California Online Sweepstakes Casinos

This has prompted an increasing number of unregulated offshore online casinos to offer their gambling services to Golden State residents. However, these sites are usually fraudulent and a danger to your money and privacy, so we strongly recommend that you steer clear of them.

The most viable option Californian gambling fans currently have that is both legal and safe is joining a sweepstakes casino. At first glance, these sites look and feel exactly like real money online casinos, as they feature top-notch slots and table games and offer bonuses for new and existing players alike.

However, in contrast to their real-money online counterparts, sweepstakes casinos don’t require that you spend any money to play their games. They use virtual currencies that are given out for free, which makes them perfectly legal even in jurisdictions that don’t allow online gambling, such as California.

Sweepstakes & Real-Money Gambling Laws in California

The state of California has strict laws prohibiting most gambling activities. The only types of gambling permitted in the state are charitable gaming, pari-mutuel wagering on horse racing, the lottery, and cardrooms. All forms of commercial gambling are illegal.

However, this is not to say that the Golden State doesn’t have any commercial casinos. Thanks to the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988, Native American tribes are allowed to conduct real-money gambling on their reservations, even in states that don’t consider gambling legal.

Because of that, most native tribes in California operate at least one gambling venue. The majority of these casinos have Class III gambling licenses — as such, they offer real-money slots and table games, just like the venues you can visit in Vegas.

Sweepstakes casinos represent another legal way of playing online casino games. These California online casinos are able to offer casino-style games despite legal restrictions because they comply with federal sweepstakes laws.

Namely, these sites let players enjoy casino games for free by giving them regular bonuses that provide them with free playing credits. Players are under no obligation to make purchases, but they can do so if they want.

Nevertheless, these legal online casinos still offer players a chance to win some real-money prizes. They can do this by playing in the so-called Premium Mode. This way, they can earn Sweepstakes Coins and exchange them for gift cards or cash prizes.

WOW Vegas Casino

Launched in 2022, WOW Vegas is a relatively new sweepstakes casino available in California. The site is operated by WOW Entertainment Limited, a company registered and licensed by the Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission.

The casino offers more than 400 titles and focuses mainly on slot games. Most of the games in its portfolio have been provided by Pragmatic Play, one of the best game developers in the iGaming industry. In addition to that, the site has also partnered with Betsoft, Booming Games, Habanero, 3 Oaks, and other notable slot providers to create a versatile gaming library.

You can expect to find some popular games here, including The Dog House Multihold, Big Bass Bonanza, and Buffalo King, to name a few.

The operator also offers generous bonuses for newcomers. You’ll get a whopping 5,000 WOW Coins and 1 Sweeps Coin just for signing up via our link. In addition to that, you can take advantage of the 66% first purchase discount and get 1.5 million WOW Coins and 30 Sweeps Coins for only $9.99.

Even if you don’t decide to make a purchase, you’ll have enough virtual currency to play the casino’s games, thanks to its daily log-in promotions that grant you free coins.

Fortune Coins Casino

Fortune Coins is a slots-focused sweepstakes online casino that entered the market in 2022. With its versatile gaming library of more than 170+ casino games, the site offers top-grade slots, jackpots, fish table games, and a few table game titles.

New players at Fortune Coins can take advantage of a no-deposit sign-up offer and claim 100,000 Gold Coins and 200 Fortune Coins right after registration. In addition to that, the casino also rewards players when they verify their phone number, connect through Facebook, opt-in for notifications, and more by giving them up to a whopping 360,000 GC and 1,200 FC.

The casino uses Fortune Coins as its redeemable currency. Every 100 of these can bring you $1 in cash once you accumulate at least 5,000 FC.

In addition to the sign-up offer, you can also get Fortune Coins through daily bonuses, refer-a-friend promotions, and as a bonus when purchasing Gold Coins. In fact, the casino currently has special Gold Coin bundle offers, allowing you to buy 2 million GC for just $2.99 and get 1,000 FC for free.

Fortune Coins is also available on mobile, as it features a fully-optimized mobile website accessible on both Android and iOS devices.

High 5 Casino

High 5 Casino is an outstanding sweepstakes website launched by High 5 Games — a well-known casino game provider. As one would expect, the provider is also one of the main suppliers of the site’s casino games, along with Pragmatic Play, another household name in the iGaming industry.

The casino boasts an impressive gaming portfolio comprising more than 800 different games. In addition to slots, players can also try their hands at table games like roulette, blackjack, and Dragon Tiger. Unlike many other sweepstakes casinos, High 5 Casino also features live dealer games supplied by Vivo Gaming and offers casino titles like blackjack, Texas Hold’em, roulette, and baccarat.

