West Virginia Online Gambling Sites
West Virginia is among a handful of states that allows gamblers to play online casino games. Thanks to new online gaming laws, you can now play your favorite legal online casino games such as online slots and online poker. If you are into online gambling, here are the top legal online casinos in West Virginia.
How to Choose Online Casinos in West Virginia
As you look for the best online casinos in West Virginia, there are several things you need to keep in mind. To help you make a great choice, our experts compiled the main factors to look out for when choosing your next gambling adventure.
Safety and Support
When choosing an online casino, security should be your first priority. So, we recommend that you play in online casinos that West Virginia Lottery Commission licenses and regulates. These WV online casino sites rely on powerful encryption and firewalls to protect your personal details and secure your account so that you can play with no worries.
As a gambler, you want to be aware that the casino site is safe, especially when providing your payment details. In WV, you can easily recognize if an online casino is safe by checking that it has a West Virginia Lottery Approved seal at the bottom of the page. Above all, ensure that the casino you are choosing is transparent in terms of providing clear and understandable details on payment and privacy policies.
Besides, the best WV online casinos provide 24/7 customer support through email and live chat. Such support is invaluable if you ever find yourself having any problems. Quick and responsive customer support ensures you get useful advice in no time.
The only way you can be sure that such a service is top-notch is by testing its customer support. Usually, the top casinos in WV respond in 1 to 3 minutes if you use live chat.
Game Selection
One of the first things you will notice when embarking on your gambling adventure is the number of games WV casinos offer. Usually, online casinos offer hundreds or even thousands of slot games. To make your online casino gaming worthwhile, most West Virginia casinos offer a variety of games. These include online slots and table games such as online roulette, poker, or blackjack.
Always remember that even if West Virginia online casinos have a lot of games, you should search for the particular game you want to play before signing up. For instance, an online casino may offer hundreds of slot machines and a handful of table games but no online poker.
There is no doubt the online casino industry in WV is still young. Although some of the best providers are yet to be licensed, that will change as the industry grows. Besides, you will still find huge hits from providers like NetEnt and Evolution.
The rule of thumb is always to establish if the WV online gambling site you are considering offers your favorite casino games from the top providers.
Software Providers
Are you ready to test your luck at slot machines or table games? On average, most casinos have at least 100 games on offer. If you want to have the best gaming experience, you should ensure the games come from top iGaming studios. The biggest software providers are known for their high-quality games.
In West Virginia, the top casino sites rely on industry-leading and reputable providers such as NetEnt, Pragmatic Play, IGT, and Real Time Gaming. In fact, most of the West Virginia casino sites offer online casino games from multiple providers. On average, the best WV online casino offers games from 4 or 5 software providers.
Bet Limits
As you anticipate joining real money online casinos in West Virginia, you should compare bet limits across the various available sites. Usually, all WV online casinos have a minimum bet amount for table games and online slots. The minimum amount you can bet on slots is usually around $0.10 per spin, while the minimum amount for table games like blackjack can be $1 per hand.
So, if you are keen on betting big, you should look for online casinos that offer you VIP or high roller tables. However, there is a catch; these tables are only accessible to loyal players who have high betting limits.
Payouts
Your preferred method of withdrawal will determine how fast you will receive your winnings. For instance, if you wish to use ACH/online banking, the payout speed varies from 2 to 5 business days once the casino processes it. Some casinos provide Play+, PayPal, and other methods as a quicker way to make deposits and withdrawals.
Of course, online casinos in WV have payout limits. The top providers allow you to withdraw as much as $60,000 through bank transfers or per PayPal transfer. Usually, each online casino has its unique payout times and payout limits.
West Virginia Online Casino Bonuses
The best WV online casino sites offer exciting rewards for both new and existing online casino players. For instance, an online casino may offer you a welcome bonus of up to $150 for signing up. As well, the casino may reward you with up to $1000 reload bonus money.
It is worth noting that this bonus cash comes with some wagering requirements. Therefore, carefully evaluate bonus offers to establish which give you a realistic chance of winning real money.
Mobile Support
Today, thanks to HTML5, most online casino sites are compatible with mobile devices. What’s more, some online casinos in West Virginia offer dedicated iOS and Android apps. This allows you to play at your convenience within the borders of West Virginia without the need to stay at home and play on your computer.
