Pennsylvania Sweepstakes Casinos

It’s currently an interesting landscape when it comes to casinos in the US, but if you have questions regarding PA online gaming specifically, I’ll answer them in this SweepsKings state review.

Pennsylvania Gambling Laws: Online Casino Legal Updates

For a long while, residents of the Keystone State could only access online casino games through offshore sites that operated from outside the US with ambiguous legal statuses. However, since the state passed a bill to permit online gambling in 2017, fully legal online casinos can now operate in PA. They exist in tandem with land–based casinos, which have been legal in the state for much longer. Sweepstakes cafes were once popular in PA, but were made illegal over a decade ago in 2012.

So with real money casinos accessible from Pennsylvania (both in–person and on the internet), sweepstakes casinos may not always be the preferred choice. However, their benefit is that they provide a low–risk, no–pressure method to test the waters with an emphasis on entertainment, and this may be one reason you want to try them out.

Just bear in mind that sweepstakes brands sometimes opt not to operate in states where real money online casinos are available, like PA. Although there are usually no concrete laws against sweepstakes casinos, Michigan, for example, has recently started enforcing stricter regulations to put sweeps operators off. This makes sense as a way to safeguard state-regulated online casinos like BetMGM that pay large licensing fees to gain access to this market.

All this said, there are only a handful of examples of social and sweepstakes casino brands that are avoiding PA at this time, which is fortunate for residents.

How You Can Play Slots and Casino Games in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania is one of seven US states where you can gamble online at casino and poker sites with real money. Online casinos began to appear in 2019 following the 2017 law change, and there are now over 20 licensed platforms available, featuring a broad range of slots, table games, and live dealer options. There are also sportsbook and DFS options available for those who are more sports–minded.

In fact, Pennsylvania boasts one of the most extensive selections of online gambling sites in the US, second only to neighboring New Jersey. All such real money sites in PA are legitimate, legal, and regulated under the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB). You can pick from options such as BetMGM, Caesars Palace, Borgata Casino, FanDuel and more.

In terms of land–based casinos, you have places like Hollywood Casino, Harrah’s, and River’s Casino Philadelphia. Some locations (like the first two mentioned) are also paired with horse racing tracks.

However, there are those who would say that sweepstakes casinos have an edge over all of the aforementioned casino categories, plus social casinos. For a start, they beat out physical locations for convenience, as they can be played from anywhere, including at home, of course. They also offer a more relaxed environment, with a focus on fun gaming. This is because you are never required to pay to play, and real cash prizes are reserved for the lucky ones.

Overview Of The Best Sweepstakes Casinos in Pennsylvania

Now let’s look at where to start if you’re looking for a sweepstakes casino to play in Pennsylvania. We’ve picked some of our favorites with a reason for each.

• Vegas Gems – Best casino for bonuses
• Zula – Best casino for game variety
• Pulsz – Best casino for in–app playing
• Funrize – Best casino for customer support
• RealPrize – Best casino for social media contests

Before expanding further, it is important to highlight that over 30 of approved, partnered SweepsKings casinos accept PA players. This means that the following are not the only options, although we consider them among the best.

1. Vegas Gems – Best casino for bonuses

The reason I say Vegas Gems is best for bonuses is that it’s got a great system called chest bonuses. Bonuses such as your welcome deal and daily login rewards are to be found in treasure chests, which you open up to claim their contents. You can also unlock premium Bejeweled chests by leveling up and meeting buy goals.

This whole system adds an extra element of fun, and goes hand in hand with the fantasy feel of the Vegas Gems currencies (Shards and Gems.) Another benefit is that the site organizes these chest bonuses logically for you on the Promotions tab, so they’re easy to review and track.

2. Zula – Best casino for game variety

Sometimes it’s good to divert from the mainstream social gaming options as you might find the smaller sites offering something new and more unique. In the case of Zula, we’d say that it’s found in the game variety. You can play slots and table games, much like any other sweepstakes casino, but you’ll also find jackpots, fishing games, slingo and keno games too. These different game types offer a break from the same old styles, meaning Zula could keep you entertained for longer.

3. Pulsz – Best casino for in–app playing

These days, you might assume that every casino has its own app for iPhone and Android. However, this is far from being the case! Some of the bigger players don’t seem to mind not offering an app at all, while traditional social casino sites like Pulsz swoop in with apps for both mainstream operating systems.

Yes, you can download a Pulsz app for either iPhone or Android, and they’re both intuitive, user–friendly, and easy–to–navigate. If you prefer to play in–app rather than in–browser, Pulsz could be the place for you. Benefits of using an app can include smoother gameplay and notifications to help you claim bonuses as soon as they’re available.

4. Funrize – Best casino for customer support

Funrize is a great upcoming sweepstakes casino that’s growing day in day out. It has a multitude of bonuses – so many that it’s sometimes hard to keep track. But where it really stands out is with its lightning–fast customer service. During our detailed Funrize review, I was really pleased to see I got a response in the chat box within a minute, and all our questions were answered as well. The site has a cheeky penguin mascot too!

