
If you’re looking to play Skill games for real money here in the US, there is one option available to you. On the Skillz app, you can either play for free using virtual currency or enter cash tournaments.
What are skills games exactly? Basically, they can be any game in which your skill or strategy as the player can influence the outcome. This makes them distinctly different from casino-style games, which are purely down to chance. Popular online skills-based games include puzzles, trivia, board games, and arcades. Moreover, strategy-based card games like Solitaire are also included.
“Skills games” is a blanket term that can refer to all types of online games where player skill and/or strategy can influence the final outcome, at least in part. Unlike casino-style games, like slots and table games, the result of these types of games isn’t purely down to chance.
Here are a few examples of common and popular skills games that you can find online:
As we will explain later, there is only one app that we know of where you can play skills-based games online for real money in the United States. Mostly, you’ll find that you can only play these games online using virtual currency, with entertainment and friendly competition being the key focus.
However, on apps like Skillz, you can enter cash tournaments, where you can compete against other players to finish high on the leaderboard and potentially win money that you can later withdraw. This makes them distinctly different from mystery box sites, which offer you the chance to win random prizes.
They are also different from P2P sites or parimutuel games, where players technically wager against each other. Skills game apps and sites, including skills, are only legally allowed to offer competition-based gameplay.
Before we move on and look at a real-life app offering these games, here’s a summary of the main pros and cons:
Our list of skill game sites to win real money isn’t very long, as there’s only one legal operator on the market. At Skillz, you can play arcades, puzzles, board games, card games, and more.
You have two choices when it comes to playing. You can either use the in-app virtual currency, called “Z”, which is completely free. Alternatively, you can make cash deposits using your credit card or PayPal.
Once you’ve made a deposit, you can enter skill game tournaments and compete for the chance to win cash prizes. The cash prizes are allocated to your in-app balance, and you can withdraw them from there.
Although similar, Skillz is different from PVP sites with real money prizes, where players add money to a mutual prize pool and compete to win a share.
Here’s an overview of the key facts:
| 📱Skill game app: | Skillzz |
| 🔞 Age limit: | 18+ |
| 🇺🇸 Legal in the United States: | Yes ✅ |
| 🎲 Free to play: | Yes ✅ |
| 💲 Real money deposits and withdrawals: | Yes ✅ |
| 💳 Deposit methods: | Credit card and PayPal |
| 🏧 Withdrawal methods: | Credit card, PayPal, and check in the mail |
| ⏳ Withdrawal time: | 4 - 6 weeks |
| 🏆 Welcome bonus: | N/A |
You can use the Skillzz app to play skill-based games for free in all of the United States if you are aged 18 and older. However, when it comes to cash games, there are some exclusions:
❌ All real money games and tournaments are prohibited in AR, CT, DE, LA, and SD
❌ Real money card-based games are excluded in ME and IN.
❌ Cash dominoes matches are unavailable to players in NJ
Skillzz has a decent selection of more than 50 skills and strategy-based games, covering multiple genres. Below, you can check out their key genres alongside some titles in each category that we’d recommend:
| 🎮 Game category | ✅ Our recommendations |
| Strategy Cards: | 5-Hand Poker and Solitaire Sprint |
| Arcade: | Brick Blaster Cash and Shooting Master |
| Action: | Big Buck Hunter and Fruit Fighter |
| Board games: | Yatzy Cash and Mills Classic Cash Payday |
| Puzzles: | Quezztion Real Money Trivia and Block Sudoku |
| Word games: | Wordsearch Real Cash and Hurry Upwords |
| Sport: | Strike! By Skillzz and Golf Blitz 3D |
As we said above, you can make a real money deposit of between $10 and $500 using your PayPal account or credit card. You can use your deposited funds to enter tournaments for a chance to win cash prizes.
However, withdrawals work in a fairly unique way, so we’ve simplified it by breaking it down into these key points:
In summary, skills games are games that require individual player skill and/or strategy to determine the outcome, rather than chance. This covers a variety of games, including puzzles, word games, arcades, trivia, and strategy card games like poker.
You can play these games for free in the US online if you’re aged 18+. However, if you want to play for real money, Skillz is your only real option. You can find out more about the app by accessing our review or visiting the brand’s site via the banners on this page.
Yes, you can play skill games online for real money, with Skillzz being the standout website. While you can play for free using virtual currency here, there’s also the option to deposit funds and play in cash prize tournaments.
Skillz is the best app where you can play skills-based games for the chance to win real money. In most states, you can deposit a minimum of $10 and play puzzles, word games, arcades, and more for the chance to win real money prizes.
If your withdrawal is equal to or less than your total deposits, the withdrawal will only take a few hours. However, withdrawals exceeding this are paid via check in the mail, which takes 4 - 6 weeks.