Online Poker For Real Money In Us
Play online poker for real money Poker online is growing in the United States with Nevada, New Jersey and Delaware all part of the same player pool. You can play with us from your desktop, iOS or Android device if you are inside Nevada or New Jersey borders. So, without further delay – let’s have look at the very best that US real money online poker sites have to offer. These are my top picks for reliable USA online poker sites that accept US players in 2021: BetOnline Poker. Americas Cardroom. Juicy Stakes Poker.
Online poker and online gambling, in general has had a tumultuous history in the United States. The gambling obsessed population of the US was responsible for the vast majority of online poker revenues worldwide until a government crackdown put an enormous dent in those numbers.
Today, even in an unregulated market, the United States still makes up about 10 percent of a massive $33 billion dollar online gambling market. Although, online poker still has a way to go in the US, there has been a giant shift in policy over the last several years. To understand the path where online poker is headed, we first have to look at the history of the game.
Top USA Real Money Poker Sites
| Rank | Poker Site | USA | Bonus | Bonus Code | Play Now |
| #1 | $2000 | N/A | Visit Ignition Poker | ||
| #2 | $2500 | N/A | Visit BetOnline Poker | ||
| #3 | $500 | N/A | Visit Bovada Poker |
Early Adopters
Real Online Poker for US Players Things are changing fast for online poker in the United States. There are five states with legal online poker games — Nevada, New Jersey, Delaware, Michigan and Pennsylvania – plus legal, sweepstakes poker games in other areas. While the boom of 10 years ago is over, online poker for real money. There are currently 5 states that offer legal online poker for real money in the United States – New Jersey, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Delaware.Pennsylvania joined this group when PokerStars went live in the state on Nov.
The first online poker site in the world was established in 1998. Planet Poker was the first site onto the scene in what would eventually become a multi-billion dollar industry. They grew a small player base almost immediately. Paradise Poker then emerged in 1999 and immediately became a rival. As the new millennium approached more and more real money poker sites began popping up looking to cash in on this newest craze.
The Poker Boom
The number of players continued to rise each year since the game’s inception, and there was a long list of sites vying for market share. Party Poker emerged as the world’s online poker leader, with other sites competing for second place.
The years of 2003 to 2006, were regarded as the “Poker Boom.” Up until about 2007, the number of online poker players each year doubled in size. The 2003 WSOP Main Event win of Chris Moneymaker and the movie Rounders became part of American culture. ESPN televised nearly every event of the WSOP tournament, and it looked as if the rise of online poker could never be stopped.
The UIGEA
As all this money was heading offshore due to online poker, many members of the US government became concerned with the issue of online gambling. Though Congress had tried to ban it years earlier, a measure in late-2006 would become successful and rock the landscape of the online poker world across the globe.
The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) was passed in the late hours September, 29th, 2006 and was added as a rider by the House of Representatives by a vote of 409-2 and by the Senate by unanimous consent. The bill was signed into law by President Bush, and the first shots were fired from the Department of Justice against real money online poker. The bill did not criminalize the act of gambling online, but instead went after foreign operators who were offering their services to US citizens. While citizens who gambled online from the United States were safe from any criminal repercussions, the DOJ had their eyes set on the industry’s biggest sites and their executives.
Almost overnight, the industry changed. Many top online gambling operators pulled out of the US market within a matter of days and even more dropped out in the weeks after the bill was passed. Party Poker, the industry leader at the time, left the US market, along with several other top European-based sites. Any publicly traded company was essentially forced to stop accepting US citizens because their shareholders could be charged criminally for the deeds of the company.
Though the regulations and the laws surrounding the UIGEA had not yet even been written, the bill’s passage scared many of the top online poker rooms in the world out of the US market. This created a void in the market and the title for the largest poker room in the world was once again up for grabs.
Even with the threat of jail time hanging over their heads, it was easy to see why operators continued to accept customers from the United States. The online poker in the US was still multi-hundred million dollar industry. Two sites emerged as front runners after Party Poker exited, PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker.
The poker market was still more than viable in the United States, but players did take a few hits along the way. Popular e-wallets, such as Neteller and Moneybookers stop servicing US citizens, as well. It became harder to fund accounts and player numbers were not increasing at even close to the level they did during the poker boom.
All the while, no one knew how serious the Federal government was in regards to online gambling. Yes, they outlawed it, which caused some sites to leave the market immediately, but was it a true priority of law enforcement?
Black Friday
After years of competition between PokerStars and Full Tilt, the US government, more specifically, the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York came down hard on the three largest online poker sites servicing US players.
On April 15, 2011, a day that was dubbed as “Black Friday” for online poker players the US Department of Justice unsealed an indictment against the owners and operators of PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and the Cereus Network. The crimes all centered around UIGEA violations as the government froze assets and seized bank accounts. Many online payment processors and banks were also indicted for processing illegal gambling transactions.