5. RealPrize – Best casino for social media contests

Speaking of mascots, another that I like is the bright blue present guy you’ll find across RealPrize’s branding. You’ll see him on their social media accounts too, which is where RealPrize shines. This brand often runs simple–to–enter competitions, and if you take a look at previous contests, you’ll see that basically every user who enters and gets the answer right receives free coins as a reward. It’s worth signing up to RealPrize and following them on Instagram just for this reason.

Why Our Experts Selected These Brands

When we review sweepstakes sites we use a few main criteria to assess them:

• State Availability
• Sweepstakes Model
• Promotions and Bonuses
• Games
• Payments
• Safety and Trust
• Customer Support
• User Experience

All of the above sweepstakes casinos generally performed well across these categories, as well as in the average/total score we calculate. And while you can see that certain casinos excel in some areas over others, there’s a minimum level of quality that we seek before we recommend a platform to you.

Perhaps most importantly, all our recommended Pennsylvania online casinos are 100% secure and legitimate, meaning they’ll handle your personal and financial details with care. This is more than can be said for some sweeps sites you’ll find online.

How Payments Work

Once you’ve signed up at a sweepstakes casino in Pennsylvania, you’ll receive an initial welcome bonus of the two currencies. Then when your Gold Coins run out, you’ll be able to purchase more from the casino’s shop, and most packages will come with free Sweeps Coins as a bonus.

Purchasing additional GC is optional thanks to the heap of free bonuses, yet extremely straightforward:

1. Log in to your account
2. Visit the casino’s shop
3. Select the package you want to purchase
4. Select the payment method you want to use and enter all the required information
5. Finalize the transaction

Please keep in mind that some sweepstakes casinos have limits on how many coins you can purchase within a certain time period, and these limits may vary from one casino to another.

It’s important to keep your spending sensible, and remember that sweeps casinos are focused on fun and entertainment. If you feel your playing is getting out of hand, all reputable gaming sites provide responsible social gameplay measures that are accessible through your account. This will allow you to limit things like spending and time spent on the site, and it should help you keep your gameplay at a responsible and healthy level.

Your Gaming Options at PA Sweepstakes Casinos

On the whole, you’ll find similar gaming options at sweepstakes casinos compared to real money casinos, perhaps with more of an emphasis on slots. Saying that, you will also find table/card games at many sweepstakes casinos, and sometimes live dealers, fishing games and simple games like keno, scratchcard, or dice; the game variety basically depends on the site in question.

The key thing is that these games are chance–based rather than skill–based, meaning it’s legal to play them with virtual currencies but not bet real cash. This is true for Pennsylvania, and most other US states too.

There are many different software companies that supply games at sweepstakes casino sites, like Pragmatic Play and NetEnt, but some operators even have their own in–house development team. This is how they differ from real money casinos in PA, which are exclusively powered by outside studios.

Within the vast array of slots available on a site, there are various subgenres, and it’s a good idea to figure out which style you like best. For example, you’ll find different mechanics within games in regard to the format of the reels and grid (such as Megaways and cascading reels), and you’ll also find games defined by their bonus round features (like Hold N Win and Rapid Link). Many modern slot games feature special symbols that drive the game’s dynamic too (like scatters and wilds), and there are some select titles which have fixed or progressive jackpots, adding a further incentive to play.

Fortunately, any social gaming site worth its salt will provide you with an easy way to search for and filter games so you can find exactly what you’re looking for.

Bonuses and Promotions at Keystone State Social Casinos

Rather than adding cash as you would at a real money casino, much of the virtual currency used at PA sweepstakes sites comes to you in the form of bonuses and promotions. This means that you can play without making any purchases.

Outside of multiplying your coins through play, you’ll want to aim to claim free currency through bonuses, so let’s look at the main ones available.

Aspects in Favor and Against Sweepstakes Casinos in Pennsylvania

What it comes down to is: are you happy to bet with real money, or would you rather spend your time on sites with virtual currencies that offer the fun of playing with less of the financial risk? If you lean towards the latter option, be sure to sign up at one of our recommended platforms like Pulsz or Zula and give sweepstakes casinos a try.

Other Gambling Options for PA Players

Residents of Pennsylvania are lucky in the sense that they have real choice over which type of gambling they’d like to partake in. As we’ve mentioned, unlike most other US states, real money online casinos are legal in PA, as are physical casinos, along with sportsbooks, DFS, horse racing (often linked to brick–and–mortar casinos), and even lotteries.

However, if you’re not up for the risk that comes with all these forms of real money gambling, I can recommend sweepstakes casinos as a fun and lower risk alternative. Make sure to bookmark this page for the latest developments in the PA online gambling and social gaming landscape. It’s not unlikely for similar developments as in Michigan to be introduced through the state legislature.