Play Poker Online
More people now play poker online than they do in Las Vegas casinos. The latest figures from online poker sites are staggering, with hundreds of thousands of poker players logged in and playing online at any given moment. It’s amazing to think that online poker was basically unheard of until the early 2000s.
If you would like to play poker online, this is the place to begin. Here we will provide you with a brief introduction to how online poker works and how you can get started. The greatest thing about playing poker online is that it’s so easy to get started and playing for real money. But first, let us introduce the best places to play poker online.
Best Places to Play Poker Online
When looking for a great place to play poker online, there are several factors that should be considered. The most important factor of all is safety and security. You should always strive to play at online poker sites that have solid reputations and are known for paying their players on time, every time.
Carbon Poker
100% up to $600 Signup Bonus
Carbon Poker is one of the most reliable online poker sites on the internet. The poker site was established in 2006 and has quickly grown to become a top-tier poker site.
- Feature-rich poker software
- Soft cash games
- Big variety of real money tournaments
Bet365 Poker
200% up to $1000 Signup Bonus
Bet365 Poker is a large online poker site with a perfect reputation. A large signup bonus and lots of tables make it one of the best poker sites in the world.
- Generous welcome bonus
- Large player base and lots of tables
- Fast withdrawals
Party Poker
100% up to $500 Signup Bonus
Party Poker is one of the biggest online poker sites in the world. This poker site has a ton of real money cash games and tournaments at all levels.
- Highly trusted online poker room
- Soft cash games
- Huge tournament prize pools
Safety isn’t much of an issue among the most popular online poker sites because the biggest sites long ago established themselves as professional organizations. This is an important factor to consider because online poker is played with real money. Even if you don’t plan on playing with a lot of money right now, you may one day grow your bankroll to a substantial amount.
After safety, it is important to play poker online at a site that has enough player traffic to keep the games going. It’s always a pain to sign up and make a deposit only to realize that the action is all but dead. Our top recommended poker sites have enough traffic to keep the games going strong at all hours of the day.
Why Play Poker Online
Online poker offers several advantages over live poker. The greatest advantage is that it requires nothing more than a computer and internet connection to get started. You do not need to live near a casino or drive to some card room to play poker online. All you have to do is sit down, turn on the computer and log in to your account.
Online poker offers a much greater range of tournament options. At online poker sites, new tournaments are running all the time and many of these tournaments offer massive prize pools. Unless you’re playing at a major WSOP event, you won’t find this kind of tournament action in real life. There are online tournament players out there who take home five or six figures a month.
Cash game players also benefit when they play poker online. Online poker sites often have thousands of players logged in and playing at hundreds of cash game tables. You won’t find this kind of traffic at any live poker room in the world. Get stuck at a tough table? Find a seat at a new table. You can do this as often as you need online.
Multi-tabling may be the greatest advantage of all for serious poker players. Online poker sites make it possible to sit at multiple tables at a time. Many serious poker players will open eight tables at a time and win more money than they could have ever dreamed of at a live poker room.
The last advantage we’d like to mention is that online poker sites give new players cash bonuses as an incentive to sign up. These cash bonuses are actually a good deal and are a great way to build a bankroll from scratch. We wouldn’t blame you to be skeptical at first, but you’ll find out when you sign up for your first account to play poker online.
How to Play Poker Online
As far as the rules of the game go, nothing changes when you play poker online. Whether it be Texas Holdem, Omaha or any other poker variant, you’ll find everything the same online. The only major difference is in getting started.
To get started with online poker, you will first need to find a poker site. We recommend any of the ones listed here, but there are many others out there. Once you have a poker site picked out, you can get started by visiting its website, downloading the software and creating an account. This will take maybe five minutes max.
Next up, you will need to make your first real money deposit. This can be done by logging in to your poker account and visiting the cashier screen. Inside the cashier, there will be a list of deposit options and instructions for making your deposit. This is easy as well – it’s basically the same process as purchasing something online with your credit or debit card.
Once you have a real money account at a poker site, you are ready to play poker online. Just browse through the poker lobby to find a table or tournament that looks good and join it. You are now officially an online poker player.