States Who Love Sweepstakes the Most
Many brands will use sweepstakes as a means of promotion for their own company or products, but as the consumer we’re always suckered in by entering contests for a chance to win a prize.
Sweepstakes are typically free to enter which is why it’s so enticing to enter; a random luck of the draw could be the difference between nothing or a prize ranging from small to large dependent on the giveaway.
To celebrate the art of the sweepstake, the team here at VegasInsider analyzed all 50 states across the past year to determine the state that loves sweepstakes the most.
Using factors such as average monthly search per population, positive sentiment and number of sweepstake winners, it can be revealed that Californians were the most eager to enter these free draws.
California had the most winners out of any state with 158, meaning they ranked top of the pile with an index score of 76.97/100.
Narrowly behind was the state of Kentucky, despite having only 28 winners, their average monthly search volume per population was at 1,257, the highest of any state.
These states would love our comprehensive list of sweepstakes casinos.
Rounding out the top three was the state of New York, with an index score of 63.68 and a 91% positive outlook at sweepstakes.
Here is the full table for all 50 states:
| State | Sweepstake Searches per 100k | Positive Sentiment % | Number of winners | Total Score /100 |
| California | 531 | 92% | 158 | 76.97 |
| Kentucky | 1,257 | 93% | 28 | 70.69 |
| New York | 796 | 91% | 61 | 63.68 |
| Florida | 543 | 91% | 65 | 57.22 |
| Indiana | 401 | 96% | 62 | 54.17 |
| Texas | 436 | 82% | 75 | 53.20 |
| Pennsylvania | 459 | 89% | 59 | 52.85 |
| Nevada | 825 | 87% | 8 | 51.92 |
| Washington | 569 | 93% | 31 | 51.45 |
| Ohio | 634 | 86% | 31 | 50.93 |
| Minnesota | 500 | 86% | 42 | 49.40 |
| Michigan | 517 | 87% | 36 | 48.97 |
| Kansas | 551 | 92% | 23 | 48.87 |
| Massachusetts | 387 | 92% | 44 | 48.60 |
| Missouri | 398 | 93% | 40 | 48.40 |
| Wisconsin | 424 | 93% | 33 | 47.66 |
| Arizona | 467 | 89% | 33 | 47.55 |
| New Hampshire | 475 | 97% | 18 | 47.32 |
| New Jersey | 400 | 90% | 34 | 46.18 |
| Virginia | 386 | 91% | 34 | 46.11 |
| Georgia | 416 | 90% | 31 | 45.99 |
| Illinois | 379 | 90% | 32 | 45.14 |
| Nebraska | 497 | 89% | 16 | 44.80 |
| Colorado | 298 | 95% | 33 | 44.72 |
| Oregon | 360 | 98% | 19 | 44.54 |
| Tennessee | 430 | 92% | 14 | 43.47 |
| North Carolina | 277 | 90% | 35 | 42.83 |
| Alabama | 537 | 82% | 12 | 42.73 |
| Iowa | 308 | 98% | 16 | 42.41 |
| South Carolina | 309 | 91% | 23 | 41.56 |
| Arkansas | 384 | 86% | 17 | 40.74 |
| Oklahoma | 349 | 85% | 22 | 40.44 |
| Louisiana | 299 | 88% | 22 | 40.04 |
| Maryland | 268 | 91% | 19 | 39.52 |
| Connecticut | 280 | 88% | 22 | 39.47 |
| West Virginia | 361 | 80% | 17 | 38.04 |
| Montana | 317 | 89% | 5 | 37.29 |
| Alaska | 409 | 83% | 1 | 37.05 |
| Utah | 310 | 88% | 6 | 36.95 |
| Mississippi | 264 | 90% | 9 | 36.94 |
| Delaware | 275 | 82% | 11 | 34.95 |
| Idaho | 213 | 81% | 14 | 33.47 |
| New Mexico | 188 | 83% | 13 | 33.21 |
| Rhode Island | 361 | 0% | 12 | 9.76 |
| Wyoming | 423 | 0% | 1 | 9.22 |
| Hawaii | 360 | 0% | 2 | 7.62 |
| Maine | 313 | 0% | 8 | 7.52 |
| Vermont | 308 | 0% | 2 | 6.11 |
| North Dakota | 198 | 0% | 4 | 3.35 |
| South Dakota | 104 | 0% | 7 | 1.27 |
Florida (57.22) and Indiana (54.17) were amongst the top five for sweepstake loving states.
However, not all states were as receptive for sweepstakes, with six states unable to collect positive sentiment due to the lack of information available.
From the states where all factors were in place, New Mexico ranked the lowest with an index score of just 33.21/100.
Methodology
Using social listening tool Brandwatch, all states were analyzed for sweepstake loving states.
Factors such as average monthly search per population, positive sentiment and number of sweepstake winners were used in order to create an index.
All data correct as of May 2025.