California Online Casinos: Legal Online Gambling in California

Our reviewers have run the rule over all the best online casinos for California, grading them on game quality, game variety, user experience and other important factors. We ultimately decided upon the best California online casinos for social play.

The five California casinos listed below are legal, licensed and regulated, and they have excellent security records:

1. High 5 – Get up to 200 Gold Coins + 40 Sweepstakes Coins + 100 Diamonds
2. McLuck – Get up to 57,500 Gold Coins + 27.5 Free Sweepstakes Coins
3. Pulsz – Get Up To 1,000,000 Gold Coins + 40 Free Sweepstakes Coins
4. BetRivers.net – $1,000 Spin to Win Virtual Credits Daily
5. WOW Vegas – 1.5 Million WOW Coins and 35 Free Sweepstakes Coins for $9.99

There is no chance of legal CA casino online sites offering real money play any time soon, so a California social casino remains your only option right now. These are the best online gambling in California sites for social play:

High 5 Social Casino California

High 5 Social Casino California has an incredible volume of games. There are hundreds of exclusives among these and most High 5 Casino California games have a superb return to player (RTP) rate of 96 percent or better. A top industry reviewer named High 5 Social Casino California the top social casino for each of the past two years, and another reviewer gave High 5 California Casino an award for being the Top Sweepstakes Winner.

High 5 California Social Casino has a 4.6 rating on the Apple App Store on over 39,000 reviews. These vaulted ratings are part of why High 5 California Casino has over 33,000,000 players nationwide.

🎉 Bonuses

Signing up for the High 5 Casino promo code will direct 40 Sweepstakes Coins, 200 Gold Coins and 100 Diamonds to your High 5 account. The Gold Coins are used to play these games for fun, while the Sweepstakes Coins allow you the chance to win items such as gift cards, cash prizes or cryptocurrency. The Diamonds provide you with free spins on your favorite games.

🎰 Games

• Themed Slot Games
• Jackpot Slots
• Pragmatic Play Slots
• Slingo Games
• Live Dealer Games

McLuck Social Casino California

The McLuck Social Casino California has a large array of high quality games, such as Big Bass Bonanza, Sweet Bonanza, Gates of Olympus and Sugar Rush. It offers players an interesting option of choosing the volatility level that suits your particular playing style in slot games.

That's not all the McLuck Social Casino California offers, as you can also play many different types of Slingo games and live social casino games. This latter option includes roulette and blackjack plus live game shows.

🎉 Bonuses

Sign up for the McLuck promo code ROTO and you will receive up to 57,500 Gold Coins and 27.5 Free Sweepstakes Coins. At sign up you will get 7,500 Gold Coins and 2.5 Free Sweepstakes Coins. At that point, if you go to the cashier station on the McLuck Social California Casino, you can then spend $9.99 and land an additional 50,000 Gold Coins and 25 Free Sweepstakes Coins. The Gold Coins are used to play the games for fun, while the Sweepstakes Coins provide you an opportunity to win various prizes, including cash.

🎰 Games

• Classic Slots
• Buffalo Slots
• Slingo
• Live Casino
• Social Casino
• Jackpot Play

Pulsz

Yellow Social Interactive Ltd., a company based in Gibraltar, launched the Pulsz social online casino in 2020. It was designed to take on popular sweepstakes casinos such as Chumba Casino, Luckyland Slots and WOW Vegas, and it has proved to be very successful. The range is strong, featuring a diverse mix of more than 300 slots making this one of the best California online casinos for social play.

🎉 Bonuses

A plus feature here is the Pulsz Casino promo code that grants new players 5,000 Gold Coins plus 2.3 Sweepstakes Coins.

You can use the Gold Coins to play games for fun, whereas the Sweepstakes Coins can be redeemed for real money prizes if you successfully play them through. Pulsz will give you extra Gold Coins and SC each day you log into your account too. This one of the better sportsbook promos available at a top online casino California.

