Report
Young People and Gambling 2026: Official statistics
Gambling Commission report produced by Ipsos on young people and their gambling behaviour, attitudes and awareness in 2026.
Contents
- Executive summary
- Wider experience of gambling
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- Summary
- Definitions
- Wider experience and active involvement in gambling
- Experience of different categories of gambling activities
- Experience of different types of gambling activities
- Who young people were with when they experienced gambling
- Being stopped from gambling for being too young
- Gambling in the context of young people’s spare time activities
- Gambling in the context of other risk-taking behaviours
- Active involvement in gambling and experience of problem gambling
- Trends in gambling behaviours: 2022 to 2026
- Young people’s exposure to gambling
- The impact of gambling on young people
- Gambling activities and gaming
- Perspectives on gambling: Awareness, attitudes and behaviours
- Appendices
Gaming
In this section, the terms ‘loot box’ and ‘surprise box’ were used to describe in game features that, in exchange for real-world money or virtual currency, offer players a randomised item or reward.
Since 2025, minor changes have been made to the wording of questions relating to loot boxes and surprise boxes. In particular, the term ‘loot box’ has been re-introduced alongside ‘surprise box’, reflecting terminology used in previous waves of the survey. The examples of video games included in these questions were also updated to ensure they remained relevant and familiar to respondents. These changes were intended to improve clarity and were not considered substantial enough to affect comparability between the 2025 and 2026 data.
Awareness of paying for in-game items
People who play video games (such as Roblox, Fortnite, FIFA or EA Sports FC, Call of Duty, GTA, Minecraft or Block Blast) can collect in-game items (such as skins, clothes, weapons, accessories, players). Young people who participated in the survey were shown a list of different activities involving in-games items and asked whether they were aware that these activities could take place. These included purchasing virtual items, opening loot boxes or surprise boxes, paying to play casino-style games within a game, and betting with in-game items.
Overall, 82% of young people were aware of at least one of the ways in game items can be used. Young people were most likely to have heard of buying virtual items in games with their own money (80%) and buying virtual items with in-game money without spending real money (79%).
Around three-quarters of young people were aware that you can open virtual loot boxes or surprise boxes with in-game money (76%) and open virtual loot boxes or surprise boxes with their own money or their parents’ and/or carers money (73%). Less well known were paying to play casino games in an in-game casino (59%) and betting with in-game items on websites outside of the game you are playing (50%), as shown in Figure 6.4
Figure 6.4: Awareness among young people regarding paying for in-game items
Figure 6.4 information
INGAMEAWARE: Which, if any, of these were you aware of before today?
Base per statement 2026: Buying virtual items in games with your own money (3,656), Buying virtual items with in-game money without spending your own money (3,658), Opening virtual surprise boxes with in-game money (3,649), Opening virtual surprise boxes with your own money or your parents’ and/or carers’ money (3,656), Paying to play casino games in an in-game casino (3,654), Betting with in-game items on websites outside of the game you are playing (3,642).
| Awareness among young people regarding paying for in-game items | 2026 (percentage) (This shows responses to 2 separate questions and so totals will not add up to 100%) |
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Aware | Not aware | Do not know | |
| Buying virtual items in games with your own money | 80% | 6% | 13% |
| Buying virtual items with in-game money without spending your own money | 79% | 7% | 14% |
| Opening virtual loot boxes or surprise boxes with in-game money | 76% | 9% | 16% |
| Opening virtual loot boxes or surprise boxes with your own money or your parents’ and/or carers’ money | 73% | 10% | 16% |
| Paying to play casino games in an in-game casino | 59% | 20% | 21% |
| Betting with in-game items on websites outside of the game you are playing | 50% | 26% | 24% |
Awareness of in-game items was consistently higher among boys (86%, compared with 78% of girls), older groups (85% of 14 to 17 year olds, compared with 78% of 11 to 13 year olds), those who feel informed about gambling (89%, compared with 69% who are not) young people who considered themselves risk-takers (87%, compared with 86% overall and 83% among those who did not consider themselves risk-takers), and young people who had seen family members gamble (88%, compared with 83% of those who had not).
Similar patterns were evident across individual in-game items. Boys and older young people were more likely to be aware of buying virtual items, opening virtual loot boxes or surprise boxes, paying to play casino games in an in-game casino, and betting with in-game items on websites outside the game being played. Awareness was also consistently higher among young people who were actively involved in gambling, those who considered themselves risk-takers and those who felt informed about gambling.
