Finding real money online gambling sites in the USA is easier than ever. That’s because big changes to state and federal gaming laws mean more options for people who want to play games of chance online.
This post serves as a guide to real money online gambling in the USA. So, I’ve included guides to American online gambling law, joining an online casino, and making deposits and withdrawals. Toward the end of the post, I’ll identify the best 2022 real money online gambling apps, giving each a brief overview.
If you’re on a quest to win a million dollars, this might be a good post to read before embarking.
USA Online Gambling Law
I’m not a lawyer. So, if you’re looking for genuine legal advice about a game of chance or skill, you should consult a lawyer trained in that area.
But it doesn’t take a trained legal professional to see that online gambling is unlikely to result in a criminal charge.
American gambling law has been traditionally used to combat organized crime. It has traditionally not been used to target individual bettors. Throughout the 20th century, mobsters ran various gambling operations from simple numbers games to more complex sports betting markets.
Related: Is Offshore Gambling Legal?
By targeting this illegal gambling activity, federal authorities found they could lock up gangsters for long enough to have an impact.
The federal government has long since left the gambling question up to individual states. Over the years, almost every American state has allowed some form of gambling, These include lottery, bingo, and full-fledged casino games. A recent push to legalize and regulate sports betting means even more options are available now than before.
What’s the Likelihood of Being Prosecuted?
You won’t find a single example of a person prosecuted by state or federal authorities for placing a bet online. As a result, you’re far more likely to find big federal cases targeting illegal operators of gambling sites. The fact is the US government isn’t going after the small-time bettor laying $50 on the Cowboys. They are, however, very much interested in taking their share of the millions of dollars flowing into illegal gambling operations.
Real money gambling sites in America have to abide by the rules of their licensure. When they want to do business with American customers (and use American-friendly withdrawal and deposit methods) they have to behave in a certain way to offer that payment method. When you choose a legitimate real money USA gambling website with proper licensure, you’re not running any risk of being charged with a crime.
How to Gamble Online in the USA with Real Money
Gambling with real money online in America is a simple three-step process. You have to decide what you’re going to play, where you’re going to play it, and how you’re going to fund your account.
What you’re going to play is important since different sites have different specializations. If you want to bet on sports and play gambling games, your ideal match will be a little different from a person who mostly wants to play head-to-head poker. Many of these sites offer bets on things like who will be the next pope.
Where you’re going to play depends on a lot of factors. Some players look for the best deposit bonus offer. Others are more concerned with game variety or the availability of a particular deposit or withdrawal method. The state where you live may play a part in picking a real money casino since some sites only deal with people from specific states.
Payment Methods Are Important
Finally, deciding on a payment method is important. That’s because American customers have a more limited selection than bettors in other parts of the world. If you have a particular payment method that works well for you, it makes sense to look for a real money betting site that accepts that method.
Once you’ve found your site, depositing money is as easy as making any online purchase. You’ll want to look around the site, check out the games library, look into your bonus options, and talk to customer service about any questions you have. That’s all there is to finding real money online gambling sites in the USA.
Financial Options at Real Money Online Gambling Sites
Americans looking to deposit and withdraw funds with a real money gambling site have several options. Acceptable deposit and withdrawal methods vary by site.
Depending on the real money gambling site you choose, your available options may include:
credit/debit card
cryptocurrency account
prepaid card
check
eWallet
direct bank transfer
bill-pay service
pay with cash
Those last two options allow online gamblers to deposit directly to their real money gambling site account using accessible payment services in small retail spaces and casinos.
Consider the deposit and withdrawal methods available at Bovada as of this post. Members can deposit money with Bovada using credit cards, gift cards, Zelle, Bitcoin, or Litecoin. Withdrawals are processed using Bitcoin, check by courier, wire transfer, or voucher.
This is a lineup of payment methods unique to Bovada. Every other USA-facing real money gambling site has its own list of available deposit and withdrawal methods.
