As of 2021, Boyd operates 28 properties with a total of 10,751 hotel rooms and 1,694,482 square feet (157,422.5 m2) of casino space with 31,635 slot machines and 686 table games.

As a result, Nevada regulators turned to the Boyds for help following an investigation of skimming operations at the Stardust and Fremont casinos in the mid-1980s.

Funds from the IPO supplied Boyd Gaming with a source of capital for expansion, and the company embarked on a period of aggressive growth.

Later expansions included: Boyd Gaming's most ambitious expansion project came in 2003, when the company opened the $1.1 billion Borgata Hotel Casino in Atlantic City, N.J. A joint venture with MGM Resorts International, Borgata was the first new casino property to open in Atlantic City in 13 years, and quickly emerged as the market's leading property by gaming revenue.

In 2006, Boyd Gaming turned its focus to what would have been the largest project in its history: Echelon, a $4.8 billion resort complex at the site of the Stardust.

In preparation for the project, Boyd Gaming swapped the Barbary Coast to Harrah's Entertainment in exchange for 24 acres near the Stardust, giving the company an 87-acre parcel on the north end of the Strip.

At the time, Boyd Gaming officials cited "the difficult environment in today's capital markets, as well as weak economic conditions," and estimated construction would resume in three to four quarters.

[12] In November 2012, Boyd acquired Peninsula Gaming, an Iowa-based company with five casinos in the Midwest and South, for $1.45 billion.

[17][18][19] In July 2018, Boyd announced a partnership with MGM Resorts International "to significantly increase each company's market access and customer base throughout the United States."

The partnership is focused on positioning both companies to succeed in the emerging online gambling and sports betting markets in the United States.

[25] On July 13, 2020, Boyd Gaming announced it was laying off at least 25% of its workforce equating to thousands of job losses at its properties nationwide due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States.

[26] In March 2022, Boyd Gaming entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Pala Interactive LLC and its subsidiaries for total cash consideration of $170 million.