Immediately, PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker left the US market. The government allowed each company to pay players their current balances a week after the indictment was handed down. PokerStars paid these balances back to play within two weeks, but there were plenty of issues with Full Tilt Poker and Cereus.
Fast-forward to two years later, and Cereus’ customers from Absolute Poker and Ultimate Bet have almost no chance of being repaid. Full Tilt surprisingly turned out to be an insolvent company, and was bailed out by PokerStars in a deal brokered by the US government. Full Tilt’s US client base is expected to be paid back in full by the first quarter of 2014.
The Aftermath
Not only did this move tie up hundreds of millions of bankrolls held by US players, but it brought the online poker industry to its knees. In less than 24 hours, the two largest sites in the world pulled out of the US online poker market.
While playing online poker as a US citizen was still legal, player confidence took a massive hit and all of a sudden people were worried about the safety on their bankrolls when they played online. Nevertheless, online poker was still far from dead in the United States.
Unregulated Market
Today, online poker revenues are still strong. While the number are not near the levels they were when the game exploding was during the early to mid-2000s, few would argue with that there are not still plenty of excellent options for US online poker players.
There are strong VIP & rewards programs available, and deposit bonuses galore. No Limit Hold’em is the preferred game of choice, but Pot Limit Omaha has a strong following, as well. The best action takes place during the evening hours, but there is action around the clock.
Black Friday didn’t kill the online poker industry in the US, but it put a sizeable dent in player numbers across the board. However, one decent thing that came out of the seizures and indictments was that the issue is now on the forefront in Washington.
The Wire Act
In December 2011, the Justice Department reinterpreted the Wire Act of 1961. The longstanding law was always thought to be applicable to all forms of online gambling, but just before the end of 2011, the DOJ stated that the law only applied to online sports betting, and not casino and poker games.
This was a massive shift of opinion, one that spawned legislative action across a number of states. Currently, Nevada, Delaware, and New Jersey have some combination of online poker and real money online casino games legal in their states on an intrastate level.
Regulated Market and Future
As I mentioned above, several states have begun to offer online gambling to their residents and even more are expected to pass laws in 2014. However, offshore sites are still currently the most viable choice for poker players across the country. Most state regulated rooms currently do not have the liquidity to support a strong poker ecosystem. Though, this will almost certainly change in the coming years.
This sets up an interesting showdown between offshore gambling sites and regulated entities of the states and perhaps the Federal government if congress legalizes online poker nationally. While the latter is still a long shot, it would create a compelling showdown between offshore sites and state approved licensees.
Regardless, the outlook for online poker in the states has not looked this good since the Poker Boom. One must remember that we have yet to enjoy a full 15 years of online poker worldwide. The game is still in its infancy. For the first time in years, the future looks bright for US poker players.
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About The Author: Joseph Falchetti has been part of the online poker world in some form for the past 10 years. An avid online poker player, Joe was a professional player for seven years before transitioning into a part-time role as an online gambling writer. Having lived through the UIGEA and Black Friday as a pro player, he knows the poker world inside and out.
Connect with the author via:Google Plus LinkedIn
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Real Money Sites
The best real money online poker sites for US Players in 2021:
Ignition Poker
What Ignition Poker offers US players for real money online poker:
- The most popular US friendly poker site - Accepts players in 45 states
- Does not accept players in Nevada, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware and Washington State
- The highest cash game traffic for US players
- Easiest to clear poker bonus: $5 in bonus paid per $10 of rake generated
- Highest new player bonus with 125% sign up bonus up to $1250 using Bitcoin
- Anonymous poker games - your opponents cannot track you
- Lowest rake for low stakes cash games with $2 rake cap on 5+ player No Limit Holdem cash games
- Super fast payouts (24-48 hours for Bitcoin)
Americas Cardroom
What Americas Cardroom offers US players for real money online poker:
- Accepts US players in 43 states
- Does not accept players in Nevada, New Jersey, Maryland, Louisiana, Kentucky, Delaware & Washington
- $3.8 Million guaranteed weekly tournaments
- $1 Million Sit n Go Jackpots with entries for $5, $15 & $50
- Top 800 weekly cash game 7 Blitz players split the Beast Rake Race Jackpot
- Lowest rake for 5+ No Limit Holdem with stakes above $0.25 / $0.50 - Lower $3 rake cap
- Freerolls on demand
- 100% First Deposit Bonus up to $2000 USD
- Get 5.5% - 66.2%+ cash back
- Americas Cardroom referral code: Sydney100
Bovada Poker
What Bovada Poker offers US players for real money online poker:
- 100% Sign up Bonus up to $500 for players in the USA creating new accounts
- Does not accept players in Nevada, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware and Washington State
- Easy to clear deposit bonus at 50% clearing rate: 30 days to clear
- Anonymous poker tables
- Low rake cap for No Limit Texas Holdem cash games: low stakes at $2
- Best for beginners - no bots, HUD free
BetOnline Poker
What BetOnline Poker offers US players for real money online poker:
- Accepts players in the USA from all 50 states
- #1 in Nevada, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware and Washington State.
