Plenty of exciting legal gambling options are available in Washington, including more than 25 land-based casinos. Online casinos – and all other digital gambling forms – are illegal.
Washington has the nation’s strictest digital gambling laws. Unlike nearly every other state, most of the social and sweeps casinos are banned with only Golden Hearts Games and Gambino Slots being available. Our guide discusses the worst state for online gambling and the slim odds this label changes.
Sweepstakes and social casinos are illegal in Washington. If the Evergreen State ever legalizes sweepstakes sites, we’ll update this page with more information and links to the best options.
Real money casinos are only legal in a handful of US states, but most players across the country can still enjoy casino games for free using sweepstakes casinos. With a sweepstakes site, you can play slots and table games for free using virtual currency rather than depositing cash. These sites will frequently top up your virtual currency balance or let you buy currency bundles with your own money.
These sites have proliferated in most states. Washington is not among them.
Washington has roughly two-dozen brick-and-mortar casinos run by Native American tribes. These range from “Las Vegas-style” destination facilities to smaller “local” casinos.
These casinos, a lottery, and horse racing are the only gambling options. All digital gaming – including sports betting, iCasinos, sweeps casinos, and even daily fantasy sports- remains illegal.
All gambling in Washington was prohibited in 1922. This was repealed roughly a decade later when lawmakers legalized pari-mutuel horse racing betting.
In 1971, the state legalized charitable games such as bingo. This was ruled unconstitutional by the King County Superior Court. A 1972 voter referendum overturned the ruling and permitted these games.
In 1982, lawmakers legalized lottery games. The state government held the first lottery draw in November 1982.
Congress signed the federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act in 1988 and Washington negotiated its first tribal gaming compact in 1992. The Tulalip Tribe of Indians opened the first land-based casino, Tulalip Casino, later that year.
Electronic slot machines were first introduced in 1999.
Washington legalized sports betting on Native American land. This allows on-reservation retail sportsbooks as well as limited digital wagering within tribal lands.
Former Seattle Sonic Shawn Kemp placed the first sports bet in Washington in September 2021 at Snoqualmie Casino.
Over 30 land-based casinos are operating where you can play slots, table games, and poker.
There are also legal card rooms that host poker games.
The legal gambling age in Washington is 18, although some facilities may require you to be 21.
Online and retail sports betting are legal in Washington. Mobile sports betting is restricted to tribal casino property.
Digital sports bets placed on tribal lands must be with that tribe’s partnered sportsbook. This means a bettor only has one online sports betting option at a time.
You can visit retail sportsbooks at over a dozen land-based casinos.
You may be able to bet on sports at 18 in some locations, but others require all customers to prove they are 21 or older.
College sports betting is legal, but you cannot wager on in-state programs.
Washington is one of the few US states to have prohibited Daily Fantasy Sports.
Tickets for Washington’s Lottery are at hundreds of licensed retailers statewide.
Pari-mutuel betting on horse racing at racetracks and off-track betting (OTB) locations are legal.
Charitable games like bingo have been available since 1973.
Statewide mobile sports betting proponents have introduced legislation that would chip away at the state’s blanket online gambling ban. These proposals have gained little momentum.
There are no serious proposals for real money online casinos, sweepstakes casinos, or DFS sites.
Washington is one of the few US states where sweepstakes casinos are illegal. You cannot play legal sweepstakes or social casinos in the state. If you want to enjoy playing casino games for free, you’ll have to travel to a different state.
Washington does not allow real money or sweepstakes casinos. Any casino site that allows you to play in the state is doing so illegally. There are no guarantees that these sites will provide fair games, protect your data, or pay out prizes.
If you want to play casino games for fun, we recommend traveling to a neighboring state such as Oregon or Idaho. You can find our list of recommended operators for these states on our dedicated state pages.
Washington prohibits all forms of online casino gambling. Most states ban real-money gaming. Washington even bans prize and reward-type gaming such as sweeps and social casinos. If the online casino game offers any type of prize for winnings, it is illegal in the Evergreen State.
Do not deposit any type of currency to a Washington online casino. This would be with an unregulated site that could steal your information – and your money.
Most states allow sweeps and social casinos. Players don’t win real money, but they can exchange certain types of in-house virtual currencies for more gameplay or prizes.
These sites allow the same payment option range someone could expect at other online shops. That includes digital platforms such as PayPal, leading debit and credit cards, and direct bank transfers.
There are no real money casino games in Washington. The state has some of the nation’s strictest digital gambling laws. This has kept out all real-money providers.
Seven states have real-money online casinos and a handful more are considering legalization. Washington seems like one of the least likely legalization candidates. Proponents hope legalization in other states could trickle to holdouts.
