Gamban: what it blocks, what it costs, and where it is free

Gamban is paid blocking software that stops the devices you install it on from opening gambling websites and apps. On its pricing page it costs €2.99 a month or €29.99 a year, after a 7-day free trial, and one licence covers up to fifteen devices. It is free in Wales and in a handful of US states including Michigan, and paid for in England and Scotland. Once installed, you cannot remove it before the term you chose runs out — deliberately, and that is the most important thing to know before buying.

Much of the online advice about Gamban is out of date. Free UK access ended on 31 March 2026, when the TalkBanStop partnership between GamCare, Gamban and GamStop closed. Gamban had distributed over 100,000 free licences through that scheme since December 2020. Its funder, GambleAware, ceased operations, and the replacement commissioning run by the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities excluded Gamban because it is a limited company rather than a charity. Pages telling you to get a free licence from GamCare describe a scheme that no longer exists.

What Gamban blocks, and what it leaves alone

Gamban blocks a fixed set of categories you cannot edit. Its knowledge base lists them explicitly, and the second column matters as much as the first.

Blocking trading and crypto alongside casinos is Gamban's most distinctive choice, and the reason it gives is substitution: people recovering from gambling harm often move the same behaviour onto a volatile market. The consequence catches people out. Gamban states that you cannot keep access to online poker or a trading account while the software is active, so if you hold money or assets on any platform in the left-hand column, withdraw it before you install.

Coverage does not depend on whether a site is licensed. Gamban blocks gambling services regardless of regulatory status, including sites that are illegal in your country, and keeps blocking when you take the device abroad. It says its support team reviews reports of missed sites several times a day and aims to block them within a few hours; if one is still loading 24 hours after you report it, clear your browser cache.

Supported devices: Windows, macOS, Android, iOS — up to fifteen of them

Gamban's compatibility page lists Windows 7 or later, macOS 10.10 or later, Android Lollipop or later, and iOS 9 or later. That last figure is stale in practice: the current App Store build (version 4.5.5, updated 10 August 2026) requires iOS 15.6 or later, so a very old iPhone kept as a spare will not be covered.

One account covers up to fifteen devices, and Gamban confirms a trial account blocks exactly what a paid one does. Three limits shape how you plan a setup: Gamban does not protect smart TVs, it will not install on work-managed iOS devices, and it has no password protection, so a partner cannot install it on your phone for you or lock you out of your own account. The protection comes from the term you commit to, not from someone else holding a key.

Price and free access by country, September 2026

Two caveats. The price you see depends on your currency: at the March 2026 launch in England and Scotland, Gamban quoted £4.99 a month or £29.99 a year, so check the figure at checkout. And the self-serve link Gamban published for Wales, excludenow.com/helplinewales, returned "the promotional code you have used isn't active" when checked on 1 September 2026 — in Wales, use the helpline number rather than the link.

Michigan publishes its offer on a state government page. Kansas describes its own route in Gamban's partner series, dated 5 August 2026, and it runs through a helpline rather than a web form: you call, and the counsellor issues the code. Other states fund similar arrangements through their treatment providers; the national helpline, 1-800-MY-RESET (1-800-697-3738), can tell you what exists where you live.

Installation takes about ten minutes per device

The platforms differ, and the differences explain why installation sometimes fails.

• iPhone and iPad: set Safari as your default browser first, install the app, log in, then download a configuration profile through Safari and approve it in Settings → General → Profile. Work-managed devices will refuse it.
• Android: after logging in the app walks you through four permissions — Accessibility, Device Admin, and a local VPN connection, then a final step. Gamban's own guidance is not to enable the "Gamban shortcut" option in Accessibility settings.
• Windows: remove any other blocking software first, because Gamban will not install alongside one. Run the installer as Administrator, restart, then open check.gamban.com; a correct install shows "You are protected by Gamban".

Full device-by-device screenshots and the equivalent steps for free tools are in our guide to blocking gambling sites on iPhone and Android.

Gamban cannot be uninstalled early, and support will not do it for you

The clearest statement in Gamban's documentation: all installations are final and cannot be removed early, as a core part of its safeguarding approach. Emailing support to say you have recovered will not change it, because Gamban's position is that it cannot tell recovery from an urge. When the licence ends, the software removes itself automatically and protection stops that day.

Cancelling and removing are separate things. To stop a subscription renewing you delete the payment method under "Payment & Subscription" in your dashboard; the block stays in force until the licence lapses, then disappears. So the decision that actually matters is the length of the term you pick at sign-up, made on a calm day rather than a bad night.

Where the protection has gaps, and how to close each one

Gamban protects the devices it is installed on, and nothing else. Three gaps account for most relapses through a blocker, and Gamban's own knowledge base acknowledges the third by asking people who have got around it to contact support.

• An uncovered device. A phone bought tomorrow, a work laptop, a partner's tablet. The licence covers fifteen devices, so install it everywhere in one sitting rather than only on the phone you gamble on today.
• A device that gets wiped or reconfigured. Gamban is built to add friction, not to be unbreakable, and it does not survive every reset on every platform. If that is a realistic risk, have someone you trust set and keep the passcode controlling your device settings, so a 2 a.m. decision needs a conversation first.
• Network-level workarounds. They exist, they are widely discussed, and we are not going to describe them. What defeats them is not a better blocker: it is putting a layer somewhere the device cannot reach.

Those other layers are not optional extras. A gambling block at your bank sits on the money and follows you to any device. An account-level scheme such as GamStop closes your accounts with licensed operators whatever you browse on; our directory of self-exclusion schemes by country covers the equivalent where you live. Gamban says the same in its own documentation: it was never designed as a standalone solution.

"Casinos not on Gamban" is a search you make when the block is working

Those searches exist because blocking works and the urge outlasts it. We do not list the sites. What sits behind the phrase is worth knowing: operators licensed nowhere useful, marketed at people who have taken steps to stop, with no meaningful route to a refund or a complaint. The same economics apply as with casinos not on GamStop.

If you have already found a gambling site that Gamban is not blocking, the useful action is to report it to Gamban's support team, which adds reported sites to the blocklist — usually within hours, according to its own service description. The search itself is a reliable signal that the next hour is a risky one.

Gamban, BetBlocker and GamBlock compared

BetBlocker is the honest answer to "is there a free version of Gamban": free permanently, more platforms, and the same principle that a restriction cannot be lifted on impulse. It does not block trading and crypto as a category. GamBlock goes further on removal resistance and costs more. The content restrictions already built into iOS and Android are a weaker third option, useful stacked on top; our comparison of gambling blocking apps for iOS and Android covers all of them.

Who Gamban suits

Gamban fits if you gamble across several devices, if your risk includes crypto or day-trading apps as well as casinos, and if you want a block you genuinely cannot lift on a bad night. Fifteen devices on one subscription makes it cheap per device for a household.

Start elsewhere if money is tight: BetBlocker is free and will not leave you unprotected when a payment fails. Start elsewhere if the account layer is the real problem, because a blocker does not close accounts you already hold and a national self-exclusion scheme does. If the urge is present right now, a helpline will do more tonight than any installation.