
Just like the state’s weather, sports betting, and gambling in general, has been given a cold shoulder in Alaska. In this guide, we’ll explore the legality of Alaska sports betting.
While sports betting is completely restricted in Alaska, sports betting fans can still make sports picks at social sportsbooks. We’ll explore everything you need to know about sports betting in Alaska. We’ll also be reviewing our top choices for the best social sports betting sites for Alaska sports betting fans.
Sports betting, both online and physically, is illegal in the state of Alaska. However, people can still engage in daily fantasy sports betting and make sports predictions in social sportsbooks. Here's a table that further breaks down the current legal state of Alaska sports betting.
Is online sports betting legal in Alaska? | No |
Is sports betting in physical sportsbooks legal in Alaska? | No |
Legal sports betting age | 21 years |
It's safe to say there currently aren't any laws regulating sports betting in Alaska since it's completely restricted. However, that is not to say that the state's government hasn't made some attempts to pass laws that allow Alaska sportsbooks to operate.
When the US Supreme Court overturned the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, also known as PASPA or the Bradley Act, in 2018, it kicked off efforts to make sports betting legal in Alaska. To put it into more context, this Act restricted sports betting across the US except in a handful of states.
The most notable effort saw Alaska's governor, Mike Dunleavy, propose two bills, SB 188 and HB 246, collectively referred to as The Alaska Lottery Corporation Act, back in 2020. If passed, these two bills would make several forms of gambling, including sports betting in Alaska, legal. Unfortunately, these bills haven't been passed yet, which leaves Alaska still being restricted from participating in sports betting.
While placing sports bets on real money betting sites is yet to be legal in Alaska, you can still place sports picks at social sportsbooks.
Social sportsbooks are an excellent legal alternative for people in strict states like Alaska to participate in sports predictions. Instead of individuals using actual money to place bets on sports games at social sportsbooks, they use virtual currencies, that is, Gold Coins and Sweepstakes Coins. Let's take a closer look at how these currencies work.
Gold Coins are the basic currency used to place sports picks at social sportsbooks. Typically, most social sportsbooks offer Gold Coins for free through bonuses. However, you can purchase additional Gold Coin bundles, that is, if you want to since this is 100% optional. Gold Coins don't have any monetary value, so they're only used to place sports bets.
Sweepstakes Coins are the other currency used in social sportsbooks to make sports predictions. Unlike Gold Coins, Sweepstakes Coins aren't purchasable. Instead, you get them for free through bonus offers and as a bonus when you purchase optional Gold Coin packages. Again, unlike Gold Coins, Sweeps Coins can be redeemed for cash prizes.
However, there are some rules concerning redeeming Sweepstakes Coins for real money prizes. For starters, only the Sweeps Coins that have been won while sports betting can be redeemed for cash prizes. So, you cannot redeem Sweeps Coins immediately after you've received them. You must place sports picks with them for a chance to win more Sweeps Coins, which you can in turn redeem for real prizes.
It's also important to note that social sportsbooks have a minimum and maximum amount of eligible Sweepstakes Coins that can be redeemed for cash prizes.
That being said, here are our choices for the best social sportsbooks to participate in sports betting in Alaska.
Let’s start our list on a high note with Sportzino social sportsbook.
Sportzino is hands-down among the top US social sports betting sites for its impressively comprehensive sports betting section. This operator offers sports predictions in over 40 different sports games, including soccer, basketball, baseball, tennis, and more.
This social sportsbook has probably the most extensive sports betting markets we’ve come across, with over 100 sports picks across all games. And that’s not all; this site also has a live betting section that allows bettors to make sports predictions on ongoing games.
Sportzino is also very generous with its bonuses. New bettors are ushered into the social sportsbook with a welcome bonus of 220,000 GC and 10 SC. You can read more about what this social sportsbook has to offer in our more detailed Sportzino review.
Sportzino has the go-ahead to operate in 46 states across the US, including Alaska.
