The DJs Headlining Las Vegas

Las Vegas Is the DJ Capital of the World

No other city pays DJs the way Las Vegas does, and that is why the headliners you see at the world's biggest festivals spend their weekends here. The Strip megaclubs and dayclubs sign top electronic acts to multi-date residencies, so on almost any given weekend you can catch a Top 10 DJ inside a room built for festival-grade sound and lighting. The names rotate, but the core roster is consistent: Calvin Harris, Tiesto, David Guetta, Martin Garrix, Marshmello, Zedd and Kaskade have all anchored Vegas for years, while a newer wave led by John Summit, Dom Dolla, Fisher, Mau P and Anyma now packs the same rooms. Hip-hop has its own circuit, with Drai's, TAO and Zouk headlining rappers like Lil Wayne, 50 Cent, Snoop Dogg, Tyga and Cardi B for live club sets rather than DJ shows. Pick any name in the directory below to see exactly where they play and how to get in, or read on for how the scene actually works.

EDM Residencies vs Open-Format and Hip-Hop Nights

The first thing to understand is that Vegas clubs split into two camps, and the camp decides the entire night. EDM rooms make the DJ the main event. At XS, Omnia, Hakkasan and Zouk, the dance floor faces a stadium-style booth, the production is built around the drop, and the crowd is there for a specific producer playing house, big-room, melodic or bass for two to three hours. If you want to see John Summit or Tiesto in their element, this is where you go. Open-format and hip-hop rooms work differently. At TAO, Drai's, the Marquee Library and the Heart of Omnia, the DJ mixes hip-hop, Top 40 and throwbacks for a crowd that wants to hear songs they already know, and on the biggest nights a rapper hosts or performs a short live set. Neither is better; they are different nights. A group of dance-music fans should chase an EDM residency, while a bachelorette party or a mixed group that wants sing-alongs is almost always happier in an open-format room. When you are unsure, tell us your music and we will steer you to the right room.

Which DJs Play Which Clubs

Residencies move year to year, but the rooms have clear personalities. XS at Encore and Omnia at Caesars Palace carry the deepest EDM rosters, with David Guetta, Diplo, Marshmello, DJ Snake, Calvin Harris and Illenium among the names that have headlined. Hakkasan at MGM Grand has long been a big-room cathedral for Tiesto, Calvin Harris, Martin Garrix, Hardwell and Steve Aoki, with its Ling Ling floor running hip-hop. LIV at Fontainebleau, the newest megaclub, books a house and open-format blend with Tiesto, David Guetta, John Summit and Dom Dolla. Zouk at Resorts World is the most genre-spanning room, pairing dance acts and bass headliners like Excision and Subtronics with hip-hop nights from Lil Wayne and T-Pain. TAO and Drai's are the hip-hop powerhouses, headlining Snoop Dogg, Tyga, 50 Cent, Nelly and Wiz Khalifa. Daylife matters too: Encore Beach Club, TAO Beach and the pools book Fisher, Dom Dolla, Hugel, Chris Lake and tropical-house anchor Kygo at Palm Tree Beach Club. The full picture is in our DJ residencies guide.

How to Catch a Specific DJ: Tickets vs Guest List vs Table

If there is one DJ you came to Vegas for, the plan changes based on how big the night is. On a normal night, the free or reduced guest list gets you in: ladies are usually free and guys are even-ratio before a cutoff, so the show can cost nothing if you arrive in the roughly 10:30 to 11pm window dressed to code. The catch is that guest list closes early and is never guaranteed once a room fills, so it is the wrong tool for a marquee night. General-admission tickets, roughly $30 to $100 and higher for the biggest names, lock in your entry and are the move when you absolutely cannot miss a headliner but do not want to spend on a table. A VIP table with bottle service is the surest play of all: it skips the line, guarantees entry even on a sold-out night, and puts your group near the booth where the energy is. On EDC weekend, New Year's or a top-three DJ on a Saturday, a table is often the only certain way in. Whichever route fits, give us the DJ and your dates and we arrange it, with the real all-in price up front and no door haggling.

Festival Season and the Busiest Weeks for DJs

Timing your trip around the calendar changes which DJs you can see and what it costs. The peak is EDC Las Vegas in mid-May, when the festival pulls nearly every major name in dance music to town and the clubs and pools stack official and unofficial afterparties with marquee DJs back to back, often at 4am or sunrise. It is the single best week of the year for DJ density and the hardest to get into without planning. Pool season runs roughly March through October, when Encore Beach Club, TAO Beach and Palm Tree Beach Club run their own daytime DJ programming. Holiday weekends, Memorial Day, July 4th and Labor Day, load up on headliners and sell out fast, and New Year's Eve is the biggest, priciest night on the calendar with the top residents all playing. Outside those windows, weekends still deliver strong lineups with shorter lines and friendlier pricing, and a great midweek DJ can beat a generic Saturday. Check our events calendar and DJ schedule against your dates, and book early for any festival or holiday week.