 2026, which could signal the future of penny slots in casinos. However, penny slot players don't have to worry about their favorite games disappearing in the near future.

Las Vegas Advisor publisher Anthony Curtis said it is a no-brainer for casinos to sacrifice a small amount of revenue to keep one of their biggest money-makers. After all, the casinos are in the business of building customer loyalty and retention.

“It's a good thing for players and a rare act of largesse from the casinos,” Curtis said. “But if it's a choice between saving the projected 2.5 cents per cashout and getting rid of penny games, it's not even close. The penny slots, as well as other games where pennies come into play (i.e. video poker, keno), are big money-makers for the house, so rounding up a few pennies is a very inexpensive cost of doing business.”

There are almost 30,000 penny machines across Nevada, making them the second-most popular slot type behind multi-denomination units. Each penny costs 3.69 cents to produce, and that alone is reason enough for the government to halt production.