Turnkey Online Casino Solutions
A turnkey casino gives you the platform and your own license. You hold the regulatory relationship, sign PSP contracts directly and choose your own game providers. That is the line between turnkey and white label, and it is what payment partners look at first. Regulator fees start at €17,828 in Anjouan.
A turnkey online casino solution is a ready end-to-end casino platform that launches under your own gaming licence. Also sold as an online casino turnkey solution, a turnkey casino platform or turnkey casino software, it bundles games, payments, player account management and back office in one contract. You own the brand and the licence; the provider runs the technology.
Turnkey online casino at a glance
| Licence | Issued in the operator's name. The main difference from classic white label, which runs on the provider's licence |
|---|---|
| Typical timeline | From about 2 to 4 months on an Anjouan route; 4 to 8 months on a Curaçao route |
| Licence cost | Anjouan from EUR 17,828 (regulator fee). Curaçao EUR 4,592 application, then EUR 47,450 per year for B2C |
| Platform cost | Depends on scope and feature set. Scoped per project |
Currencies: regulator fees are set in EUR, platform and vendor costs are quoted in USD.
A turnkey casino is one package covering both sides of a launch: the licence in your name and the technology to run on. MGL Solutions delivers both: the platform, the player account management (PAM) system, integrations, banking and payment setup, and ongoing technical support. You hold the licence, the brand and the players. Your licence, our platform.
Three words get used loosely in this market, so it helps to separate them once. The solution is the commercial package you buy. The platform is the running instance with your brand on it. The software is the code underneath, including the PAM, the bonus engine and the back office. Providers sell all three under the same "turnkey" label.
What is included in a turnkey casino package?
A turnkey casino package includes the casino platform and back office, game content through an aggregator, payment integrations, player account management, a bonus engine, risk and AML tooling, hosting, and technical support. MGL runs the licensing track alongside the build, so the platform meets the regulator's technical requirements from day one.
What a standard package covers:
Game content: slots, live casino and table games, usually through a game aggregator, so one integration opens a large multi-studio catalogue
Payment systems: PSP and cashier integrations, multi-currency support, and crypto where the licence permits it. See our crypto casino solution for the crypto-specific stack
Back office and admin: reporting, player accounts, limits, segmentation, content management
Player management and CRM: PAM holds accounts, wallets, sessions and history; the CRM layer sits on top for segmentation, lifecycle campaigns, retention triggers and support ticketing
Bonus engine: welcome offers, free spins, loyalty tiers, wagering rules
Risk, fraud and AML tooling: KYC workflows, transaction monitoring, PEP and sanctions screening, self-exclusion checks
Hosting and infrastructure: servers, backups, uptime monitoring
Support: technical support, updates and release management
Licence-ready configuration: server, database and reporting setup that matches what the regulator asks for
Scope varies by provider. Confirm in writing which of these sit inside the base fee and which are billed separately.
Technical infrastructure inside a turnkey casino
The technical layer of a turnkey gambling solution is hosting, APIs and cross-platform delivery. The platform ships as connected modules rather than one block of code, so games, payment providers and reporting tools plug in through APIs instead of custom builds.
Hosting and servers: managed hosting with backups and monitoring. Some jurisdictions add rules here. Curaçao, for example, requires critical player and transaction data to sit on a server in a Tier IV certified data centre on the island, accessible to the regulator.
API integrations: standard APIs for game studios, aggregators, PSPs, KYC vendors and analytics. You configure new integrations instead of building them.
Plug-and-play modules: bonus engine, CRM, affiliate tracking and reporting arrive as modules you switch on as you need them.
Mobile and cross-platform: responsive web as standard, native or wrapper apps depending on scope.
The practical benefit is speed of change. Adding a payment method or a game studio after launch takes an integration ticket rather than a development cycle.
Who chooses turnkey over building in-house?
A turnkey iGaming platform suits operators who want to own the licence and the brand without running a development team. Building in-house makes sense when the platform itself is the product and you have engineers to maintain it. Most first-time and mid-sized operators sit in the first group.
Turnkey usually fits when:
You have no in-house technical team and do not want to hire one before revenue starts
You need to be live in months, not a year, and cannot absorb a long development cycle
You want the licence in your own company name, so the brand and player base stay yours
You plan to scale by adding markets, games and payment methods rather than by rebuilding
Marketing and player acquisition, not engineering, is where your team is strong
Building in-house usually fits when:
Your differentiator is the technology itself, for example a proprietary game mechanic or wallet
You already run an engineering team and can carry maintenance, security and certification work
You operate at a volume where platform fees exceed the cost of your own team
Key advantages of turnkey online casino solutions
The advantages are speed to market, lower entry cost than a custom build, and no need for an in-house technical team, while the licence and brand stay in your name. Compliance tooling arrives pre-integrated, which shortens the path to a regulator-ready platform.