Like other top sweepstakes casinos on our list, High 5 Casino lets players redeem free Sweeps Coins for cash or gift cards. Newly registered players are in for a special treat — 250 Gold Coins, 5 Sweeps Coins, and 600 Diamonds just for creating an account — no purchase and no bonus code necessary.

The Diamonds are a unique element of the casino, as they enable players to activate the Boost on Demand feature. This increases their chances of landing a huge win. In addition, the casino also offers free daily bonuses and other promotions, bringing you even more Diamonds and coins to play with.

In contrast to many other sweepstakes California online casinos, High 5 Casino has standalone mobile apps for both Android and iOS devices and 24/7 customer support via live chat and email.

Other Notable Online Sweepstakes Casinos

Besides our top five Californian sweepstakes casinos, there are other sites worth checking out:

• Stake.us Casino— This crypto casino is a sweepstakes version of the well-known Stake.com. Its rich portfolio features more than 1,000 slots, table games, live dealer games, and arcades. The welcome bonus brings you 250,000 Gold Coins and $25 in Stake Cash just for signing up.
• Sweeptastic Casino — This brand-new sweepstakes casino wows with its 1,000+ title gaming library. It offers top-notch slots, but users can also find a selection of table games like roulette, video poker, blackjack, and baccarat. The brand’s sign-up bonus comprises up to 27,700 Lucky Coins + 10 Sweeps Coins.
• Funrize Casino — Launched in 2023, Funrize is a new addition to the market. It offers top-grade slots and greets new players with a registration bonus worth up to 125,000 Tournament Coins and a 250% coin boost on their first purchase.
• NoLimitCoins Casino — This up-and-coming sweepstakes casino boasts a growing collection of slot games. Its customers receive 100,000 Gold Coins and 1,000 Sweeps Coins when they sign up; plus, they get a 33% bonus on their first purchase.

Free California Online Casinos

In addition to sweepstakes casinos, Californian players have access to another online gambling alternative — free California online casinos or social casinos. Although the terms “social casino” and “sweepstakes casino” are often used interchangeably, these two actually operate rather differently.

Whereas sweepstakes allow you to redeem virtual currency for cash or gift cards, social casinos are more focused on entertainment — as such, they don’t offer the option to collect your winnings.

Just like sweepstakes and real-money online casinos, social casinos may feature slots and table games. However, they usually have additional game types, such as puzzles or casual games.

Social casinos also provide ample opportunities to connect with other players via chat rooms, social media integrations, leaderboards, and even multiplayer games.

Some of the best free online casinos in California include:

• Hard Rock Social Casino
• Wind Creek Social Casino
• BetRivers.net
• MyJackpot.com
• Slotomania

California Casinos

Although Californian laws are quite stringent when it comes to commercial and online gambling, the state is well-known for its tribal casinos and card rooms. In fact, Golden State is the largest Indian gaming market in the US, with 76 Native American casinos generating annual revenues of a whopping $9 billion.

Most of these casinos, 66 to be exact, feature Class III gambling licenses, allowing them to offer Vegas-style slots and table games. This makes them the perfect alternative for the currently non-existent online gambling market.

Let’s take a look at some of the largest tribal casinos in the state:

CA Online Casino Games

The games you can play at sweepstakes online casinos in California look and feel the same as the games offered in real-money online casinos. However, sweepstakes casinos structure their portfolios differently, usually focusing heavily on slots and offering few (if any) table game titles. It’s also a rarity to find a sweepstakes casino with live dealer games.

Slot Games

Online slots make up the largest portion of the majority of sweepstakes casinos’ gaming offers. These portfolios are typically supplied by Pragmatic Play, NetEnt, 3 Oaks, Evoplay, Betsoft, Relax Gaming, Playson, and other renowned providers. Naturally, the offer differs between casinos.

The best sweepstakes sites offer a wide variety of slots. They usually feature popular game categories like Megaways, Hold & Win, Bonus Buy, and more. Slots at sweepstakes casinos also commonly come with exciting features like cascading reels, sticky wilds, multipliers, free spins, and progressive jackpots.

These online casino sites also offer some of the most popular slots available in commercial casinos, including Big Bass Bonanza, Dog House, and Starburst, among others.

Table Games

Table casino games are usually scarce in sweepstakes casinos, if there are any offered at all. You’ll typically find only a handful of titles in this category. Nonetheless, roulette, blackjack, and video poker tend to be player favorites.

