In Which States Is Stake.us Legal?
The short answer: Stake.us legally operates in 33 out of 50 states. 17 states are restricted – including New York, Nevada, Michigan, Washington, and Pennsylvania. California, Texas, Florida, and Ohio are not among the restricted states; the platform is available there.
Below is the full list, an explanation of why things are this way, and what to do if your state is on the blacklist.
Why it's legal at all
Real-money online casinos are permitted in only a handful of states. Stake.us bypasses this not through trickery, but through a different model: it operates as a sweepstakes promotion, meaning a contest with prizes.
The mechanics are as follows. You purchase Gold Coins – chips with no inherent value; you can play with them as much as you want, but you cannot exchange them for anything. Along with your purchase, you receive Stake Cash for free, and this can be exchanged for a prize at a rate of 1 SC = 1 dollar. Formally, you are not placing a bet: you are buying entertainment and receiving a gift with a chance to win. This is precisely the same principle by which promotions with bottle caps and codes under the cap operate.
A breakdown of both currencies and redemption terms can be found on the page about the differences between stake.us and stake.com.
This is precisely why the list of restricted states does not coincide with the list of states where online casinos are prohibited. The restricted states are those whose laws specifically regulate or prohibit sweepstakes games, and this list has grown significantly over the past couple of years.
Where Stake.us operates and where it doesn't
The age restriction is 21, regardless of the state.
| State | Stake.us |
|---|---|
| Alabama | ✓ available |
| Alaska | ✓ available |
| Arizona | ✗ unavailable |
| Arkansas | ✓ available |
| California | ✓ available |
| Colorado | ✓ available |
| Connecticut | ✗ unavailable |
| Delaware | ✗ unavailable |
| Florida | ✓ available |
| Georgia | ✓ available |
| Hawaii | ✓ available |
| Idaho | ✗ unavailable |
| Illinois | ✓ available |
| Indiana | ✓ available |
| Iowa | ✓ available |
| Kansas | ✓ available |
| Kentucky | ✗ unavailable |
| Louisiana | ✗ unavailable |
| Maine | ✓ available |
| Maryland | ✗ unavailable |
| Massachusetts | ✓ available |
| Michigan | ✗ unavailable |
| Minnesota | ✓ available |
| Mississippi | ✓ available |
| Missouri | ✓ available |
| Montana | ✗ unavailable |
| Nebraska | ✓ available |
| Nevada | ✗ unavailable |
| New Hampshire | ✓ available |
| New Jersey | ✗ unavailable |
| New Mexico | ✓ available |
| New York | ✗ unavailable |
| North Carolina | ✓ available |
| North Dakota | ✓ available |
| Ohio | ✓ available |
| Oklahoma | ✓ available |
| Oregon | ✓ available |
| Pennsylvania | ✗ unavailable |
| Rhode Island | ✗ unavailable |
| South Carolina | ✓ available |
| South Dakota | ✓ available |
| Tennessee | ✓ available |
| Texas | ✓ available |
| Utah | ✓ available |
| Vermont | ✗ unavailable |
| Virginia | ✓ available |
| Washington | ✗ unavailable |
| West Virginia | ✗ unavailable |
| Wisconsin | ✓ available |
| Wyoming | ✓ available |
The District of Columbia does not appear unambiguously in the platform's public lists – availability there needs to be checked on-site.
Restricted States in One List
Arizona, Vermont, Washington, Delaware, Idaho, Kentucky, Connecticut, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, West Virginia.
The reasons vary. Nevada and New Jersey are states with their own developed licensed casino industry, and they fundamentally do not allow outside competitors. Washington is known for the country's strictest online gaming laws: even social casinos without payouts are prohibited there. Michigan and Pennsylvania regulate online gambling separately and require a local license. Montana, Connecticut, and several others closed later when they passed separate laws against sweepstakes models.
Most Frequent Questions by Specific States
California. Available. This is the most frequent query on the topic, and the answer is positive: California is not on the restricted list, and you can play from the age of 21. There is no real-money online casino in the state, which is why the sweepstakes format is popular there.
Texas. Available.
Florida. Available.
Ohio. Available.
Illinois. Available.
North Carolina, Virginia, Massachusetts, Missouri. All four are available.
New York. Restricted.
Arizona. Restricted.
Nevada. Restricted, despite its status as a gambling capital — or rather, precisely because of it.
What Happens If You Play Via VPN
Technically, the platform determines location by IP and account data. Accessing from a restricted state via VPN violates the user agreement, and the consequences usually surface not immediately, but at the moment of prize redemption: during verification, the address does not match the login history, the payout is frozen, and the account is closed. In most cases, the money is not returned because the violation is formally on the player's side.
There is absolutely no point in this. A win that cannot be claimed is not a win.
The List Changes
This is more important than anything else on the page. Sweepstakes regulation in the US is currently in an active phase: over the past two years, several states have passed laws that have closed such platforms, and the process is not over. The list above is current as of August 2026.
You need to check availability at the time of registration and directly on the platform's website, not by reviews — including this one. If a state closed after you created an account, the platform is obligated to let you withdraw the remaining balance, but will not allow you to play further.
Frequently Asked Questions
In how many states does Stake.us operate? In 33 out of 50 as of August 2026.
Is Stake.us legal in California? Yes, the state is not among the restricted ones.
What is the minimum age to play? 21 years old in all permitted states.
Is this the same as stake.com? No. Stake.com is a regular crypto casino, unavailable in the US. A breakdown of the differences is on a separate page.
Can I access from a restricted state via VPN? Technically yes, but this is a violation of the rules, and you will not be able to claim your prize — the discrepancy will be revealed during verification.
Why does the list of restricted states change? Because laws regarding sweepstakes games in the US are currently being actively passed at the state level.
The list is compiled based on official platform information and verified with public reviews as of August 2026. We do not place affiliate links.