Faster launch. The platform already exists, so the work is configuration, branding and integration rather than development. Licensing usually sets the timeline.
Lower entry cost. A ready platform removes the largest line item of a custom build. Where a bespoke platform is scoped as a development project, turnkey is priced as a package plus ongoing fees.
No technical team required. Hosting, updates, security patches and release management sit with MGL.
Ownership stays with you. The licence is issued to your company, so you keep the brand, the player database and the commercial relationships.
Scalable infrastructure. New games, payment methods and markets are added through integrations instead of a rebuild.
Compliance tooling built in. KYC and AML workflows, responsible gaming limits and regulator reporting come pre-integrated. The tooling helps, but the licence holder stays accountable for how it is configured, monitored and evidenced. No package makes an operator compliant on its own.
What are the risks and challenges of a turnkey casino?
The main risks are a substantial upfront spend, ongoing operational load that stays with the operator, dependence on one provider for technical change, and regulatory duties that follow the licence rather than the platform. None of these are dealbreakers, but each needs an owner before launch.
Upfront cost. Platform setup, licence fees, integrations and initial marketing all land in the same quarter. Underfunding the launch is the most common failure we see, not the licence itself.
Operational load stays with you. Player support, payment queries, bonus disputes and fraud review are the operator's job. MGL keeps the platform running; MGL does not run your casino.
Provider dependence. In any turnkey model, release cycles, roadmap priorities and integration timelines sit with whoever runs the platform. Get contractual response times and exit terms in writing before signing, including who owns and can export your player data. That applies to MGL too: ask for the terms.
Regulatory duties follow the licence. Because the licence is in your name, reporting, audits, AML programmes and responsible gaming obligations are yours. Under Curaçao's LOK regime that means annual reporting and AML audits, a registered compliance officer and fees paid in full by 15 January.
Payment friction. Casino traffic is high risk for banks and PSPs. Approvals take work and rarely arrive as a single yes.
Do you get your own licence with a turnkey casino?
Yes. With a turnkey solution the gaming licence is issued in the operator's own company name. This is what separates turnkey from the classic white label model, where the operator trades under a licence held by the provider. White label can be structured on an operator's own licence too, and after the Curaçao reform that route is required for Curaçao brands. Provider licensing remains the white label default elsewhere. Owning the licence means owning the brand, the player database and the direct relationships with banks, PSPs and game studios.
That distinction became more important after Curaçao's reform. The National Ordinance on Games of Chance (LOK) came into force on 24 December 2024 and abolished the old master and sub-licence model. Every licence is now issued and listed directly by the Curaçao Gaming Authority (CGA). The last master licence expired on 31 January 2025 and none are being reissued, so the sub-licences that depended on them no longer have effect. The practical effect: a turnkey setup with your own B2C licence is the compliant route in Curaçao, while the old arrangement of operating under someone else's Curaçao sub-licence no longer exists.
MGL Solutions arranges the licence in the jurisdiction that fits your markets and budget, and delivers the platform, banking and payment setup alongside it, so the technical build matches what the regulator expects.
Read more: Curaçao gaming licence · Anjouan gaming licence · all licences · Curaçao restricted countries
Turnkey vs white label vs custom development: which to choose?
Choose turnkey when you want your own licence and a fast launch. Choose white label when the priority is the lowest entry cost and a fast market test, and a template product with limited control over the stack is acceptable. Choose custom development when the platform itself is your product and you can fund and staff a build.
| Model | Ownership | Licence | Control | Speed | Entry cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turnkey | Brand, player database and commercial relationships stay with the operator | Your own licence, in your company name | High. Branding, game mix, payment stack and bonus logic are set by the operator. Platform core stays with the provider | Set by licensing: about 2 to 4 months on Anjouan, 4 to 8 months on Curaçao | Moderate. Platform package plus licence fees |
| White label | Brand is the operator's, but the licence entity, player accounts and payment relationships sit with the provider by default | Provider's licence by default. Own licence optional, and required for Curaçao | Limited. Games, payments and back end are set by the provider. Templates and a fixed portfolio | Fastest. From about 2 to 6 weeks | Lowest entry. Setup from about USD 15,000 for a basic package, rising past USD 100,000 for full-service, plus revenue share commonly up to 30% |
| Custom development | Everything, including the codebase | Your own licence | Full. Stack and roadmap are yours | Longest. Scoped as a development project | Highest. Scoped per project |
For the full white label breakdown, including what the revenue share covers, see White Label Online Casino Solutions.
