I finally played at Chumba.
Back in March, I provided a review and my thoughts and opinion on my first social casino experience. I’d tried Zynga’s Black Diamond Casino and discovered it was and wasn’t what I had expected.
I then promised I would try Chumba Casino, a popular sweepstakes casino, and compare it to my social casino experience. I finally did it! This post is all about when I played at Chumba Casino online and will be laid out similarly to the post I wrote for Black Diamond Casino.
Basically, before I share my experience, I’ll provide a brief Chumba Casino review. This review will offer a bit of info about the casino, how it works, and an idea of what to expect if you should choose to play there. Since it’s the only sweepstakes casino I’ve played at, my review won’t compare it to other sweepstakes brands. Finally, at the end of it all, I’ll provide my final thoughts on what I think of social and sweepstakes casinos.
You might want to get a beverage, this is a long one!
Chumba Casino Review
What is Chumba Casino?
Chumba Casino* is an online social and sweepstakes casino. It offers casino-style games for free and as part of sweepstakes tournaments. Among these games include slots, bingo, table games and more. Just like a social casino, at Chumba, you play with virtual tokens that have no real monetary value. Chumba calls these virtual tokens “Gold Coins”. If you win on a Chumba casino game with the Gold Coins, you don’t win a real money prize.
The reason Chumba Casino is a sweepstakes casino is that it also has Sweeps Coins, which are collected for free. Unlike Gold Coins (GC), Sweeps Coins (SC) allow you to take part in “Promotional Play” for a chance to win more SC which can be redeemed for prizes, such as real cash, gift cards, and various brand merchandise.
Chumba Casino has been around since 2017. It is owned by interactive entertainment company VGW Holdings Limited and holds a B2C – Gaming Service License from the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA). VGW also operates other free-to-play game sites including Global Poker and Luckyland Slots.
Players must bet 18+ to join.
Chumba Casino Games
Chumba Casino has over 150 casino-style games, including exclusive jackpots. Examples of available games include:
- Slots (140+) – Dead of Alive, Starburst, The Godfather, Shark Frenzy
- Jackpots (27) – Stampede Fury 2, Kraken’s Bounty, Goblin Grand, etc.
- Bingo (3) – 75-Ball Bingo, 90-Ball Bingo, Bingo Blast
- Slingo (8) – Slingo XXXtreme, Slingo Super Spin, Red Hot Slingo, etc.
- Instant Win (9) – Diamond Deal, Epic Gems, 7up!, etc.
- Table Games (6) – Blackjack, Casino Solitaire, Jacks or Better video poker, etc.
- Scratchcards (11) – Chumba Coins, Golden Ace, Diamonds Scratch, etc.
One neat thing you might notice from some of the games listed above is that there are Chumba Casino game options that include titles from big-name industry providers. Among these providers include (but are not limited to) Playtech, Red Tiger Gaming, NetEnt, and Slingo.
You will need to create an account to be able to play the games at Chumba Casino. It’s not possible to demo the games. That said, creating an account is fast, easy, and free (I’ll include details about it later on when I share my personal experience).
Chumba Casino Coins
When you play at Chumba Casino, you have access to two types of coins**:
Gold Coins (GC)
- GC has no real money value and cannot be withdrawn as cash or used to redeem any money prizes.
- GC allows you to play the games and are part of Chumba’s social casino experience.
- GC can be collected for free:
- When you register an account
- By winning in games via standard play
- As a top up when coins are running low (e.g., you don’t have enough coins to make a spin and your total GC is under 12,500 or you login and you total GC is under 12,5000)
- GC can be purchased. Coins are available in various packages (e.g., on the low end, you can buy GC 200,000 for $0.50, o the high end you can purchase GC 120,000,000 for $200.00).
Sweeps Coins (SC)
- SC can be used to enter sweepstakes promotions.
- SC can be redeemed for real prizes with monetary value, such as cash, gift cards, or brand merchandise.
- SC cannot be won through regular GC gameplay.
- SC can be won through sweepstakes promotions (e.g., competitions, tournaments, etc.)
- SC can be collected for free through:
- Winning games in Promotional Play (sweepstakes promotions like competitions and tournaments)
- The purchase of Gold Coins
- SC cannot be purchased.
