FanDuel bettors in Illinois are facing a familiar burden with the return of a per-bet fee meant to compensate for rising tax rates.
- Illinois taxes sportsbook revenue at up to 40% and imposes a per-wager tax of 25 or 50 cents.
- FanDuel reinstated its 50-cent fee on qualifying wagers after suspending it in April.
- Users now need to win 66.7% of $1 bets at +100 odds to break even.
FanDuel Sportsbook is available in 24 states and Washington, D.C. In 23 of those markets, bettors can place wagers without an additional per-bet fee.
Illinois bettors face an additional 50-cent charge on qualifying wagers after FanDuel passed along the state's per-bet tax, which initially took effect Sept. 1, 2025.
FanDuel users began noticing the change Tuesday, with Illinois bettors posting about the reinstated fee on social media.
Update on @FanDuel fees for those of us in Illinois. https://t.co/BpOw8FAItK
— Good JuJu For You (@GoodJuJuBets) October 6, 2026
FanDuel introduced the charge after Illinois updated its sports betting tax rate to a sliding scale - 20% on the first $30 million in revenue, 25% on the next $20 million, 30% on the next $50 million, 35% on the next $100 million, and 40% on annual revenue exceeding $200 million.
Illinois lawmakers also approved the nation's first per-bet tax: 25 cents on the first 20 million wagers per operator, and 50 cents on all additional tickets.
FanDuel announced in April that it had suspended the per-bet fee until at least June 19, the scheduled date of Game 7 of the NBA Finals. The series ended after five games.
The sports betting giant gave its users nearly four more months of betting without the per-bet fee before reinstating the charge this week. Now, users will pay the charge unless their wager meets one of the following criteria:
- Parlay worth at least $10
- Straight bet worth at least $25
- Wager made using a bonus bet
Illinois per-bet fee effects
At +100 odds, a bettor normally needs to win 50% of wagers to break even. The 50-cent fee pushes that requirement to 66.7% on a $1 bet, but the impact quickly shrinks as the wager gets larger. At -110 odds, the breakeven rate rises from the standard 52.4% to 71% on a $1 bet. At +200, meanwhile, the fee pushes the breakeven rate from 33.3% to 40%.
| Wager | +100 | -110 | +200 |
|---|---|---|---|
| $1 | 66.7% | 71.0% | 40.0% |
| $5 | 52.6% | 55.3% | 34.5% |
| $10 | 51.3% | 53.8% | 33.9% |
| $15 | 50.8% | 53.3% | 33.7% |
| $20 | 50.6% | 53.1% | 33.6% |
| $24.99 | 50.5% | 52.9% | 33.6% |
The return of the per-bet fee comes at an important time for the Illinois sports betting scene. The Chicago White Sox are one win away from reaching the American League Championship Series, and the 3-1 Chicago Bears have an implied 67.2% chance of making the playoffs.
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Illinois betting rebounds
Illinois sports betting remained strong during the period without the per-bet fee. Retail and online sportsbooks generated $1.1 billion in wagers in July, up 21.7% year over year.
FanDuel, the national leader in sports betting, finished the month second with $286.1 million in handle and $36.9 million in adjusted revenue. Both figures were behind DraftKings, which generated $382.7 million in wagers and $42.5 million in adjusted revenue while also employing a per-bet fee.
