The Best Social Casinos 2024

What Is a Social Casino?

A social casino is an online platform providing mostly free-to-play games, imitating the gambling experience found at standard casino sites. The social casinos do not offer real cash payouts in most instances, and gamers play exclusively with in-app currency instead. As a result, you aren’t likely to lose a massive amount of money at social gambling sites, which is a risk for some people playing at real money US online casinos.

Social casino games can also be played with friends, whereas this is not quite as common with most normal casino games. As a result, players at an online social casino can look forward to experiencing options like blackjack, poker, slot machines, bingo, roulette, keno and many other possibilities for free. These can be played solo, against other gamers or, as noted, against your friends who also enjoy social casino gaming.

It is common for those in the older demographic to enjoy social casinos. The Mobile Games Index for 2023 highlighted players aged 40 and above being more frequent visitors to such. The social and competitive elements of these platforms stand out as being the main drivers behind their popularity. Thus, it is likely that they will remain in operation for a long time to come, as they don’t require real money to be deposited and provide a fulfilling social experience for many.

Best Social Casinos

Having done plenty of research into online social casinos in the US, we have put together a selection of the top social casinos. The sites we recommend as the best online social casinos have excellent features, including exciting bonus offers, vast ranges of games, easy-to-use websites and apps, and so on. Find out more about these social sites below.

Can You Earn Real Money Playing at Social Casinos?

Users tend to play free casino games via social casino apps and desktop computers. This usually means that a virtual currency is utilized for ‘betting’ on them. Typically, that currency is called “gold coins,” and these coins are not able to be redeemed for cash prizes. Anything won through these coins is also not redeemable for real money.

However, users of social casino sites can also play their favorites with virtual coins, also known as sweeps coins. Sweep coins are currency that players can redeem for real money upon winning at social casinos. Sweeps coins can be received as a bonus when purchasing gold coin packages or sometimes, they can be requested. This may be through social media promotions or email offers.

Gold Coins

Gold coins are one type of virtual currency used by almost every online social casino. They have no monetary value and cannot be redeemed for prizes. Instead, they are just used for playing the available games. You can buy gold coins with real money, but you don’t have to do so. Usually, social casinos provide them for free. Thus, they are easy to obtain, able to be purchased, can be earned for free and are often gifted to players in large quantities.

Sweeps Coins

Sweeps coins are the other virtual currency used to play games at social casinos. However, they offer real money social casino gameplay on any game. You can’t purchase sweeps coins, nor can you withdraw them from the social casino site. You can only use them for gaming and redeeming prizes. Usually, these come to you as a bonus when you purchase gold coins at a social casino. So, you never have to buy sweeps coins, you can redeem them for gift cards to use at popular retailers or cash prizes, and they can be acquired through no-cost giveaway contests.

Social Casinos vs. Online Casinos

You may be wondering what the general differences are between playing at a social casino and a standard online casino. The most obvious difference is that social casinos offer free play gaming, while typical online casino playing is much more useful for real money gaming and withdrawing of winnings. There’s more to it than that, though. At a social casino, there is no risk of losing any money, because it’s all virtual currency. The sites providing social gaming offer great options if you want to enjoy a few games with friends. In fact, they are perfect for practicing at before you move on to real money gaming.

Of course, the drawback is that you won’t be able to win any money at social casinos. You need a standard online casino for this. Furthermore, you’ll find a larger selection of online games at online casinos, with masses of titles coming from a variety of developers. There is the potential for winning money on options like online slot machines, table games, live dealer games, poker, and much more.

Plus, the number of online casinos is much larger than the number of social casinos. Bonus offers will vary from site to site in both cases, but you can always guarantee the safety and security of all sites, if they have proper licenses and provide regulated gaming.

What Social Casino Games Are Available?

While it’s true that online casinos will usually offer a greater number of games for you to play within their lobbies, you could also find hundreds of social casino games at some platforms. You’ll find that different sites provide games like slot machines, table games, bingo, roulette, scratchcards, poker, and there are even live social casino games at some sites.