Slot | Manufacturer | Payout RTP% |
---|---|---|
Cards of Asgard All Aces | 99.92 | |
Fruity Beats Xtreme | 99.08 | |
Ugga Bugga | 99.07 | |
All Ways Fruits | 99 | |
Monopoly Big Event | 99 | |
Book Of 99 | 99 | |
Ed Jones & Book of Bastet Deluxe Xtreme | 99 | |
Plinko | 98.98 | |
Treasure Of Tengshe | 98.94 | |
Magic Garden 10 | 98.9 | |
Gold Digger: Mines | 98.88 | |
Indian Charm Triple Jackpots | 98.76 | |
Magic Forest | 98.75 | |
Reel Million Slot | 98.71 | |
Conquerors of the Amazon | 98.63 | |
Mystic Books | 98.63 | |
Street Runners: The Burnout | 98.63 | |
Conquerors of the Amazon II | 98.63 | |
Heroes Empire | 98.6 | |
Chinese Magical Zodiac Sign | 98.6 | |
Circus of Fortune | 98.58 | |
Oktoberfest Beer Bash | 98.58 | |
Pyramid Riches II | 98.58 | |
The Legend of Count Dracula | 98.58 | |
1429 Uncharted Seas | 98.5 | |
MoonStone | 98.5 | |
Monkeys VS Sharks | 98.48 | |
Bitcoin Billion | 98.41 | |
Burning Ice 10 | 98.4 | |
The Big Deal Deluxe | 98.4 | |
Golden Taj Mahal | 98.22 | |
Totem Warrior | 98.22 | |
Polar Adventure | 98.21 | |
Sherlock | 98.21 | |
Flashback Heroes | 98.21 | |
Xperiment Gold | 98.21 | |
Sky Barons | 98.2 | |
Dr. Jekyll Goes Wild | 98.2 | |
Sheik Yer Money | 98.2 | |
Burning Ice | 98.2 | |
Dragon | 98.19 | |
Pumpkin Patch | 98.18 | |
Diamondz | 98.18 | |
Triple Bar | 98.15 | |
The Dark Art | 98.15 | |
Cash Stax | 98.14 | |
Golden Chief | 98.14 | |
Jump! | 98.13 | |
Ways Of Fortune | 98.12 | |
Marching Legions | 98.12 | |
Golden Unicorn Deluxe | 98.12 | |
B-Boy's Street | 98.11 | |
Elite Commandos | 98.11 | |
Farm Adventures | 98.11 | |
Golden Chance | 98.11 | |
Masters of Eclipse | 98.11 | |
The Catfather | 98.1 | |
Legend of the Pharaohs | 98.1 | |
Monopoly Bring the House Down | 98.1 | |
Into the Woods | 98.1 | |
Zen Blade | 98.1 | |
Lucky for You | 98.1 | |
Hero Clash | 98.1 | |
Master Of Lightning | 98.08 | |
Arctic Fish and Cash | 98.08 | |
Pogo's Circus | 98.07 | |
Lantern Luck | 98.06 | |
Hot Hot Fruit | 98.05 | |
Fresh Fortune | 98.05 | |
Jazz Spin | 98.05 | |
Thunder vs Underworld | 98.04 | |
Panda Planet | 98.03 | |
Torch Of Fire | 98.03 | |
Christmas Tree 2 | 98.03 | |
Respin Joker 243 | 98.03 | |
Madame Mystique Megaways | 98.03 | |
Loony Blox | 98.02 | |
Lucky Lucky | 98.02 | |
Calaveras Explosivas | 98.02 | |
Fruity Gold 81 | 98.02 | |
Aztec Jaguar | 98.02 | |
Bounty 98 Hot 1 | 98.02 | |
The Dog House - No Dog Left Behind | 98.02 | |
Moon Shadow | 98.01 | |
Royal Crown | 98.01 | |
Blood Suckers | 98 | |
Jokerizer | 98 | |
Panda Panda | 98 | |
Secrets of the Amazon | 98 | |
Boulder Bucks | 98 | |
Emperor's Gold | 98 | |
Hercules High & Mighty | 98 | |
King's Honour | 98 | |
Mighty Black Knight | 98 | |
Rainbow Riches Reels of Gold | 98 | |
Super Star Turns | 98 | |
The Legend of Big Foot | 98 | |
Wild Times | 98 | |
Top Spot | 98 | |
Gems and Stones | 98 |
Washington is a rare state that bans sweeps and social casinos. They have become popular across most of the country. Washington players can check our recommendations in other states to enjoy the top social casino options.