One caution on white label: check which licence you are actually operating under and whether it is valid for your target markets. Curaçao sub-licences are gone, so any white label offer still framed around one is out of date.
How it works
How do you launch a turnkey casino?
Navigating the process can be complex. Here's a streamlined guide to each step.
A turnkey launch runs in four stages and takes roughly 2 to 4 months on an Anjouan licence or 4 to 8 months on a Curaçao licence. Platform setup and licensing run in parallel, so the regulator's review, not the technology, sets the overall pace. Testing and launch preparation add about 3 to 5 weeks at the end.
Requirements for opening a turnkey casino
Requirements fall into three groups: a defined business case, corporate and personal documents, and a compliance programme. The exact list depends on the jurisdiction, so treat this as the common core rather than a fixed set. With MGL you provide one set of personal documents, about 30 minutes of your time, and we prepare and file the rest.
Business
Product and market plan: which verticals you will run and which markets you will target, checked against the licence's restricted list
Budget: platform, licence, integrations, first-year marketing and working capital
Market analysis: audience, competitors, preferred payment methods and product mix in your target regions
Corporate
Company registration documents for the licence holder
Passport or government ID for each beneficial owner and key person
Proof of address, usually a recent utility bill
Financial forecast and evidence of source of funds or source of wealth
Reference letters from a bank and from a lawyer or accountant, where the jurisdiction asks for them
Clean criminal record certificate, where the jurisdiction asks for it
Compliance
AML and CFT policy, with transaction monitoring and suspicious activity reporting
KYC and customer due diligence procedures
Responsible gaming policy: self-exclusion, deposit limits, cooling-off periods
Data protection measures
A named compliance officer, required in Curaçao and expected in most jurisdictions
Some jurisdictions add local substance. Curaçao requires a local company, a physical office and at least one Curaçao-resident key person for the first four years, rising to three resident key people from year five. The CGA is phasing the local hiring requirement in rather than enforcing it immediately, and the regulator has not yet confirmed the final dates. Newly incorporated companies and smaller operators below a GGR threshold can claim exemptions in their first three years. Anjouan requires no local office, director or minimum capital.
How much does a turnkey casino solution cost?
There is no single price for a turnkey casino, because three separate costs stack: the platform, the ongoing running costs and the licence. Licence fees are the only part set by statute and published, so they are the firmest number in any budget. Anjouan starts from EUR 17,828 in regulator fees, before incorporation and advisory. Curaçao is EUR 4,592 to apply, then EUR 47,450 per year for a B2C licence.
| Cost component | What it covers | Indicative range |
|---|---|---|
| Licence: Anjouan | Regulator fee, one permit covering casino, sports betting, poker, lottery and bingo, with B2B through a separate recognition certificate, 0% gaming tax | From EUR 17,828, renewed annually with a fee per key person. Covers up to two URLs. Sub-licensing is not permitted |
| Licence: Curaçao (B2C) | CGA application fee plus annual fee. Under LOK the definitive licence is issued for an indefinite duration, subject to suspension or revocation (CGA) | EUR 4,592 application plus EUR 150 per UBO, then EUR 47,450 per year (licence 24,490 plus supervisory 22,960) |
| Licence: Curaçao (B2B) | Suppliers of gaming-related critical services and goods, not operators. Mandatory only for suppliers established in Curaçao, and only two years after LOK took effect, so from 24 December 2026. Does not stack with B2C | EUR 24,490 per year |
| Platform setup | Instance configuration, branding, game and payment integrations, back office | Scoped per project and per feature set. White label setup runs from about USD 15,000 for a basic package to USD 100,000 and above for full-service. Turnkey is scoped per project and always includes an own-licence track |
| Ongoing platform and support | Platform fee or revenue share, hosting, updates, technical support | Monthly fee or revenue share. White label deals commonly reach up to 30% of revenue. Turnkey terms are set per project, so confirm whether you pay a fixed monthly fee, a revenue share, or both |
| Payments | PSP setup and processing | Per-transaction fee, set by each provider and your risk profile |
| Compliance | Audits, certification, compliance officer, reporting | Annual, and higher in Curaçao than Anjouan |
| Company and substance | Incorporation, registered office, local key person where required | Jurisdiction-dependent. Curaçao requires local substance, Anjouan does not |
Currencies and sources: regulator fees are set in EUR, by the Anjouan Offshore Finance Authority (AOFA) and the Curaçao Gaming Authority (CGA) respectively. Platform and vendor figures are quoted in USD and depend on the provider. Anjouan permit scope, the two-URL limit and the tax treatment follow the AOFA framework under the Computer Gaming Licensing Act No. 007 of 2005, as published on our Anjouan gaming licence page.