These casinos allow WV players to access the same features and game selection available on the desktop version. With that said, make sure the mobile gaming experience is user-friendly, and you are able to seamlessly deposit and withdraw funds from smartphone casino apps or mobile site.
Is Online Gambling in West Virginia Legal?
Absolutely. In 2019, state lawmakers passed the West Virginia Lottery Interactive Wagering Act into law to legalize online casinos. Now you can safely enjoy online gambling anytime!
Brief History of Online Gambling in West Virginia
Before the onset of online casinos in West Virginia, the state had only five land-based casinos. West Virginia may not have been among the first states to start contemplating internet gambling, but the state legislature’s interests were piqued once New Jersey began challenging the federal ban on sports betting in 2016.
West Virginia was among the five states that collaborated with New Jersey in the fight. In May 2018, they won after the court abolished PASPA. Earlier, in March 2018, politicians passed a bill on online casinos. So, after the fall of PASPA, the WV Lottery Sports Wagering Act (S 415) went into effect.
In 2019, a lottery-backed bill calling for legal poker sites and online casinos was introduced. Both houses passed the WV Lottery Interactive Wagering Act (HB 2934) in early 2019. To make the legislation official, the governor appended his signature on March 9, 2019. It was not until July 2020 that the first legal online casino launched in the state.
What You Need to Know About Online Gambling in West Virginia
The West Virginia Lottery Commission regulates the online gambling industry in West Virginia. It is responsible for overseeing, considering license applications, and enforcing online casino regulations.
Like all other states that have legalized online gambling, West Virginia has a minimum gambling age. It all depends on the gambling activity you are engaging in. For instance, if you are above 18 years, you can play bingo, lottery, or place wagers on greyhound or horse races. However, to be eligible to play casino games, bet on sports or play fantasy sports, the state requires you to be over 21 years.
In West Virginia, the penalties for underage gambling are issued to both the player and the casino. An operator who lets minors gamble online risks losing their license. As you enter WV brick-and-mortar casinos, you will be requested to offer proof of age. Similarly, WV online casinos will request age verification before you can start gambling with real money.
Responsible Gaming in West Virginia Online Casinos
All licensed West Virginia online casinos are required to provide responsible gambling features as one of the requirements of operating in the state. These features help you impose loss limits, time limits, and deposit limits on your account. As well you should be able to self-exclude or take a timeout.
Every operator in WV is required to offer a responsible gambling page. On this page, the online casinos are mandated to provide gamblers with educational guides that help them identify problem gaming. What’s more, besides letting you self-exclude for a while, legal online casinos provide links to supporting services.
West Virginia Online Casino Bonuses
West Virginia online casinos offer a wide range of promotions and bonuses. In addition to the convenience of gambling online, WV online casinos offer more benefits in form of casino bonuses. Some bonus offers may require a bonus code, while others activate automatically. All in all, these offers earn you more value for your money.
In fact, online casino bonuses at the top WV casinos rival their counterparts elsewhere. The caveat is you have to meet the wagering requirements. Playthrough or wagering requirements refer to the number of times you should bet before you can cash out the bonus winnings.
With that out of the way, below are some of the popular online casino bonuses you will come across at WV online casinos.
Welcome Bonus
Like in most online casinos, welcome bonuses are one-time offers new online casino players receive for signing up. It is a great opportunity to get rewarded for doing something as simple as creating an account and making a deposit.
Sometimes, the welcome bonus can come in batches over several deposits. Welcome bonuses come in various forms, from match bonuses to no-deposit bonuses and risk-free days.
No Deposit Bonus
These bonuses are extremely rare. With no deposit bonuses, the casino awards you free betting credits and free spins for simply registering at an online casino. To claim a no deposit casino bonus, you don’t need to make a deposit.
No deposit bonuses provide a remarkable way of trying casino games without risking real money. However, in addition to them being incredibly rare, they’ll usually be smaller in size, and they tend to have higher wagering requirements than deposit bonuses.
Deposit Match Bonus
Another popular casino bonus offer on WV online casinos is the deposit match bonus. As the name indicates, this casino bonus matches your deposit up to a specific amount. For instance, some casinos will match your deposit up to $250 on your first deposit.
Usually, match deposit bonuses are defined as a percentage. Suppose a casino offers a 100% deposit bonus of up to $250.