- 100% Sign up Bonus up to $1000 for players in the USA creating new accounts
- $10,000 in new player freerolls - 4X $2,500
- $2.5 Million in weekly guaranteed tournaments
- $1 Million Dollar Winfall Jackpot Sit n Gos
- $150,000 GTD Sunday Main Event $109 buy-in
- Weak players - mainly sports bettors & casino gamblers
Online Poker USA
Online Poker in the USA surging in popularity and the most popular real money online poker site for USA players is Ignition poker which is number one searched for real money site in 28 states including: California, Texas, Illinois, Florida and New York.
Americas Cardroom is most popular in Nevada and New Jersey but does not accept players from those states. ACR only accepts US players from 43 states but its recently surging in popularity because it has the best real money tournaments for US players.
We know where players in Las Vegas, Reno and Atlantic City are playing at BetOnline as are players in Maryland, Delaware and Washington. BetOnline Accepts US players from all US states and territories.
Bovada Poker is most popular in Ohio and Tennessee but is the second most searched online poker site in the USA.
Several states like Idaho, Utah, South Dakota and Maine are not showing a clear preference due to low data from those states. For detailed information check out my section on real money online poker sites by state.
Is it Legal to Play Online Poker in the US?
You can play online poker in the US legally for real money, there are no federal laws that make it illegal so you will not get in trouble for playing poker online. State laws make online poker legal, illegal or unregulated depending on the state. The only state where it is illegal to play online poker is in Washington, but the law has never been enforced. Legal online poker states where online gaming is state regulated can be played in Nevada, New Jersey, Delaware and Pennsylvania. Other states such as California, New York, Florida, Illinois and Texas do not have laws that make online poker illegal or legal at this time but to be certain you should double check your state laws.
Online poker sites serving US players need to be more cautious as there are several laws that can apply to them. The first is The Interstate Wire Act of 1961 which has to do with using a wire communication facility int the placing of bets on sporting events across state lines but not other types of online gambling. Second is the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 or UIGEA which prohibits businesses from accepting payments from bets or wagers that uses the internet and is illegal under state or federal law. Third is Anti-Money Laundering or AML which in online poker could mean chip dumping. This is why chip dumping is banned and player to player transfers are minimized. source
Online Poker Real Money Usa Paypal
Texas Holdem
The most popular online poker game for US players is No Limit Texas Holdem. All US friendly poker sites have far more cash games and tournaments for No Limit Texas Holdem than Limit Holdem, Omaha, Stud or other poker games. Learn to play Texas Holdem with freerolls and micro stakes poker games plus tutorials on poker websites and you tube videos from poker pros like Daniel Negraneu. The best Texas holdem online poker site for beginners is Bovada Poker with anonymous games, lower rake on micro stakes and low steaks Holdem games with a rake cap ($2 vs $3 to $5), super easy to clear bonus and long history of serving players in the Untied States with fast payouts.
PokerStars
The most popular online poker site is PokerStars which was banned for US players as of Black Friday in 2011. You May wonder whether players in the United States can play on PokerStars for real money? Well you can if you are in New Jersey or Pennsylvania, and play legally for real money. It is not the same as the international PokerStars.com player pool and it is a low traffic segregated player pool with a lot lower guarantees. Some players have tried to play on PokerStars with a VPN, now this is tricky as they do monitor for VPN's and if caught you will be banned and your account balance May be forfeited. There is also the problem of banking and how to deposit and withdraw as PokerStars does not accept US credit cards or crypto currencies like Bitcoin. You can play on PokerStars if you are an American living in a country that PokerStars has not banned like Canada.
Reddit is a great online forum to find incite in a lot of topics including online poker in the USA. Looking at the different threads relating to real money online poker in the USA, I found different single opinions but a general overall preference for Americas Cardroom overall, but Ignition Poker for lower stakes Texas Holdem cash games. Some Redditors also suggest playing at Global Poker as they accept Paypal, however this is sweepstakes poker and not a real money online poker site. The best recommendation for US poker players on Reddit is to use Bitcoin for your deposits and withdrawals, the fees are lower if not zero, payments are much faster and the deposit bonuses are bigger. source
Are Online Poker Sites Legit or Rigged?
