Verticals / Social casino
Social casino
Social casinos are legal and live in 37 states and DC, as of Oct 11, 2026.
Free-to-play social casino with no prize redemption.
LiveLegal, not launchedLimitedContestedProhibitedNot authorizedRepealedNA
By state
| State | Status | Launched | Model | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Live | Free-to-play social casino apps (no cash-value prize redemption) operate nationwide, including Alabama, without state authorization because they fall outside the statutory definition of gambling (staking something of value for a chance at a thing of value); no Alabama-specific statute or enforcement action targets them. | ||
| Alaska | Live | Free-to-play apps with no cash prize or redemption path are not "gambling" under §11.66.280(3)'s definition, which requires staking "something of value" (defined in §11.66.280(11) as money, property, or something exchangeable for them) on a chance outcome. | ||
| Arizona | Live | Pure free-to-play social casino apps (no cash-value prize or sweeps-coin redemption) fall outside A.R.S. § 13-3301's "gambling" definition, which requires risking something of value for a chance at a benefit; such apps are not separately licensed or banned. Dual-currency sweepstakes-casino products that redeem for cash are tracked separately under sweepstakes_casino (contested). | ||
| California | Live | AB 831 (2025) targets dual-currency online sweepstakes casinos specifically (see sweepstakes_casino); its text and coverage do not extend to pure free-to-play social casino apps with no prize redemption (e.g. non-sweeps social slots), which remain outside the gambling definition because nothing of value is at stake. Applying the dataset's established national convention that such apps are operational absent a state-specific restriction; no specific statute or regulator statement directly addressing that narrower pure-social-casino category was identified. | ||
| Colorado | Live | Free-to-play social casino apps with no cash-value prize redemption fall outside Colorado's gambling definition (no thing of value risked for a chance at a thing of value) and are not separately licensed or banned; applying this database's national convention for pure social casino. | ||
| Connecticut | Live | Pure free-to-play social casinos with no cash-prize redemption (e.g. Hard Rock's Jackpot Planet) operate in Connecticut outside the gambling definition; this is distinct from the dual-currency sweepstakes-casino model that Public Act 25-112 (SB 1235, eff. 2025-10-01) bans (see sweepstakes_casino). | ||
| District of Columbia | Live | Pure free-to-play social casino apps with no cash-value prize redemption fall outside D.C. Code § 22-1704's gambling-device definition (which requires a thing of value staked on chance) and operate without DC-specific restriction; distinct from the dual-currency sweepstakes-casino model (see sweepstakes_casino). | ||
| Georgia | Live | Free-to-play social casino apps with no cash prize redemption fall outside Georgia's definition of a "bet" (an agreement to win or lose something of value), so they are not restricted as gambling. | ||
| Hawaii | Live | Free-to-play apps with no cash prize or redemption path fall outside the "something of value" gambling definition; not separately licensed or regulated. | ||
| Idaho | Live | Free-to-play, no-cash-prize social casino apps fall outside §18-3801's gambling definition, which requires risking value "for gain"; not separately licensed or regulated. | ||
| Indiana | Live | Pure free-to-play, no-prize-redemption social casino apps fall outside Indiana's gambling definition (IC 35-45-5-2 requires risking something of value for gain). Indiana's 2026 sweepstakes ban targets prize-redeemable dual-currency products (Gold Coins/Sweeps Coins) and does not reach no-prize social casino play; no statute or regulator statement restricting pure social casino apps specifically was located. | ||
| Iowa | Live | No Iowa statute or IRGC/DIA action targets pure free-to-play social casino apps with no cash-value prize redemption; Iowa's 2026 sweepstakes-enforcement law (SF 2289, see sweepstakes_casino) targets dual-currency sweepstakes and unlicensed real-wager gambling, not no-prize social casino play. Iowa Code ch. 99B separately regulates non-prize "social gambling" among players, a related but distinct concept from branded social-casino apps. | ||
