If you’re looking for casino-style games online in New York, you’re in luck! Sweepstakes casinos are available in the Empire State, and New York players can access some of the best sweeps casinos in the business.
These casinos fall into the category of sweepstakes gaming, a form of gaming that’s legal in New York and most of the U.S.
This guide to New York casinos aims to clarify the opportunity of sweepstakes casino in New York, including tax laws, limitations on wins, and best available sweeps offers in the state.
Quick snapshot of New York’s status
| Available in New York: | Yes |
| # of sweeps / social casinos: | 60+ |
| Are winnings taxed: | Yes, between 4%-8.2% at the state level |
| Max prize payout: | $5,000 |
| Minimum age: | 18 |
| Last updated: | December 2024 |
Are sweepstakes casinos legal in New York?
Yes. New York law permits sweepstakes so long as players have the option for an alternative method of entry (AMOE). The casinos we promote here at OnlineSweeps operate under a sweepstakes gaming model, putting them in a different category than traditional real-money online casinos in a legal sense.
If you’re a resident of New York, or you’re located in New York and want to play at a sweepstakes casino, you have more than 60 casinos at your disposal.
Sweepstakes gaming is legal in more than 45 U.S. states. The laws from state to state are very similar in most cases.
In New York, there are a couple of aspects of sweepstakes casino laws that differ from other states. Here are some quick facts about sweepstake casino gaming in the Empire State:
- Legal age: 18. All New York players must submit a photo of a government-issued ID to the casino to verify their age and identity. These verification protocols are known as Know Your Customer (KYC) checks.
- Prize payout restrictions: New York laws restrict the maximum amount you can win on a single spin or bet to $5,000 (or the Sweeps Coins equivalent of $5,000). Wins that go over that amount will be voided beyond the $5,000 cap.
- Taxable income: All U.S. players are required to pay a 24% estimated federal tax rate on sweepstakes winnings over $5,000. That tax can apply to a single jackpot or total winnings of $5,000 or more in a calendar year. While the estimated tax is 24%, your actual tax obligation depends on your total income for the year, plus any sweepstakes or winnings included. New York also applies state income tax to sweepstakes winnings, at a rate that can fall between 4% and 8.2%.
Top sweepstakes casinos in New York
Sweepstakes casinos are legal in more than 45 states, but the list of available states for a specific casino varies.
New York players enjoy access to more than 60 legitimate sweeps casinos, and that list includes most of the top platforms recommended by our experts here at OnlineSweeps.
Let’s take a look at some of the best sweeps casinos available in New York:
1. Wow Vegas
Wow Vegas is one of our all-time favorite sweepstakes casinos in New York. The collection of games includes just about anything you could want if you’re a slot enthusiast.
With 800+ games to choose from, Wow Vegas presents one of the biggest game libraries you’ll find at any sweeps casino. The developers behind those games include Pragmatic Play, 3 Oaks, Evoplay, and many other of the top software companies in the industry.
The game selection is heavy on slots, and you’ll also find live dealer games and other unique titles on the menu.
Other standout features at Wow Vegas include a top-notch VIP rewards program, excellent customer service, and a long list of ways you can obtain free Sweeps Coins. That list includes several daily, weekly, and monthly challenges that really set Wow Vegas apart from the rest.
New York players can sign up for a new Wow Vegas account and get 5 SC free as a no-deposit bonus.
2. Hello Millions
If you’re a New York player and you like scoring lots of bonus Sweeps Coins, Hello Millions is a great choice on our list of NY sweepstakes casinos.
Signing up for a new Hello Millions account unlocks a 2.5 SC no-deposit bonus. After you verify your account and claim that offer, you can take advantage of three purchase offers that net a total of 115 SC for making $69.97 in Gold Coins purchases.
Beyond those great bonus offers, Hello Millions offers one of the most visually appealing sweepstakes casinos in the U.S. market.
Launched by parent company B-Two Operations in 2023, Hello Millions offers 1,100+ games, developed by industry standard bearers like Booming Games, Playtech Live, Ruby Play, and several other top software developers.
The game library includes some of the most popular slot titles in the U.S., with a robust lineup of jackpot slots. You’ll also find a solid roster of live dealer games available at Hello Millions.
3. Stake.us
Stake.us is one of the most unique platforms on our list of the New York sweeps casinos. This site is the U.S.-facing sister site of Stake Casino, one of the world’s most popular online casino sites.
Stake US facilitates purchases and redemptions exclusively via cryptocurrency. Around eight different cryptocurrencies are currently available as payment methods, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Dogecoin. With these cryptocurrencies in place, redemptions at Stake US are among the fastest of any U.S. sweeps casino.
While you can’t currently use traditional banking methods at the casino, Stake US is beta-testing a few new payment options, including debit/credit cards. We expect Stake US to add those methods to the cashier very soon.
The game library at Stake US includes 700+ games. You’ll find plenty of slots and live dealer games, as well as the Stake Originals series, which houses some of the most popular games at the site.
The welcome bonus at Stake US is one of the most generous in the industry. You can sign up for a new account and claim $25 SC free using the Stake.us promo code. You can also claim an additional 30 SC by claiming the daily login bonus on each of your first 30 days at Stake US.
4. Modo.us
Modo.us presents an easy-access sweeps casino with a seamless user experience and plenty of games to choose from for NY players.
The game library includes 900+ titles, which come from developers like NetGaming, Relax Gaming, 3 Oaks, and a few other top companies. The lineup includes plenty of top-flight slots, as well as live dealer games, scratchers, a few traditional table games, and more.
