California sweepstakes laws allow sweeps casinos to operate in the Golden State. The casinos featured here at OnlineSweeps all operate as sweepstakes gaming sites, a category of gaming that’s legal in most of the U.S.
More than 60 legitimate sweepstakes casinos offer games in California. This article outlines the legality of sweepstakes gaming in California, including tax laws, sweepstakes rules, and top casinos available for California players.
Quick snapshot of California’s status
| Available in California: | Yes |
| # of sweeps / social casinos: | 60+ |
| Are winnings taxed: | No |
| Max prize payout: | N/A |
| Minimum age: | 18 |
| Last updated: | November 2024 |
Are sweepstakes casinos legal in California?
Yes. California law permits sweepstakes casinos. That means if you’re a California resident, and/or you want to play at a sweeps casino while physically located in California, you can do so.
Sweeps casinos fall under the broader category of sweepstakes gaming, a form of gaming that’s legal in most U.S. states.
While sweepstakes laws across different states tend to be pretty similar, you will see some differences from state to state in terms of tax laws (on the state level).
Let’s take a look at the basics of California sweepstakes gaming:
- Legal age: 18. Players are required to verify their age and identity via Know Your Customer (KYC) checks at most legitimate sweeps casinos.
- Prize payout restrictions: There are no limits on sweepstakes casino payouts in California. You get to keep the full amount of whatever jackpots and/or bets that you win when you’re playing from California. By contrast, New York and Florida put a $5,000 max limit on sweepstakes wins.
- Taxable income: Players are required to pay federal taxes on all sweepstakes winnings over $5,000. That could mean a single jackpot that you redeem for $5,000 or more, or cumulative winnings of $5,000 or more in a calendar year. The estimated federal tax on sweepstakes winnings is 24%, but your actual tax obligation depends on your total income for the year, with any sweepstakes or other gambling winnings included.
Top sweepstakes casinos in California
If you’re in California and you’re looking for a legit sweeps casino, you’re in luck! More than 60 sweepstake casinos offer their services in the state.
The experts here at OnlineSweeps recommend the following platforms as the best sweeps casinos available in California:
1. Wow Vegas
Wow Vegas is one of our favorite platforms and is one of a handful of sweepstakes casinos that sets the gold standard for the entire industry.
If you love slots, you’ll love the game menu at Wow Vegas. The selection includes more than 1,300 games, and many of those games are slot titles.
The lineup of slots includes some of the most popular games in the U.S. market. You’ll find casino favorites like Sugar Rush, Slingo, the Megaways series, and many more.
The game list includes collaborations with top developers like BGaming, Pragmatic Play, and several others. While it’s great to see the industry’s top slots on display at Wow Vegas, some of our favorite games at this casino come from the Wow Exclusive series, which you won’t find at any other site.
The variety of purchase options and the bonuses available at Wow Vegas put this casino at the top of the list in both of those categories. Be sure to use our promo code XXXXX when signing up for a Wow Vegas account and unlock 5 SC free.
2. Hello Millions
While it’s one of the newer sweepstakes casinos to launch in the U.S., Hello Millions is already a top-flight platform and one of our top recommendations for California players.
You’ll find more than 500 games at Hello Millions, including slots, live dealer games, and other unique titles. The software developers behind those games include industry titans like Relax Gaming, NetEnt, RubyPlay, and several others.
The slot selection at Hello Millions includes jackpot slots that can hit for six-figure sums or higher. Look for those titles under the Pragmatic Jackpot Play filter in the game menu.
The no-deposit bonus and series of purchase bonuses available for new players make Hello Millions a must-try.
You can unlock 2.5 SC as a no-deposit bonus when you sign up at Hello Millions. Once you’ve registered, you can then take advantage of a trio of purchase bonuses that award 115 SC free when you purchase $69.97 in Gold Coins packages.
3. Stake.us
Stake.us is the U.S.-facing version of Stake Casino, one of the most popular online casinos in the world. Note that Stake.us and Stake Casino are completely separate platforms, so be sure you’re signing up for Stake.us if you want to play from California.
Much like the original Stake Casino, Stake US is quite possibly the best overall sweeps casino you’ll find. The game menu, sign-up bonus, and VIP Rewards program compel our experts here at OnlineSweeps to hold a very high opinion of Stake US.
The game selection (with 700+ titles and counting) includes slots from Pragmatic Play, Hacksaw Gaming, and many other top developers. You’ll also find a slew of unique titles in the Stake Originals series, which is a collection of games developed in-house that you won’t find anywhere else.
Stake US is crypto-only in terms of purchases and redemptions for now. Available cryptocurrencies include Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin, Ripple, and a few others. While debit/credit cards and bank transfers aren’t on the list of payment methods yet, we expect Stake US to add those options soon.
The welcome bonus at Stake US nets you 25 SC free just for signing up. You can also unlock an additional 30 SC free if you claim the daily login bonus each day for the first 30 days after you register for a new account.
4. Modo.us
Launched in California in 2023 by parent company ARB Gaming LLC, Modo.us offers a smooth user experience, solid game lineup, and an impressive lineup of software partners.
That list of developers includes Booming Games, Hacksaw Gaming, Pragmatic Play, and several other top software companies. The game menu includes slots, live dealer games, scratchers, and arcade-style games.