It means the casino will match your deposit up to the set limit. So, if you deposit $250, the casino will match it with an extra $250, and you will end up with $500 in your account.
Free Spins Bonus
If you like to spin the reels, you will always look forward to getting free spins. This bonus applies to slot machines. Typically, the online casino lets you use the free spins on any slot game in the casinos. However, some online casinos will limit free spins to certain games. You can find this out for yourself once you start playing.
Reload Bonus
WV online casinos do not stop rewarding you with bonuses after joining. You only need to look at the promotions section to check for reload bonus cash or deposit match. A reload bonus is the bonus you get for depositing funds in your account. Your online casino of choice may offer a reload bonus code to claim extra funds or free spins after reloading your account.
Games at WV Online Casinos
Online casinos in West Virginia offer a decent selection of games. You can play the most popular online gambling games, from table games to slots, and even delve into online sports betting. Here are some of the most popular casino games in VW.
Online Slots
If you’re looking for something simple and exciting to play, you will enjoy the wide selection of online slots. Most online casinos offer many different slots that vary greatly in their gameplay, theme, max win, and other factors.
While classic slots are pretty simple, having just a lever and three to five reels, modern games have introduced many exciting bonus features that give you more ways to win. Some games also have progressive jackpots that can reach even seven figures.
We recommend that you check the volatility and return-to-player percentage before playing. These stats will directly determine how often you will win and how much of your money you can expect to get back over a longer period.
Table Games
If you are wondering, most online gambling platforms in WV give you access to as many table games as at the top Las Vegas casinos. In some cases, the number of table games varies from one casino to another. Most WV online casinos offer you table games such as roulette and blackjack, as well as many of their variants.
Online Blackjack
Arguably, blackjack is among the most popular casino games. The game has been one of the key components in the West Virginia online casino arena. If you are into blackjack, then casinos in WV let you play blackjack games with various decks from one to eight. In addition, you can play thrilling variants such as:
- European Blackjack
- Blackjack Switch
- Spanish 21
Online Roulette
With online roulette, instead of the spinning physical roulette wheel, a random number generator generates the outcome. Roulette remains one of the easiest casino games to learn. As you play roulette in legal WV online casinos, you will find that European Roulette and French Roulette are the most popular variants. Both variants tend to offer better odds compared to the American version.
Online Poker
In West Virginia, online poker is starting to take become quite popular. However, the state is yet to regulate casinos dedicated to online poker.
However, if you want to satiate your cravings for real money poker, you can definitely check out the wide selection of video poker games. In video poker, you’ll play against the computer instead of actual players, but it’s equally fun and exciting.
WV Live Dealer Casino Games
A good number of WV online casinos offer live dealer games for table games such as roulette and blackjack. With live dealer games, you get to see live dealers do their magic via live stream. You will see them shuffle real decks of cards or spin real roulette wheels, and if you want to chat with them, you can do that.
The games are ideal if you wish to have an immersive and authentic casino experience without the need to actually visit a casino in person. Live dealer games work on mobile devices just as well as they do on personal computers.
Playing live casino games is a great way of enjoying real money gambling in West Virginia. If you fancy the atmosphere and excitement that comes with a physical casino, then live dealer games are an incredible option for you. They are streamed in crystal-clear resolution from dedicated gaming studios across the world.
The most popular games in live casinos are blackjack, poker, roulette, craps and other casino staples. What’s more, live gaming is not limited to classic casino games. Many live dealer game providers are starting to experiment with new kinds of games, including game shows like Deal or No Deal and Dream Catcher.
Some providers have also started streaming live slot games, where a dealer operates an actual slot machine. In addition, some other popular live dealer games include various lotteries, carnival wheels, bingo, and many more.
Daily Fantasy Sports
In a West Virginia online casino, you can play daily fantasy sports. You can find these in the most popular casino sites, such as DraftKings and FanDuel. Even though these brands in West Virginia support classic sports betting as well, fantasy sports are getting more and more popular among football, basketball, and hockey fans.
With daily fantasy sports, you need to pick a roster of players. Each day, your lineups will compete with picks from other players from across the state. You can win in various ways using your lineups. For instance, you can participate in head-to-head contests and tournaments.
