California Online Casinos: The 2026 Guide to Legal Gambling in CA

Are Real-Money Online Casinos Legal in California?

Real-money online casinos are not legal in California. Online gambling is banned under Section 330 of the California Penal Code: originally enacted in 1872, the law has since been amended to legalize some in-person gambling and prohibit online gambling.

Multiple attempts to legalize sports betting and online gambling in the Golden State have failed, with bills rejected by the Assembly and the Senate. You won’t find an online casino in California for real money gambling, but there are legal alternatives, which I’ll explain in detail.

The legal gambling landscape in California is complex and there’s lots of conflicting information. Unscrupulous offshore casinos take advantage of players looking for the best online casinos in California and can mislead customers into thinking they’re legit.

Simply put, offshore casinos are not legal in California. Players gambling at offshore casinos aren’t protected by regulators, and there’s no guarantee that you’ll get any money back if something goes wrong. For your own financial safety please avoid playing at blacklisted casino site.

What Are the Legal Alternatives to Online Casinos in CA?

The closest legal alternative to real money online casinos in California is daily fantasy sports betting (DFS). Until recently, another option was sweepstakes casinos. However, these were banned in October 2025 and all social casinos offering prize redemptions must exit the state before January 1, 2026.

DFS is a skill-based game relying on sports knowledge and game theory, rather than a game of pure chance. Players pick lineups of real-world sports players and receive points based on their picks’ performance in real matches. If your fantasy sports team wins, you can win real money. Payouts are determined by how your team performs in a tournament against other players, rather than house-set odds at traditional sportsbooks.

Daily fantasy sports might not be a long-term alternative to online casinos in California. In July 2025, Attorney General Rob Bonta stated that DFS is a form of sports betting, which is illegal in the state. A lawsuit by DFS app Underdog attempted to block the release of the statement, but was rejected in court.

While not legally binding, this announcement could be used by lawmakers attempting to legislate against DFS in California. I don’t expect the DFS situation to change overnight, I’m keeping an eye out for news as it happens. Bookmark this page to keep up with the latest updates on legal challenges and changes to California online gambling.

The Current Legal Status of Online Gambling in California

Online gambling in California for real money is illegal, and there are no licensed online casinos in the state. There are some legal forms of online gaming with similarities to gambling, but iGaming in California is heavily restricted under various legislative acts. This is despite consistent efforts from politicians, gaming companies, and tribal representatives to broaden or amend the legal landscape.

Legal gambling in California is overseen by the California Gambling Control Commission (CGCC), but this doesn’t include online gambling. The CGCC website warns Californians not to gamble online at unlicensed offshore casinos, after recently finding sites using forged California licenses. It even advises residents to avoid search terms like “is online gambling legal in California?” or "is this online casino legitimate?" as unsafe sites may promote fraudulent search results.

In recent years, alternative legal options for online gambling in California have come under scrutiny. Sweepstakes casinos are a popular form of online gaming using virtual currencies, not real money, to play casino-style games. Many sites allow players to redeem Sweeps Coins for prizes, including cash and gift cards, which is one of the key issues addressed in recent Californian legislation.

The legal status of gambling in California is turbulent, with new initiatives cropping up supporting and opposing gambling. I’ve summarized California’s key legislative events:

• Dec. 31, 2025 – Sweepstakes casinos must cease activity in California by this date, before AB-831 comes into effect on January 1, 2026.

• Nov. 10, 2025 – The California District Court rejects lawsuit to ban Kalshi under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA).

• Oct. 11, 2025 – Sweepstakes-style casinos are officially banned in California as Gov. Gavin Newsom signs AB-831 into law.

• July 22, 2025 – Three tribes in California file a lawsuit against prediction market platforms Kalshi and Robinhood for running sports gambling on tribal land, as defined by the IGRA.

• July 3, 2025 – California Attorney General Rob Bonta publishes his opinion that daily fantasy sports wagers constitute sports betting, which is illegal under California Penal Code section 337a.

• June 24, 2025 – Assemblymember Valencia introduces AB-831 to prohibit sweepstakes gaming in California. This is an amendment and redirection of the bill, originally introduced in February 2025 with a focus on tribal gaming.

• November, 2022 – Propositions 26 and 27 are both defeated at the polls. Sports betting remains illegal in California, in-person or online.

• May-October, 2022 – Propositions 26 and 27, widely seen as opposing each other, receive the required signatures for a vote. Both propositions receive vocal support and prominent campaigning, including TV ads and political endorsements. Supporters raise a total of $256,400,000, making props 26 and 27 California’s most expensive ballot measures.

• Aug. 31, 2021 – John J. Moffatt and Kurt Oneto file the California Solutions to Homelessness and Mental Health Support Act. The act proposes to legalize online sports betting and use taxes to fund for homelessness and mental health initiatives. It later becomes Proposition 27.

• Nov. 30, 2020 – Assemblyman Gray’s revised sports betting bill ACA-16 fails.

What Gambling Is Legal in California?

If you’re looking to play at an online casino with real money in California, you’re out of luck. However, best DFS sites aren’t the only legal options for gambling in California.

The California State Lottery runs eight draw games with results daily or weekly and over 50 scratchcard games throughout the year. Lottery games were illegal in the state until the California State Lottery Act of 1984, which authorized a state-run lottery commission to fund public education. You won’t find a California lottery app or online store, as tickets and scratchers can only be purchased in-person from licensed retailers.