Online Poker For Real Money In Us
You would be wise to make certain that any online poker site you play at is safe to play at for real money and is not rigged. Safe poker sites have a long history of on time payouts and are licensed and regulated in a legitimate jurisdiction. Legitimate poker sites need to have verified random number generators to ensure that the deal is fair, and that there are no hacks in the software that allow cheaters to see a players hole cards as happened in Ultimate Bet and Absolute Poker in 2011. They also need to have segregated player funds as was not the case of Full Tilt Poker in 2011.
Online poker forums in twoplustwo and Reddit monitor sites for signs of being rigged or use of bots. In 2019 there were found to be several bots on Americas Cardroom and the CEO, Phil Nagy shut them down and refunded the effected players their funds. Online cheating requires ongoing monitoring and even though it happens infrequently it must be actively watched for. Since these events licensing jurisdictions have increased their monitoring of poker sites and third party player auditor eCOGRA publishes the results of the online gaming sites that it audits. source
Best Online Poker Tournaments for US Players
What are the Best Online Poker Tournaments for Real Money?
The best online poker tournaments for US players for real money are at Americas Cardroom:
- The biggest online poker tournament for US players is the Venom with $7 million guaranteed and $ Million guaranteed first place.
- Monthly special tournament series like the OSS ($12 Million Guaranteed) or the High Five ($10 million Guaranteed)
- The biggest Sunday tournaments with buy-ins ranging from $0.25 to $1050
- The highest weekly guarantee for tournaments at $3.8 million
- The most weekly guaranteed tournaments with 743 minimum
- Daily $100,000 Guaranteed with $109 buy in + satellite qualifiers to win your seat
- WSOP satellite tournaments for the 2021 Main Event with $12500 packages
- $1 Million Dollar Jackpot Sit n Gos with buy-ins of $5, $15 or $50
- Freerolls on demand for $50
Real Money Sites by State
Find the best real money online poker site by state:
- Americas Cardroom - Accepts US players from 43 States: Not Accepting Players from Delaware, Louisiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, and Washington State.
- Bovada Poker - Accepts US players from 45 States: Not Accepting Players from Delaware, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey and Washington State.
- Ignition Poker - Accepts US players from 45 States: Not Accepting Players from Delaware, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey and Washington State.
- BetOnline Poker - Accepts US players from 50 States: Accepts players in the United States from all 50 states.
States Accepted by US Friendly Real Money Poker Sites
Americas Cardroom
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Georgia
- Florida
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- New Hampshire
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
BetOnline
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Georgia
- Florida
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisianan
- Maryland
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Bovada
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Georgia
- Florida
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisianan
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- New Hampshire
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Ignition
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Georgia
- Florida
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisianan
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- New Hampshire
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Best Real Money Mobile Poker Apps
The best real money online poker apps for Android and iPhone in the USA:
- Android - US players can play real money poker games on Android smartphones and tablets from the likes of Google, Samsung, Motorolla, LG and more.
- iPhone / iOS - Compatible for real money with all iOS devices - iPhones, iPads and iPods.
- Mac - US players can play real money poker on all Apple Mac computers including Macbooks and iMacs.
- Windows PC - US players can play real money poker downloads for Windows PC's.
- Chromebook - Real money poker can be played on chomebooks using no download poker software..
- No-Download - Play poker online for real money with no download on all devices with in browser poker games.
Real Money Online Poker FAQ
You can play online poker for real money in the United States for both cash games and tournaments in all 50 states. Real money online poker can be played on Windows PC's, Apple Mac's, Android and iPhones from anywhere with an internet connection 24/7.
These poker sites have Android apps and iOS apps that use real money and accept players from the United States:
- Americas Cardroom - americascardroom.eu
- Ignition Poker - ignitioncasino.eu
- Bovada Poker - bovada.lv
- BetOnline Poker - betonline.ag
Legal online poker can be played in Nevada, New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania and Michigan. In Washington State it is illegal and in other states there are no laws that make playing online poker illegal.
In the United States these are the online poker sites that you can play for real money:
- Americas Cardroom - Accepts real money US players from 43 states
- Ignition Poker - Accepts real money US players from 45 states
- Bovada Poker - Accepts real money US players from 45 states
- BetOnline Poker - Accepts real money US players from all 50 states
The best poker site for real money in the USA is Americas Cardroom for players in the 43 states that they accept real money players from. In Louisiana and Kentucky the best real money site is Ignition Poker. For US players in Nevada, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland and Washington State the best real money poker site is BetOnline.
Americas Cardroom is legal for US players in 43 states to play online poker for real money. You can play Americas Cardroom in all states except Nevada, New Jersey, Delaware, New York, Kentucky, Louisiana and Washington State.
Americans can play on PokerStars for real money in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. This is a low traffic site that is not part of the international PokerStars.com player pool and it has low guarantees for tournaments.
Full Tilt Poker is not legal to play for real money in the United States.
US players can play online poker for real money in Canada at PokerStars, Party Poker, 888poker and most other online poker sites that are banned in the United States.