Two things to watch. First, the licence fee is annual, not one-off, so it belongs in your running costs as well as your launch budget. Second, taxes differ sharply: Anjouan charges 0% on gross gaming revenue with no corporate income tax, while Curaçao charges no gaming tax and no VAT, with effective corporate income tax around 2% for companies under the e-zone regime.
FAQ
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Turnkey casino software includes the casino platform, the player account management (PAM) system and the back office, plus game content through an aggregator, payment integrations, a bonus engine, CRM, KYC and AML tooling, regulator reporting, and hosting with technical support.
Packages differ, so ask for a written scope stating which modules sit in the base fee and which are billed as extras. MGL runs the licensing track alongside the build, so the platform is configured for the regulator from the start.
Yes. A turnkey casino needs a gaming licence, and in the turnkey model that licence is issued in the operator's own company name rather than the provider's. Which licence you need depends on your target markets.
Plan for about 2 to 4 months on an Anjouan licence and 4 to 8 months on a Curaçao licence. Licensing sets the pace, because the due diligence period is fixed and cannot be shortened.
Consultation and incorporation take 1 to 2 weeks. Platform setup and branding take 2 to 4 weeks and run in parallel with the application. Licensing is the long pole: from 4 weeks, typically 6 to 8 weeks, in Anjouan, or 3 to 6 months in Curaçao. Integration, testing and launch preparation add about 3 to 5 weeks.
Yes, and turnkey allows more customisation than white label. Branding, front-end design, game selection, payment stack, bonus logic and player segmentation are all configurable. Depth of customisation varies by package, with entry tiers closer to templates and higher tiers closer to bespoke.
The limits sit in the platform architecture. Core PAM and wallet logic belong to the platform core, so any change there becomes a development request rather than a setting. Where full freedom over the codebase matters, custom development is the honest answer rather than turnkey.
The licence is the part with published figures. Anjouan starts from EUR 17,828 as a regulator fee, renewed annually. Curaçao is EUR 4,592 to apply plus EUR 150 per beneficial owner, then EUR 47,450 per year for a B2C licence or EUR 24,490 for B2B.
Platform costs sit on top and depend on the feature set, then ongoing fees follow as a monthly platform fee or a revenue share. For comparison, white label setup runs from about USD 15,000 to USD 100,000 and above depending on package, and commonly carries revenue share up to 30%. Ask for a project-scoped breakdown.
Turnkey platforms ship with the tooling compliance requires: KYC and customer due diligence workflows, AML transaction monitoring, responsible gaming limits and self-exclusion, encryption, and regulator reporting. The tooling does not make an operator compliant by itself.
Where the jurisdiction requires it, games and random number generators are certified by an approved testing laboratory before go-live. Because the licence is in your name, configuration, monitoring, staff training and evidence are your responsibility. Ask for the certifications a provider actually holds, in writing.
Judge a turnkey provider on four things: licensing support, integrated game content, live payment coverage in your target markets, and contractual support and exit terms. Then check references from operators of similar size, not just the largest client on the list.
Licensing support: whether the provider works to the requirements of your chosen jurisdiction and files the application. Content: which studios and aggregators are already integrated, and what a new integration costs. Payments: which PSPs are live for your target markets, and whether crypto is supported where the licence permits it. Support and exit: contractual response times, release cadence, and who owns and can export your player data if you leave. MGL delivers all four in one contract, with the licence in your name.
The licence and the depth of control. In a turnkey setup the gaming licence is issued in the operator's own company name, so the brand, the player database and the commercial relationships stay with the operator. Turnkey also allows deeper customisation.
Classic white label runs on the provider's licence by default, though an own licence is possible and Curaçao now requires one. White label is closer to a template. Full detail on the white label model, including packages, revenue share and licensing, is on our white label online casino solutions page.
Navigating the gaming license process can be complex. Here's a streamlined guide to each step