For our reviews, we use a standardized scorecard. This ensures that each casino is reviewed using the same data points, keeping them standardized and comparable.
We collect data by creating accounts (anonymously), claiming bonuses, depositing our own money, playing games, and cashing out balances. We do not accept any form of compensation to write reviews, and our reviews are in no way influenced by our advertising partners. Casinos cannot pay for favorable reviews or ratings.
Overall Ratings Scale
Our five-tier system for rating casinos.
Scorecard
Game Selection
Overall Weight: 25%
Game selection refers to the number of games and the different playing experiences available to players at online casinos.
| Item | Details | Weight | Scale |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Games | The total number of games available. | 20% | 100 up to 300 301 up to 500 501 up to 1000 1001 up to 2000 2001+ |
| Game Variety | Rating weighs different game types offered, including: slot themes, exclusive titles, live dealer, tables, Plinko, crash, instant win, fishing, and bingo. | 50% | 1-5 |
| Software Providers | Assesses the number of unique software providers represented, along with their popularity. | 30% | 1-5 |
Bonuses & Promotions
Overall Weight: 15%
Bonuses and promotions refer to any extra incentives for players, including the following:
| Item | Details | Weight | Scale |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sign-up Bonus | Bonus a player receives when they join a site and verify their identity. | 20% | 1-3 SC 4-6 SC 6-10 SC |
| Welcome Bonus | Extra coins received as a first purchase bonus incentive. The percentage amount received over 1:1. | 30% | 100% 150% 175% 200% 200%+ |
| Daily Bonus | A bonus is received by logging in to the site each day. Sometimes cumulative over several days. | 15% | 0.1 – 0.5SC 0.5 – 1 SC Free Spins |
| VIP / Loyalty Program | Programs that reward play in the form of cashback / rakeback or other incentives to play often operate in a formalized tiered program. | 25% | 1-5 |
| Other | Refer a friend, AMEO, social media, flash sales, daily drops, promo emails | 10% | 1-5 |
Customer Support
Overall Weight: 15%
Casinos that score high in the customer support department offer high-quality help and a variety of different support options when needed by players. Here are some of the different features the reviewer is looking for:
| Item | Details | Weight | Scale |
|---|---|---|---|
| Selection | Social casinos offer different selections of FAQ, live chat, email, phone and support via social media. The more selection options, the more helpful it is for players, and the higher rating we award. | 10% | 1-2 (Poor) 2-3 (Good) 4-5 (Great) |
| Availability | A 1-hour response time is great, but it doesn’t mean much if the support team is only online for 4 hours a day. Players need to know when they can get help. | 15% | Limited (9am-5pm) Extended (6am-10pm) 24/7 |
| Response Time | Prompt responses are important for useful customer service. | 15% | 2+ days (Poor) 1 day (Good) 12 hours (Great) <1 hour (Outstanding) |
| Human vs Chat Bot | Some casinos hide their live chat agents behind unhelpful AI chatbots. We reserve our highest ratings for casinos that let you talk to a real human quickly. | 20% | Bot only Bot + human Easy access to human |
| Agent Competence | A fast response is useless if the agent just copies and pastes generic Terms & Conditions without actually answering the question. | 20% | Copy/paste answers (Poor) Provides accurate info (Good) Provides solutions (Great) |
| VIP Support | Casinos that offer specialized support for high-volume players earn extra points in our ratings | 5% | None Some perks Dedicated host |
| Resolution Ratio | Some casinos do a great job of resolving customer issues. Others … not so much. We check all available resources to see how many players actually had their issues resolved. | 10% | 0-25% (Poor) 25-50% (Below average) 50-75% (Good) 75-100% (Great) |
| Resolution Time | Simply responding to issues without providing solutions isn’t helpful. We rate casinos based on the average time it takes to resolve customer problems. | 5% | 7+ days (Poor) 4-6 days (below average) 1-3 days (Good) <1 day (Great) |
Your Safety & Security
Overall Weight: 25%
Security is one of the most important factors when we review sweepstakes casinos. Playing on a site that’s unsafe can be dangerous for your health and personal information. Here are the factors we consider when reviewing the security and safety of a site:
| Item | Details | Weight | Scale |
|---|---|---|---|
| Terms and Conditions | Clearly communicated and accessible terms and conditions. | 20% | 1-5 |
| Responsible Gambling Tools | Published responsible gambling policy and tools to help players. | 20% | 1-5 |
| Playthrough Requirements | Transparent upfront disclosure of bonus playthrough requirements. | 25% | 1-5 |
| KYC (Know Your Customer) Protocols. | Established processes to verify customers’ identity. | 15% | 1-5 |
| Site Security | Standard encryption, data protection, geo-location, and age verification checks. | 20% | 1-5 |
Financial
Overall Weight: 20%
The best sweepstakes casinos offer a number of different payment options and fast payouts when you win. Here are items we factor into our financial rating and their impact on the overall rating.
