California Slots Casino Guide 2023

In California, you can enjoy most types of gambling to some extent, even though most forms of gambling are illegal within its borders — including California sports betting. Currently, slot machines are illegal in the state but can be found at tribal casinos, which operate on reservation land and are not beholden to California law. Below we present a breakdown of the legality of slot machines in California, which California casinos have slot machines, what types of slots games you can find in California, and how they differ from Las Vegas’ slots. We’ll also discuss the best online slots sites in California.

California Casinos With Slot Machines: June 2023

As of February 2023, there are 66 California casinos with slot machines. These are the 66 Indian casinos in California. Slot machines are technically illegal in the state. But since tribal casinos are on tribal land, they don’t have to abide by that law. A full third of these slots casinos — 22 — are located in San Diego and Riverside counties, but the rest are pretty well scattered throughout most of the state. Yaamava’ Resort & Casino, located 60 miles east of Los Angeles, has the most slot machines in the state, with more than 7,000. Here’s the rest of the 10 largest California casinos, in terms of number of slot machines:

• Pechanga Resort Casino (Temecula) — 5,400 slots
• Morongo Casino Resort & Spa (Cabazon) — 4,000 slots
• Thunder Valley Casino Resort (Lincoln) — 3,400 slots
• Graton Resort & Casino (Rohnert Park) — 3,000 slots
• Red Hawk Casino (Placerville) — 2,500 slots
• Viejas Casino & Resort (Alpine) — 2,500 slots
• Chumash Casino Resort (Santa Ynez) — 2,400 slots
• Cache Creek Casino Resort (Brooks) — 2,300 slots
• Sycuan Casino Resort (El Cajon) — 2,300 slots

There is a handful of other Indian casinos in California that also offer slots, but these are Class II slots — meaning they’re a form of bingo, not the traditional type of Class III slots you see in Vegas.

Are Slot Machines Legal in California?

No, slot machines are illegal in California because the state outlaws gambling with real money on games of pure chance. So … how come you can still legally play slots at Indian casinos? Because those casinos are technically not on California land. They’re on sovereign Indian land, meaning they don’t have to abide by California laws. However, beyond the Indian casinos, there are also 59 other casinos in California on non-reservation land. They must follow state law, so they don’t offer slot machines. These 59 establishments are also known as card rooms. They offer poker and various poker table game variants. So, even though some of these card rooms have “casino” in their names, like Commerce Casino and Hollywood Park Casino, they don’t have slot machines because they have to abide by California gambling laws.

Online Slots Real Money California

California residents also have legal online slots games that they can play for a chance to win real money. These slots are offered at social casinos, which are the only online casinos legal in California. Social casinos have players use fake digital currency that can later be redeemed for real cash prizes. Since players don’t wager with real money, these social casinos are legal in California. Here are some of the best online slots sites in California:

Vegas-Style Slots vs. California Slots

You can find tons of slots games to play in at Indian casinos in California for real money. But while playing slot machines and wagering real money is totally legal in Vegas, the same isn’t true for the California outside Indian casinos. Gambling for money is largely illegal in California, except for horse betting, the CA Lottery, and daily fantasy sports. Indian casinos get around this legal restriction since they operate on sovereign Indian ground. Therefore, you can play slots in California so long as they are within a legally operating tribal casino establishment.

Similarities and Differences

Virtually all forms of gambling are legal in Las Vegas, whether for money, digital sweeps coins, or other types of currency. In Las Vegas, you can find all types of slot machines and games in the variety of casinos there. In California, slots games, including video slots, are limited to Indian casinos. However, this isn’t to say that you won’t find plenty of variety at those tribal casinos. Indeed, many of the largest tribal casinos have thousands of slot machines and tons of variety for slots enthusiasts to enjoy. For instance, Yaamava’ Resort & Casino offers 7,000 slot machines and 290,000 square feet of gaming space. There is a shared similarity between California and Las Vegas slots. In most cases, you need to be 21 years old to play slots. Although the legal gambling age in California is 18 years old, tribal casinos can set their own legal gambling age. Most of them err on the side of caution and set this to 21 since they serve alcohol on their open gambling floors. They do this so they don’t accidentally serve alcohol to any underage gamblers. There are only a handful of California casinos (16 as of February 2023) that allow 18-year-olds.

