Are live dealers on apps real people? Yes. The dealer you see at a live blackjack or roulette table in a UK casino app is a trained croupier working in a studio or on a casino floor, filmed in real time. Some nearby games have no person at all, though, so here's how to tell who is behind each table.
Live dealers and game show presenters are real staff in studios run by suppliers such as Evolution and Pragmatic Play.
A studio team also includes camera operators, shufflers, shift managers and a pit boss who settles disputes.
The dealer handles the cards or wheel, but payouts and house edge are fixed by the game's rules.
Auto Roulette and First Person games look similar in a lobby but have no human dealer.
Dealer
Real croupier or presenter
Where
Studios or land-based casino floors
Evolution hubs
Riga, Malta and Tbilisi
Chat
Type to the dealer, who can reply aloud
Not a person
Auto Roulette, First Person games
Are live dealers on apps real people? Yes, here's who they are
Live dealers are real people. When you open a live table in a casino app, you're watching a croupier deal physical cards or spin a physical wheel, and the stream reaches your phone as the round happens. Game show hosts are real presenters too.
Pragmatic Play's live casino page (opens in a new tab) describes its tables as run by highly trained, experienced and professional dealers, and its game show line-up as hosted by specially trained presenters. Evolution says players use the game software to bet and to chat with the dealer or other players. For the bigger picture, our live casino apps hub covers the main games and studios, and the questions hub answers related queries.
Who works behind a live dealer table
The dealer is the face of the game, but a live studio needs a team to keep every table running around the clock. Here's who is involved, based on published descriptions from the studios and general industry sources.
Roles in a live dealer studio
Role
What they do
Dealer or croupier
Runs the round at the table: deals cards, spins the wheel, announces results
Game show presenter
Hosts wheel and bonus games such as Crazy Time or MONOPOLY Live
Camera operators
Film the table from one or more angles
Shufflers
Prepare cards so card games keep running (Pragmatic Play employs teams of them)
Shift managers
Monitor operations continuously (Pragmatic Play)
Pit boss
Settles disputes between players and croupiers
IT manager
Keeps the stream and game systems working
Some tables add extra camera work. Evolution says its Live Baccarat Squeeze uses more than 15 cameras, and its Immersive Roulette shows a slow-motion replay of the winning number.
Where real live dealers broadcast from
Most live dealers work in purpose-built studios, often in Eastern Europe and Malta, according to Evolution's list of locations (opens in a new tab) and other suppliers' pages. A smaller number of tables are filmed inside real casinos.
Published live studio locations
Supplier
Locations it names
Notes
Evolution
Global hubs in Riga (Latvia), Malta and Tbilisi (Georgia)
Also lists sites in Armenia, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Romania, Spain, the US, Canada, the Philippines, Argentina, Brazil and Colombia
Evolution Dual Play
Tables inside land-based casinos in the UK, Malta, Romania and the US
Online players bet on a real casino-floor table
Pragmatic Play Live
Bucharest named as the home of its Roulette
Roulette available 24/7
Stakelogic Live
Studio opened in Malta in October 2021
Launched in the UK in May 2026
Evolution says its games are often broadcast 24 hours a day, and a studio typically employs several croupiers, so the dealer you see late at night is unlikely to be the one you saw earlier. Read more on Evolution live games and Pragmatic Play Live.
Real dealer, automated wheel or animation: which is which?
Not every table near the live section has a human in it. Three kinds of game can be confused with live dealers on a small screen.
Auto Roulette: Evolution's version uses a real, fully automated wheel with no dealer. Speed Auto Roulette runs 2,500 games a day.
First Person games: these are RNG games with 3D animation, so no person is involved. Our answer to what is a First Person game explains them.
Augmented reality characters: in Gonzo's Treasure Hunt, players search a wall of 70 stones joined by an augmented reality Gonzo. The character is graphics, not a person.
None of these is a trick. They're different products, and the game's help screen should say what you're playing. If you want a human at the table, look for a dealer on camera and a betting countdown before each round.
