The gambling landscape in Alaska is rather unique. Sports betting, real-money casino gambling, horse racing wagering, and online gambling are strictly prohibited. The good news is that countless casino sites are available to residents through sweepstakes casinos. Sweepstakes casinos in Alaska offer the same stunning selections of games you’d find at real money casinos operating in other states. We’ve shared the best social casinos and more within our expert guide.
Finding the best Alaska social casinos takes time, as you’ll know if you’ve tried to find them already! However, our team of experts has researched and shortlisted a specific selection of Alaska’s top five casino gaming platforms by our strict quality assessments.
Alaska sweepstakes casinos offer a wide range of online casino games comparable to real-money casinos. You can find numerous slot games, table games, and occasionally live dealer games, too.
Here are some of the best game options inside Alaska social casinos, including the RTP percentages and the portion per wager paid out in winnings.
Casino games give us excitement through a sense of anticipation and possibility, but why do some games offer a better chance of a payout than others? It comes down to something called RTP. Every game has an RTP rating, which indicates how much it pays out based on the money it takes.
If a game has an RTP of 95%, it will pay out on average $0.95 for every $1 bet placed. It’s important to stress that this is a statistical average calculated over millions of game sessions. Nobody can guarantee you’ll ultimately end up on the winning side of the equation. However, playing games with high RTP scores at Alaska online casinos gives you the best chance possible.
Alaska prohibits sports betting, casino gambling, horse racing betting, poker, and all forms of online gambling. However, daily fantasy sports contests and charitable gaming are legal in Alaska, which will remain the case for the foreseeable future.
The most recent attempt to alter the gambling laws in Alaska was back in 2022 when House Bill HB385 was put to the House Labor and Commerce Committee to legalize sports betting. The bill failed to gain traction, and no such efforts have been made since. As for the laws to sign up with and play at Alaska social casinos, you must be 18+ and have a permanent residence in the State of Alaska.
After narrowing down your choices for which Alaska online casinos to join in the sweepstakes category, it’s time to officially pick one and register. This can be done through mobile sites, native apps (where applicable), and desktop sites. Setting up an account requires completion of the following steps:
Although online casinos in Alaska don’t facilitate real-money gambling, they have banking methods for bonus package purchases and withdrawals. The best often have 5-10+ payment options, including credit cards and debit cards, eWallets, prepaid cards, crypto, and direct transfers.
As for withdrawals, the best Alaska sweepstakes casinos don’t charge fees, but funds can take 2-5 working days to reach your account. Withdrawals can only be requested if you’ve managed to accumulate Sweepstakes Coins before exchanging them for cash.
See the table below for a complete list of the payment methods commonly seen at Alaska online casinos:
To sign up and use the services provided by sweepstakes casinos in Alaska, you must be a state resident over 18. You must provide evidence confirming that you meet these criteria when registering at any social casino available in Alaska. This is done by uploading photos of a bank statement or utility bill for your address and a government-issued ID to prove your age.
To access online casinos in Alaska, players must be 18+ and be present in the state. If Alaska had retail casinos, these requirements would inevitably be different. Specifically, you’d need to be 21+, and the state residence requirement wouldn’t apply. These are the requirements for anyone hoping to gamble on Alaska cruises that venture out to international waters.
Sweepstakes casinos don’t need to obtain an official gambling license to operate. While they must meet specific terms, such as offering free-to-play games, they aren’t strictly regulated to the degree that real money sites are in other states. However, this doesn’t mean they operate without any oversight from a government authority.
The Department of Revenue still monitors the activities of Alaska's online casinos, and recently, this department established an internal branch known as the Alaska Gaming Commission. These two authorities fall under the same banner—established by bill HB 552.
Many sweepstakes casinos in Alaska offer thousands of games for members to play. Slot games make up the majority of titles at all online casinos. Yet, social platforms in Alaska are becoming increasingly diverse - branching out to offer live dealer play, poker, table games, bingo, scratchcards, and other forms of gaming, too.