Modo.us presents four different first-purchase bonuses, and the platform really shines in this category. The most player-friendly offer among those bonuses nets 300 SC for a $209.00 Gold Coin package purchase.
You’ll find a good variety of payment methods available at Modo.us, including most major credit/debit cards, bank transfer, and Apple Pay. There isn’t a dedicated mobile app for Modo.us at this time, but the platform does translate well when played on a web browser from a mobile device.
Modo.us functions as a solid, no-frills sweepstakes casino, and could be a great choice for New York players looking for a simple, fun, and easy-to-use platform.
5. Chanced Casino
With a very generous VIP rewards program and a great variety of games, Chanced Casino is a great choice for New York casino players. We consider this platform to be one of the top all-around sweepstakes casinos available in the U.S.
If you’re a frequent sweeps casino player, you’ll get rewarded handsomely when you put in time at Chanced Casino.
The VIP reward program includes six different tiers, and the top two tiers have levels within those tiers. For players who enjoy the challenge of climbing the VIP ladder, the top levels of that ladder are well worth the climb.
Chanced Casino’s game library includes 1,000+ games, and many of those titles are from Pragmatic Play. You’ll find hundreds of slots in the lineup, alongside live dealer games, traditional table games, scratchers, and more.
New York players can sign up at Chanced Casino and get 2 SC free plus 20 free spins.
New York gambling laws: Quick snapshot
New York lawmakers frequently discuss the prospect of allowing real-money online casinos in the Empire State. For now, however, sports betting is the only form of full-scale online gambling permitted in New York.
Real-money online casinos could certainly get the green light in the Empire State at some point. If that were to happen, the actual launch of online casinos would likely still be several years down the road.
Keep in mind that sweepstakes casinos and real-money online casinos are two different kinds of gaming platforms in a legal sense. Sweepstakes gaming is legal in New York right now, and that category of gaming includes sweepstakes casinos.
Let’s take a look at the laws that govern sweepstakes gaming in New York.
Sweepstakes casinos essentially operates as sweepstakes contests with casino-style games at the center.
New York laws dictate that all sweepstakes must offer “alternative means of entry” (AMOE) that allow players to enter the sweepstakes without purchasing anything or spending any money.
Sweepstakes casinos fulfill that requirement by offering the following methods for obtaining Sweeps Coins (SC) for free:
- No-purchase (no-deposit) offers
- Mail-in offers
- Social media giveaways
- Daily login bonuses
Sweeps Coins function as a virtual currency that you can use at the sweepstakes games at the casino, and are redeemable for cash prizes. While you can generally obtain Sweeps Coins as a bonus for purchasing a Gold Coins (play money) package, you can always acquire SC for free using the methods above. You can find the specifics about AMOE at a particular casino within that casino’s Sweepstakes Rules. The link to the sweepstakes rules at a casino can usually be found in the footer or side menu of the main lobby.
New York sweepstakes contests must clearly state the “Official Rules” of the contest before accepting players. You can generally find the official rules outlined by a sweeps casino in the “Sweepstakes Rules” section.
The sweepstakes rules outline how a site’s dual-currency games work (Gold Coins and Sweeps Coins), as well as how redemptions for cash prizes are awarded.
Sweepstakes casinos, along with other sweepstakes games, sites, and contests, aren’t permitted to use techniques that inform players that they’ve been “specially selected” to win a prize.
The language around the “specially selected” provision in most states’ sweepstakes laws reads something like this:
“Specially Selected means a representation that a person is a winner, a finalist, in first place or tied for first place, or otherwise among a limited group of persons with an enhanced likelihood of receiving a prize.”
If you receive a communication from a sweepstakes casino that indicates you’ve already won something, and can claim your prize by following particular next steps, keep in mind that a sweepstakes casino or contest can’t legally send such a communication.
In New York, a “Sweepstakes Sponsor” is legally defined as an operator or administrator of a sweepstakes contest or casino. By state law, a sweepstakes sponsor isn’t permitted to sell any kind of information that could give a player an advantage in the contest.
New York sweepstakes at the Federal level
Sweepstakes casinos are legal in 47 states, and those states generally follow federal sweepstakes laws very closely. As such, sweepstakes laws are very similar from state to state.
You will find a few differences in sweepstakes laws in some states however. Some states apply a state income tax on winnings in addition to the federal tax you have to pay in all states.
Federal sweepstakes laws require sweeps contests and casinos to meet the following criteria:
- A sweepstakes is a promotion in which prizes are awarded by chance rather than skill
- Sweepstakes can’t require a purchase as a condition for entry
- Sweepstakes must have official rules, and those rules can’t change once the contest has begun
- Sweepstakes winnings of $5,000 or more are subject to a 24% estimated income tax on the federal level
New York and Florida place a restriction on the maximum amount you can win in a single jackpot or bet at a sweepstakes casino. The maximum possible win is $5,000 (or the Sweeps Coin equivalent of $5,000).
Any amount won that’s over $5,000 will only be credited for $5,000 at a New York sweeps casino.
Final thoughts
New York residents might eventually see the launch of traditional real-money online casinos. For now and the foreseeable future, however, sweepstakes casinos provide the best alternative for players looking for casino-style action in NY.
We strive to promote only the best legitimate sweeps casinos here at OnlineSweeps. Check back with us often for the latest on the New York sweepstakes casino industry.