For a long time, only 7 states have allowed online casinos in the US: Connecticut, Delaware, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and West Virginia. It’s an extremely low number, right? Players have been complaining about it for years, with most of them feeling it’s unfair that online sports gambling is legal in 30 states while online casinos are legal in barely any.

Back in 2020, though, a new and exciting type of online casino started to blow up on the internet: the sweepstakes casino. It completely broke the mold and (at long last) players finally had a casino site that could be accessed from 48 different states. The previous restrictions were well and truly over.

In a nutshell, a sweepstakes casino is the same as a regular online casino but with just a few tweaks:

• Players are not allowed to bet real money in sweepstakes casinos. Instead, players use Gold Coins and Sweeps Coins. Because these coins are virtual, it means sweepstakes casinos can legally operate in more states.
• You can win prizes. These prizes typically include cash transfers, cryptocurrencies, and gift cards. And if you’re lucky, you can sometimes receive random giveaways, too.
• All of the games are free-to-play. Whether you want to play slots or roulette, all sweepstakes casinos have free-to-play options. Alternatively, you can play with Sweeps Coins and compete for prizes.

It’s an extremely modern and forward-thinking way to run an online casino, making it especially attractive to Gen and Millenial players, who’ve been signing up in huge numbers. Now, sweepstakes casinos like Stake.us, McLuck, and WOW Vegas are booming with players — and the US casino space is changing for the better.

How Sweepstakes Casinos Have Changed the US Casino Space

Flash forward to 2025 and sweepstakes casinos are more popular than they’ve ever been.

All of the big-name sites have over 1 million registered players.

At the same time, new sweeps cash casinos launched in 2025 are starting to attract new players, too. This has led to there being almost 100 active sweepstakes casinos on the internet, which is impressive when you consider that there were only a handful of sweepstakes casinos around less than a decade ago.

And even pop culture icons — including Drake and Paris Hilton — have signed deals with sweepstakes casinos to promote them, with Drake alone being paid a reported $100 million-per-year via his sponsorship with Stake.us.

So, with the sweepstakes era underway, it’s led to countless players jumping from traditional online casinos to sweepstakes casinos instead. You can’t blame them, either. After all, the benefits they get are endless.

Essentially, what sweepstakes casinos have done is create a new and exciting type of casino gaming culture. The focus is no longer about betting money to try and win some back in return. Now, it’s all about having fun, connecting with other players, and winning prizes when you can.

The toxic culture associated with classic online casinos — where players have spent countless hours trying to recoup the money they’ve bet — has been completely removed by sweepstakes casinos. Unsurprisingly, this has led to them reaching the level of popularity they’re currently at.

🎉 A Risk-Free Gaming Experience

What’s the number one reason people don’t like traditional online casinos? The financial risk. For example, joining a site like BetMGM typically means you’re going to be spending money on the slot machines, blackjack tables, and all of the other games. But with sweepstakes casinos like Chumba and WOW Vegas, you don’t have to bet a single penny. Remember, all of the games are free-to-play when you use Gold Coins, so you can sit back, relax, and focus on what’s most important: the gameplay. This is a positive change that the wider casino industry had desperately needed for a long time, so sweepstakes casinos finally delivered it.

💰 You Can Still Win Prizes

Because sweepstakes casinos are free-to-play and don’t let you bet real money, there’s a slight misconception that you can’t win prizes there. This is false. Whether you join Pulsz, WOW Vegas, or any of the other leading sweepstakes casinos, you can win prizes. The way this works is that you play with Sweeps Coins, build a collection of them, and then hit the prize redemption button, making the experience exciting for both casual and competitive players.

👥 Players Get to Connect with Each Other

Most of today’s sweepstakes casino sign-ups are Gen Z and Millenials. When it comes to gaming, most players from these generations want to play so that they can connect with others. This is exactly what sweepstakes casinos allow them to do, offering chat rooms, free-to-enter tournaments, leaderboards, and more. You typically don’t get those types of features on traditional gambling sites, so Gen Z and Millenials have become hooked on sweepstakes casinos instead.

🎰 Hundreds of Games Are Available

Another impressive thing about sweepstakes casinos is that most of them bring hundreds of games to the table (literally). For example, if you take a look at McLuck’s library, you’ll find close to 2,000 casino games to pick from, including video slots, live dealer games, and more. Plus, these games typically come from all the major software providers — we’re talking the likes of Pragmatic Play and Evolution Gaming — so you’re pretty much getting exactly the same games as regular online casinos, too. So if you were worried about missing out on Sugar Rush or any of the other popular slots by joining a sweepstakes casino, there’s nothing to worry about.

💪 Responsible Gambling Is Encouraged

Sweepstakes casinos are now being used by players who have previously struggled with gambling problems. In a nutshell, these players still get to enjoy their favourite casino games (e.g. slots) but they’re no longer allowed to bet real money. This keeps them safe, secure, and away from problem gambling, making sweepstakes casinos the perfect safe gambling alternative.

Will Sweepstakes Casinos Be Around for the Long-Term Future?

Since 2020, the US casino space has undergone a major cultural shift because of sweepstakes casinos. Players are now focussed on having fun and redeeming prizes rather than chasing real money, which has been great to witness. However, traditional online casinos aren’t happy that their players are being stolen away from them, so this has led to the American Gaming Association (AGA) lobbying on their behalf for something to be done about it. At the same time, a small number of players have filed lawsuits against sweepstakes casinos claiming that they’re deceptive gambling sites that pretend they’re not. Ultimately, it’s led to growing pressure on sweepstakes casinos that could negatively impact them in the future.

Looking at the bigger picture, the most likely outcome is that the law surrounding sweepstakes casinos will change over the 10 years. Remember, sweepstakes casinos are currently allowed to operate in 48 states, whereas classic online casinos are only allowed in 7 states. Individual states might look at sweepstakes casinos, decide that they are technically still gambling sites, and impose legal restrictions on them. What this would mean is that the number of states that sweepstakes casinos are currently allowed to operate would drastically be reduced.

There’s also a strong chance that lawmakers will decide to regulate sweepstakes casinos much harder. The benefit for them is that this means they can collect more tax revenue. This is more likely to happen than having sweepstakes casinos banned altogether. After all, sweepstakes casinos are great money-makers and states won’t want to miss out on that.

It’s worth mentioning, though, that sweepstakes casino fans don’t need to panic just yet. It’s entirely possible that zero changes to the law will be made in the short or long-term future. After all, sweepstakes casinos are a much safer alternative to traditional online casinos. This is something that state lawmakers themselves are more than aware of, so they won’t want to make players unhappy.

Final Thoughts

Sweepstakes casinos have had an amazing impact on the US casino space: that’s for sure. They’ve removed traditional gambling culture and created a new type of experience where it’s all about enjoying yourself and having fun with other players, so this will hopefully continue for years to come. For now at least, this new type of casino will continue to dominate the gaming charts, with Chumba Casino, Stake,us, and countless others attracting new players every single day. Changes could still be made to state laws could be coming in the future — but the sweepstakes party looks set to continue until then.