Gambling has been a hugely popular pastime and form of entertainment for people all over the United States for thousands of years. Since the dawn of the internet though, gambling has taken a huge leap forward.
Today, we don’t have to visit a casino to play roulette or attend a horse race to place bets and gamble. However, while online casinos and gambling platforms might be accessible from anywhere, that doesn’t mean they’re always legal.
In fact, a lot of states in the United States have made it illegal to use online casinos. Examples of these include Alabama, Oklahoma, and South Carolina. Today, we want to focus on the states that allow the use of online casinos.
To give you an idea as to where you can play casino games online, we’re going to show you 7 states where online casinos are legal and what you can expect.
Stick around to learn more!
The Current Situation
Before we look at 7 states where online casinos are legal, let’s take a quick look at the current online gambling situation in America. Despite being made illegal across the United States for many years, online gambling including online casinos have been legal in America for the last decade now.
US states are now given free rein to put their own laws and regulations in place in relation to online gambling. Therefore, some states have already made it legal. While most states are yet to legalize online gambling, a lot of states are in the process of legalizing it.
In the next few years, we can expect to see the list of states that permit online gambling grow.
7 States That Have Legalized Online Casinos
Now you know more about the current situation in relation to online gambling in the US, let’s look at the 7 states that have made online casinos legal. We’ll start with Nevada!
1. Nevada
Nevada is a pro-gambling state which is home to two of America’s biggest and most popular casino destinations. Those are, of course, Las Vegas and Reno. Back in 2013, Nevada became the first state to legalize online poker.
The state passed House Bill AB 114, which allows certain companies to offer real-money online poker to Nevada residents. As of yet, the state is yet to make any new laws when it comes to fully-fledged online casinos.
2. New Jersey
New Jersey was just a day behind Nevada when it legalized online casinos. Behind Nevada, New Jersey was the first state to legalize online gambling in general.
Unlike Nevada though, New Jersey didn’t just legalize online poker. Instead, New Jersey offered residents fully-fledged online casinos. As a result, in New Jersey, it is possible to play a huge range of casino games.
New Jersey is home to leading online casinos, poker platforms, and sports betting platforms.
3. Delaware
Way back in 2012, Delaware became the first state to sign a pro-online gambling bill. This made Delaware the first state to make online gambling legal.
It may not be the biggest or most popular online gambling scene in the United States but it will always be the first.
Today, you can take part in any form of online gambling you like. This includes online casinos and poker.
4. Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania made online casinos legal in 2017 when it legalized online gambling. Since then, the state has become one of the top states in the US for online poker, casinos, and sports betting.
At a Pennsylvanian online casino, you can play all the classic games such as Blackjack and Roulette, and take part in poker tournaments.
5. West Virginia
It took a lot of lobbying for West Virginia to make online gambling legal but it was in 2019 when the state passed pro-online gambling legislation.
Interestingly, while all three verticals – casinos, poker, and sports betting are legal in West Virginia, only online casinos and sports betting are currently offered.
Online poker is legal but there aren’t any operators delivering it yet.
6. Michigan
Like West Virginia, Michigan made online casinos, sports betting, and online poker legal in 2019 when it passed an online gambling extension package into law.
The bill may have passed in 2019 but it took another two years for online casinos and online poker to finally arrive in the state.
Now, you can play virtually any casino game you can imagine with ease.
7. Connecticut
Connecticut only made it legal to use online casinos in 2021. It took so long for the state to legalize online casinos because the government had to reach an agreement with the Mohegan and Mashantucket Pequot tribes who are the two biggest operators of land-based casinos in the state.
Like West Virginia, Connecticut residents only have access to online casinos and sport betting platforms, as no provider offers online poker yet.
Final Thoughts
These are 7 states that currently offer online casinos. As you can see from the states we’ve discussed, online casinos are still a relatively new thing the American people are allowed to use.
As time goes on, we can expect more states to legalize online casinos, so you can expect this list to grow.
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