Sportsgrid Staff
Host · Writer - Published: 03/29/25
Sweepstakes casinos don’t require any initial purchase to play
Sweepstakes casinos are legal in 48/50 US states
Sweepstakes casinos support redeeming eligible Sweep Coins for real money prizes
The number of sweepstakes casinos in the US is at an all-time high, with new ones launching regularly. Are we looking at a future where gambling is entirely risk-free? That’s what I’ll explore in this post.
As an expert, I recognize the advantages sweepstakes casinos offer to US players. With virtual currencies instead of real money, you play without pressure but can still redeem real prizes. Some of the top sweepstakes brands I recommend are Spree Casino, HelloMillions, and Crown Coins. Read on as I discuss how these sites can potentially alter the future of gambling.
To know how sweepstakes casinos can affect the future of gambling, you must understand how they work. It’s straightforward. From my experience, all sweepstakes casinos operate using a dual-currency model of Gold Coins (GC) and Sweepstakes Coins (SC).
Some sites customize the names to match their branding. For example, at Crown Coins Casino, Gold Coins are called Crown Coins (CC). Similarly, Spree Casino refers to Sweepstakes Coins as Spree Coins. Anyway, the basis of how they work doesn’t change.
You can view my Spree Casino balance with 1,002,000 GC and 2.9 SC in the screenshot below on the left tab:
Spree Casino dashboard
Now, what’s the difference between both coins? Here it is:
The bottom line is that sweepstakes casinos work with virtual currencies and not real money. If you want to play for fun and entertainment, use Gold Coins. Meanwhile, if you’re up for some real prizes, Sweepstakes Coins are the go-to.
I believe the risk-free aspect of sweeps casinos with real money prizes is apparent. If I haven’t stressed it yet, the sites don’t require you to make any initial payment to play. You receive Gold Coins and Sweepstakes Coins for free, beginning with the welcome bonus on the first day you sign up. Here’s a rundown of the welcome offers at my top three picks:
| Sweepstakes casino | Welcome bonus |
|---|---|
| Spree Casino | 1 million Gold Coins and 2.5 Spree Coins |
| HelloMillions | 15,000 Gold Coins and 2.5 Sweepstakes Coins |
| Crown Coins | 100,000 Crown Coins and 2 Sweepstakes Coins |
The setup at sweepstakes casinos is different from traditional gambling alternatives where you must deposit to play. There’s no financial risk involved, so you have fun without any pressure. From my research, many players question whether sweepstakes casinos are truly risk-free since they feature GC packages for purchase. That’s true. Virtually every sweepstakes site offered Gold Coin bundles for players to buy.
Here are the packages on HelloMillions to illustrate:
GC bundles at HelloMillions Casino
As the image shows, you can grab 4,000 GC for $1.99 and 200,000 GC for $99.99. However, keep in mind that these purchases are optional. Also, I must mention that only Gold Coins (which are for fun and entertainment) can be purchased in bundles.
You can’t directly buy Sweepstakes Coins. The sweepstakes casino can only give you some free SC as a bonus for getting a bundle. Therefore, anyone purchasing a GC package still does it for fun and entertainment. I understand that some people may go for GC bundles specifically for the SC bonuses that come with them. Anyway, the fact that purchases are optional means you’re not under any obligation.
If you don’t purchase, you’ll always have a free bonus to claim and play without risk. For instance, HelloMillions offers a daily bonus starting from 1,500 GC + 0.2 SC every 24 hours.
In my opinion, it’ll take more than being risk-free for sweepstakes casinos to be the future of gambling. Sure, a site might not require an initial payment, but what if it lacks your favorite games or has a confusing layout? You probably wouldn’t use it.
Thankfully, the best sweepstakes casinos today have overcome these challenges. As a matter of fact, the sites have made significant progress in the past few years to show they’re well-prepared for the future. Based on my analysis, these are the areas that stand out the most:
Sweepstakes casinos are drawing in more players today because of their wide range of games. Before now, most sites I used only featured slots, jackpots, and fishing games. However, the options available at sweepstakes casinos now can rival conventional alternatives — not in quantity but in quality and variety.
For context, HelloMillions has 1,000+ games. These include not only slots but also Slingo and live dealer games. You can now play with human dealers in actual casinos and studios at sweepstakes casinos — still risk-free.
I’ve also played at many new sweeps casinos with instant wins like Crash, Plinko, Mines, and Keno. Rest assured, you won’t miss out on any modern game category if you use a top site.
With optional purchases and prize redemptions come the need for payment methods. To have a stronghold of the future, sweepstakes casinos must feature contemporary options beyond the traditional bank transfer and debit cards. I can confirm that this is already the case.
Most recent sweepstakes casinos I reviewed featured e-wallets and mobile-specific options such as:
I’ve even come across cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Tether, to name a few. For redemptions, the standard is either cash (bank transfer or e-wallet) or gift card.
Personally, I believe the option to redeem gift cards is a benefit that many traditional US casinos have yet to implement. I appreciate that I can get a prize as a gift card in my email and use it seamlessly online.