How To Sign Up & Play at WV Casinos Online
The process of registering for your first online casino account is very simple. To sign up for an online account in a WV casino, you must be at least 21 years old. Here are the simple steps involved.
Step 1: Choose an online casino
The first thing you should do is select a casino of your choice. Fortunately, you can choose from a handful of legal online casinos in WV to create your first online casino account.
Step 2: Now sign-up
To register for your online casino account in a WV, you must be within the state borders. You can sign up on a browser or a mobile app.
During the sign-up process, WV casinos will request you to provide details such as your name, phone number, birthday, and address. In addition, you will be requested to provide your social security number. Moreover, you can even sign up on multiple online sportsbooks in WV.
Step 3: Make a deposit
After you create your account, you need to make your first deposit to play for real money. Don’t forget to claim the welcome bonus. Some will offer a bonus code, so ensure you check this out in your preferred online casino.
Step 4: Play your favorite game
Now, you can use your bankroll in a West Virginia online casino to start gambling. As you play, the operator will require you to allow geolocation service. This is to make sure you are playing real money casino games within WV.
Legal Online Gambling VS Illegal Online Gambling
West Virginia law considers only state-licensed casinos to be legal. As you search for an online casino in West Virginia, you will come across providers not licensed in WV. Do yourself a favor by avoiding offshore online casinos.
When you play at offshore casinos, there are many risks. First, the casinos are not regulated, so there is a risk of losing your money. You also have no safeguards in case they fail to honor payouts. Above all is the risk of your personal banking information getting stolen by these offshore casinos.
It’s just easier to stay on the right side of the law and not risk losing your money or personal data to shady offshore sites.
Pros & Cons of Playing at WV Online Gambling Sites
Here are the pros and cons of gambling at legal online casinos.
Pros
- Play safely & legally;
- You can get bonus promotions;
- Convenient access to favorite games like slots, blackjack, and roulette;
- Participate in tournaments & special promotions.
Cons
- Limited withdrawal methods;
- You must be at least 21 years old;
- Players must be within the state borders to play real money casino games.
Best WV Online Casino Apps
The best online casinos in West Virginia do not restrict you to playing on your desktop. Thanks to HTML5, they allow you to gamble on your mobile device on the go. Most WV casinos are fully responsive, which means that the site will automatically adjust to mobile devices. That way, you can play on your mobile device’s browser without installing the casino app.
Some operators provide an iOS and Android app you can download on your mobile devices. With these mobile casino apps, you get the same access to games as you would on the website. The beautiful thing is they offer you one-click access. These legal online gambling apps run on stable, secure, and reliable platforms.
This way, they ensure you can conveniently deposit and withdraw via the mobile app. In addition, you can claim online casino gaming bonuses on the go.
Pros and Cons of WV Online Casino Apps
To truly optimize your online gaming experience through an app, we want to give you some pros and cons to take into consideration.
Pros
- Access all the casino gaming categories, from slot machines to table games;
- Some casinos have special bonuses for mobile bonuses;
- Native apps tend to have better performance and more features than web versions;
- Deposit and withdraw money easily on the go.
Cons
- Not all online casinos have mobile apps;
- Older devices may not be supported.
Deposit and Withdrawal Options
The way you fund your online casino account and the method of withdrawing your winnings are crucial considerations when setting up your account. Depositing and withdrawing money from new online casinos in WV is safe and fast. It is a huge relief from the uncertainties of offshore sites.
Legal gambling casino platforms in WV offer you a lot of payment options. Most casinos provide 4 to 6 payment methods for depositing funds in your account. Ideally, you want to look for the main credit cards, e-wallets, or ACH/e-check. Some casinos even offer branded Play+ cards that let you deposit and withdraw funds without additional charges.
Also, some will support cash deposits through PayNearMe. The top online casino brands in West Virginia offer PayPal for both deposits and withdrawals. If you are a high roller, you can use ACH/e-check to make a deposit.
It is worth noting that when using a credit card, your provider has set spending limits. Gladly, WV online casinos do not charge fees for depositing or withdrawing funds.
Conclusion
In West Virginia, online casinos are open for business. Thanks to online gambling, you can now play diverse casino games anywhere. As you participate in gambling in West Virginia, you should always do that responsibly. So, if you are keen on trying your luck, check out one of the recommended legal casino platforms in WV.