High 5 & Stake.us are the two sweeps cash casinos currently offering live dealer games to Californians.

Do Sweepstakes Casinos Pay Real Money?

The short answer is — yes, they do. However, this system works quite differently compared to real-money online casinos.

Namely, promotional sweepstakes sites use two types of virtual currency, usually referred to as Gold Coins (GC) and Sweepstakes Coins (SC). Gold Coins don’t have any monetary value, and they are used to play the operator’s games just for fun. Sweepstakes Coins, on the other hand, do have some value; namely, playing with them can bring you additional SC, which you can later redeem for cash or gift cards.

However, even though you can purchase additional Gold Coins, you cannot buy SC. This is because, according to US sweepstakes laws, you can only receive SC for free as a prize in a giveaway, a part of a promotion, or a bonus after purchasing GC bundles.

We should also note that you can’t redeem these SC right after you claim them — there is usually a playthrough requirement involved. In other words, you can only redeem the ones you win by playing with your free SC.

Every sweepstakes casino determines a minimum redemption threshold and the rate at which these coins can be exchanged for real money. For instance, at Fortune Coins Casino, you must collect at least 5,000 S and each 100 of these brings you $1 in cash.

Alternatively, most sites also allow you to register via Facebook in just a few clicks. However, keep in mind that, according to the latest sweepstakes regulations, you’ll also be required to verify your account. Email and phone verifications have become commonplace, but some sites may also perform further checks. You can find the info about this in the site’s T&C.

Once you collect enough Sweeps Coins, you’ll be able to redeem them for US dollars or gift cards, depending on the casino. The payment methods you can use for redemptions and purchases at most sweepstakes sites include credit cards like Visa and Mastercard, Skrill, Trustly, and Apple Pay, among others.

When it comes to mobile gaming, most sweepstakes casinos don’t have designated mobile apps, but all of them have fully optimized mobile websites. Although apps may be more advantageous when it comes to speed, most mobile sweepstakes sites we tested boast excellent functionality. Plus, their casino games have great graphics and work without a hitch.

CA Online Casino No Deposit Promos

No-deposit promotions are some of the most attractive features of sweepstakes online casinos. The best thing is that these are pretty standard across all US sweepstakes platforms. Since the main premise of the sweepstakes model is free gaming, casinos have to offer these bonuses as a means of providing players with free playing credits.

These no-deposit bonuses usually combine a huge number of Gold Coins and varying amounts of Sweeps Coins. This way, not only do you get the chance to play free casino games for fun, but you can also use the Sweeps Coins to earn redeemable tokens and exchange them for real cash prizes and gift cards without ever spending a dime.

California Online Sweeps Casinos Compared

Need more help deciding which social casino is the right choice for you? Take a look at our comparison table below to make an informed decision.

Will Online Casinos Be Legalized in California?

Whether online casinos will be legalized in California is difficult to predict. The most recent attempts to change some of the online gambling laws in the state were made in November 2022, but they fell through on the ballot.

Propositions 26 and 27 concerned the legalization of online sports betting, and had they been approved, online casinos would likely have been next. Unfortunately, since the state has not budged regarding this topic, we don’t have much to hope for when it comes to online gambling in general.

In any case, we can’t expect any new bids for legalization until after the presidential elections of 2024. In the meantime, Golden State residents are free to play their favorite casino-style games on sweepstakes websites.

Online Sweepstakes Casinos Versus Current Gambling Options

Apart from social and sweepstakes casinos, the only other options to play casino games in California include land-based venues and poker rooms, as well as offshore gambling websites.

While offshore online casino sites may be more convenient, as they let you play remotely, they pose a great danger to your funds and personal information. These sites are frequently not licensed by reputable regulatory bodies, and they haven’t been approved by the California Gambling Control Commission, which means that you don’t get any protection in case of theft or fraud.

Land-based casinos, on the other hand, are fully regulated and legalized institutions that won’t steal your money or misuse your information. What’s more, with so many tribal casinos in the state, you won’t have a problem finding one in your vicinity.

Finally, the revenue from land-based casinos supports CA communities and the local and national economy. Offshore sites often don’t fall under any jurisdiction — as a result, they pay no taxes and use their revenue for unknown, potentially illegal purposes.

All things considered, if real-money gambling is what you’re after, we strongly recommend that you play at local land-based casinos and steer clear of shady and unregulated offshore online casino sites. For online gaming, CA sweepstakes casinos are the only legal alternative right now.