Other legal gambling options include charitable bingo games and parimutuel betting on horse racing, which is the only permitted form of sports wagering in California. Following Kalshi’s court win in November, prediction markets remain an option. Rather than placing wagers on games or spinning slot reels, users buy and sell event contracts, effectively trading on public opinion. Kalshi is embroiled in legal action in other states, however, and the prediction market site situation in California could change at any time.

Stepping back from the online options, in-person gambling is legal at cardrooms and casinos on tribal land, under regulation from the CGCC. This includes 66 tribal-owned casinos, with additional oversight from the National Indian Gaming Commission. These venues offer a variety of casino games, such as roulette, baccarat, blackjack, craps, and poker, plus physical slot machines.

Here’s a quick overview of the brick-and-mortar casinos in California:

The Future of California Gambling: Why Is Legalization So Difficult?

Of all the regulatory markets I’ve covered, California is one of the most turbulent and complex when it comes to online gambling. There are many invested parties on either side of the legalization debate and lots of factors to consider.

The Golden State has become something of a trendsetter, with games providers and state governments alike following California’s course on multiple iGaming decisions. Pragmatic Play game provider pulled its software from all sweepstakes sites following a landmark lawsuit by the Los Angeles Attorney General against sweepstakes casinos and providers. California wasn’t the first state to ban sweepstakes casinos, but with a market estimate of $1 billion and more states following suit, the impact will be widely felt as the map of sweepstakes casinos legal states keeps changing from month to month."

This level of influence plays into the close attention many are paying to California’s gambling legislation—myself included. There are a few key areas I see blocking significant change:

Tribal Gaming

Native tribes in California have a monopoly on casinos and in-person gambling. Tribal-state gaming compacts affirm the sovereignty of tribal governments and permit gambling activities within reservation borders. Gaming tribes pay a percentage of net win revenues towards state regulation and problem gambling support, on top of revenue sharing initiatives for non-gaming tribes.

Income from casinos and gaming on reservations is essential for tribal governments. Historically, revenue opportunities have been extremely limited following geographic and political oppression of indigenous communities. According to the National Gambling Impact Study Commission, gaming operations are the first and only economic development initiative to successfully support reservations.

Opinions on gaming developments differ between tribes, as we’ve seen in the sweepstakes debate. In September 2025, the Big Lagoon Rancheria Tribe of Yurok and Tolowa Indians spoke in favor of sweepstakes in California, and the Kletsel Dehe Wintun Nation of the Cortina Rancheria Tribe partnered with sweepstakes operators VGW prior to the ban.

The majority of tribes strongly oppose sweepstakes casinos, however, and tribes generally show a united front against non-tribal gaming. Unified organizations such as the non-profit California Nations Indian Gaming Association consolidate campaigning and protect Native American sovereignty, making it difficult for external parties to crack the tribal gaming monopoly.

California online casinos for real money have the potential to disrupt tribal gaming and directly impact the lives of Native Americans in California. Whatever form online gambling may take in California, if legalized, it must account for the significant history of tribal gaming in the state. I can’t see online gambling becoming legal in California without meaningful input from—and financial compensation for—tribes.

Federal vs. State

There’s potential for changes in federal law to loosen restrictions in specific states, but this involves complicated legal processes and risks infringing on state autonomy. Prediction markets, for example, are able to operate in states that prohibit online gambling due to federal oversight from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). However, this is a contested market with ongoing legal challenges, and California has shown opposition in the courts already.

Changes in federal law don’t necessarily dictate state regulation, but in cases like the overruling of PASPA, it paves the way for states to open up markets. Other federal actions can have top-down influence. President Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” introduced changes to tax reporting for gambling winnings, and the IRS confirmed the new, higher thresholds for players and payment providers in December 2025.

The Trump administration appears to take a more lenient stance on prediction markets. Polymarket is returning to the US in December under CFTC approval, after a ban and a $1,400,000 fine in 2022. In October 2025, Trump Media and Technology Group announced a partnership with prediction platform Crypto.com, indicating a more favorable future for prediction markets than states like California might have hoped.

While federal laws and presidential opinion may influence regulatory decisions, changes in state law and constitutions are ultimately governed at a regional level. I won’t be surprised if we hear more on prediction markets from the current administration, but I don’t expect this to sway policymakers in California.

Social Responsibility

At the heart of this legislative debate is public opinion: do Californians want online gambling legalized? So far, the answer has been a resounding “no.” In 2022, propositions 26 and 27 were firmly defeated on the November ballot, with 82.28% voting no to legalizing mobile sports betting.

Opinion polls show some movement, but an August survey of 1,400 voters found that 40% of respondents don’t want sports betting legalized, including online or app betting. Just 25% said they support legalization, with the remaining 35% undecided. Considering the costs put into the last attempt at legalization, operators aren’t likely to try again unless the support is there.

A significant factor in public opposition to online gambling in California is the question of problem gambling and harm prevention. The 40% that responded “no” in the poll indicated concerns about gambling addiction, and with an estimated one million Californians suffering from problem gambling, I can understand the hesitation.

For California residents concerned about gambling harms or curious about responsible gambling measures, you can visit the Office of Problem Gambling website or call 1-800-GAMBLER for more information.