Compare top rated online Poker Rooms - where we've won the most money, had the most fun and least hassle. Want to know where to learn poker? Which poker sites offer best bonuses? How do you chose a poker room?
TOP RANKING ONLINE POKER ROOMS (Click logo to visit)
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED (Click logo to visit)
Page Last Updated: 27 June 2009
Where we've won the most money, had the most fun & least hassle
The BEST, SAFEST & most PROFITABLE
online poker rooms
Based on our own play we recommend the following 10 poker sites as the best for online Texas Hold'em poker. These poker rooms offer safe, hype-free, professionally managed & independently audited online poker games - with tables for even the most discerning poker enthusiast!
From the hundreds we've tested, we selected the best 20 poker sites to review on our site. Of these we have a top 10 for June 2009 and we've given you fact sheets below on the four 'stand out' poker rooms. We'll update this page regularly based on the play experiences of our team & changes at other sites.
For full reviews on each poker room click on the "REVIEW" links below. Visit any poker site by clicking on the poker room logo or using the "GO TO" links below for special joining bonuses and promotions.
Best Poker Gameplay - Bet365 Poker
Friendly & Great for Multi-table play
| No. per Day |
Tournament Buy-in |
| 35-50 |
$10 or less |
| 15-25 |
$11 to $99 |
| 5-10 |
$100 to $500 |
BetFred iPoker - great virtual felt!
Bodog Poker - Safe, Reliable & Fun
| No. per Day |
Tournament Buy-in |
| 40-50 |
$10 or less |
| 20-30 |
$11 to $99 |
| 5 per week |
$100 to $500 |
POKER ROOM: Carbon Poker is owned by CarbonPoker.com NV and is based out of Brisbane, Australia.
AROUND SINCE: 2005
LICENCED: Kahnawake, Canada
SOFTWARE: Proprietary to Carbon Poker, An easy Macromedia Flash Download.
NETWORK: Merge Gaming
COMMENTS: Top Freeroll poker. Friendly & safe for beginners - a growing high roller membership too. Excellent software - easy to multi table, unique features. Gr8 blackjack.
DAILY POKER TOURNAMENTS:
Freerolls - $50 to $50K at least 9 per day - one every 2-3 hours! $50K monthly Freeroll. Lots of tournament options too with reasonable guaranteed prize pools & low buyin.
PAYMENT OPTIONS: ePassporte, ECOcard, MoneyBookers, Fast Checks, eWalletXpress, Neteller InstaCash, Citadel (US & Canada only), Click2Pay, PINdebit, Wirecard, FoneLinx, PIC-Club* iBankG, Credit Card (Visa, Mastercard). *esp good for AMEX users.
PAYOUTS: Instant withdrawals once you've got a play history.
CURRENCIES: Euros, Pounds, USD
JOIN BONUS: A 100% deposit match bonus up to $600 on your initial deposit (Bonus code: MAD600). $1 paid per 250 points and you've got 90 days to earn it. Re-up bonuses & promos too.
RESTRICTIONS: No Australians or Singaporeans. Most US OK :-)
| No. per Day |
Tournament Buy-in |
| 100+ |
$10 or less |
| 3-5 |
$11 to $99 |
| 1-5 |
$100 to $500 |
They're licensed and operate in a jurisdication you're happy with
They've been around long enough to have a track record - you can trust them to pay out, deliver on promises (like guaranteed tournament payouts) and in general to professionally manage your account.
They offer convenient payment methods for deposits (and cashing out your winnings) that suit you and will help out with payment hassles (especially important for US players)
They have good customer support - no ducking for cover if there is an issue
Good and fair gaming - the latest technology is there to protect you, rake is declared up front, buy-ins offer reasonable value, no sneaky terms & conditions
Poker play - their Poker software loads quickly & runs as smoothly as your Internet connection allows, reasonable hands/hour, play is easy to follow, multi-tables and private tournaments are options, lobby is easy to navigate...
Action - tournaments, sit n gos & cash/ring games are available at a range of stakes 24x7, no/little wait for tables. Play for free or for real on offer.
Ensure any bonuses offered are OPTIONAL and read the Ts & Cs.
POKER ROOM: Bet365 Poker, also known as Poker365 is part of Bet365 Ltd, one of the UK's leading betting & gaming groups.
AROUND SINCE: 1974 (2004)
LICENCED: Gibraltar
SOFTWARE: Playtech iPoker - (a no hassle download required) Europe's biggest poker network
NETWORK: iPoker Network
COMMENTS: Great 'no lose' tournaments (finish in the money or your buy-in back. Ultra safe with lots of cash game fish and good bankroll building play.