| Kansas | Live | No Kansas statute or KRGC action addresses free-to-play, no-cash-prize social casino apps; Kansas's general approach to sweepstakes-style products (see sweepstakes_casino) has likewise not resulted in any enactment reaching pure social casino play, which falls outside Kansas's gambling definition absent a thing of value staked for gain. | ||
| Maine | Live | Free-to-play, no-cash-prize social casino apps fall outside Maine's gambling/wager definitions and are unregulated. | ||
| Massachusetts | Live | Free-to-play, no-prize-redemption social casino apps are not regulated as gambling in Massachusetts and operate without MGC/AG licensing, consistent with the general exclusion of no-purchase, no-cash-prize sweepstakes-style promotions from the gambling statutes. | ||
| Michigan | Live | Pure free-to-play, no-cash-prize-redemption social casino apps are not regulated as gambling in Michigan and are not targeted by MGCB enforcement, which has instead focused specifically on apps that let users buy in and cash out real money (e.g. the Oct. 2024 cease-and-desist to Papaya Gaming's 21 Cash, Bingo Cash, Bubble Cash, and Solitaire Cash apps, cited under the Lawful Internet Gaming Act and the Michigan Penal Code's unauthorized-gambling prohibition). A tracker source notes Michigan has not adopted legislation specifically limiting social or sweepstakes-casino operations as some other states have, and that applying existing law to pure social casino play (no purchase, no cash-out) has not been tested in Michigan courts. | ||
| Minnesota | Live | No Minnesota-specific statute or enforcement action was identified targeting pure free-to-play, no-cash-prize social casino apps, consistent with the general pattern across states of excluding no-purchase, no-cash-redemption sweepstakes-style play from gambling definitions; Minnesota's own sweepstakes-casino vertical notes the state has not enacted sweepstakes-specific legislation either way. | ||
| Missouri | Live | Free-to-play social casino apps with no cash-redeemable prizes are not "gambling" under Missouri's chance-plus-consideration-plus-prize definition and are not separately regulated. | ||
| Montana | Live | SB 555's 2025 "internet gambling" definition exempts online casino-style platforms that "do not allow the use of currency of any kind," i.e., free-to-play social casino apps with no purchase/redemption path. | ||
| Nebraska | Live | Competitive | No Nebraska statute, NRGC rule, or AG action restricts free-to-play social casino apps with no cash-redeemable prize; such apps fall outside Nebraska's gambling definition (which requires risking something of value for a chance at a thing of value) and are treated as operational nationally, consistent with the research guide's default for this vertical. | |
| Nevada | Live | Free-to-play, no-prize-redemption social casino apps fall outside NRS 463's gambling/gaming-device definitions (no thing of value is risked or won) and are not treated as licensed gambling by the Gaming Control Board; applying this database's national convention for pure social casino. | ||
| New Hampshire | Live | Free-to-play, no-cash-prize social casino apps are not within RSA 647:2's gambling definition (no real risk of monetary loss/gain) and are not licensed or regulated. | ||
| New Jersey | Live | Free-to-play social casino apps with no cash-value prize redemption are not gambling under NJ law and are unregulated; NJ's 2025 sweepstakes-casino ban (P.L.2025, c.128) expressly carved out promotions with no purchase requirement and prizes capped at $20, preserving conventional social casino. | ||
| New Mexico | Live | Free-to-play, no-prize-redemption social casino apps are not known to be restricted; New Mexico's criminal "bet" definition (30-19-1 NMSA 1978) requires an agreement where parties "agree that, dependent upon chance...the other party will become entitled to receive" money or property, which free-to-play social casino play does not involve. | ||
| New York | Live | Free-to-play social casino apps with no cash-value prize redemption are not "gambling" under NY Penal Law § 225.00 (no staking of "something of value" on a chance outcome) and are unregulated. | ||
| North Dakota | Live | Competitive | North Dakota's gambling definition (N.D.C.C. § 12.1-28-01) requires risking something of value on an uncertain event for a return of value; pure free-to-play social casino apps with no cash-redeemable prize fall outside that definition and are not addressed by any ND-specific restriction. No North Dakota statute, AG opinion, or enforcement action limiting free-to-play social casino apps was identified; they are treated as operational nationally outside the gambling definition, consistent with the research guide's default for this vertical. | |
