Sweepstakes Poker — How to Play in Most States
Sweepstakes poker lets you play-for-free, win prizes, and more in almost every state.
Sweepstakes poker is a brand-new type of poker game.
The rules are the same. The gameplay is the same. And you still go up against other real players from around the world.
There is one major difference, though: you use virtual coins instead of real money.
Imagine you’re sitting at a poker table right now but instead of chips or dollars you have virtual coins. That’s sweepstakes poker. Collecting enough of these coins then allows you to redeem prizes, which we’ll talk about a little later.
Since 2020, players have gotten hooked on sweepstakes poker. By now, you’ve probably even seen streamers on Kick, Twitch, and YouTube playing it for hours on end, with some of them picking up huge wins along the way. And when a game is booming on the streaming scene, you know it’s more than just a trend.
Sweepstakes poker is everywhere, that’s for sure. For those who have yet to play it and want to know more, this guide has got your back, too. It’s going to give you a complete breakdown of all-things sweepstakes poker, including:
- How you can play sweeps poker in almost every state
- The different variations of the game (including Texas Hold’em and Omaha)
- What prizes you can redeem if you win enough coins at the tables and tournaments
Ready to pull up a seat at the table yourself? Grab your virtual chips and let’s go.
🃏 🇺🇸 What is Sweepstakes Poker and Which States Allow It?
Sweepstakes poker is a type of online poker where you use virtual currencies. Those who want to play just for fun use Gold Coins and those who want to play seriously while competing for prizes use Sweeps Coins. Aside from that, everything else is almost exactly the same.
Where it gets really interesting is that sweepstakes poker is legal in 48 out of 50 US states. Yep, almost all of them. Currently, only Washington and Idaho don’t allow it. What this means is that sweepstakes poker is accessible for everyone, which is ultimately why it’s become so popular over the past few years.
Think about it: regular online poker is only legal in 6 states. This makes it almost impossible for the average person to play. With sweepstakes poker, though, it’s essentially a poker party for all. As long as you don’t live in Washington or Idaho, it’s insanely easy to access Stake.us, Global Poker, and many of the other big-hitting sweepstakes poker sites — and we’re going to talk about how you can make an account with them next.
How to Play Sweepstakes Poker Online
Playing sweepstakes poker itself is easy.
By easy, we’re talking just a few steps.
Here’s what you need to do:
➜ Join a Sweepstakes Poker Site
The first step is to actually join a site that offers sweepstakes poker.
Generally, there are two options for this: sweepstakes poker sites and sweepstakes casinos.
A sweepstakes poker site is a platform exclusively for sweepstakes poker and nothing else, whereas sweepstakes casinos tend to have lots of different games on offer, including poker, slots, and others.
In terms of sweepstakes poker-exclusive sites, the main options are:
🌐 Global Poker
🌐 Clubs Poker
🌐 EasyPoker
All three of these sites are purely poker-based, coming with options to play for free or compete for prizes. If you’re someone who only cares about poker and no other type of casino game, it’s recommended you join one of these, with Global Poker being the current market-leader.
Then we have sweepstakes casinos. These are different because they offer all types of sweepstakes casino games, not just poker. However, not many of them offer poker at the moment due to the fact that most of today’s players prefer slots and blackjack. This is why (as of right now) only Stake.us offers poker, which has been reviewed on SweepsKings.com. Specifically, Stake.us has Stake Poker, a site-exclusive game where you can play classic variants like Texas Hold’em and Omaha.
Whichever site you prefer, you’ll need to verify your identity and confirm you’re above the age of 18 or 21. This will come down to the specific state you’re playing in. Once your account is fired up, you can then move to the next step.
➜ Choose from the Different Poker Categories
Most sweepstakes poker sites come with a wide-range of different categories, including Ring Games, Sit & Go (SNG), Multi-table Tournaments, Live Poker, and even Video Poker. All you have to do is choose your preferred category. For example, if you want to play with a real-life human card dealer via video camera, you would choose Live Poker. Or if you wanted to get competitive, you could buy-in to a Multi-table Tournament. You get the idea.
Remember to check the variation of poker that’s offered by the category you choose. In most cases, it will be Texas Hold’em. However, there are plenty of other variants, too, including the likes of Omaha Hi-Lo. Again, it’s all about personal preference, so don’t pull up a seat at the table unless you’ve checked what type of poker is being played. This way, you’ll prevent the fatal mistake of finding yourself stuck in the middle of a game for a variation of poker you either don’t like or don’t know how to play.