Casinos in Northern California With Slot Machines

These are the two largest and most slot-intensive casinos in the Northern California gambling scene:

Thunder Valley Casino Resort

The largest Northern California casino, Thunder Valley Casino Resort offers 3,400 slot machines for all your spins, as well as 110 gaming tables, a 50-table poker room, and 270,000 square feet of gaming space. Beyond gambling, guests can also stay at the 400-room hotel, eat at one of the seven eateries, or watch a performance at the 5,000-seat outdoor amphitheater. The slots you can find range from classic reel favorites, like Quick Hits, to newer slot games like Willy Wonka’s Munchkinland. The variety of slot machines is truly staggering and slot game enthusiasts will find a lot to like as they tour the expansive space. New and exciting slot machines are usually added to a dedicated spot in Thunder Valley’s Pano Hall. This way, you don’t have to hunt for new games if you check out this casino frequently. Slot game bets range from one cent up to $100 depending on your preference. There’s also a smoke-free slots room, plus a bonus strike jackpot system that all players can partake in. Players can enjoy extra rewards like chances for bonus jackpots if they sign up for a Thunder Rewards Card.

Graton Resort & Casino

Graton Resort & Casino, located in the Bay Area 48 miles north of San Francisco, is the second-largest casino in Northern California. It features 3,000 slots, 144 table games, a 20-table poker room, and a 317,750-square-foot gaming floor — the biggest in the state. Here are all the Indian slots casinos operating currently in the Northern California gambling scene:

• Bear River Casino
• Black Oak Casino
• Cache Creek Casino
• Cer-Ae Heights Bingo and Casino
• Chicken Ranch Casino
• Chuckchansi Gold Resort & Casino
• Colusa Casino Resort
• Coyote Valley Casino
• Desert Rose Casino
• Diamond Mountain Casino
• Eagle Mountain Casino
• Elk Valley Casino
• Feather Falls Casino and Lodge
• Garcia River Casino
• Gold Country Casino
• Graton Resort & Casino
• Hard Rock Fire Mountain Casino
• Harrah’s Northern California Casino
• Hidden Oaks Casino (Class II slots)
• Jackson Rancheria Casino Resort
• Konocti Vista Casino Resort, Marina & RV Park
• Lucky 7 Casino
• Lucky Bear Casino
• Mono Wind Casino
• Pit River Casino
• Playstation 777
• Rain Rock Casino
• Red Fox Casino & Bingo
• Red Hawk Casino
• Redwood Hotel Casino
• River Rock Casino
• Robinson Rancheria Resort & Casino
• Rolling Hills Casino
• Running Creek Casino
• San Pablo Lytton Casino (Class II slots)
• Sherwood Valley Casino
• Table Mountain Casino
• Tachi Palace Casino Resort
• Thunder Valley Casino Resort
• Twin Pine Casino
• Win-River Casino
• Wanaaha Casino
• Winnedumah Winn’s Casino (Class II slots)

Casinos in Southern California With Slot Machines

Here are the two largest Southern California slots casinos:

Yaamava’ Resort & Casino

Formerly San Manuel Casino, Yaamava’ Resort & Casino is the largest casino in California and, by number of slot machines, the largest on the West Coast. It offers more than 7,000 slot machines, 150 table games, a 38-table poker room, and 290,000 square feet of gaming space. It’s open 24 hours a day. There are two stories across which you can find slots games, including video reels, video Keno, progressive jackpots, mystery jackpots, and more; 120 video poker machines are also scattered throughout the space. You’ll be able to find slot games that range from penny slots to high-limit slots depending on how risky you are feeling on a given day. New slot machines are added pretty frequently, so the floor is almost always shifting and changing from season to season. You can find classics and new and noteworthy slot machines at this time, with new and innovative titles on the way.

Pechanga Resort Casino

Pechanga Resort Casino is the second-largest California casino. It offers 5,400 slot machines, 152 table games, a 38-table poker room, and 200,000 square feet of gaming space. It’s located in Riverside County, so it’s also very close to wine country. It’s a phenomenal casino since it’s open 24 hours a day and features an expansive slot floor. The casino makes use of a ticketing system so you can enjoy all the games you like before turning in your total winnings. Slot machine enthusiasts will also really appreciate that this casino constantly updates their game selection, bringing in new titles every few months and filtering out old, lesser played games in order to make space. Ultimately, it’s a slot player’s dream location, with something new almost every time you pay a visit. Here is our round-up of slots casinos in Southern California:

• Agua Caliente Casino Palm Springs/Rancho Mirage/Cathedral City
• Augustine Casino
• Barona Resort & Casino
• Cahuilla Casino
• Casino Pauma
• Chumash Casino Resort
• Fantasy Springs Casino
• Golden Acorn Casino
• Harrah’s Resort Southern California
• Havasu Landing Resort & Casino
• Jamul Casino
• La Jolla Trading Post & Casino (Class II slots)
• Morongo Casino Resort & Spa
• Pala Casino Spa Resort
• Pechanga Resort & Casino
• Quechan Casino Resort
• Red Earth Casino
• Soboba Casino
• Spotlight 29 Casino
• Sycuan Casino Resort
• Tortoise Rock Casino
• Valley View Casino
• Viejas Casino
• Yamaava’ Resort & Casino

California Slots Casinos FAQs