After the initial sign up, you can then get 1,000,000 Gold Coins plus 40 Sweepstakes Coins for only $19.99. This is part of a range of purchase packages available that can fit any budget. Pulsz also has slot tournaments, enter prize draws and a VIP ladder.

🎰 Games

• Standard Video Slots
• Jackpot Slots
• Megaways Slots
• Table Games
• Hold and Win Games

BetRivers.net

BetRivers is an online sports betting and casino gaming brand launched by Rush Street Interactive, a company based in Chicago. It owns Rivers Casino resorts in Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Schenectady in New York and Des Plaines in Illinois. The company launched BetRivers in 2019, and it is one of the country's best online slots, with operations in Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. The real money casino is available at BetRivers.com in those states, whereas BetRivers.net is a social online casino available nationwide, apart from Washington State.

🎉 Bonuses

This is purely a casino for fun, so it does not offer sweepstakes play, though you can participate in a Daily Spin to Win game for virtual currency. However, it does give players chances to win real money prizes by taking part in NFL prediction leaderboard challenges. You can enjoy many of the games found at BetRivers Casino's real money site, including hundreds of slots from elite software providers such as NetEnt, at BetRivers.net.

There are also table games, and it has a couple of live dealer options too. You will play with VC$, which you can unlock by logging into your account every four hours at this social California online casino.

🎰 Games

• Video Slots
• Jackpot Slots
• Megaways Slots
• Table Games
• Live Dealer Games

WOW Vegas

WOW Vegas is an exciting sweepstakes casino online California site that allows you to play for fun and bid for real money prizes via Sweepstakes Coins. Anyone aged 18 or older in the Golden State can sign up today through Facebook, by downloading the mobile app or by visiting the website. It offers a strong range of casino games from providers such as Pragmatic Play, and the portfolio is regularly updated to keep things fresh and interesting while you play casino California online games.

🎉 Bonuses

First-time players who create a new account with the WOW Vegas promo code will immediately receive 150,000 WOW Coins that serve as virtual credits to play games at WOW Vegas and five free Sweepstakes Coins. You can also land 50,000 free WOW Coins and 1.5 free Sweepstakes Coins each of the next two days simply by logging into your account. Another option to get these items is to pay $9.99 at the cashier station, as this will give you 1.5 million WOW Coins and 35 free Sweepstakes Coins.

🎰 Games

• Video Slots
• Video Poker
• Table Games
• Megaways Slots

Similar to Missouri online casinos, there are no legal online casinos in California offering real money play. Only six states permit the best casino apps, and California is not one of them. As there are no online casino California real money sites, an online CA casino gamer must visit a social casino California site such as BetRivers.net, Pulsz, High 5, McLuck or WOW Vegas.

California Online Social Casino News Updates

The battle for control of the potentially lucrative California online gambling industry sparked a great deal of controversy and intrigue over the past couple of years. The primary focus was on sports betting, but legal online casino California sites were discussed in various debates.

These are some of the key developments in the online betting debate in California:

1. 📆 February 2025: New legislative efforts emerge in California to introduce online casino legalization, fueled by growing public support for iGaming expansion.
2. 📆 January 2025: State officials begin to outline potential regulations for California online casinos, marking a significant step toward the industry's future in the state.
3. 📆 November 2024: With an increasing number of states embracing iGaming, California lawmakers ramp up discussions to legalize online casinos, despite ongoing debates with tribal interests.
4. 📆 November 2022: Proposition 26 and Proposition 27, two ballot measures seeking to legalize sports betting in California, were firmly rejected.
5. 📆 October 2022: Governor Gavin Newsom urged voters to reject Proposition 27, which sought to legalize online sports betting statewide, as he claimed it would hurt the state's Native American tribes, who were pursuing a rival initiative – Proposition 26, which wanted to restrict legal sports betting to in-person wagers at tribal casinos and racetracks.
6. 📆 July 2022: Gov. Newsom railed at the US Department of the Interior's decision to disapprove Class III gaming compacts with the Santa Rosa Indian Community of the Santa Rosa Rancheria and the Middletown Rancheria of Pomo Indians.
7. 📆 June 2022: Gov. Newsom signed legislation from Sen. Bill Dodd to extend the gaming compacts of 29 California tribes, allowing them to continue operating retail casinos on their tribal lands.