What a live dealer controls, and what they don't
A dealer runs the physical game. They don't set the odds, change payouts or decide who wins. Recognition software reads the result from the cards or wheel and passes it to the game server, which settles bets by the game's fixed rules.
That's why the maths is the same whichever dealer is on shift. Wizard of Odds lists Evolution's Infinite Blackjack, with its six-card Charlie rule, at a 0.45% house edge, and Free Bet Blackjack at 1.04% under the rules it analysed. On £100 of total bets, that's an expected cost of 45p and £1.04 respectively. Our page on live blackjack on mobile works through more examples.
If something goes wrong at a table, such as a misdeal, the studio's pit boss settles it under the game rules. If you still disagree with the outcome, raise it with the casino's support team, not in the table chat.
How to check you're watching a real dealer on your phone
Open the game from the live casino section of a UK-licensed app.
Read the title. Tables marked Auto or First Person don't have a human dealer.
Open the help screen and check the supplier name and game rules.
Watch a round without betting: a real dealer handles the cards or launches the ball, and announces the result.
If chat is switched on, send a short, friendly message. At most live tables the dealer can read it and reply out loud.
Can live dealers see or hear you?
The published descriptions cover a one-way video stream to players plus a text chat. Players can message the dealer, and the dealer can reply out loud. Nothing in those descriptions has players appearing on camera or using a microphone, so your phone's camera and microphone aren't part of a standard live table.
Real dealers don't put a table outside the rules. The Gambling Commission's technical standards include RTS 17 on live dealer studios, and the game design rules from 17 January 2025 apply to live tables too: no autoplay, at least 5 seconds per game cycle, no playing several games at once, and net spend and time shown on screen. You can read RTS 14 on responsible product design (opens in a new tab) for the detail.
Studios need licences as well as casinos. Evolution's GB licence is held by Evolution Malta Holding Limited (account 41655). See our game design rules page and the live dealer glossary entry for definitions.
UK casino apps with real live dealers
Each of our five partners lists live casino in its app store description. Coral's listing names Blackjack, roulette and Live Casino; Ladbrokes mentions live casino including game shows; PlayOJO lists live casino alongside slots, bingo and table games. Casumo's Android app is titled Casumo - Live Casino & Slots, and 10bet's listing mentions live casino tables. Which suppliers and dealers appear in each lobby isn't published, so check the app.
Coral, Ladbrokes and PlayOJO all list live casino in their apps, but their welcome offers are slot offers, not live dealer bonuses. Live and table games are often excluded or count for less, so check the terms before you play. 18+ and terms apply.
Coral: new players, 18+. Deposit and bet £10+ on slots for 100 free spins on selected games at 10p each (accept within 48 hours, valid for 7 days, no wagering on winnings). Runs 1 October 2026 to 1 February 2027. Neteller, PayPal, Paysafe, Skrill, prepaid cards and certain debit cards don't qualify.
Ladbrokes: new customers, 18+. Deposit and spend £10+ on slots for 50 free spins a day for 10 days, maximum 500, at 10p each on selected games. Claim by 23:59 each day; spins valid for 7 days; no wagering. Prepaid cards, PayPal, Paysafe, Neteller, Skrill and Moneybookers deposits don't qualify.
PlayOJO: new UK customers, 18+, excluding Northern Ireland. Minimum £10 first deposit for 80 free spins on Big Bass Bonanza at 10p each. No wagering, with winnings paid in cash. Can't be combined with other offers; only through the designated offer link.
Coral and Ladbrokes are both run by LC International Limited (Entain). If you already hold an account with one Entain brand, you may not be able to open another; check the terms first.
Significant terms: 18+. New players only. Offer runs 01/10/2026 to 01/02/2027. Deposit (certain types excluded) and bet £10+ on slot games to get 100 free spins (selected games, £0.10 each, 48 hrs to accept, valid 7 days). No wagering on free spin winnings. Deposits by Neteller, PayPal, Paysafe, Skrill, prepaid cards and certain debit cards do not qualify. Restrictions and T&Cs apply. GamCare.org.uk
Read our Coral app reviewLicence: LC International Limited, Gambling Commission account 54743. Offer checked 5 October 2026.
