Are there casinos in South Carolina? Only Offshore - here's what's nearest

Why there are no casinos in South Carolina

South Carolina licenses no commercial casino and has no in-state tribal gaming floor, and its history runs the other way: the state shut down its large video-poker industry at the turn of the century rather than licensing it. The gap the boats exploit is jurisdictional - once a vessel is far enough offshore, state gambling law no longer reaches it.

That is worth stating plainly, because the phrasing of the question matters here. People searching for casinos in South Carolina are usually not looking for a directory listing - they are trying to find out whether the trip they have in mind is possible at all. The answer is that it is, but it starts at the state line rather than inside it, and how far you travel depends entirely on which corner of South Carolina you set off from.

There is a genuine oddity on this border: the closest fixed casino to the upstate is run by the Catawba Nation, a South Carolina tribe, on land just over the line in North Carolina.

What you can play inside South Carolina

Casino day cruises

Boats leave from Little River on the northern coast, run a few hours offshore with slots and tables open, and return the same day. They are vessels rather than fixed venues, so they are not listed in the directory below - our data covers buildings you can drive to.

State lottery

The education lottery has been running since the early 2000s, with draw games and scratch tickets statewide.

Charitable raffles

Non-profits can run raffles under a limited framework. There is no charitable bingo circuit comparable to Virginia's.

None of the above is a substitute for a casino floor, and this page is not going to pretend otherwise. The point of listing them is that the practical question behind are there casinos in South Carolina is usually "what are my options" - and the honest options split cleanly into what is licensed in-state and what requires crossing a border.