Chumba Casino Promotions
Chumba Casino offers different promotions that are a similar idea to online casino bonuses, including:
- A welcome offer – Free GC 2,000,000 + SC 2 on sign-up. Additionally, new players are offered the benefit of a one-time purchase of GC 10,000,000 for $10, which also comes with free SC 30.
- A daily bonus – Every day, you can claim a bonus. This bonus includes free GC and SC.
- Various events and contests – Other promotions offered on a regular basis include social media contests (usually via the official Chumba Casino Facebook page), on-site tournaments, sweepstakes and other exclusive events (e.g., merch giveaway, email campaigns, etc.).
Chumba Casino VIP
Chumba Casino has no VIP or loyalty program, but players can enjoy extra perks from time to time Among these include receiving exclusive Chumba Casino promo codes, seasonal offers, and contest invitations. The more you play, the more likely you are to receive notifications and invitations.
Chumba Casino Payments and Prize Redemption
There are multiple, secure payment options supported at Chumba Casino for those who wish to purchase Gold Coins and/or redeem sweepstakes prizes. Types of Chumba Casino payments available include:
- Credit cards (e.g., Visa, Mastercard)
- Bank Transfer
- eWallets (e.g., Skrill)
- Prepaid cards (e.g., paysafecard)
Depending on from where you’re playing, there may be more or fewer payment options available.
Prize redemption
Before players can take part in Promotional Play and win prizes, they must first complete ID verification. This includes providing valid photo ID (e.g. driver’s license or passport) and proof of current residential address (e.g., bank statement or utility bill with a date not older than 6 months). Once verified (this can take up to 5 days), a green checkmark and the word “Verified” will be next to the “REDEEM” button.
If you win a prize:
- Click on the “REDEEM” button in the main menu
- Choose how you want to redeem your prize (e.g., cash or gift card) via your payment option
- Fill in the requested details and confirm prize redemption
Although I never personally redeemed a Chumba Casino prize, according to Chumba, it can take up to 10 days to receive it. Based on what I’ve read from different Chumba Casino payout reviews from players, this appears accurate. Prizes seem to be awarded in a timely manner as long as there are no delays due to issue with payment processes or ID verification.
Chumba Casino Support & Security
Customer support
Chumba Casino offers support through email. There is no live chat option. Responses via emails are typically quick, with the customer service team typically answering within 48 hours. There is also an FAQ available.
Security & Responsible Gaming
Chumba Casino is licensed by the MGA and has various seals of approval. This includes auditing seals from iTech Labs and Gaming Associates. There are also responsible gaming seals from the Responsible Gambling Foundation and Gaming Addicts Anonymous. Moroever, players have access to responsible gaming tools that allow them to set limits, enter a cooling off period, and can self-exclude.
In terms of the security measures Chumba has in place, it employs 256-bit SSL encryption. This protects the transferring and storage of personal and financial data. The site also has two-factor authentication available and offers payment methods from trusted providers. Additionally, its ID verification protocols help to protect against fraud.
Best platform for Chumba Casino
Chumba Casino is available on desktop and mobile for instant play. There is also a dedicated mobile casino app for iOS and Android called Chumba Lite.
As you know, if you regularly follow my blog, I prefer to play on my laptop. I enjoy the bigger screen size compared to my mobile phone. That said, Chumba Casino is perfectly compatible with both platforms, so whichever one is best depends on your personal preference. The only real drawback I found is that the user experience could be improved. This is particularly true regarding navigation.
As for Chumba Lite, which is available in the App Store and Play Store, it is strictly a social casino with only Gold Coins available. I did not personally try this app.
What other players think of it
Based on Chumba Casino reviews I’ve read from other players, overall, it’s well-liked and very popular – particularly among American players. At the time I wrote this, Chumba Casino has a 3.8 star rating out of over 5,800 reviews on Trustpilot. Many who play there enjoy the games and find the overall experience to be rewarding and reliable.
That said, the Chumba Lite mobile app has a much lower rating in the Play Store (2.9 stars from 4.86K reviews) and the App Store (1 star from 2 ratings – clearly not popular there😬). Most users are not impressed with their experiences, with many complaining about customer support and technical issues.
My Thoughts on my Chumba Casino Experience
When I first visited the Chumba Casino site, I was genuinely surprised at how much it looked like a real online casino in terms of its design and layout. Right from the start, it was an entirely different experience to Zynga’s social casino, which gives off more of a free-to-play mobile games vibe.
