Social and sweepstakes casinos are blowing up in the US and Canada, with fans of casino-style games playing together and connecting online all over the country.
The best part? These games on these sites are available for anyone to play totally free, all you need is some virtual tokens called Gold Coins or Sweeps Coins. You can even redeem Sweeps Coins for cash prizes.
On this page, we’re going deep on everything you need to know about Gold Coins and Sweeps Coins. There are some important differences between the two, and to get the most out of your experience at social casinos you need to understand them.
Let’s jump in.
Sweeps Coins Vs. Gold Coins, What’s the Difference?
First up, it’s worth mentioning that Gold Coins and Sweeps Coins are the generic terms for the concepts that we’re talking about here. Most social casinos, like Chumba Casino for instance, use this terminology.
But some social casinos have their own unique names for the coins on their sites, like Funzpoints Casino for instance where the site credits are called funzpoints.
Regardless of the name variations site by site, all the info here is accurate for how Gold Coins and Sweeps Coins work at social and sweepstakes casinos in general.
Gold Coins and Sweeps Coins are the two types of virtual tokens used at social and sweepstakes casinos. They are similar, but with some important differences.
Both can be obtained for free. You’ll normally receive some of both for signing up, as part of daily login bonuses, and through other regular promos and giveaways.
If you run out of coins, or just want some more, you can also purchase additional Gold Coins, although it’s not a requirement to play. If you do, you normally also receive some FREE Sweeps Coins. Nevertheless, you can’t directly purchase Sweeps Coins.
You can play games with either Gold Coins or Sweeps Coins. Neither have any inherent value and can’t be withdrawn. In the case of Sweeps Coins however, you can potentially redeem your winnings for cash prizes and more.
That’s the general idea, but we’re going even deeper on both GCs and SCs in the next sections.
Gold Coins
Playing with Gold Coins is a little like using play money. Their sole use is for playing games at that casino. You can’t withdraw Gold Coins and they have no inherent value, or indeed any function at all outside of the casino.
Unlike Sweeps Coins, as we’ll come on to, Gold Coins can’t be redeemed for any kind of prizes.
When you are playing with Gold Coins, you are doing so purely for the love of the games, to participate in leaderboards or other contests, or just to be part of the community.
You normally get a healthy supply of Gold Coins when you sign up to a social casino, and you get regular free top ups too. It varies depending on the site, but the number of GCs you receive are often in the hundreds of thousands or even millions.
Buying Gold Coins
Sweeps casinos let you buy additional Gold Coins, normally in the form of offers with specific amounts. In fact, this is more or less the entire business model of sweeps casinos, and how they generate a profit.
Purchasing Gold Coins is just like buying anything else online. The payment is processed instantly, and you receive your new coins right away too.
It varies depending on the casino, but the Gold Coin offers often range from just a couple of dollars to $100 or more.
Bank cards are the most popular payment method accepted, but some social casinos also let you use bank transfers or certain e-wallets like Skrill. If you’re playing via a mobile app, you can make in-app purchases via your regular App Store or Play Store account – just like you would on any other type of app.
Generally, the banking options at social casinos are not as well developed as those accepted by traditional real money casinos, but they are certainly improving.
So why do people choose to buy Gold Coins? Well, for a couple of reasons.
For one, if you run out of your free supply and don’t want to wait for the next free top up. You might want to just bolster your GC bankroll, move up in stakes or play different types of games, or compete in social leaderboards or races. And some people buy them for the FREE Sweeps Coins you get as along with your purchase.
How Much are Gold Coins Worth?
Outside of the casino? Absolutely nothing.
Gold Coins only exist as tokens to play the games on social casinos. They have no value, and can’t be withdrawn.
Can You Convert Gold Coins to Sweeps Coins?
No. The two types of coins are separate and one can’t be exchanged for the other.
Playing the games in Gold Coin mode only wins you additional Gold Coins, and the same is true when you play for Sweeps Coins.