The Pros & Cons of Online Gambling for Americans
On the plus side, gambling online makes games of chance and skill accessible to just about anyone. Recent changes to gambling law mean many Americans can now bet on sports, play online blackjack, or compete in a poker tournament in a totally legal and regulated environment.
The bonuses and promotions available at real money online gambling sites are used to compete for gambler’s business. In an expanding marketplace, you have a lot of power in terms of where you choose to play and what bonuses you choose to chase.
The variety of games and ways to gamble online means people who want to play craps or chase a slot tournament prize don’t have to take a road trip to a nearby casino hotspot to do it.
Related: Best Offshore Gambling Sites
Of course, there are drawbacks to real money online gambling. For example, with online gambling’s increased accessibility comes an increased risk of losing big amounts of money in a short amount of time.
There’s also no real human element to online gambling. Say what you want about the environment inside a casino, it’s at least a social one. Gambling alone can intensify its negative effects.
Finally, it’s safe to say that playing games online doesn’t quite replicate the experience of playing them live. Even video poker, a solitary game if there ever was one, is more engaging and more exciting played live in front of a real machine. Gambling in the same room where you eat lunch just isn’t as tantalizing.
The 12 Best Real Money Online Gambling Sites
Below is a guide to the 12 best real money gambling sites for Americans.
The sites are listed in alphabetical order, not in order of preference or quality.
1 – BetOnline
Slots: 288
Table Games: 51
Sportsbook: Yes
Deposit Methods: 22 different methods
Withdrawal Methods: 16 different methods
Welcome Bonus: 100% up to $1,000 for casino gamblers or 50% up to $1,000 for sports bettors
BetOnline.ag has been online since 2004. It’s licensed in Panama. They’re known more for their sportsbook and poker room than their casino. BetOnline is also famous for its long list of acceptable deposit and withdrawal methods.
Casino table game fans rejoice. BetOnline has the largest collection of table games of any USA real money gambling site. Their library of 51 table games includes nine variations of blackjack and lots of live dealer options.
Mobile gamblers can simply access the site on their smartphone; there’s no dedicated casino gambling app from BetOnline. Poker players will want to download the app to access the site’s full poker features.
2 – BetUS
Slots: 254
Table Games: 25
Sportsbook: Yes
Deposit Methods: credit card, bank transfer, cryptocurrency deposit, or bank wire
Withdrawal Methods: cryptocurrency withdrawals, arrangements made with casino staff
Welcome Bonus: 250% up to $5,000 for casino gamblers or 100% up to $2,500 for sports bettors.
BetUS has been in business since 1994. It’s licensed in Curacao. The sportsbook is the site’s flagship service, though their collection of more than 250 slots makes it an ideal fit for slots players as well. An average collection of 25 table games means fans of online blackjack and craps might consider other venues.
Deposits and withdrawals are relatively limited. Other US-facing real money gambling sites accept a wider range of deposits and offer more choices for withdrawals.
Rather than release a dedicated app, BetUS has designed its site to be mobile-friendly. You won’t lose access to any games by going mobile – the library is the same, as are all the site’s promotional offers and other features, live access to live dealer table games.
3 – Bovada
Slots: 124
Table Games: 19
Sportsbook: Yes
Deposit Methods: credit cards, gift cards, Zelle, cryptocurrency deposit
Withdrawal Methods: cryptocurrency withdrawals, check by courier, voucher
Welcome Bonus: 100% up to $1,000 for casino gamblers or 50% up to $250 for sports bettors
Bovada is a US-only casino and sportsbook. It doesn’t currently hold a license after years of being licensed by Kahnawake. Originally the US-facing arm of the Bodog brand, Bovada is its own thing now. Launched in 2011, Bovada is home to a casino and sportsbook.
Lots of traffic moves through Bovada. It’s the busiest of all real money US gambling sites, most likely due to its non-casino gambling offerings. Bovada probably gets ten times the traffic of BetOnline or its other US-facing competitors.
Bovada’s casino game library is average at best. Other US-facing real money online casinos host two or three times as many slots and table games. Bovada’s focus seems to be on sports betting, though their promotional offer for casino gamblers is just about the industry standard.
