Most "casino apps" are not in any app store: offshore operators largely cannot list there, so the segment splits between rare true native apps and progressive web apps installed from the browser. Nine of the casinos we test offer a genuine mobile build; the distinction matters less than the marketing pretends, and differently than you would guess.
Native vs PWA, honestly
What native buys
A real iOS or Android app gets push notifications, biometric login and a home-screen presence that survives OS updates gracefully. In this segment native apps are rare enough to be a differentiator — operators that ship one are signalling investment, and the reviews note it.
What PWAs actually deliver
A well-built PWA installs from the browser, runs full-screen, and plays the same lobby at the same speed — modern web casino clients are built mobile-first regardless. The honest difference is convenience features, not gameplay. A bad PWA, though, is just a slow website with an icon; player reports separate the two, and a weak mobile build shows up in the drawback lines.
Mobile-specific friction to check
KYC on a phone means photographing documents through the operator's flow — clunky implementations turn a five-minute check into a support ticket. Live dealer streams want bandwidth; weak clients drop tables on network switches. And session discipline is harder when the casino lives on your home screen: deposit limits and timeouts exist in every operator here, and they work on mobile too.