Online Gambling California History

California has a long and storied history when it comes to casino and gambling legislation. We have rounded up some of the key historical developments:

• 1872 – The California Penal Code prohibited all house-banked casino games, but it permitted poker, which is a non-banked game of skill.
• 1928 – The first ship casinos docked outside Los Angeles.
• 1933 – California legalized pari-mutuel betting on horse races ahead of Santa Anita Park opening for business the following year. The California Horse Racing Board was formed.
• 1940 – Western Club, now known as Larry Flynt's Lucky Lady Casino, opened in Gardena.
• 1984 – The California Lottery was formed, and the first tickets were sold a year later.
• 1988 – The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed, allowing federally recognized Native American tribes to launch casinos on their lands.
• 1997 – The Gambling Control Act was adopted, creating the California Gambling Control Commission, which regulates California cardrooms. The cardrooms can host non-banked games such as poker, baccarat and Pai Gow.
• 1998 – The Tribal-State Gaming Compacts Initiative passes, permitted slot machines and banked casino games at tribal casinos. There are now more than 60 tribal casinos in California.
• 2022 – Efforts to legalize online sports betting and retail sports betting fail on the November ballot following a bitter war of words between tribes and leading sportsbook operators.
• 2023 – The groundbreaking took place for the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino on Tejon tribal land in Kern County. The billion dollar entertainment destination is expected to open in fall 2025.
• 2025 – California tribal leaders told an ICE Summit in Barcelona that they will not put California sports betting on the state's voting ballot in 2026.

Future Regulation for Online Gambling in California

The Golden State's focus has been firmly on online sports betting sites over the past year. A measure seeking to legalize online sports betting gathered more than 1.6 million signatures, so it went on the November 2022 ballot as Proposition 27. The country's largest online sportsbooks – FanDuel, DraftKings and BetMGM – backed this measure.

A rival measure, Proposition 26, went on the same ballot. It wanted to restrict legal sports wagering to retail sportsbooks and racetracks in California. Prop. 26 was backed by a large group of Native American tribes, who argued that Prop. 27 represented a direct attack on tribal gaming and Native American self-reliance.

A fierce war of words erupted between the two sides, as the opposing groups spent a combined $460 million on promoting their measure and discrediting the rival measure. This led to confusion among voters, who were bombarded with conflicting measures. In the end, just 16.7% voted yes to Prop. 27 and 83.3% opposed it. Meanwhile, Prop. 26 was rejected by 70.1% to 29.9%.

The future outlook of sports betting apps support by the tribes has not improved since then. California tribal leaders told the 2024 ICE conference in Barcelona, Spain that they will not support putting sports betting on a California ballot until 2026. That date might even be early based on the fact that the Indian Gaming Commission Chair publicly stated that he does not expect online sports betting to return to the California voting ballot until at least 2028.

You can easily register with a social CA casino online via Facebook. Just search for an option such as Pulsz, High 5, McLuck or WOW Vegas and hit the "Play Game" button. It will allow you to register using your Facebook profit details, meaning you can enjoy hundreds of fun casino games within Facebook and share your achievements with the community.