4 – CafeCasino
Slots: 129
Table Games: 20
Sportsbook: No
Deposit Methods: credit cards, gift cards, and cryptocurrency deposits
Withdrawal Methods: cryptocurrency withdrawals, bank wire, or check by courier
Welcome Bonus: 250% up to $1,500 or 250% up to $2,500 for Bitcoin deposits
CafeCasino has been online since 2016. It’s headquartered in Costa Rice and licensed by Kahnawake. CafeCasino’s game library is nothing special. The site has a few more table games than other US real money sites, but about an average selection of slots.
Only US real money gamblers can access the games at CafeCasino. That’s good news for American gamblers looking to play online real money slots and table games, as it means all their payment methods are aimed at the American market.
CafeCasino is clearly aimed at casual gamblers, as the deposit minimums and maximums are low, as are the promotional limits and other financial features. The site hasn’t expanded its slot collection in a couple of years. At my last review visit in 2020, they had 124 slots, meaning they’ve added just five in the time since.
5 – Ignition Casino
Slots: 72
Table Games: 25
Sportsbook: No
Deposit Methods: credit cards, gift cards, cryptocurrency deposits, voucher, Zelle
Withdrawal Methods: cryptocurrency withdrawals, wire transfer, check by courier, vouchers
Welcome Bonus: 200% up to $2,000
Ignition Casino launched in 2016. It’s licensed by Kahnawake. The site is owned by the same group that operates Slots.lv, Café Casino, and Bovada.
Ignition Casino seems geared heavily toward table game fans. Slots fans may want to look elsewhere. Of all the legit real money online gambling sites in the USA, Ignition Casino has the smallest slot library, with just six dozen different slots available at the time of my review. At the same time, their table game library is among the best in the US-facing industry.
There’s no sportsbook and no dedicated mobile app. Mobile players access the site which has been optimized for use on mobile devices. Also missing are live dealer games. That’s something modern online gamblers have come to expect.
6 – Las Atlantis
Slots: 122
Table Games: 10
Sportsbook: No
Deposit Methods: credit cards, gift cards, cryptocurrency deposits
Withdrawal Methods: credit cards, cryptocurrency withdrawals, bank wire
Welcome Bonus: 280% up to $1,000
Las Atlantis launched in 2020 and has a license from Curacao. It’s one of the newer sites on this list of legit American online casinos. Their ownership group also operates Slots Empire and Red Dog Casino.
Few US-facing online casinos have a table game library as small as Las Atlantic. The collection consists of five casino-style poker games, keno, three blackjack games, and one European roulette game, It almost seems like an afterthought. If you like to gamble on games like blackjack, craps, and baccarat, you’ll feel out of place at Las Atlantis. That said, their slot collection is at least as good as other online casinos serving American customers.
Las Atlantis has the lowest withdrawal limits of any casino on this list, limiting customers to $2,500 in withdrawals at a time. The site’s low deposit maximums may also be a problem for gamblers with big bankrolls.
7 – Red Dog Casino
Slots: 132
Table Games: 10
Sportsbook: No
Deposit Methods: credit cards, gift cards, cryptocurrency deposits
Withdrawal Methods: credit cards, cryptocurrency withdrawals, bank wire
Welcome Bonus: 225% up to $1,000
Red Dog Casino launched in 2019. It’s licensed by and headquartered in Curacao. It’s operated by the same people who run Red Dog Casino and has many of the same features and a similar game library.
Red Dog has more slots than a typical US-facing online casino, but the table game library is light on options. The way Red Dog is laid out, it’s clearly aimed at online slot machine gamblers, and even the terms and conditions of the bonus reward slot play significantly more than play on the site’s small table game library.
It’s nice to see a site offer an extensive FAQ, live chat, and toll-free phone customer support. That’s not common in this industry. And it’s worth applauding.
