In 2025, most forms of gambling in Texas are illegal. However, the Lone Star State may be one of several states that will amend its stance on real-money gambling in the coming years.
Moreover, there are several legal options for Texans keen to bet on some sports or play casino games, both online and in person.
With this in mind, we’ve compiled this complete guide to the gambling landscape in Texas in 2025. We explain the current legislation and present various legal, legitimate options if you want to gamble in Texas this year.
We also look ahead to the future and consider whether various forms of online and in-person gambling might be legalized in Texas in the coming years.
Is Online Gambling in Texas Legal in 2025?
In Texas, racetrack, commercial, online, and sports betting activities are illegal. However, charitable, parimutuel, lotteries, and tribal betting are legal. Therefore, several legal betting options are currently available to punters.
Equally, sweepstakes casinos (also known as social casinos) are permitted in Texas, letting you play with virtual currency. This is the ideal way to gamble legally online in Texas. If you land wins while playing these games in promotional mode, you can redeem your virtual currency for a gift card or cash prize. More on this shortly.
Disappointingly for keen gamblers, recent prospective bills to try and legalize other forms of betting haven’t been favorably received in Texas, particularly those relating to sports betting in the aftermath of the US Supreme Court Ruling of 2018, which effectively paved the way for states to vote on the legalization of sports betting within their borders[1].
How to Gamble Legally in Texas in 2025? Online & Offline Options
While online sports betting and online casino gambling are currently illegal in Texas, there are numerous ways for residents to gamble legally in 2025:
Sign up for sweepstakes casinos
Texas prohibits real-money online casinos. At the time of this writing, only six US states permit their residents to gamble at state-regulated online casinos: Connecticut, Delaware, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.
However, Texans over 18 can sign up and play at sweepstakes casinos, also known as social casinos, throughout the United States. These platforms differ from real money gambling sites like BetMGM and DraftKings, as they permit free play and don’t accept wagers.
Sites like Hello Millions, Pulsz Casino, High 5 Casino, and LuckyLand are among the most prominent social casinos available to Texans.
They all feature two types of virtual currency:
- Gold coins: Though each site has its own name for this type of currency, the gold coins can be used to play slots and other casino games for free.
- Sweeps coins: Again, though called different things by different sites, sweeps coins are the currency used to play games in promotional mode. You can redeem cash prizes and gift cards if you win while playing with sweeps coins.
All social casinos in Texas offer no-deposit welcome bonuses, which add free virtual currency to your account as soon as you sign up. Then, when you follow the sweeps casino on social media, you can participate in giveaways to earn more free coins.
You can buy coin bundles if you wish, which is a way to top up your balance of gold coins. For each purchase, you are given sweeps coins for free, which you can use to play slots and other games for prizes.
If you accumulate enough sweeps coins (usually $50 or $100 worth), you can redeem them for a prize.
Sweepstakes casinos offer a great range of games like slots, blackjack, roulette, and video poker. Some, like Stake.us, even offer live casino games, while online sweeps sites like Legendz also offer virtual sportsbooks.
Given that real-money casino gameplay is illegal in Texas, playing at sweeps casinos is the best way to enjoy casino games legally in the Lone Star State, whether you choose to play for free or in promotional mode with your virtual currency.
Play the state lottery
The Texas State Lottery has been ongoing since 1992, with games like Mega Millions and Powerball being much-loved across the state. You can also buy scratch cards and enjoy instant win games via the State Lottery. To purchase lottery tickets or scratch cards in Texas, you must be 18+.
The Texas Lottery Commission oversees all state lottery-based games and is the primary regulatory body for all gambling-related activities. You can legally buy tickets for all lottery games online via The Lotter Texas[2].
Enjoy bingo & raffles
Another way to participate in legal gambling in Texas is to visit bingo halls. These halls operate under the banner of “charitable gambling” and under a license from the Charitable Bingo Operations Division, part of the Texas Lottery Commission.