Young people who use in-game items
Young people who were aware of the different ways in-game items can be used were then asked whether they had personally bought, opened, paid to play with, or bet with any of these items. The majority (84%) reported having engaged in at least one of these activities, indicating that most young people who were aware of in-game items had direct experience of using them.
The findings suggest that young people's engagement with in-game items is primarily concentrated around activities that use either in-game currency or involve purchasing virtual items directly. The most common activities were buying virtual items with in-game money (65%), purchasing virtual items using real money (60%), and opening virtual loot boxes or surprise boxes with in-game currency (54%). This indicates that interactions with in-game items were most often linked to gameplay enhancement or cosmetic purchases rather than gambling-like activities.
In contrast, activities that involve greater financial commitment or stronger gambling-related characteristics were less common. Among young people who had heard of in game item activities, just over a quarter (27%) reported opening virtual loot boxes or surprise boxes using real money, while only small minorities had paid to play casino-style games within a game (8%) or used in-game items to place bets on external websites (5%).
As shown in the following table, engagement with in-game items has remained consistent over time.
Table 6.6: Opening virtual loot boxes or surprise boxes with own money 2025 to 2026
INGAMEUSED: Which, if any, of the following have you personally done?
Base: All participants (answering) who have heard of in game items 2025 (2,827), 2026 (2,975).
| Use of in-game items | 2025 (percentage) | 2026 (percentage) | Statistical difference 2026 compared with 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bought virtual items with in-game money without spending any real money | 64% | 65% | No significant difference |
| Bought virtual items in games with your own money (for example pocket money, gift cards) or your parent and/or carers’ money | 60% | 60% | No significant difference |
| Opened virtual loot boxes or surprise boxes with in-game money | 55% | 54% | No significant difference |
| Opened virtual loot boxes or surprise boxes with your own money | 26% | 27% | No significant difference |
| Paying to play casino games in an in-game casino | 9% | 8% | No significant difference |
| Betting with in-game items on websites outside of the game you are playing | 6% | 5% | No significant difference |
| Ever used in-game items | 82% | 84% | Significant increase |
There were consistent differences across key sub-groups:
- boys were more likely than girls to have ever used in-game items (90%, compared with 77% of girls)
- young people who considered themselves risk-takers were also more likely to have used in-game items (88%, compared with 79% of non-risk takers), as were young people who had seen family members gamble (87%, compared with 81% of those who had not)
- young people who were actively involved in gambling in the last 12 months were more likely to have used in-game items than young people overall (87%, compared with 84% overall).
Young people who open virtual boxes with their own money
As previously noted, activities that involve greater financial commitment or stronger gambling-related characteristics were less common. Among young people who had heard of in-game item activities, just over a quarter (27%) reported opening virtual loot boxes or surprise boxes using real money.
When based on all young people aged 11 to 17 taking part in the survey, including those who had not heard of these activities, the proportion falls to 22%. This provides an indication of the prevalence of opening virtual loot boxes or surprise boxes with real money across the wider population of young people.
Table 6.7: Opening virtual loot boxes or surprise boxes with own money 2025 to 2026
INGAMEUSED: Which, if any, of the following have you personally done?
Base: All participants (answering) who have heard of in game items 2025 (2,827), 2026 (2,975).
Base: All participants (answering), 2025 (3,666), 2026 (3,716).
| Opening virtual loot boxes or surprise boxes with own money | 2025 (percentage) | 2026 (percentage) | Statistical difference 2026 compared with 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Among young people who had heard of in-game item activities | 26% | 27% | No significant difference |
| Among all young people aged 11 to 17 | 21% | 22% | No significant difference |
How young people buy virtual items
Overall, the most popular methods used by young people to buy virtual items in-game were using money from their own bank account (58%) or a gift card (57%), followed by using virtual currency bought with money (45%).
The most popular way of buying virtual loot boxes or surprise boxes was using money from their own bank account (64%), followed by a gift card (54%) and virtual currency bought with money (52%).
A similar pattern was observed for the purchase of virtual surprise boxes, with nearly two-thirds (64%) using money from their own bank account, while over half used gift cards (54%) or virtual currency bought with money (52%).
The findings indicate that direct payment methods were the primary means through which young people purchase both virtual items and virtual loot boxes or surprise boxes, although the use of purchased virtual currency was slightly more common for loot boxes or surprise boxes than for virtual items overall.
The modes of payment used to buy virtual items vary by age, with older groups (14 to 17 year olds) most likely to buy virtual items using money from their own bank account (64%, compared with 48% of 11 to 13 year olds), whereas younger groups were most likely to pay for items using a gift card (61%, compared with 55% of 14 to 17 year olds).
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Last updated: 12 November 2026
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