8 – Slots Empire
Slots: 276
Table Games: 10
Sportsbook: No
Deposit Methods: credit cards, gift cards, cryptocurrency deposits
Withdrawal Methods: credit cards, cryptocurrency withdrawals, bank wire
Welcome Bonus: 220% up to $1,000
Slots Empire launched in 2019. It has a license from Curacao. The site runs RTG and Visionary iGaming titles exclusively.
Slots Empire is, surprisingly, a good home for real money US slots gambling. The site has more online slots than just about any other American online casino. A 276-game library means as much variety as you can expect at a big brick-and-mortar casino. It almost makes up for their weak lineup of table games.
Online reviews include gripes about the $150 minimum payout amount. But that’s not that much higher than any other US-facing online gambling site.
9 – Slots.lv
Slots: 124
Table Games: 24
Sportsbook: No
Deposit Methods: credit cards, gift cards, cryptocurrency deposits
Withdrawal Methods: credit cards, cryptocurrency withdrawals, bank wire
Welcome Bonus: 200% up to $1,000
Slots.lv launched in 2013. It’s part of the same group as Ignition Casino and Bovada. It currently holds no license.
If there’s such thing as a typical USA gambling site, I’d say it’s Slots.lv. Their library of slot games is good but not great. It’s just varied enough to stay interesting, But it’s not so big that it deserves accolades. Their group of 24 table games is larger than the average American-facing betting site. Their financial options are typical for the industry.
10 – Sportsbetting.ag
Slots: 303
Table Games: 24
Sportsbook: Yes
Deposit Methods: 23 methods
Withdrawal Methods: 16 methods
Welcome Bonus: 100% up to $1,000 for casino gamblers or 50% up to $1,000 for sports bettors
Established in 1998, Sportsbetting.ag is licensed in Panama. It offers similar features as BetOnline in its sportsbook. Unfortunately for slot and table game fans, Sportsbetting.ag doesn’t have the extensive game library of its parent site.
If you can’t tell from the name, Sportsbetting.ag is really a sportsbook with some other gambling options thrown in for good measure. Slots fans have a huge variety to choose from. It’s not the biggest in the business. But it’s large for a site with a heavy focus on sports bets. The table games collection is really lacking, though that’s typical for American online casinos.
11 – Super Slots
Slots: 254
Table Games: 40
Sportsbook: No
Deposit Methods: 25 methods
Withdrawal Methods: 15 methods
Welcome Bonus: 250% up to $1,000
Super Slots launched in 2020. It’s licensed in Panama. Gamblers know the site for its large library of slot and table games, with nothing in the way of a sportsbook or poker room.
Slots fans will appreciate the variety of games. Manufacturers include Betsoft, Magma, Visionary iGaming, and Fresh Deck Studios. There’s also a welcome bonus aimed specifically at people looking to play online slots.
A table game library including 40 titles is rare in the US-facing casino industry. This list includes a dozen blackjack variants and an interesting group of global casino favorites like Casino War and Draw High Low.
12 – Wild Casino
Slots: 259
Table Games: 40
Sportsbook: No
Deposit Methods: 25 methods
Withdrawal Methods: 15 methods
Welcome Bonus: 250% up to $1,000
Wild Casino launched in 2017. It’s licensed in Panama. It’s exclusively a casino gambling website, with no sportsbook or head to head poker options.
Wild has a huge library of slot games. It’s lacking in video poker, though, with fewer than a dozen variants available. The 40 table games here should satisfy any American online table gambling fan.
The worst reviews I could find from real users involve the fee structure for withdrawals by check or bank write transfer. That’s not common for US-facing betting sites. And though the fees are low, some customers are surprised to be paying anything at all to withdraw their winnings.
Real Money Online Gambling Sites in the USA: Conclusion
All in all, online gambling in the USA is more accessible than ever. That’s thanks to the spread of online betting apps and real money online gambling sites in the USA. Bettors have more choices than ever. The sites and apps identified here are the best choices for American online gamblers right now.
Consider all the tips and advice in this guide. Then figure out your chosen deposit and withdrawal method. After that, you can give a few USA online gambling sites a visit.