| Item | Details | Weight | Scale |
|---|---|---|---|
| Card Payment Variety | Traditional credit and debit options remain the most common way to buy packages. We check for acceptance of major networks like Visa, Mastercard, and Discover. | 10% | No card options (Unlikely but poor) Single card brand (e.g., Visa only) Full card acceptance (Visa, Mastercard, etc.) |
| Mobile & e-Wallet Variety | Fast, secure checkout options that don’t require typing in card numbers. We look for modern mobile wallets like Apple Pay nad Google Pay, plus dedicated gaming e-wallets such as Skrill. | 10% | 0 options (Must use card/bank) 1 option (e.g., Apple Pay only) 2+ options (e.g., Apple Pay + Skrill) |
| Banking & Localization | Many players appreciate direct, secure connections to bank accounts. We check for instant online banking protocols such as Trustly, as well as localized options like Interac for Canadian players. | 10% | No bank options (Cards/Crypto only) Standard Transfer (Slow manual wire) Instant Banking (Trustly, Plaid, or Interac) |
| Cryptocurrency Variety | For privacy and speed, many slots fans prefer crypto. We rate casinos higher if they accept major tokens (Bitcoin, Ethereum) alongside stablecoins or low-fee alternatives. | 5% | No crypto (Fiat only) Bitcoin only (Limited utility) Multi-Crypto (BTC, ETH, plus altcoins/stablecoins) |
| Redemption Response Time | Getting your prizes quickly matters. We rate casinos on how fast they review, approve, and send cash prizes or gift cards once a redemption is requested. | 20% | 7+ days (Poor/Bad form) 4–6 days (Below average) 3–5 days (Industry standard) < 48 hours (Elite/Fast processing) |
| Redemption Minimums | The minimum amount of eligible Sweeps Coins (SC) a player must accumulate before they are allowed to redeem. Lower thresholds earn higher ratings | 10% | 100+ SC (High threshold) 50–99 SC (Average/Standard) <50 SC (Excellent/Highly accessible) |
| Prize Redemption Channels | A site might accept 10 ways to purchase, but only one way to redeem. We award higher ratings for versatile redemption options | 15% | 1 option (Usually just Bank Transfer) 2 options (e.g., Bank Transfer + Gift Cards) 3+ options (Bank, Crypto, and Gift Cards) |
| Payment Processing Fees | Social casinos should never charge players extra to buy coin packages or redeem prizes. We penalize platforms that pass transaction fees onto the player. | 10% | High fees (Charges on purchases & redemptions) Partial fees (Free purchases, but prize redemption fees) 100% Free (Zero fees on any transaction) |
| KYC Process | Sweepstakes regulations require identity verification before the first prize redemption. We evaluate how streamlined and fast this legal process is. | 10% | Complicated/Slow (Manual emails, 4+ days) Standard (Document upload portal, 24–48 hours) Instant (Automated verification, < 1 hour) |
Note: We don’t take a site’s mobile device compatibility or apps into consideration. While we do include these items in reviews, it’s not part of our overall score.
Additional Factors:
Location
Our writers are based in locations where they can access and play at the casino being reviewed.
Sounds simple, but far too often we read reviews from people who aren’t located in a country where they can play at the casino they have reviewed. Online gambling is heavily regulated and restricted based on geography. We have boots on the ground so our readers can be sure what they’ve read is from a source in the same local as they are.
Internal Firewall
We have intentionally put an information firewall between our writers and the advertising department. Our writers are paid to do one thing and one thing only. Review the casino and report on it. They have no contact with the casinos (other than as players) and are not compensated to write about them. They write based on their own experiences at the casino and compare it to other similar casinos they have played at.
Fact Checking
Each review we publish passes through multiple hands to verify every detail before reaching the final stage of being posted on the site. We share information internally to confirm the accuracy of hard-to-find details.
This is critical to earning your trust. Details matter, and you deserve to know that what you read here is accurate.
Transparency
Our partnerships never influence our reviews, articles or editorial. We’ve got a whole page dedicated to our transparency with our advertising partners and the links we include on this site.