Ohio has no legal online gambling sites to its name. Legal and regulated sites like DraftKings Sportsbook or Golden Nugget Casino are simply not available under Ohio state law. Social and sweepstakes casinos are available and legal to play in the state. You can probably find numerous real money online casinos, poker rooms, and sportsbooks available to players in Ohio. However, what you’re seeing are sites that come with risks.
These sites are based outside the US and do not have to conform to Ohio or US law. At best, you’re taking a leap of faith that these sites are legitimate businesses and not simply scams. At worst, you’re placing your personal and financial information at the mercy of an unknown company in a faraway place without any of the legal recourse you’d usually have. As frustrated as you might be with the lack of online gambling options in Ohio, it is simply not worth the risk that you’ll take if you patronize one of these sites.
If you want to gamble online legally and safely, your best bet is to visit one of the states bordering Ohio that are farther along in the process. Michigan, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia all have online casinos, online poker, and online sports betting. Indiana doesn’t have online casinos yet, but does have online sportsbooks. Otherwise, you can try sweepstakes and social casinos which are legal alternative options available to Ohioans.