Over 1,200 organizations in Texas offer bingo games, with prizes worth up to $750 permitted per game. Moreover, 226 of the 254 counties in Texas offer bingo or instant bingo games, so this is perhaps the most widespread type of gambling permitted in the state at the time of writing.
Licensed organizations can also hold two raffles each year, with non-cash prizes of up to $50,000 available (or $250,000 if the prize is a property).
Visit land-based tribal casinos
Land-based casino gambling is legal in Texas on tribal lands. As such, each of the three federally recognized tribes in Texas operates a casino:
- Kickapoo Traditional Tribe of Texas: The Kickapoo Lucky Eagle Casino (Eagle Pass)
- Tigua Tribe of the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo: Speaking Rock Entertainment Center (El Paso)
- Alabama-Coushatta Tribe: Naskila Gaming (Livingston)
Of the three, we think the Kickapoo Lucky Eagle Casino in Eagle Pass is the best for game variety and other services. You will find over 3,000 slot machine games alongside live poker games and several fine-dining options.
Therefore, if you want to gamble and enjoy the thrill of a casino within Texas state lines, plan a weekend away to Eagle Pass.
Participate in parimutuel betting (horse & greyhound racing)
Although sports betting is illegal in Texas, parimutuel betting at specific horse and greyhound tracks is legal, and it has been since 1933.
In parimutuel betting, the odds are not fixed, and you buy a ticket for the horse or dog you think will win the race. if you back a winner, you win a share of the pool, which is determined by the number of tickets purchased for that particular runner.
The Texas Racing Commission monitors and regulates all parimutuel wagering in Texas. Class one tracks can operate an unlimited number of races per year, while class two tracks are limited to 60 days of racing.
The biggest venues for parimutuel betting in Texas are:
- Lone Star Park (Grand Prairie)
- Retama Park (Selma)
- Sam Houston Race Park (Houston)
Travel to neighboring states
Texas borders Arkansas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and New Mexico. While online casino gambling is illegal in each of these states, too, sports betting is legal in each of them, excluding Oklahoma.
Of all of Texas’ neighboring states, Louisiana has the least restrictive gambling laws and is a good destination for Texans to gamble in different ways. Land-based gambling is permitted at numerous venues in the Bayou State, while riverboat gambling is also popular.
At the time of writing, 28 riverboat or land-based casinos are licensed in Louisiana, offering you lots of choices if you’re planning a trip from Texas.
The Golden Nugget Casino at Lake Charles is one of the closest casino resorts to Texas and is the ideal destination for a weekend away. There are over 1,000 guest rooms, an 18-hole golf course, 12 eateries, and 1,600 slot machines at the Golden Nugget. It’s one of the top-rated US casinos outside of Las Vegas and Atlantic City.
How to Legally Gamble Online in Texas in 2025
Ultimately, the best way to legally gamble online in Texas in 2025 is to sign up for a sweepstakes casino. These social casinos are not illegal in Texas, so you can play at sites like Pulsz Casino, High 5 Casino, and LuckyLand with virtual currency without breaking the law. Then, if you win while playing slots or table games in promotional mode, you can redeem your coins for real cash or prizes.
Right now, there doesn’t appear to be any new legislation on the horizon to legalize online sports betting or online casino gambling in the Lone Star State following the House’s recent dismissal of a proposed bill. Therefore, TX remains one of 11 states where sports betting is illegal, and it’s unclear if this will change in the future[3].
Still, as we’ve presented above, there are numerous ways to enjoy legal gambling in Texas, both online and offline. So, follow our tips above and gamble legally in Texas in 2025.
[1] https://guides.sll.texas.gov/gambling/sports-gambling
[2] https://tx.thelotter.com/lottery-tickets/
[3] https://www.foxbusiness.com/sports/legalizing-sports-betting-texas-would-pay-huge-dividends-study-says