The latest annual survey by the Macau Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) has revealed that the gaming sector spent record amounts on employee compensation and operating expenses in 2025.
Employee compensation costs rose 6% year-on-year to a record MOP 22.77bn, accounting for 22.5% of the sector’s total expenditure. The previous record was set prior to Covid-19 pandemic.
Labor costs hit a record high despite employment remaining below pre-Covid levels. The gaming sector had 53,272 employees at the end of 2025, representing a 0.2% increase from the previous year but a 9.4% decline from the 58,777 recorded at the end of 2019, according to separate statistics bureau data.
Operating expenses rose 7.7% to a record MOP 43.72bn in 2025. These expenses accounted for 43.1% of the industry’s total expenditure.
Complimentary goods and services for customers – including hotel accommodation, food, beverages and transport – made up 62.6% of operating expenses. Other significant costs included contracted services, marketing and publicity.
Total expenditure across the gaming sector rose 7.5% to MOP 101.44bn.
In separate news earlier, Macau surpassed 30 million visitor arrivals as of 11 am local time on Friday, September 11, reaching the mark 22 days earlier than in 2025.
May 2 was the record day for visitations, with 247,000 visitors. Meanwhile, daily arrivals averaged 119,000, an 8% year-on-year increase. At the same time, authorities are preparing for a new holiday travel rush, more specifically the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holidays.
Nevertheless, Macau's gross gaming revenue (GGR) declined slightly in August, with casinos generating MOP21.89bn (US$2.71bn), down 1.2% from MOP22.16bn in the same month last year.
Despite the modest monthly decline, the market remained ahead of last year's pace overall. The August result also improved from the sharper declines in June and July.
Macau International Airport handled 5.21 million passengers from January to August, up 5.6%
