Online Poker

Welcome to our extremely long guide to online poker. The purpose of this guide is to provide you with solid information about playing online poker for real money. If you’re trying to get started immediately, the first section provides a list of the best poker sites to play for real money at.

Online Poker Sites

Online poker sites have been around since the early days of the internet. However, it wasn’t until Chris Moneymaker won the 2003 World Series of Poker that online poker sites exploded in popularity. Today, hundreds of online poker sites exist on the internet. Internet poker sites come in all sizes and offer different features and promotions. We’ve played at most of the top online poker sites and have narrowed our list of favorites down to a handful.

Best Online Poker Sites

Pokerstars

Pokerstars.com has been around since late 2001. Because of the 15,000+ cash game players and 100,000 daily tournament players Pokerstars is the largest poker site online today.

Full Tilt Poker

FullTiltPoker.com got its start in mid-2004, but has quickly emerged as a top competitor for the title “best online poker site”. Full Tilt comes in as the second largest poker site with around 10,000 cash game players and 60,000 tournament players on at peak times.

Titan Poker

Opened in 2005, Titan Poker is a popular online cardroom on the iPoker network. Titan Poker has built a good-sized player base of about 5,000 cash game players and 25,000 tournament players during peak hours. If Titan Poker accepted US players, it would certainly be in a position to take the #1 or #2 spot for best online poker room.

Online Poker Games

While you won’t find too many crazy poker variations that you play at home with friends and family, you will find plenty of action at online poker games. Here is a list of some of the poker games you can play online for real money.

• Texas Hold’em
• Omaha
• Seven-Card Stud
• Five-Card Draw
• Razz
• H.O.R.S.E.
• 2 to 7 Triple Draw Lowball
• Badugi

The larger the poker site, the more of a chance you have of finding the online poker game and limit you want to play.

Online Poker Bonuses

One of the most interesting (and profitable) things about playing poker online, is how poker rooms offers online poker bonuses to new players. These online poker bonuses are offered to entice new players to deposit and play at a particular poker cardroom.

Online Poker Deposit Options

Finding safe and reliable online poker deposits is one of the challenges that new online poker players face. Below you’ll find a list of the best poker deposit options for US and non-US players.

U.S. Poker Deposit Options

• Visa/Mastercard
• Diners Club
• Instant EChecks
• Entropay
• eWalletXpress
• MoneyGram
• PIC-Club
• UseMyWallet
• Western Union

Non-US Poker Deposit Options

• Neteller
• ClickandBuy
• EcoCard
• Click2Pay
• Giropay
• Instadebit
• Moneybookers
• MyCitadel
• Paypal
• Paysafecard
• Ukash
• UseMyBank

Online Poker Cheating

One of the major concerns online poker players have is cheating in online poker. Players are fearful on getting cheated by the poker sites themselves, other players working together, and players using cheating software. If you want to learn about all the ways people cheat at poker, there’s no better read than Bill Rini’s Definitive Guide to Online Poker Cheating.

Online Poker Tips

There are several ways you can make your online poker experience more rewarding (and profitable). Here are 5 online poker tips to help you have more fun, and win more money playing poker online.

1. Don’t have to stick to one poker site. One thing we recommend doing when you’re new to online poker, is try a variety of poker sites. Each poker room has a different feel, features, and loyalty programs. Plus, by depositing at different rooms you take advantage of several online poker bonuses to build your bankroll.
2. Play the play money poker games. If you’re brand new to poker in general, playing free poker is the easiest way to learn poker. Even if you know how to play games like Texas Hold’em, using the play money poker games can be a great way to get accustomed to the software.
3. Make sure you play within your bankroll. Even if you’re just playing online poker for fun, nothing will prolong how long you can play poker like bankroll management. In other words, if you deposit $100, you shouldn’t play $100 No Limit Hold’em. Even if you feel like a good poker player, one unlucky hand would leave you broke. Instead, use the $100 to play micro stakes cash games and tournaments. One large poker sites you’ll find games as low as $0.01/$0.02 cash games, and $1 sit-n-go tournaments.
4. Avoid the urge to berate other players, no matter how bad they may be. There are some terrible poker players online, especially at the lowest stakes. Even if they call you down with nothing and draw out on the last card, refrain from telling them how bad they play. Instead, try to have the mindset that you will win money from them eventually. If you berate them for poor play, they will try to play better against you, or worse, they’ll leave.
5. Use loyalty points and winnings to become better at online poker. Sites like Pokerstars have great loyalty programs where you get points for playing poker for real money. These points can be used for all kinds of merchandise including poker books. Using loyalty points for poker books is a fantastic way to increase your poker knowledge for free. Another great way to use a small percentage of your poker winnings is to invest in online poker software like Hold’em Manager, a statistical program that helps you find leaks in your own game and weaknesses in your opponents.