Online Poker for US Players: free to play Options and Real Money Options
While most states are inflexible about legalizing online slots, poker is a different case. From Nevada to New Jersey, California to Delaware—local governments either support poker or don’t have laws that criminalize it. Even this New York judge doesn’t think poker should be decriminalized at any level.
If you love poker enough to want to play against friends online, there has never been a better time to find some good poker sites. There are both sites and apps for free poker and real money gaming. Below are the best platforms in both worlds.
Replay Poker — Free Poker Site
Replaypoker.com brings together Texas Hold’em, Omaha Hi/Lo, Omaha and Royal Hold’em to one mobile-friendly gaming platform. Each newcomer must create an account before they’re allowed to access games on the platform.
Once logged in, a pop-up message welcoming you to the platform comes up. Another pop-up tab asks to guide you through the site but you can end the tour with one click. You get 3,000 free chips as a welcome gift, the money you can use to join any Hold’em tournament still open at the time.
Replaypoker.com hosts a large community of players and has forums that let you interact with players outside of gaming tournaments. Speaking of competitions, there are tournaments rolled out every day, with winners earning up to 150,000 chips.
Bovada Poker — Real Money Site
Beautifully designed and mobile friendly, Bovada Poker is designed with user-friendliness in mind. The site welcomes USA poker fans from most states. Other countries are not accepted at this online poker room. It’s the most popular poker site in the USA, and it’s a platform you can fully trust.
As a new player, Bovada Poker welcomes you with a 100% bonus up to $500. You can use your bonus on any poker tournament on the platform. If you want to, you can also play other casino games like blackjack and craps on the platform.
What’s more, Bovada features a Sportsbook that supports all major North American games.
Ignition Casino — Real Money Site
Ignition Casino began in 2016 and quickly rose in the ranks of the best poker sites around the world. Its humongous $100 bonus may be one reason why people love the site. Besides poker, Ignition also offers video roulette (both American and European), bingo, Keno, and scratch card games.
The casino accepts payments using Bitcoin, Visa, MasterCard, and American Express. You can access the games on Windows, Mac, Android and iOS devices. When it comes to customer support, Ignition serves players through a live chatbot, phone, and email contact.
Bovada and Ignition Casino are on the same network and share the same player base and are offering their services to residents of the United States, excluding the following states: NJ, DE, NV and MD. If you are not living in any of these prohibited states, there are plenty of other real money poker options available for US players.
PokerStars — Free Play Software
The PokerStars site feels modern with its stunning graphics and quick loading times. Unlike most other sites, you’re required to download poker software to access all games.
Considering PokerStars is big enough to be an official partner of the UFC, downloading its software is worth it. You get to play with thousands of players from all over the world every day. There are different tournaments to suit everyone’s needs.
You can compete to accumulate the highest number of chips or play for the chance to win a trip to Las Vegas. Yes, PokerStars has taken people to Las Vegas before, including the famous 2003 champion Chris Moneymaker.
Also, it’s worth noting PokerStars has a real money gambling site (pokerstars.com, or pokerstars.eu, depending on your location). You can only play at PokerStars for real money however if you are physically located in New Jersey.
Zynga Poker — Free Play Poker App
Zynga Poker is one of the most popular poker apps on both Google and Apple Play Stores. Downloaded more than 50 million times and rated 4.5/5 on both platforms, this is an app you owe to have on your smartphone.
Zynga Poker mainly supports Texas Hold’em through multi-player modes. You can choose between sit n go tables or spin n go modes. There more no limit tables on the app, some that allow you to win billions of free play chips.
While the absence of other Poker variations is conspicuous, Zynga makes up for it by making every game feel sociable. You can chat with players throughout any game, create buddies with some or invite your Facebook friends to join you on the platform.
888 Poker Site — Real Money Site
British gambling powerhouse 888 Casino has been offering poker and other casino games in the US for a while now. At this moment 888 is only available in the following states: New Jersey, Delaware and Nevada). The company has dedicated websites for most casino games, including poker. When you join the platform and deposit $10 or more, you receive $10 free of charge.
Being the established gambling platform 888 Casino is; there is no poker variant you can’t find on this site. Each game is available in the live dealer section where you compete against thousands of players from all over the world.
Play well enough and 888 Poker may gift you a ticket to the 2019 World Series of Poker event in Las Vegas. The site has been doing this for many years and some contestants have gone on to finish in the money belt.
LeoVegas App — Free Play App
LeoVegas is another British online casino that offers several video poker variations on its portfolio of gambling games. However, you will not find traditional player to player poker games or tournaments. The games aside, LeoVegas owns an award-winning app you could get for either your iPhone or Android device.
If you don’t like downloading apps, LeoVegas is also available on the web. If you love apps, the casino’s app is one of the best online. It’s easy to navigate; secure and comes with live support 24/7. Like most top tier casino sites, Leo Vegas awards new players with a 200% bonus upon their first deposit. There are more deposits awarded up to the fourth deposit, but not all of them can be used on video poker games. LeoVegas can not be played for real money from the United States.
To Conclude
USA-based poker fans have lots of playing options these days. If you’re just learning how to play the game, start by downloading free play apps. Alternatively, join free poker sites and play the game for fun. Once you’re comfortable with your skill set, consider joining real money sites.