Next up on our list of the best social bookmakers with free bets for Alaska sports betting fans is Legendz. This operator really won us over for its extensive sports betting section. The site features over 30 sports games, including major leagues like the NBA, NHL, MLS, and MLB. The sports betting markets on this social sportsbook aren’t disappointing either. You get a great range of sports pick options in each game, from parlays to system bets, single bets, and more.
The bonus offers at Legendz are also not that bad, although we believe it could be better. For starters, it provides new bettors a no-deposit sign-up bonus of 500 GC and 3 SC. We go more in-depth on this social sportsbook’s bonuses and other features in our comprehensive Legendz review.
Legendz is currently legal to operate in 43 states across the US, including Alaska.
The Blitz’em section is where the social sports betting action is. This operator currently has three major leagues, MLB, NFL, and MLS, in which you make sports predictions. These are not a lot of sports game choices, but the variety is still okay.
The Pick’em section offers daily fantasy-like sports betting in major sports game leagues.
SportsMillions also offers some pretty generous bonuses, especially its sign-up bonus of 1,000 GC and 3 SC. You can read more about what SportsMillions has in store for sports betting fans in our more detailed SportsMillions review.
SportsMillions is currently legal across 39 US states, including Alaska.
At Thrillzz, bettors can place sports picks on about 10 sports categories. The sports betting markets here are also pretty decent, with betting options like moneyline bets, spreads, and player props, to name a few. We were also impressed by how this operator has incorporated social betting features. Bettors can participate in sports pick-sharing and private matchmaking.
Thrillzz also has pretty decent bonuses for its bettors. When you join this social sportsbook, you get 3,000 Thrillzz Coins and 3 Thrillzz Sweeps as a sign-up bonus. We talk about what Thrillzz has to offer in our extensive Thrillzz review.
Thrillzz is currently legal to operate in 36 US states, including Alaska.
Wrapping up our list of the best social sportsbooks for Alaska sports betting fans is Fliff.
Fliff also has quite a decent sports betting section, with about 9 sports games to bet on. Its sports betting markets are also pretty decent, with betting options like the classic spreads, moneyline bets, and player props.
Fliff also has some social betting features, like sports pick sharing.
This operator’s bonuses are also not that bad. This operator offers a welcome bonus of 1,000 Fliff Coins and 1 Fliff Cash, which you can receive when you use our code PROMOGUYSOCIAL when signing up. You’re welcome to read more about Fliff and its features in our more detailed Fliff review.
Fliff is currently legal across 45 US states, including Alaska.
As we explained earlier, you cannot win real money on social sportsbooks. Instead, you can redeem Sweepstakes Coins for cash prizes. Remember, you can only redeem the Sweeps Coins you've won when making sports picks for real money prizes.
Since traditional Alaska sports betting apps aren't available, as sports betting isn't legal in this state, we're going to circle back to the best social sportsbooks we've just reviewed.
Social sports betting app | iOS App Store rating | Play Store rating | Best known for |
---|---|---|---|
Sportzino | N/A | 4.6/5 | Offering the most comprehensive sports betting section |
Legendz | N/A | N/A | Also offering an extensive sports betting section |
SportsMillions | 4.6/5 | N/A | Has a pretty decent sports betting section |
Thrillzz | 4.4/5 | 4.4/5 | Blending social features with sports betting |
Fliff | 4.4/5 | 4.4/5 | Also incorporating social features with sports betting |
Well, we don't have a definitive answer on whether sports betting will be legal in Alaska anytime soon. This is because the process of passing the Alaska Lottery Corporation Act we talked about earlier has stalled at the moment. However, the fact that the governor of Alaska proposed this Act in the first place can be a good sign that sports betting will eventually be legal in this state.
Alaska is also very strict on its residents participating in other forms of gambling. For starters, it completely prohibits online gambling, including online sports. Gambling machines, like slot machines, are also prohibited. There are only a few forms of gambling allowed in this state. They include:
It’s safe to say that the legal gambling age in Alaska is 21. This is because Alaska tribal casinos only allow individuals who are 21 years or older to play.
