Both sweepstakes and social gaming platforms are popular alternatives to traditional gambling. They don’t require players to use real money to enjoy gaming experiences. However, sweepstakes and social gaming platforms offer different environments. They cater to different audience groups, and the gameplay experiences also vary.
In this article, you will learn about the basic differences between sweepstakes and social gaming platforms. It will help you decide on your go-to business model.
What is a Sweepstakes Platform?
Sweepstakes platforms operate under a specific legal framework, which sets them apart from traditional real-money gambling sites. Unlike standard gambling platforms, sweepstakes platforms focus on providing players with entertainment and a sense of gaming excitement.
There is no risk of losing money while playing sweepstakes games, which is a key reason behind their growing popularity. Some of the top sweepstakes platforms in 2025 include Chumba, Pulsz, WOW Vegas, Global Poker, and others. If you want to build a sweepstakes gaming platform similar to these top operators, connect with the experts today!
What is a Social Casino?
Social casinos are basically online platforms that are built purely for fun and entertainment. All the games made available across social casinos are free to play and do not offer any kind of monetary prizes. The prime focus of social casinos is mostly on providing players with an engaging casino-style gaming experience.
For most such casinos, some of the common social elements are achievement tracking, a leaderboard program, real-time interaction, and others. Some of the popular social casinos in the industry are Slotomania, PokerStars Play, Rush Games, BetRivers.ne,t, and others. You can turn up to the social casino software providers, and get a high-performance platform for your business needs on-demand.
Difference Between Sweepstakes and Social Casinos
Most of the casino sites or apps often talk about sweepstakes casinos and social casinos interchangeably. It is true that these two casino domains share some similarities, but there are also a few key differences.
Both sweepstakes and social casinos do not promote real money games and have in-app purchases. But, the only difference that makes social casinos and sweepstakes casinos different from one another is, that the former doesn’t offer real cash prizes, whereas the latter does.Â
Sweepstakes casinos allow their players to redeem the sweep coins for cash prizes or gift cards. Both of these prizes have real-world value! Social casinos on the other hand are for pure fun and don’t offer any potential opportunity for players to win real money.
As the name suggests, social casinos are mostly built for players to build their own gaming communities and compete with one another to keep the fun & thrill alive. Sweepstakes casinos are also linked to social media modules, encouraging people to stay connected with the community.
Varying Coin Systems in Sweepstakes and Social Casino Games
With sweepstakes casinos, players get two different types of coins to wager across games, gold and sweep coins. Gold coins hold no real-world value and can’t be exchanged for cash or monetary rewards. Players can use gold coins just to enter the games and place their wagers. Sweep coins on the other hand are also used for playing exclusive games, but can also be exchanged for real-money prizes or cash rewards.
Upon winning the sweepstakes games, you win either gold coins or sweep coins, depending on the type of game you play or the promotional offer invoked at the time. The conversion rate for sweep coins to real money might vary from one sweepstakes casino to the other. But one thing you must know is, that one cannot buy sweep coins, as it is only provided through bonuses, rewards, game winnings, or promotional offers. For some sweepstakes casinos, players also earn sweep coins when they spend money to buy additional gold coins.
Social casinos on the other hand have a single virtual currency that players use to play games and keep winning the coins back. With social casinos, developers enable a feature that allows players to customize the coins with their own design, logo, and colour. It will enable your players to personalize their social casino gaming experience on your platform, which will eventually boost overall engagement.
Conclusion
Now that you know the difference between sweepstakes casinos and social casinos, you might have clarity on what would suit your business needs the best. Sweepstakes casinos are more popular because they provide players with the chance to win real cash prizes, even without paying a single penny. On the other hand, social casinos are favorable for the audience that prioritizes casual gaming above all.
Also Read: A Business Model That Makes Sense: Social Gaming Unveiled