Setting Up an Online Casino California Account

You can alternatively create a social online casino CA account by downloading the mobile app or visiting the website. That means you do not need an account with a social media platform such as Facebook to play at the best online casino California Reddit users recommend. Follow these steps:

1. Click the BET NOW link next to one of the social online casino for California residents on this page to visit the site.
2. Hit the "Play Now" or "Register" button to open the CA online casino sign-up form. Choose a username and password, along with an email address and your date of birth and submit the form.
3. If you register with an email address – as opposed to Google details or a social media profile – you will need to verify it. Just click on the link sent to your inbox, and you can then start playing.
4. You will not need to take any further steps at this point. However, if you would like to make an in-app or online purchase at the social online casino, you will need to verify your identity by uploading a scan of a government-issued document, such as a driver's license.
5. You would also need to verify your identity to redeem Sweepstakes Coins – which are often known as Sweeps Coins or SC – for real money prizes at a social casino. That also requires you to upload a scan of an official ID document.

Best California Online Casino Games Available

Similar to NY online casinos, online social California casinos offer many of the same games you would find at real money casino apps in states that permit them: Connecticut, Delaware, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

You can enjoy the full experience that you might at PA online casinos and Michigan online casinos, but you simply play in demo mode with virtual credits as opposed to playing for real money. You cannot play California online poker games at an online casino real money in California via sit 'n' go tournaments, jackpot sit 'n' go tournaments and so on, but you can play a few live dealer games at some sites.

• Standard Video Slots
• 3D Slots
• Clusters Pay Slots
• Megaways Slots
• Jackpot Slots
• Blackjack
• Roulette
• Baccarat
• Craps
• Table Poker
• Live Table Games
• Live Game Shows

Real Money Online Casino California Bonuses

A real money online casino California would provide prospective customers with a compelling incentive to create an account. It would then reward them for regularly logging in and playing. Social live casino online California sites are very similar, as they provide new and existing customers with a variety of bonuses, such as:

1. ⭐️ Sign-Up Bonus | A sign-up bonus will be awarded when you register with the best California online casinos offering social play. At sites such as BetRivers.net, it means you receive a large stack of virtual credits to play games. Some social California online casinos will offer you a free package when you sign up, or they will invite you to pay for a significantly larger package.
2. ⭐️ Deposit Bonus | New users are offered a deposit bonus at sites like Pulsz and WOW Vegas. For example, you can pay $9.99 and receive coins worth $29.99 as a bonus. This can result in you receiving Sweeps Coins, which can be redeemed for real money prizes and gift cards if you successfully play them through.
3. ⭐️ No Deposit Bonus | An online casino California no deposit bonus means you are awarded free credits without the need to make a payment. For example, you will be given 2.3 Sweepstakes Coins and 5,000 Gold Coins when you register with Pulsz Casino. You can often choose a deposit bonus instead of receiving a larger pile of coins.
4. ⭐️ Daily Login Bonus | This is one of the straightforward online casino bonuses California offers that awards you a specific number of coins for logging into your social California online casino account each day. You may receive more regular bonuses, such as coins every four hours. A login bonus can provide you with virtual credits and potential Sweepstakes Coins or fractions of Sweepstakes Coins too.
5. ⭐️ Discount Offers | Many of the best California online casino sites for social play sell packages, which provide you with virtual credits and potentially free SC as part of the bundle. Look out for discount offers, such as 33% off, 50% off, 67% off or 75% off. These offers may be sent via email or within the app or website.
6. ⭐️ Social Media Contests | Some of these contests reward players that perform well in social media leaderboards. You can also enter prize draws. Prizes can include SC and Gold Coins, along with other gifts and rewards.

Similar to Florida online casinos, there are certain areas you can focus on when seeking the best social online casino in California for your needs. They include customer service, security, reputation and the general friendliness of the community. Yet these are the most important traits to seek out when looking for casino online California options.

Variety of California Social Casino Games Available

The best real online casino California sites will feature a wide variety of exciting social casino games from lots of highly rated software providers. They provide slots with different themes, volatility rates, RTP percentages and bonus features, including Megaways games and jackpot slots. They also allow you to play all the leading table games found in Las Vegas and at tribal casinos, including lots of blackjack, roulette and baccarat variants.