Signing up
I began the sign-up process by clicking on the “Sign Up” button on the homepage. This took me to a new page where I had the option to sign up with Facebook or sign up with email (first and last name, email address, create and confirm password). I chose the email option.
After this point, I received an email confirmation and was then required to enter in my mobile number to help verify my identity. Once that was complete, I logged into the main lobby and received the free GC 2,000,000 + SC 2 welcome offer. Immediately after that, a buy coins offer popped up advertising the new player “Special Discount” offer of GC 10,000,000 + Free SC30 for $10.00.
While some players may see this immediate buy coins offer an awesome benefit they can get. I just found it dirty. Seriously, I hadn’t even tried a game for free before they threw an ad at me to buy coins. I didn’t purchase it.
Playing the games.
I am truly impressed with the number of games and game variety Chumba Casino has. That said, I didn’t play them all. I only played the ones that interested me the most. They included:
Starburst Slot
The first game I played was Starburst. It’s one of my favourites, and I thought it was cool that it and several other popular online slots are available at Chumba Casino. I was curious to see how it compared. Turns out it’s the same game as the original real money online slot version (you can learn more about it here if you’re interested). The only difference is you play with and it pays out virtual coins instead of real money.
The minimum bet for Chumba’s free-to-play Starburst is GC 12,500 and the max bet is GC 25,000,000. Considering I only had just over GC 2 million, I couldn’t even come close to making the max bet.🤣 I stuck to the minimum bet and after a few spins (thanks to Starburst’s win-both-ways and Starburst Wilds features) I landed a win of GC 120,000.
Brian Christopher’s Pop’n Pays More Slot
I wasn’t going to play another slot after Starburst. I truly find free-to-play slots quite boring. However, I spotted this one and had to give it a try. The reason is that it’s themed after Brian Christopher, a leading casino gaming influencer I follow on Facebook.
This is a 1024-ways to win slot with the Pop’n Pays feature and 3jackpots (Minor, Major, Mega). The lowest bet is 37,500 per spin and the highest is 19,200,000 per spin. Like Starburst, I stuck to the lowest bet.
The graphics and sound effects of this slot are nothing special, but the expanding reels help to make gameplay more interesting, at least. I played a few rounds, with my biggest win being GC 312,500.
Bingo
I was so excited when I saw that Chumba Casino had bingo. Aside from one video bingo game experience, I’ve never played online bingo before, and I thought this would be a great way to try it.
After I clicked on the “Bingo” button, I was promted to create a chat name.
Next, I was taken to the lobby, where all the bingo rooms are. I chose the Paws and Stripes 75 Ball Bingo Room for no other reason than I love dogs. 😆🐶 I purchased 2 tickets to start and was excited about how it would play out.
The game started and…wow…I was not expecting the experience to be so freakin’ boring. 🥱 I was surprised that there was zero participation required on my part. I just sat there and listened to the numbers being droned out and watched as they were automatically blotted out if they were on my cards. And here I thought online roulette was the ultimate snore-fest!
To give online bingo an honest shot, however, I do plan to try it again in a real money setting. That said, this marks my first and last Chumba Bingo experience.
Jacks or Better Video Poker
I love playing video poker at land-based casinos, so I had to give this a try. Play starts at GC 10K and climbs to GC100K.
There isn’t really much for me to tell you about this game other than it’s your typical video poker game, right down to the graphics and sound effects. I played several hands, with my best win being three-of-a-kind (3 Jacks) GC 300,000.
This was the game I enjoyed playing the most at Chumba Casino.
How I got Gold Coins
Just like in the case of my Black Diamond Casino experience, I wasn’t interested in buying virtual coins.
1 – I think it’s silly for me to spend money on coins to play simulated-casino games on which it’s not possible to win real money, when I prefer the real thing.
2 – To buy coins at Chumba Casino, I would need to provide payment information and complete the ID verification step. As I revealed in my post last week on the benefits of trying new online casinos, I prefer that my personal information isn’t in the hands of several casinos. Since my purpose for playing at Chumba Casino was to satisfy my curiosity, I didn’t want to hand over this info.