Each subcategory is perfectly safe and available to play at Alaska online casinos. Remember that Alaska also has established gaming/bingo halls across the state where pull-tabs, bingo, and e-bingo can be played.
Most Alaska online casinos have a fully optimized mobile offering, meaning you can access their respective sites through the browser on your device. However, several online casinos in Alaska have now developed cutting-edge native apps for Android and iOS devices.
Typically, these apps have more sophisticated layouts and better responsiveness and sometimes offer exclusive bonuses. As for the exact casinos that have developed leading mobile apps in Alaska, we’ve highlighted them below.
Alaska didn’t legalize any form of gambling until 1960 when the Department of Revenue received complete control of all gambling activities in the state. Only a few types of gambling were approved—mainly bingo. It then took almost 25 years for Alaska to legalize any other form of gambling, and not much has changed since.
Cruise ship operators started to offer onboard gambling from Alaska waters - similar to riverboat casinos in other states. Even this was soon stamped out, forcing cruise ships to take to international waters before offering any gambling services.
First gambling legalization, primarily bingo.
Alaska legalizes pull-tab games.
HB 168 passed, bringing reforms including:
Alaska temporarily legalized cruise ship gaming, which expired after just one season.
Bill HB 385 to legalize online sports betting fails to win the support of the respective government committee.
Offshore casinos you can access from Alaska do not operate under US gambling laws. They are based elsewhere and are, therefore, free from US oversight. This may seem appealing, but offshore casinos are dangerous platforms. They aren’t bound by the same regulations and expectations of legal casinos operating within the state and the US.
They can use your data and financial details as they please, and if any disputes arise between you and the site, you have no protection under US law. Registering with offshore casinos is not worth the risks, no matter how good the games or bonuses are!
You have the protection of US oversight by registering with sweepstakes casinos in Alaska, which are 100% legal. At the same time, these sites must protect your data and treat it in line with the standards expected of US authorities. Legal casinos must also operate in a way that guarantees fair outcomes so you know that things aren’t rigged against you.
Alaska prohibits retail casinos from operating within the state. However, Alaska does allow ‘Class II’ gaming facilities to operate, as governed by the Federer National Gaming Commission. Subsequently, Alaska has a respectable range of charitable gaming halls and bingo venues around the state. These venues mainly provide real-life bingo, pull-tab gaming, and electronic bingo gaming.
Located in Kake, Keex Kwaan Bingo has become popular for those who love pull-tabs and bingo play. This venue offers both, and it also has its own hotel and restaurant, which no doubt appeals to Alaska residents who wish to get away for a day or two.
With 70 seats available for most games, the MIC Gaming Hall is a bingo-lovers' dream. It is open on Thursdays and Saturdays from 12:00 to 00:00 and hosts a variety of bingo contests.
The Sitka Tribal Bingo establishment focuses heavily on typical bingo gaming. It is far more accessible than the MIC Gaming Hall, opening Monday through Saturday from 17:30 to 23:00. Up to 50 seats are available for its select bingo games—not to mention the optional pull tabs!
Real-money online casinos are illegal in Alaska. However, viable alternatives offering free gaming exist through Alaska sweepstakes casinos. These don’t offer real money gambling, so Alaskan laws don’t forbid them.
Yes. Alaska permits sweepstakes casinos as they do not directly facilitate real money play, and these sites are widely available in the state. You can redeem winnings for cash prizes and gift vouchers.
Finding the best casino in Alaska will depend on your preference. While some players prefer the biggest bonuses, others look for a wide game selection of the best mobile gambling options. We tested the best casinos in the state and listed our findings in this guide.
Yes. However, this only remains true for social casinos in Alaska that operate within the jurisdiction of the USA - such as the sites we’ve recommended above.
Yes. By joining one (or more) of the Alaska online casinos listed here, you can secure Gold Coins and Sweepstakes Coins through sign-up offers and other exciting bonuses beyond the welcome deal.