California Online Casino Bonuses

The best casinos in California will provide you with a generous welcome package, such as the 2.3 Sweepstakes Coins and 5,000 Gold Coins available at Pulsz. They will also give you lots of opportunities to earn coins on a recurring basis, by spinning a wheel, posting on social media or logging in, and they will also run leaderboard contests, prize giveaways and more. If you decide to purchase coins, you may be offered a discount or extra coins on top of the normal package.

Casino Interface and Software

There are basic social California online casinos with dated software, a weak range of games and no bonuses, and they should be avoided. Our recommended sites all offer very impressive software, making it quick and easy for you to find appealing games. The leading no deposit online casinos California has to offer are very beginner-friendly, accessible, fast and reliable.

California Online Casino Mobile Experience

Most players will enjoy the best casinos in California via their mobile devices. It is, therefore, worth seeking out a social casino app that is perfectly optimized for smartphone play, with native iOS and Android apps that can easily be downloaded via the App Store or Google Play or accessed within Facebook.

Seek out mobile legit online casino California sites that make the browsing process simple on a small screen and that offer lots of high-quality, mobile-compatible games.

VIP Tables at California Online Casinos

Some social California casino online operators will provide a full VIP experience for their most loyal customers. For example, Pulsz offers a loyalty ladder, and you will earn coins at a much faster rate when you reach the top VIP tier.

Some also have VIP table games, allowing you to spend large piles of virtual coins on single hands, giving you a virtual taste of the high roller experience.

If California online casino real money sites and real money PayPal casinos are permitted in the future, it is highly likely that the state's powerful tribes will be at the center of the industry. However, we would also expect some of the country's largest online gambling operators to take part, perhaps by running on the tribes' master licenses. These are the top potential online casinos in California to look out for:

BetMGM

BetMGM is the most popular legal online casino operator in the United States. The brand was launched as a partnership between MGM Resorts International – the owner of famous Las Vegas venues such as the Bellagio, Mandalay Bay and MGM Grand – and a European firm called Entain. It is the market leader in states such as New Jersey, where it offers a range of more than 1,000 online slots and loads of live dealer games and virtual table games.

One of its greatest strengths is an in-house network of progressive jackpot games, shared with sister sites Borgata and PartyCasino. This has provided record seven-figure payouts via games such as MGM Grand Millions and Bison Fury. Entain, which owns PartyCasino and PartyPoker, supplies proprietary software to power the app and the website.

It would be the best online casino real money California players could use if it launched in the state. The BetMGM Casino bonus code is always one of the most lucrative in the market, and there are lots of recurring promotions available too.

Caesars Palace Online Casino

Caesars Entertainment is the one major online sports betting operator that did not back Proposition 27 in California, as it did not want to upset the tribes. "We don't want to be in opposition to tribal interests when [in other states] we're their partners," said chief executive Tom Reeg when asked about the company's neutral stance on the matter.

That leaves Caesars in good standing if a real money California online casino is legalized in the future, as it could team up with a tribe or perhaps help tribes power their own casino sites.

The company became a major online gaming operator after wrapping up a $4 billion takeover of William Hill last year. It rebranded the William Hill Casino & Sportsbook as Caesars Palace Online Casino & Sportsbook, but the interface and software are the same. The team has added titles to the range, but it remains a lot smaller than BetMGM's online portfolio.

However, it is a sharp, user-friendly app with a great loyalty program, and the Caesars Palace Online Casino promo code welcome offer always has appealing wagering requirements. This combination could make Caesars Palace Online Casino a go-to online casino with free signup bonus real money California options if California online gambling laws are ever changed.

DraftKings

DraftKings is a famous brand in California, as it offers Daily Fantasy Sports contests statewide. It was the first operator to pivot to online sports betting in 2018 after the Supreme Court overturned PASPA, a federal ban. The company then added an online casino, which is very impressive. It offers a significantly larger range than Caesars Casino, including a ton of exclusives, and there are some great promotions available.

There would naturally be barriers, as DraftKings, FanDuel and BetMGM have been at loggerheads with many of the state's tribes, but DraftKings Casino promo code is offered by a large, influential company, and it would be a leading contender to offer real money online casino California no deposit bonus codes California options at a California legal online casino.