All the Gold Coins I played with at Chumba I obtained for free, either by winning them in a standard game or by claiming the Daily Bonus which is free GC 200,000 + 1 SC (which you can get once a day, and I think is a decent perk).
To get coins – whether its to buy them or get some for free via the daily bonus or top up – you simply click the “Get Coins” button. This is located at the top of the page and in the main menu.
As for Sweeps Coins, I didn’t use them to take part in any Promotional Play. The main reason is that I would need to provide payment info and go through the ID verification process to do so.
Would I play at Chumba Casino again?
Probably not. I admit it does offer an excellent range of casino-style games (waaaay better than Black Diamond Casino), and I was impressed that many of the games are those that you can find at real online casinos. I also think it was a fun way to try out bingo for the first time, as it’s not easy to find free options that simulate an online bingo experience.
Still, despite having some fun, I’m just not interested in the whole “free-to-play” virtual coins thing. These coins run out far too quickly and the continual encouragement to buy more to continue playing just puts a bad taste in my mouth.
That’s why, if I’m going to play free casino games, I’ll opt for game demos that don’t require me to buy virtual coins. Otherwise, if I need to spend money to play, I’ll stick to the real thing.
My opinion after experiencing both a social and sweepstakes casinos
Overall, I’m not a fan of social and sweepstakes casinos. Before I share my opinion in greater detail as to why that is, I do want to say that I totally get that for some players, social and sweepstakes casinos are a lot of fun. I also get that some players prefer these establishments to traditional casinos for various reasons. I also know that for some players, these casinos are their only online casino-like gaming options, due to internet gambling restrictions in their jurisdiction. For the record, if you like these casinos, that’s awesome. 😎 They’re just not for me.
Do I have a preference between the two?
While neither are my cup of tea, if I had to choose, I’d pick a social casino over a sweepstakes casino. I don’t like the way sweepstakes casinos operate. The sweepstakes casino model gives me an overall shady/sneaky vibe**, like it’s a real casino masquerading as a social casino so it won’t be subject to the same strict regulations as regular online casinos.
Yes, sweepstakes casinos are free to join, free to play, and you can’t directly purchase sweeps coins. However, they’re designed so that you quickly blast through your coins and you’re heavily incentivized to buy virtual coins via promotional offers. These offers often include the bonus of more sweepstakes coins. Since it’s these coins that give players a chance to redeem a real money prize, for some, the desire to play more and buy more is increased.
I feel that the microtransactions of social and sweepstakes casinos – especially sweepstakes casinos, which give you the option of participating in promotions where winners can redeem a real prize (money or something else) – blur the line between playing casino-simulated games and traditional gambling.
Simulated or not, gambling is gambling is gambling…
Ultimately, the way I see it is that no matter if you use real money or something else to play games of chance – simulated or real – you’re gambling.
While I don’t think that social and sweepstakes casinos are bad or more dangerous than traditional real-money casinos. I do think that if you choose to play at casinos using these free-to-play gambling-simulated models, you need to be cautious, just as you would playing at a real money site.
The reason is that although logically you might know it’s a simulated activity, the feelings produced from playing at social and sweepstakes casinos mimic those you experience when engaging in the real thing. Kind of like how artificial sweetener isn’t sugar, but your tastebuds and body still respond like it as sugar. My point is, playing with money (real or not) with the chance to win something (real money or not) should always be treated responsibly.
Are you a Chumba fan?
My experience at Chumba Casino and general opinion on sweepstakes casinos aside, what about you?
Do you like to play at Chumba Casino or other sweepstakes casinos? If no, why not? If yes, what are your favourite games and have you redeemed prizes?
Until next time, good luck and have fun.
Mia 👩💻
*I am not affiliated with Chumba Casino or VGW.
**Depending on your jurisdiction you might be excluded from Chumba Casino’s sweepstakes promotions. For instance, in the US state of Idaho, players are only permitted to enjoy Chumba Casino as a social casino, with only Gold Coins available to them.
***My personal shady/sneaky vibe feelings toward sweepstakes casinos aside, I want to make it clear that Chumba Casino, specifically, appears to operate in an entirely responsible and appropriate manner. Many players have sung the praises of this establishment and nothing about my experience or research indicates that this is an unsafe place to play. Me not wanting to play there is solely because of my preferences. It has nothing to do with the validity of the operation.
****All links and images in this post are for informational purposes only.