| Oklahoma | Live | Competitive | No Oklahoma-specific statute, AG opinion, or enforcement action restricts free-to-play social casino apps with no cash-redeemable prize; such apps fall outside Oklahoma's gambling definition (risking something of value on a game of chance for a thing of value) and are treated as operational nationally, consistent with the research guide's default for this vertical. Oklahoma's new sweepstakes-casino ban (SB 1589, effective Nov. 1, 2026) targets dual-currency games that risk "representatives of value," not pure free-to-play social casino with no prize redemption. | |
| Oregon | Live | Pure free-to-play, no-cash-prize social casino apps fall outside ORS 167.117(7)'s "gambling" definition, which requires staking something of value on a chance outcome; applying the dataset's established national convention that such apps are operational absent a state-specific restriction, and no Oregon statute or regulator statement restricts this category. | ||
| Rhode Island | Live | Competitive | No Rhode Island statute, Lottery Division rule, or AG action restricts free-to-play social casino apps with no cash-redeemable prize; such apps fall outside the state's gambling definition and are treated as operational nationally, consistent with the research guide's default for this vertical. | |
| South Carolina | Live | Competitive | Free-to-play, no-cash-prize social casino apps are not "gambling" under South Carolina's consideration/prize-based definitions and operate nationally, including in SC, without state-specific licensing or restriction. | |
| South Dakota | Live | Competitive | No South Dakota statute, Commission on Gaming rule, or AG action restricts free-to-play social casino apps with no cash-redeemable prize; such apps fall outside South Dakota's gambling definition (SDCL ch. 22-25, which like the Commission's other gaming statutes requires risking something of value for a chance at a thing of value) and are treated as operational nationally, consistent with the research guide's default for this vertical. | |
| Tennessee | Live | Competitive | Tennessee's 2026 sweepstakes-casino ban (SB 2136/HB 1885, see sweepstakes_casino) targets virtual-currency systems that can be exchanged for cash or real-world prizes; its sponsor, Sen. Ferrel Haile, stated on the record that "this bill does not make free games illegal. It primarily targets operation for real money that is being used." No Tennessee statute, AG action, or enforcement action restricts free-to-play social casino apps with no cash-redeemable prize; such apps are treated as operational nationally, consistent with the research guide's default for this vertical. | |
| Texas | Live | Competitive | Texas Penal Code ch. 47 requires consideration (a bet of something of value) as an element of gambling; pure free-to-play social casino apps with no purchase requirement and no cash/prize redemption lack consideration and a redeemable prize, distinguishing them from the dual-currency sweepstakes-casino model that remains contested in Texas (see sweepstakes_casino) precisely because purchasable virtual currency can reintroduce consideration. No Texas statute, AG opinion, or enforcement action restricts true free-to-play social casino apps; treated as operational nationally, consistent with the research guide's default for this vertical. | |
| Utah | Live | Free-to-play social casino apps with no cash-redeemable prize fall outside the "gambling" and "fringe gambling" definitions (which require a prize/return of value), so they operate unregulated; several sweepstakes-casino operators sued in Utah in 2025 marketed themselves as this category before being targeted under the dual-currency sweepstakes definition instead. | ||
| Vermont | Live | Free-to-play, no-cash-prize social casino apps fall outside 13 V.S.A. ch. 51's gambling definition and are unregulated. | ||
| Washington | Live | Applying the dataset's established national convention that pure free-to-play social casino apps (no cash-value prize redemption) are operational absent a state-specific restriction, since nothing of value is staked; no Washington statute or regulator statement restricts this narrower category (WSGC guidance and enforcement target real-money/cash-value platforms specifically). | ||