California players will find more than 900 total games available at Modo.us, and we expect that number to continue growing. The Modo.us game menu offers enough variety to appeal to just about every player type, and slot enthusiasts in particular should find plenty to enjoy about this platform.
Modo.us presents an expanded menu of payment options compared to some other sweeps casinos, which is a big plus.
We consider Modo.us to be an up-and-coming sweeps casino platform, and one to keep in mind if you’re looking for easy access to casino games and a casual gaming experience.
5. Chanced Casino
Rounding out our list of recommended California sweepstakes casinos, Chanced Casino is in contention for the most well-rounded sweeps casino in the U.S. industry.
Despite its status as a relative newcomer to the sweepstakes scene, Chanced Casino already boasts an impressive library of games, most of which come from top developers like Evoplay, Pragmatic Play, and BGaming.
You’ll find more than 1,000 games total at Chanced Casino, with categories including slots, live dealer games, traditional table games, and more.
The sign-up bonus at Chanced Casino comes in the form of a no-deposit offer that yields 2 SC free and 20 free spins. The free spins component of the welcome bonus gives players some nice extra value.
Other perks at Chanced Casino include a robust, multi-tiered VIP rewards program and multiple first-purchase bonuses to choose from.
California gambling laws: quick snapshot
California doesn’t currently allow any form of traditional real-money online gambling. While online sports betting and/or casino gaming might eventually get the green light in California, that date is likely still pretty far away.
California’s complex gaming industry and lack of public enthusiasm for online gambling legalization create an uphill battle for any kind of meaningful legislation to pass any time soon. A pair of online sports betting measures failed on the November 2022 ballot, and we’re likely looking at 2026 at the earliest for online gambling approval to go to a public vote again.
It’s important to note that sweepstakes gaming and traditional real-money online gambling fall into separate categories from a legal perspective. Sweepstakes casinos are currently legal in California and offer a great alternative to full-scale, real-money online gambling.
Sweepstakes casinos offer a very similar form of entertainment to traditional online casinos. There are a few key differences, however, which we’ll cover in the next section.
California sweepstake rules and restrictions
Sweepstakes casinos that wish to operate in California must meet the state’s laws a regulations for sweepstakes gaming sites.
Those rules include:
A sweepstakes casino must offer ways for players to enter the sweepstakes games with no purchase or payment necessary. Within a casino’s terms and conditions, you’ll see a message that reads like this:
“No purchase or payment of any kind is necessary to enter or win this sweepstakes.”
Sweeps casinos abide by that statement by offering the following ways to obtain “Sweeps Coins” (credits that can be used for play in sweepstakes games with cash prizes on the line):
- No-purchase (no-deposit) offers
- Social media giveaways
- Daily login bonuses
These methods allow players to fully participate in the sweepstakes games at a casino with no purchase necessary.
All sweepstakes contests, under California law, must provide the “Official Rules” of the sweepstakes.
As this relates to sweepstakes casinos, you can always find these rules under the “Sweepstakes Rules” section. Look for a link to a site’s sweepstakes rules in the footer or side menu of the main lobby.
The sweepstakes rules outline how a site’s Gold Coins (GC) and Sweeps Coins (SC) games work, as well as how SC redemptions for cash prizes are handled.
Sweepstakes games, sites, and contests can’t legally solicit players using language like “specially selected” or anything similar. According to California sweepstakes laws:
“Specially Selected means a representation that a person is a winner, a finalist, in first place or tied for first place, or otherwise among a limited group of persons with an enhanced likelihood of receiving a prize.”
In other words, if you receive any kind of communication from a sweepstakes that implies that you’ve already won something, can claim your prize by following next steps, etc., that sweepstakes is operating illegally.
A “Sweepstakes Sponsor” is defined as the operator or administrator of a sweepstakes. By California law, a sweepstakes sponsor can’t “charge a fee as a condition of receiving a monetary distribution or obtaining information about a prize or sweepstakes.”
California sweepstakes at the Federal level
The 47 states that allow sweepstakes casinos essentially follow the same set of federal sweepstakes laws. There are some differences in sweepstakes laws on the state level, mostly pertaining to state taxes on winnings.
In general, sweepstakes are legal on a federal level by meeting the following criteria:
- A sweepstakes is a promotion in which prizes are awarded by chance rather than skill
- Sweepstakes can’t require a purchase as a condition for entry
- Sweepstakes must have official rules, and those rules can’t change once the contest has begun
- Sweepstakes winnings of $5,000 or more are subject to a 24% estimated income tax on the federal level
In addition to the 24% estimated federal tax, some states require players to pay state income tax. New York and Florida cap the maximum possible sweepstakes win at $5,000.
Final thoughts
Sweepstakes casinos offer the best alternative for players looking for online casino-style action in the Golden State.
Keep in mind that while sweeps casinos do offer casino-style gaming, they don’t operate in the same category as full-scale, real-money online casinos in a legal sense. You can’t directly deposit money at a sweepstakes casino, and you can always find ways to obtain Sweeps Coins for free.
The California sweeps casino industry continues to grow at a rapid rate, and we don’t expect that to slow down any time soon.