The future of gambling is mobile — everyone knows this, and so do sweepstakes casinos. Therefore, I didn’t find it surprising that all popular sites focus on mobile usability. Many have dedicated apps for Android and iOS with intuitive interfaces that make browsing a breeze.
To give you the whole picture, here are captures of the Crown Coins app in GC and SC mode:
As the screenshots show, the design is highly optimized with a bottom menu. It takes only one click to access the Store to optionally purchase CC or the redeem section to obtain real prizes. The same applies to claiming bonuses via Rewards and managing your profile via Account. If you tap home, you get the complete game collection.
Indeed, not all sweepstakes casinos have dedicated apps. However, those that don’t always have a responsive design with a bottom menu. Therefore, app or not, you get a convenient playing experience on your smartphone from anywhere.
I left this for last because it’s the most crucial part of the sweepstakes casino phenomenon. Without question, many US states don’t allow traditional online gaming sites to operate. However, they don’t seem to have any issues with sweepstakes brands.
The reason boils down to the fact that sweeps casinos are risk-free. As such, they’re not categorized as traditional gambling. From my research, I found that Washington and Idaho are the only two states that outright restrict sweepstakes gaming. Therefore, if you’re in the US, there’s an 80% chance you can play.
Nevada and Michigan are other states with strict sweepstakes gaming laws, but some sites still operate within their online borders. However, each brand has its list of supported and restricted states. Here’s the rundown for my top three:
| Sweepstakes casino | Restricted states |
|---|---|
| Spree Casino | Montana, Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky, Michigan, Nevada, Washington, West Virginia, Delaware, Louisiana, Maryland and Connecticut |
| HelloMillions | Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, Washington, and West Virginia |
| Crown Coins | Idaho, Louisiana, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, and Washington |
I believe sweepstakes casinos will have a better hold in the future if they can further reduce the number of restricted states.
If you aim to be part of a risk-free gambling future, it’s essential to pick the right sweepstakes casinos. Already, I’ve mentioned Spree Casino, HelloMillions, and Crown Coins as my top three. Check out what each site offers below:
One area where sweepstakes casinos lag behind their traditional counterparts is game quantity. However, Spree Casino is a site that’s bridging the gap. During my Spree review, I found games from 33+ software providers. This is more than double the 15+ from most other sweepstakes brands. Notably, the range includes Pragmatic Play, Relax Gaming, Playson, RubyPlay, EvoPlay, and BGaming.
Software providers at Spree Casino
The variety on Spree also extends to the gaming collection. On the site, I played slots like Gold Party and Spree Gold, as well as live casino titles such as Auto Roulette and Gravity Blackjack. The welcome bonus of 1 million Gold Coins and 2.5 Spree Coins gave me more than enough virtual currencies to play without risk.
Signing up with HelloMillions Casino gives you access to 13+ live social casino games. This is higher than most other sites I’ve used, and the variety is rich. While on the site, I played Gravity Roulette, Speed Blackjack, and Grand Bonus Baccarat. Additionally, HelloMillions offers game shows such as Top Card, Spin a Win, and Adventures Beyond Wonderland.
HelloMillions live casino lobby
Immediately after creating my account, I got 15,000 Gold Coins and 2.5 Sweepstakes Coins for free. No initial purchase, no pressure, and no risk. My sessions were smooth on Android, thanks to the dedicated app. There’s none for iOS right now, but the mobile site is excellent on Safari.
Crown Coins is one sweepstakes casino that makes it easy to play without any risks. How so? Well, the site has frequent bonuses to score free Crown Coins and Sweepstakes Coins. For starters, I claimed 100,000 CC and 2 SC as a welcome bonus. Then, the daily bonus gave me up to 155,000 CC and 2.8 SC for my first week, as shown in the screenshot below:
Crown Coins daily bonus
Such a daily promo is available every week, and you must claim them consecutively to get the grand bonus on Day 7. My sessions with the bonus coins were splendid, thanks to games like Viking Crusade and Gates of Olympus Jackpot Play.
Sweepstakes casinos are risk-free because you don’t have to make any initial purchases. That’s also the biggest advantage of the sites if you ask me. While they’re free, you still get a variety of slots, jackpots, Slingo, instant wins, and live dealer titles. Essentially, you’re not missing out on anything. Another notable upside is that you can redeem real prizes after playing with Sweepstakes Coins. Hence, there’s no risk, but you can get something out of your sessions.
The key drawback is that sweepstakes casinos are still a long shot from matching the game quantity at conventional sites. From my count, the best brands have 1,500+ games at most. Meanwhile, traditional casinos have as many as 5,000+ and above. Sweepstakes casinos must up their numbers if they wish to be the future of gambling. I’ve summarized these points below:
There’s no debate that sweepstakes casinos provide a safe way to play games without risks. Technically, these are not gambling sites since they don’t need real money wagers. However, I understand why their popularity threatens traditional online casinos.
My ultimate verdict is that time will tell. Sweepstakes casinos are doing well, but whether they represent the future of gambling depends on industry trends and regulatory developments. Player preferences will also play a key role. If you want to give them a try, click on the banners on this page and try one of our recommended sweeps sites.
_1682010035.svg)