Time limitClaim daily for 10 days; each batch valid 7 days
Worked valueUp to 500 spins at £0.10 (up to £50 in spins)
Significant terms: 18+. New customers only, from 14/11/25 until further notice. Certain deposit methods excluded. Deposit and spend £10+ on slots for 50 free spins a day during the first 10 days after first deposit and registration (max 500, £0.10 each, selected games, claim before 23:59 each day, valid 7 days). No wagering. Prepaid cards, PayPal, Paysafe, Neteller, Skrill and Moneybookers deposits do not qualify. Restrictions and T&Cs apply. GamCare.org.uk
Read our Ladbrokes app reviewLicence: LC International Limited, Gambling Commission account 54743. Offer checked 5 October 2026.
Significant terms: 18+. New UK customers (excluding Northern Ireland). First deposit only. Minimum deposit £10. 80 free spins on Big Bass Bonanza, £0.10 each. No wagering requirements; winnings paid in cash. Cannot be used with any other offer. Only available to players who arrive through the designated offer link. Full T&Cs apply. GamCare.org.uk
Read our PlayOJO app reviewLicence: Skill On Net Limited, Gambling Commission account 39326. Offer checked 5 October 2026.
18+. Every casino game has a built-in house edge, so over time you should expect to lose what you stake. Set a budget before you play and stop when it’s gone: safer gambling tools and support. Free, confidential help: National Gambling Helpline 0808 8020 133.
Frequently asked questions
Are live casino dealers AI?
No, a live dealer table has a real person running it. The studios describe trained dealers and presenters, and the results come from physical cards, wheels and dice. Some games nearby are fully digital, such as First Person games, which use an RNG with 3D animation, and a few game shows add computer-generated characters. Those are labelled differently. See our live dealer glossary entry and the First Person games on mobile page.
Where are live casino dealers based?
Mostly in purpose-built studios. Evolution names global hubs in Riga, Malta and Tbilisi, plus sites in several other countries, and runs Dual Play tables inside land-based casinos, including in the UK. Pragmatic Play names Bucharest as the studio for its Roulette. Your casino app takes the stream from whichever supplier it works with. Our pages on Evolution live games and Playtech Live cover the suppliers.
Can a live dealer cheat or change the result?
A dealer runs the physical game but doesn't set payouts or decide winners. Recognition software reads the cards or wheel and the game server settles bets by fixed rules, and the studio's pit boss handles disputes. Studios and casinos serving Great Britain need Gambling Commission licences, which come with technical standards on live dealer studios. If you think a round went wrong, contact the casino's support. Read do casino apps rig games for more on fairness.
Do live dealers work 24 hours a day?
Many tables run around the clock, with several croupiers taking turns. Evolution says its games are often broadcast 24 hours a day, and Pragmatic Play says its Roulette is available 24/7. Individual dealers work set shifts, so the person you see changes through the day. A table being open late is not a reason to keep playing, so set a time reminder before you start. Our reality checks guide explains how session reminders work in apps.
Is Auto Roulette a live dealer game?
Not quite. Evolution's Auto Roulette uses a real, fully automated wheel filmed live, but there's no dealer. The results are physical rather than RNG, so it isn't the same as a digital roulette game either. It sits between the two and tends to run faster, with Evolution's Speed Auto Roulette putting on 2,500 games a day. Compare the options on our live roulette on mobile and speed games pages.
Can live dealers see my balance or my name?
The published descriptions of live tables cover a video stream to players and a text chat with the dealer. They don't describe dealers seeing account balances, and your payment details are held by the casino you signed up with. Treat chat as visible to the table and don't share personal information there. For more on account privacy, see how casino apps use your data and our live chat etiquette page.
Do I need to be 18 to watch a live dealer in an app?
Yes. Real-money casino apps in Great Britain must verify your age and identity before you can deposit or gamble, and our partners' apps are rated 18+ in the App Store and PEGI 18 on Google Play. Even free-to-play games need age verification. If a young person in your home uses your phone, use device controls and keep apps locked. Our guide on casino app age verification explains the checks.
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