| Wisconsin | Live | Competitive | No Wisconsin statute, DOA Division of Gaming rule, or AG action restricts free-to-play social casino apps with no cash-redeemable prize; such apps fall outside Wisconsin's constitutional gambling prohibition (which bans games played for "something of value," not pure free play) and are treated as operational nationally, consistent with the research guide's default for this vertical. | |
| Wyoming | Live | The Gaming Commission's 2025 warning targets real-money payouts specifically; free-to-play, no-cash-prize social casino apps are not described as targeted. | ||
| Arkansas | Contested | No Arkansas-specific cease-and-desist letter or lawsuit against a sweepstakes-casino operator (VGW, Stake.us, etc.) was identified, unlike Louisiana, Mississippi, and several other states. However, VGW has been collecting state sales tax on Gold Coin (non-sweepstakes) purchases in Arkansas since mid-2025 per industry reporting listing Arkansas among states "already enforcing" VGW sales-tax collection, suggesting continued VGW operation in the state rather than a market exit. Pure free-to- play (no sweepstakes-coin) social casino apps were not separately addressed in sources reviewed. | ||
| Florida | Contested | Pure free-to-play social casino apps with no cash-out mechanism were not directly addressed in the statutes reviewed. However, dual-currency "sweepstakes" social casinos that let players redeem a second, promotional currency for cash (VGW's Chumba Casino/LuckyLand, Stake.us) are now the direct target of Florida AG litigation (filed Aug. 19, 2026) alleging they are unlicensed real-money casinos notwithstanding their "free"/sweepstakes framing; see sweepstakes_casino. A pre-existing private suit (Knapp v. VGW Holdings, M.D. Fla.) raises the same theory. | ||
| Louisiana | Contested | Pure free-to-play social casino apps with no cash-out mechanism were not directly addressed in the statutes reviewed. Dual-currency sweepstakes-model social casinos are now directly prohibited by statute (see sweepstakes_casino); whether single-currency, no-cash-prize social casino apps remain permitted was not separately addressed by the AG opinion, the 2025 cease-and-desist letters, or the 2026 HB 883/HB 53 statutory amendments reviewed. | ||
| Mississippi | Contested | Pure free-to-play social casino apps with no cash-out mechanism were not directly addressed in statutes reviewed. Dual-currency sweepstakes-model social casinos are the subject of active MGC enforcement and private litigation; see sweepstakes_casino. VGW's brands continue to operate in Mississippi as traditional (single-currency, no-cash-prize) social casinos following the 2025 Sweeps Coins wind-down. | ||
| Delaware | Not authorized | No DE statute or regulator addresses free-to-play social casino apps; not licensed or regulated as gambling. | ||
| Illinois | Not authorized | Not separately regulated; free-to-play social casino apps with no cash-value prize redemption generally fall under the 720 ILCS 5/28-1(b)(13) "no purchase required" exemption and operate without a specific license, but there is no dedicated authorizing statute. | ||
| Kentucky | Not authorized | Free-to-play, no-cash-prize social casino apps are not addressed as gambling under Kentucky law given the absence of a prize-for-consideration element; no AG statement specific to social casino (distinct from the VGW sweepstakes-casino suit) was found via the Attorney General's newsroom. | ||
| Maryland | Not authorized | No Maryland statute or regulator addresses free-to-play social casino apps specifically; not licensed or regulated as gambling, though dual-currency sweepstakes variants are targeted for cease-and-desist (see sweepstakes_casino). | ||
| North Carolina | Not authorized | Free-to-play, no-cash-prize social casino apps are not addressed as gambling under North Carolina law since there is no prize-for-consideration element. | ||
| Ohio | Not authorized | No specific Ohio statute addresses free-to-play, no-prize social casino apps; they are generally understood to fall outside Ohio's gambling definitions (no thing of value won), but no Ohio-specific regulator guidance was located. | ||
| Pennsylvania | Not authorized | No PA statute or regulator specifically addresses free-to-play social casino apps; they are not licensed or regulated as gambling because no prize of monetary value is redeemable. | ||
| Virginia | Not authorized | Free-to-play, no-cash-prize social casino apps are not regulated as gambling under Virginia law since no consideration-for-prize element exists; not separately addressed by statute. | ||
| West Virginia | Not authorized | No WV statute or regulator addresses free-to-play social casino apps; not licensed or regulated as gambling. |