Sweepstakes Coins
Sweepstakes Coins or Sweeps Coins are the second type of coin at social casinos and sweeps casinos.
A lot of what we’ve said about Gold Coins also applies to Sweeps Coins. Both can be obtained for free when you sign up and via promotions and giveaways, and neither have any inherent monetary value. Sweeps Coins are simply another type of digital token, used to play at sweeps sites.
There are two big differences between GCs and SCs however.
The first is that any Sweeps Coins you win can be redeemed for cash prizes, which the casino will normally send directly to your bank account.
The second is that Sweeps Coins can never be purchased, only received for free. This is very important from a legal perspective, and it is a big part of how sweeps sites can operate freely and legally in almost every state in the US, and pay out cash prizes to its members.
You can read more about the legal side of things in our article asking Are Sweepstakes Casinos Legal and Legit?
While Gold Coins often number in their hundreds of thousands, Sweeps Coins are much smaller. Normally, you can redeem 1 Sweeps Coin for $1 in cash prizes.
How to Get Sweeps Coins
There are a number of ways to get Sweeps Coins and it also varies a little depending on the casino.
First up, you’ll normally receive a small amount of FREE SCs when you sign up to get started.
Social and sweeps sites are very active on social media, and they regularly host coin giveaways on platforms like Facebook or Twitter. This is another way to get free Sweeps Coins.
Most social and sweeps sites include daily (or sometimes even more frequently) login bonuses, which can include both Gold Coins and Sweeps Coins.
It sounds a little crazy, but you can also receive free Sweeps Coins by mailing a written request to the casino. You’ll need to follow the instructions provided by the casino carefully, and get the wording on the request correct, but – old school as it sounds – it works!
Finally, you can get FREE Sweeps Coins when you purchase Gold Coins. The number of Sweeps Coins you get is normally predetermined depending on the size of the GC offer – for example, a $10 Gold Coin offer often includes 10 FREE Sweeps Coins.
Even though the Sweeps Coins handed out in this manner are predictable, they are still totally free, just like all the other ways of securing Sweeps Coins. You are paying for the Gold Coins and any Sweeps Coins you receive are free.
Are Sweep Coins Real Money?
No. Just like Gold Coins, Sweeps Coins are simply credits to play games which can lead to cash prizes down the line.
Think of Sweeps Coins like the paper tokens you win at a carnival. Are they real money you can spend outside the carnival? No. But if you win enough, you can cash them in for prizes.
Should You Buy Sweeps Coins?
You can’t. Sweeps Coins can only ever be received for free as a giveaway or when buying Gold Coins.
How to Redeem Sweeps Coins Into Cash Prizes
Again, the method varies a little depending on the casino, but redeeming Sweeps Coins is generally a pretty straightforward process. That said, there are some terms and conditions and potential snags to be aware of.
First up, you need to play with any Sweeps Coins you receive 1x before you can redeem them. You also normally need to hit a certain threshold before you request a redemption. At Chumba Casino for instance, the minimum you can redeem is 100 Sweeps Coins.
When you redeem Sweeps Coins for cash, the money is sent as standard to the same method you used to purchase Gold Coins – whether that’s a personal bank account or your e-wallet account. Alternatively, you can request your redemption in the form of a gift card, which gets sent to the email address associated with your account.
The processing period again varies, but you can probably expect to wait a day or two at least before you receive your cash prize.
Finally, sweeps sites are legally required to verify your identity and the ownership of your bank account before you can redeem a cash prize. This process can be a little time consuming, but only needs to be completed once.
You’ll need to submit a copy of your personal ID, like a passport or driver’s license, along with a copy of a bank statement and possibly some additional documentation. Once you’ve sent all your documents, you need to wait for it to be verified.
All in all it can take several days, which isn’t ideal, but at least it’s a one-time-only requirement before you redeem your first prize.