Concerns were common when online casinos first emerged in the 1990s, with little to no regulation for players’ protection. Such issues have been amended, with regulatory bodies and third-party bodies overseeing the games and practices of gambling operators.

Today, there are elements to look out for at an online casino. If these are met, there is no way a casino can cheat you, treat you unfairly, or rob you of your cash without getting fines and backlash.

Similar concerns and reassurances are linked with sweepstake casinos. Although such operators are less regulated, but still legal, than real money operators, there are certain aspects to consider when weighing their legitimacy. Ultimately, you should never register your information or spend money on an operator you aren’t 100% certain about.

The following page provides a list of sweepstake casino sites and apps that you should avoid at all costs. We entail the aspects that forced our hand to include these names in our blacklist, while also providing you with a list of legit and safe sweepstake casinos to play.

Aspects that define blacklisted sweepstake casinos

Sweepstake casinos offer optional real money gaming and are therefore subject to less regulation than real money online casinos. Social casinos are subject to even less control.

Still, our focus on this page is on sweepstake casinos, since they support both free and real money play under sweepstakes laws. Such casinos are only legal and operational in the USA and Canada.

Areas that our team considers when conducting sweepstake casino reviews include:

• Reputation
• Casino Games
• Payments
• Security
• Modes of Play
• Safety
• License
• Customer Support
• Compatibility
• User Reviews
• Operating Company

Areas where sweepstake casinos are less regulated than online casinos include:

• No need for an iGaming license
• Games do not need to be sourced by licensed or third-party gaming vendors, leaving space for proprietary casino-style games
• Can accept players from nearly all states
• The minimum age to play can be 18 and not 21
• Gambling limits and support are optional

Below, we expand on the factors that can lead our team to believe that a sweepstake casino is not legit, and therefore placed on our blacklist.

Operating Company and Reputation

Sweepstake casinos must be registered under a legal US company with headquarters in the US. Details of the owner must be clearly listed on the online sweepstake casino, with specifics about its company address and registration number.

Patented Games and Proven Results

We did mention that sweepstake casinos can power their own games instead of relying on companies like Playtech and NetEnt for distribution. That’s because there is no need for a license to operate a sweepstake casino.

Still, we like to see sweepstakes sites sourcing their games from renowned companies that power real money online casinos. That’s not unheard of, with sites like Chumba Casino having Playtech games, Stake.us featuring Hacksaw Gaming titles, and Pulsz Sister Casinos operating with Pragmatic Play titles.

These are just a few examples. More iGaming vendors power sweepstake casinos, and since their games are licensed and tested in various jurisdictions, they add to the legitimacy of the site.

Payments

Safe and secure payment processors are paramount. No purchase is necessary to play at these sites, but gold coin purchases are quite common with players.

Options like Visa, MasterCard, Skrill, Trustly, PayPal, and reputable prepaid cards build our confidence about a sweepstake casino being legit and secure to transact at.

Sweeps Rules and Laws

The sweepstake casino terms and conditions are thoroughly reviewed by our review team.

• Washington and Idaho must be out of reach for sweepstake casinos, with further restrictions placed at the discretion of the operator.
• Age limits and KYC procedures must be in place to show that the casino sticks to sweeps laws.
• Bonuses, purchases, and redemption rules must be fair and without complicated or hidden terms.
• No purchase must be necessary, with regular offers (mail, daily login, sign-up bonuses) adding free credits to players’ accounts.
• Two currencies must be employed for play, without any USD play at legit sweeps cash casinos. Such coins must be redeemable for cash for a social casino to be listed as a sweepstakes site.

Unless the above are met to the letter, a sweepstake casino is not recommended by us.

Safety and Security

The websites and apps must be officially registered and not accepted through HTTP or APKs. Otherwise, your personal and financial information might be breached.

Players must be also provided with routes to ask for help. These must be clearly outlined on the website or apps, including options like live chat, phone support, or email contacts.

To the same end, betting limits and links to support groups must be placed prominently at the sweepstake casino so that you can find help if you need to.

User Reviews

Although a less formal way to review a casino, player testimonials on public forums, our pages’ comment sections, and the app stores can shed light on the practices of a sweepstake casino.

If we notice concerning patterns of unpaid winnings or lack of support, we take them seriously and warn you against a sweepstake casino.

Online sweepstake casinos to avoid

Our reviews cover way more areas than the ones listed above concerning security, safety, and legitimacy. However, areas like bonuses, variety of games, accessibility, and user experience are secondary. First, we ensure a sweepstake casino sticks to current laws and meets all security aspects to be recommended.

Some operators, despite being popular with players, do not pass the mark. The following sweepstake casinos work together and are provided via APKs and software aggregators. Payments via Bitcoin are only available there, with a handful of proprietary slots and fish games that can be rigged against users. They also fail to list essential information regarding registration, logins, banking, bonuses, and operating company.

As a result, they have been blacklisted by our team and should be avoided:

• BitBetWin
• Riversweeps
• Orion Stars
• SkillMine
• TigerisHome
• Vegas-X Casino
• Vegas7Games
• Fire Kirin
• BitPlay
• WebSweeps
• Lucky Charms
• Paradise Sweepstakes
• Golden Dragon
• 7Skill.net Casino
• WebStoreUS.net Casino
• SkillTX
• Isabella Sweeps Casino
• Ocean Sweeps
• VBlink
• JK Sweepstakes

Stay safe with these sweepstakes casinos

Such sweepstake casinos may stain the up-and-coming operators that are sweeping the nation.

Legit sweepstake casinos are not hard to find on sites like ours. We have reviewed all online sweepstake casinos in the US, and the following are the ones that score highly. You can find more sweepstake casino reviews here, and our complete list of operators from this link.

For our top ten sweeps cash casinos, check the following list:

• WOW Vegas Casino
• Stake.us Casino
• Pulsz Casino
• Global Poker
• Fortune Coins Casino
• Chumba Casino
• Funrize Casino
• Skillz Games
• Tao Fortune
• NoLimitCoins

Summary

You can always go about searching for your favorite sweepstake casino online. If you do, ensure that you keep in mind the safety and security aspects discussed on this page.

We recommend testing all sweepstake casino platforms using the no deposit bonuses, and only making a purchase on sites that are proven by time and recommended by us or other players.

This will ensure you get the most out of what sweepstake casino sites bring to the table.