Slots

Blackjack

Roulette

Poker

Video Poker

Bingo

Keno

Baccarat

Live Online Social Casino Games

As with the games noted above, not all of the best social casino platforms offer live dealer games. Those that do tend to offer a nice collection of them, though. Vivo Gaming is a developer that offers such to social casinos, with options for poker games, blackjack, baccarat, and so on.

It is prominent to note that the live social casino section might not be as large as those found at online gambling sites. This is because the games aren’t as compatible with social platforms as they are with real money gambling sites.

Plus, these games usually tend to come from developers that aren’t as well-known as those offering their software to social casinos real money counterparts. That being said, you can still have a fun time playing them at one or two social casino sites.

Live Roulette

Live roulette is a popular online game to play at social casinos, although generally, the options don’t go beyond standard European and American roulette variations. You may find some platforms offering options like Auto Roulette though, and there are one or two providing Gravity Roulette from the Beter Live brand.

Live Blackjack

The same is true for live blackjack at social sites, with one or two variations being common. Again, the basic format of blackjack is much more common, with little deviation one way or the other. These games echo what can be experienced at normal online casinos, so any side bets available within are accessible in the social formats, too.

Live Baccarat

Again, social baccarat in a live format isn’t extensive in its availability, not extending beyond standard versions of the game. Live baccarat is preferred by some gamers due to the lower house edge included in it, with games like Baccarat Live from Stake Live and Live Baccarat from Beter Live offering excellent options to play.

Other Live Social Casino Games

Because the most common type of game to play at social casinos is slot machines, there isn’t a huge number of live dealer capabilities. You may find options like Sic Bo and Teen Patti in the lobbies of some accommodating social casino platforms, though.

Mobile Social Casinos and Apps

It isn’t uncommon for players, whether social or online, to want to play their favorite games via a mobile device today. While it’s true that many of these sites come with a social casino app that you can download and install for convenience, not all of them do. Yet the sites are usually optimized for mobile browser gameplay instead. Popular social sites offering mobile apps include Chumba Casino, Funzpoints, Pulsz Casino, and High 5 Casino. Apps may make the experience much more convenient, but even a mobile browser setup is inviting.

Responsible Gambling in a Social Casino

Responsible gambling remains something that should be in effect when you’re playing at social casinos. Just because you’re not placing bets with real money does not mean you don’t have to wager in a responsible way. Betting big, unaffordable amounts can still lead to your downfall should you become addicted to doing so and using those tactics at a real money casino. Try to adhere to the idea of betting for fun and with money that you can afford to lose. Set yourself limits and never chase your losses – even in a social casino setup.

Are Online Social Casinos Legal in the US?

Social casinos and online sweepstakes have grown considerably in popularity across the United States of America. They are legal in all but three of the country’s states. If you’re based in Nevada, Washington or Idaho, then you’re not likely to be able to access them online. The legal age to play at a social casino is 18+, which differs to the age for standard real money casino sites. Due to the lack of real money gameplay, social casinos aren’t considered as gambling, and this is why they aren’t as highly regulated as real money sites.

How We Rate Social Casinos

We put together our own reviews of the best social casinos so that you know what to expect if you choose to join one in the U.S. There are certain features that we look out for when conducting our reviews, which help us to rate them appropriately. The reviews we create look into the safety levels of the different casinos, what payment methods they support for purchasing gold coins, and the selection of games they provide within their lobbies. Considering all these features allows us to determine how good a social casino is for players.

Game Selection & Software

Payment Methods & Payout Speed

Social Casino Bonuses + Promotions

Mobile Friendliness

Customer Care

Safety and Trustworthiness

Final Thoughts

Social casinos are ideal for anyone who wants to practice playing appealing games, whilst also remaining social with friends. This is possible in both desktop and mobile format in most instances, and while it would always be ideal for these sites to feature larger game catalogues akin to online casinos, there is little doubt they will be around for many years to come. They are accessible across so many U.S. states, making them inviting for many people.