DAILY POKER TOURNAMENTS:
Plus 4-6 exclusive freerolls daily (bet365 players only) Over $20 million in guaranteed prizes each month. Freerolls, Freezeouts, Turbo tournaments, rebuys, double stack.
PAYMENT OPTIONS: Most UK Debit Cards, Visa, MasterCard, EuroCard, Moneybookers, Neteller, Asia365, 1-Pay, Stone-Pay, MoneyTT, paysafecard, UKash, International Money Order/Wire, EntroPay, Click2Pay, Fast Bank Transfer, Fed Ex, Bank Wire.
PAYOUTS: Good quick payouts.
CURRENCIES: AUD, CAN, Chinese RMB, EUR, HKD, JPY, Malaysian Ringgit, NOK, GBP, Singapore $, SEK, Thailand Baht, or USD.
JOIN BONUS: up to $600 as a 200% first deposit match (bonus released at $10 for every 1000 poker merit points earned. You've 60 days to earn the full $600 bonus.
RESTRICTIONS: No USA based players
POKER ROOM: BetFred Poker Fred Done established Betfred in the 60's & it's now one of the UK's top 5 betting entertainment companies.
AROUND SINCE: 1967 (2004)
LICENCED: Gibraltar
SOFTWARE: Playtech iPoker software, Download required
NETWORK: iPoker Network
COMMENTS: A popular poker room with a good reputation for bonuses and player rewards. Good mid stakes action & challenging players as regulars.
DAILY POKER TOURNAMENTS:
6 Freerolls weekdays & 8 weekend days - $50 to $2000 in prize pool. Texas Hold'em, Omaha or Omaha Hi/Lo either as Limit, Pot Limit or No Limit.There's 7 Card stud and 5 card stud & special beginners tables too.
PAYMENT OPTIONS: Switch, Solo, Visa Delta, Laser, Visa, Mastercard, Neteller, Instadebit, Citadel, Cashier's Cheque, Bankers Draft, International Money Order, Personal Cheques by Fed Ex, Bank Wire.
PAYOUTS: Very efficient to process cash outs. Reliably good.
CURRENCIES: 16 accepted - GBP, JPY, EUR, MYR, USD, NZD, AUD, NOK, CAD, SGD, DKK, SEK, HKD, THB, ISK, ZAR.
JOIN BONUS: 100% first deposit match to $600 & up to £50 free every month as a 25% deposit match (Get $10 bonus per 500 player points)
RESTRICTIONS: No USA players
POKER ROOM: Bodog Poker was established in 1994 & is based out of Antigua in the Caribbean although has strong links to Canada.
AROUND SINCE: 1994
LICENCED: Kahnawake, Canada
SOFTWARE: Proprietary to Bodog Download. Quick & easy. Mac OK
NETWORK: Just Bodog Players,
(20,000+ at peak times) EST.
COMMENTS: Popular esp with US players. Some great features like Quick Seat to get into a game ultra fast. Good table stats. Great 10+ year reputation for fair play.
DAILY POKER TOURNAMENTS:
Freerolls 10-15 each day - mainly requiring 30-1000 play points. New player freerolls. At least $5 million guaranteed in prizes each month mainly for Texas Holdem tournaments.
PAYMENT OPTIONS: Instant Check, NETeller, Click2Pay, Moneybookers, Speedcard, eWalletXpress, PaySafeCard, NUcharge, Credit Card (Visa or Mastercard), Debit cards: Switch, Solo, Delta, Maestro, Checks, Checks (FedEx or Mailed)
PAYOUTS: Renowned for their quick hassle free payouts, No fees.
CURRENCIES: All play in USD. Euros, Pounds, US Dollars.
JOIN BONUS: A 110% first deposit match bonus to $550. Make a deposit for an immediate cash bonus of 10%. Then for every 10 poker points you earn in the next 30 days, Bodog will give you an extra $1 bonus up to a 110 percent match.
RESTRICTIONS: No Canadians
#1 for Cash Games & SNGs
#2 & Still Taking US players
Good Bonuses & Player Rewards
Top Tournament Poker & Freerolls
We play at all these poker sites regularly ourselves - and hope to meet you across a table soon!
OK, ready to choose a poker room?
Poker Room Checklist - what to look for when choosing a Poker Site :
TOP RANKING ONLINE POKER ROOMS
(Click logo to visit)
| No. per Day |
Tournament Buy-in |
| 30-45 |
$10 or less |
| 15-25 |
$11 to $99 |
| 5-8 |
$100 to $500 |
Best Online Poker Rooms Compared - where we've won the most money, had the most fun and least hassle. Want to know where to learn poker? Which poker sites offer best bonuses? How do you chose a poker room?