FanDuel

FanDuel would be another very popular online casino games real money California option. It is a major rival to DraftKings California's Daily Fantasy Sports market, and they are also fighting one another for leadership within the burgeoning online sports betting industry.

Right now, FanDuel is the clear winner. Parent company Flutter Entertainment claimed at its last financial update that FanDuel accounts for 42% of legal online wagers placed in America, leaving it comfortably ahead of DraftKings and BetMGM.

It also offers an online casino and racebook on certain sites. FanDuel's online casino carries a smaller selection of games than BetMGM and DraftKings Casino, but it is another fast, reliable app with lots of generous bonuses.

Flutter Entertainment is the world's largest online gambling company, with brands such as PokerStars and Stars Casino in its stable, so it could eventually make FanDuel Casino into one of the best real money online casino California no deposit free play sites with slots, table games and live dealer games.

Even social casino gaming for fun needs to be enjoyed in a responsible fashion. There are various resources available to help you avoid the risks of problem gambling in the Golden State, covering everything from playing at land-based casinos to pari-mutuel wagering on horse races, playing the lottery and entering Daily Fantasy Contests.

Resources for Responsible Online Gambling in California

1. California Department of Public Health's Office of Problem Gambling | This agency coordinates all responsible gambling efforts in the state, including online gambling California and in-person wagering.
2. California Council on Problem Gambling | Part of the National Council on Problem Gambling, a nationwide coalition.
3. California Problem Gambling Helpline | Call 1-800-GAMBLER to speak with a trained, friendly counselor that can assist you.
4. California Gambling Education and Treatment Services | A Walden House program that provides free confidential treatment from specialists.
5. California Youth Crisis Line | This is not specifically a responsible gambling helpline, but the professional agents can help with any concerns you may have.
6. Gamblers Anonymous | This is an international organization with an office in Upland, CA. It provides targeted help for anyone with a gambling problem.

Online Gambling California Self-Assistance Programs

California runs a self-exclusion program that bars you from any licensed gambling venue in the state. This does not cover online gambling California, as it focuses on in-person wagering. The self-exclusion program is run by the Bureau of Gambling Control, which is part of the California Department of Justice. It covers card rooms and racetracks in the state.

If you feel you have a gambling problem, you can apply to self-exclude for one year or for life, and the Bureau will send a photo of you and your details to all gambling establishments. If you enter a gambling establishment after self-excluding, the establishment is required to remove you and inform the Bureau. Any unredeemed prizes will be confiscated.

There is also a self-restriction program. This is a voluntary, irrevocable agreement to have only restricted access to specific gambling establishments in California. For example, you can prevent a cardroom from sending you marketing, issuing you credit or cashing your checks. Self-restriction periods can range from 30 days to a lifetime.

Tribal casinos are not obliged to take part in the self-exclusion and self-restriction programs. However, some of them run their own self-exclusion programs, which closely mirror the state-run program. You can apply to join the self-exclusion or self-restriction by visiting oag.ca.gov. The Bureau will send a confirmation letter notifying you that your form has been accepted.

California Online Casinos to Avoid

Once one realizes that there is no best online casino real money in California option, it might be tempting to consider using offshore sites to place casino-style bets. That isn't a recommended course of action considering that these sites are not regulated or licensed to operate in the USA.

That licensing and regulation provides customers with ample protection for their personal information and funds. It also gives you a way to settle disputes and thus helps assure that your entertainment time and dollars are well protected, something which may not be the case when using offshore betting sites.

Since there are no new USA online casinos with no deposit bonuses 2025 California, prospective players in The Golden State looking for this type of entertainment should consider signing up for the best online casino in California. There are many candidates for this honor, all of which are detailed in this review. Similar to Texas online casinos, these sites have thousands of games that mimic what you might find if there was a best online casino California real money option.