➜ Start Playing with Gold Coins or Sweeps Coins
The final step is the fun part: start playing.
Remember, you can only play with Gold Coins or Sweeps Coins. If you want to play just for fun with nothing on the line, always go with Gold Coins. However, if you’re competitive and have your eyes on future prizes, go with Sweeps Coins. Keep in-mind, though, that Sweeps Coins have genuine on-site value, so you should always bet carefully with them.
Let’s say you choose a table that’s using Sweeps Coins. You’ll probably need to buy-in first (e.g. 0.10 SC) before you can actually play. Once you’ve done that, the game will start and it will work just like regular poker. Blinds rotate, cards are dealt, and betting rounds happen. This will include the Pre-Flop, Flop, Turn, and River. Whenever you win a pot, your coin collection will grow. And if you ever lose all of your coins at the table, you’re out. Simple.
Naturally, the main objective for most players is to win as many Sweeps Coins as they can while playing sweepstakes poker. After all, this allows them to redeem prizes. And if you’re a prize-chaser, too, here’s a closer look at what you can generally win on sweepstakes poker sites.
What Prizes Can You Win in Sweepstakes Poker?
The most popular sweepstakes poker prizes are:
💰 Cash transfers
💳 Gift cards
🧢 Merchandise
Once you’ve collected enough Sweeps Coins, all you have to do is get to the prize redemption part of the site, choose the prize you want, and wait for it to arrive.
With most sites, 1 SC equals $1. So, let’s say you’ve just been in a blackjack tournament and won 200 SC. This means you can redeem around $200 worth of prizes. In a nutshell, the more Sweeps Coins you win, the more prizes you can redeem.
Where to Get Gold Coins and Sweeps Coins
The great news is that it’s quite easy to get your hands on Gold Coins and Sweeps Coins at the moment.
Almost every sweepstakes poker site and sweepstakes casino has some type of sign-up bonus. The way this works is you create an account, verify your identity, and then receive some free coins as a welcome. You can then use these coins however you like.
👑 For example, Global Poker — the main sweepstakes poker site — had a recent offer where new players could get 100,000 Gold Coins and 20 Sweeps Coins just for signing up.
After a few weeks or months, you might find that you run out of these coins. It’s not a problem when this happens. What you can do is simply purchase more coins through the menu using your own money. Remember, though, this is completely optional.
If you don’t want to purchase any coins, you can simply wait for free coins to be handed out to you. Some sweepstakes casinos even have daily login bonuses, where they give you free coins every 24 hours just for logging in. You can then use these coins to play sweepstakes poker and tournaments for free, so it’s a no-brainer.
Are There Any Sweepstakes Poker Tournaments?
Speaking of sweepstakes poker tournaments, yes — there are lots of them. Who doesn’t love poker tournaments? For example, Global Poker has its weekly ‘Sunday Scrimmage’ No Limit Hold’em tournament with 50,000 Sweeps Coins going to the winner. Depending on the specific site you’re using, these tournaments will usually require a buy-in but you can sometimes enter for free, too.
Global Poker Increases Minimum Player Age — And It Could Be the Start of a New Trend
Global Poker has recently increased its minimum player age from 18 to 21 following the recent controversy surrounding sweepstakes casino sites. Essentially, what’s been going on is that some state lawmakers and regulators are turning up the heat on sweepstakes sites and trying to get them banned due to believing they’re ‘gambling’ platforms. Therefore, Global Poker made the call to increase its minimum player age (so, if you’re 21, it’s hard luck). More sites will likely follow the trend, which is why it looks like sweepstakes poker will be limited to those who are aged 21 or over in the near future.
Summary
Sweepstakes poker online is the red-hot trend, right now. Players are hooked on it and you can’t blame them. You can play for free, win prizes, compete in tournaments, climb leaderboards, and even interact with other players via in-game chat, so there’s a lot to like about the overall experience. This is why sweepstakes poker sites keep growing in popularity, with the likes of Stake.us and Global Poker leading the line. Now is the perfect time to sign-up with one – and hopefully you’ll land some big prizes at the tables along the way.