When it comes to social sportsbooks and sweepstakes casinos that are legal to operate in Alaska, most of them allow players who are 18 years and older to play. So, in short, the legal gambling age in Alaska is 21 years.
Since sports betting is yet to be legal in Alaska, there aren’t imposed taxes on sports bet winnings.
When it comes to social sports betting winnings, there is a 24% federal tax cut on winnings that exceed $5,000. However, Alaska doesn’t impose any state taxes on social sports betting winnings.
Since we’re focusing on social sportsbooks, here’s a breakdown of the common bonus offers available on these sites:
While social sportsbooks don’t pay real money directly on their sites, bettors may want to purchase additional Gold Coins, which is where payment methods come in. There’s also the redeeming of Sweepstakes Coins for cash prizes, which also requires payment methods. That being said, here’s a breakdown of the common payment methods at social betting sites, their transaction timeframes, and fees.
Payment methods | Deposit/cash prize redemption time frame | Transaction fees |
---|---|---|
Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express debit/credit cards | Approximately 3 business days | This is subject to the Gold Coin package purchased and Sweeps Coins being redeemed |
PayPal, Neteller, Skrill | Almost immediately | This is subject to the Gold Coin package purchased and Sweepstakes Coins being redeemed |
Apple Pay and Google Pay | Almost immediately | This depends on the Gold Coin package purchased and Sweepstakes Coins being redeemed |
Online bank transfers | Approximately 3 business days | This is subject to the Gold Coin package purchased and Sweepstakes Coins being redeemed |
Cryptocurrency | Almost immediately | Free |
Here at PromoGuy US, we go above and beyond to provide extensive reviews of social sports betting sites in Alaska. Among the features we explore include:
We always start off our social sportsbook reviews by discussing the operator's bonus offers, particularly its welcome bonus.
What's a social sportsbook review without a discussion of its sports betting section? Well, we explore the site's selection of sports games, sports betting markets, and other unique social betting features.
We also explore the social betting site's website usability, look, and feel. We go in-depth on the site's design and navigation. If the social sportsbook has an app, we also review its functionality, particularly how the sports betting site's features function on the mobile app.
Another feature we focus on when reviewing social sportsbooks is their accepted payment methods. We discuss the range of payment methods available on the site, their transaction periods, and possible fees.
We also touch on the sports betting site's customer service, exploring the available customer support channels and their response timeframes.
We don't end our social sportsbook reviews without talking about their legality and safety. We make sure to mention the number of states where the social sportsbook is legal to operate. What's more, we also touch on the safety features the social betting site has to protect bettors' confidential information shared on the site.
Here at PromoGuy US, we always ensure that we endorse legal social sportsbooks. Since Alaska hasn't legalized sports betting, there aren't responsible gambling agencies established to help its residents deal with gambling addictions. But if the state government were to legalize sports betting, there definitely would be responsible gambling agencies set up.
It's also worth mentioning that the social sportsbooks we recommend have responsible gambling features, like self-exclusion tools, to help players maintain responsible gambling habits.
Before we wrap up this guide, here’s a table with our other guides on the legality of sports betting sites in other US states.
That’s all for this guide on Alaska sports betting. We can’t deny that this state is stringent on gambling, including sports betting. However, we anticipate that things may change soon, judging by the efforts being made to pass the Bills that will legalize sports betting. In the meantime, you can still make sports picks in social sportsbooks, including the ones we’ve reviewed in this guide.
No, you cannot participate in sports betting in Alaska, as it’s illegal to do so in this state. However, you can still participate in sports betting on social sportsbooks.
Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy proposed two Bills that constitute the Alaska Lottery Corporation Act back in 2020.
No, there currently aren’t any physical sportsbooks in Alaska.
21+ and present in VA. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER.