Any Legitimate Online Poker Sites

USA Online Poker is the most fervently followed and developed genre in both domestic and international markets. The debate of whether poker is a game of skill vs a game of chance remains, though most players would argue that all variations of the game require distinguishable skill in order to be successful.

1. Free Poker Sites
2. Legitimate Online Poker Sites
3. Online Poker Sites
4. Is Viabestbuy A Legitimate Site

Any domestic CA-based online poker sites are illegal until the state announces passed legislation and begins issuing licenses. Legally Licensed Online Poker Sites Accepting California Players. Following brands are the top online poker providers in the industry and have been for many years. As you can surmise from the amount of answers to this question, there are many casinos online that are considered legitimate. There are, however, some things you might not realize that I think might benefit you when reading all of the recommendati.

This is a guide was created to inform our poker readers of the legal options available online in the United States and to clear any legal confusion surrounding the game in the United States.

Is Online Poker Legal In The United States?

Yes in 48 states excluding Washington and Connecticut. People all over the United States can play legal online poker without any fear of legal intervention.

There are two US federal gambling laws that apply across the land in the United States: The Federal Wire Act, and The UIGEA act. Neither of these laws makes it a crime or bars US residents from engaging in legally licensed and regulated online poker gambling that is offer through offshore poker rooms.

When the Department of Justice issued their formal opinion concerning the application of the Federal Wire Act in 2011, they officially clarified that each individual state has the authority to prohibit or allow state-regulated online poker gambling. As of this writing, three states have already established a state licensed online poker initiative: New Jersey, Delaware and Nevada. There are also interstate gambling compacts in place between these three states that allow them to share their player pools.

Trusted And Legally Licensed USA Online Poker Rooms

Our team of industry professionals recommends the following legal online poker sites to US residents. The sites below are located offshore and hold valid compliance records, utilize top security features, and are legally allowed to service the US. Check out the sites below, there is no obligation to sign-up, we just want our readers to enjoy online poker.

State Regulated Internet Poker Rooms vs Offshore Online Poker Rooms

The state-regulated online poker rooms in New Jersey, Delaware, and Nevada are a recent addition to the global online gambling communities. Because of that, they have traditionally lagged behind in what has become the industry standard in game selection, bonuses, and member attractions. This is typically most noticeable when comparing them directly with their international competitors.

USA’s domestic online poker websites have already begun to offer more lucrative Welcome Bonuses and expand their gaming libraries to meet the international standard.

The international providers, on the other hand, have been at the forefront of online poker since the beginning. Their gaming libraries and member bonuses stand in direct competition with a ruthless and well-developed market of competitors in the international online gambling jurisdictions. You will find the most recent technological advancements in things such as user interface, gaming software, the most abundant gaming libraries, banking options, and experienced customer service protocols. The online poker providers outside of the US simply have more experience and time in the industry.

Are There Any Online Poker Bonuses And Promotions Available To US Players?

Each website that we have included in this guide provides several attractive bonuses and promotions for each of their members. Individually, the websites dictate a different philosophy of promotions, which translates into a wildly different bonus menu from site to site. There are, however, a few bonuses that are pretty consistent throughout the American online poker landscape.

• No Deposit Bonuses
  • These function as free plays. In these bonuses, you will be gifted free chips or tokens to play in real-money poker games as a chance to test-drive the games without spending any money. If you follow the wagering requirements, you will even be able to keep your winnings.
• Welcome Bonuses
  • This is the bonus that you should not complete registration without. The only bonus that can be considered an industry standard, it’s a match bonus that will provide extra funds to your initial deposit based on the advertised percentage.
• Refer-A-Friend Bonuses
  • As you might guess, these bonuses provide incentives for you to refer other members to the website. Some sites may provide extra funds directly while others might provide free plays or chips to use in their gaming libraries.
• Special Promotions
  • These types of offers range from tournament promos to seasonal offers related to popular events. They change regularly so its always a good idea to check out the promos section of the poker room you are visiting to see what new incentives are on offer.

What Games Can I Play At U.S. Online Poker Sites?

Most of the time, you will access the online poker games you came to play via a flash instant play or downloadable software application on your desktop, or via a web based mobile optimized app on your smartphone or tablet. In any case, the games that you will be able to choose from range from low, medium, and high stakes and vary in terms of buy-in and style of play. The internet’s global reach has allowed online poker providers to group all of the most popular forms of poker in one location.

Texas Hold’em

The quintessential poker game. You’re dealt two hole cards before three rounds of betting and use the five community cards on the table to make your hand in the showdown at the end. We have a guide to playing Texas Hold’em that provides you with more information for US players interested in playing this game online.

Free Poker Sites

Omaha

You will be dealt four hole cards, of which you will use two at the showdown with any three of the five community cards that have been dealt after three rounds of betting. You will find multiple variations of Omaha poker at our recommended US friendly online poker sites.

Stud Poker

There are no community cards in Stud Poker. At each of the rounds of betting you will be dealt a new hand of which you will use five to make up your hand in the showdown after betting as completed. You can find versions of stud poker that play with three, five, and seven cards. You can visit our page dedicated to covering US friendly online stud poker for more information.

HORSE

A game variety that is played through multiple types of poker. The play cycles through rounds of: Texas Hold’em, Omaha, Razz (lowball stud poker), Seven Card Stud, and Seven Card Stud Split E. Learn how to play HORSE online for a unique poker gaming experience not typically offered in brick and mortar poker rooms.

U.S.A. Online Poker FAQs

Can I Play In American Online Poker Tournaments?

At each of the websites that have developed into the industry well enough to deserve your membership, you will be able to find several tournaments to play in. You can find some, which focus purely on the game entirely, or some with unique qualities like the Bad Beat Tournament that gives you a second chance if your 4 of a kind or better gets beaten. Or, the Knockout Tournaments that provide bonuses for knocking out other players. You might also see tournaments with no entry fee like the Free Roll tournaments.

Can I Play Online Poker For Free?

Absolutely. Aside from the No Deposit bonus and the Free Roll tournaments, there is a basic free play function that is also available. Simply click the “free play” or “practice play” or similarly phrased button to access the free play games. These are games that are played with other real people in live gaming lobbies, but with hypothetical currency instead of real money.

What About The Software At US Poker sites?

As the competition grew in the worldwide poker communities, gaming software was established as a way for one brand to set itself apart from the others.

As competition goes, the other poker sites that accept users from the US came out and created software that allowed a user to play multiple hands, at multiple tables simultaneously. This changed professional poker forever. Professional players can now multiply their experience playing poker at rates previously unheard-of.

Can I Play Online Poker On my Mobile Device?

Yes. HTML5 has given the freedom to online poker rooms accepting players from America to host their own mobile poker games on their own domains. Before, their size and sophistication required an app store for hosting and a native download for storing. Now, HTML5 temporarily installs components to your device, which delete themselves when you deactivate the game and runs directly from online poker provider you have chosen.

Do I Have To Wait Until There Is Federal Or State Legislation Passed Before I Can Play Online Poker?

If you specifically want to play online poker that is based and regulated in the United States, then yes, you will need to wait. While several regions have launched state-regulated online poker sites, including NJ, DE, and NV, the rest of the country seems to still be on standby.

However, there are multiple legitimate online poker sites which are based outside of the United States that welcomes US players. The US friendly sites listed above are licensed by the government in their jurisdiction and monitored by official regulatory commissions in those respective jurisdictions.

Skip the Headaches and Play at a Legitimate Site

You’re looking for a legitimate U.S. gambling site, but can’t decide which site to trust with your hard-earned money?

Good news! We’ve been in the online gambling industry for over a decade (several decades, really, if you add all of our experience together), and we’ve spent countless hours to bring you a list of the most legitimate sites.

Here’s what all of these sites have in common:

• 10+ years in the business with strong reputations.
• Attractive promotions for first-time customers.
• Quick money withdrawals (relative to the U.S. market).

Our Top Recommended US Gambling Sites

Why Bovada Is #1 in the U.S.

#1: Fastest Check Cashouts

Bovada gets 10 times as much traffic as its second best US competitor and still delivers check payouts faster than any of them. Bovada processes check withdrawals in 7 days; many of its competitors take weeks, some more than a month to do the same. (There are other fast options, like the #3-ranked BetOnline, which delivers checks in 14 days.)

Legitimate Online Poker Sites

#2: Service

An equally important aspect of Bovada’s operations is its customer service. If there ever was an indication of how much a company respects its customers, it’s the level of customer service the company provides. I haven’t found any US-friendly site doing this aspect of the business better (although 5Dimes is a worthy runner-up).

#3: All-In-One

Finally, all parts of Bovada’s business (sportsbook, casino, poker, racebook) are popular. Bovada is best-known for sports betting and casino games, however, even its online poker room has around four times as many players online as the second biggest US poker site. You can access all of their games with one player account.

… But You Should Know This

Bovada is recreational-friendly, perhaps more-so than any other US site. You’ll find few golden opportunities in their sportsbook (read more about their use of dual lines), they have a relatively high overall house edge (especially after recently increasing house edge in video poker games) and their online poker room only has “anonymous” tables.

Online Poker Sites

Although not everyone agrees with me, the recreational-friendly part is an advantage for skilled poker players. Since Bovada appeals to recreational gamblers, you’ll be like a shark among regular fish.

Bovada charges a 4.9% fee for credit card deposits (a lot considering how most sites charge nothing). The impact of the deposit fee is slightly compensated by their welcome bonuses, which are better than average.

All online gamblers look for entertaining games, attractive promotions and aesthetically pleasing software. To have a safe experience, however, you want a site to:

1. Serve its customers with safety and respect,
2. Operate with a reasonable house edge, and
3. Handle money transactions promptly.

Yes, the third point is included in the first point but it’s also such an essential part of the customer experience that it must be mentioned separately. Many online gambling websites operate without an adequate level of service so these points are worth considering. It’s rare to find a combination of all three points.

Bovada fulfills all of the above criteria better than other sites but 5Dimes does well, too. In fact, I’m confident in ranking those two as the best USA gambling websites specifically because they deliver so well in the areas related to safety and trustworthiness. A site without proper customer service and safety measures is not one you should deposit money to, regardless of its promotions and whatnot.

What Are Some Alternative Options?

For Sports Bettors

5Dimes.eu is the best betting site in the US for the following reasons: they’re professional-friendly and offer reduced juice betting lines (in other words, less house edge). Before betting on any game, I recommend taking a look at the odds 5Dimes is offering. They’ve been a reliable sportsbook for over 10+ years — you’ll find few complaints about 5Dimes online, and the ones you find have been resolved quickly.

For poker and casino games, I would go with Bovada. But for sports bettors, it makes the most sense to have an account at 5Dimes.

Another Solid Option

BetOnline.ag is my third suggestion. It’s not significantly better than the others in any area but they’re simply a solid option. Prompt cashout processing, decent poker traffic, good sports betting options and entertaining casino games. Additionally, I’ve had good experiences with their customer service.

For sports bettors, BetOnline is worth signing-up at simply to be able to compare betting lines among a few sites. For poker players, BetOnline may offer some good games every now and then (keep in mind: you can bet on sports and play casino and poker games with the same account, so plenty of gamblers will stumble on the poker games eventually). For casino gamblers, BetOnline has a basic but reliable offering.

BetOnline charges a 6% fee for credit card deposits.

Is It Legal to Play?

The definition of ”gambling” and the laws surrounding vary depending on which state you live in.

In Delaware, Nevada and New Jersey, some forms of online gambling have been legalized and regulated (only state-licensed sites are allowed to operate legally). In other states, it’s likely (although not widely agreed upon) that playing – and certainly operating – online gambling games for real money is illegal.

On a federal level, sports betting is the only form of prohibited gambling via the Wire Act of 1961. For several years, the Department of Justice (DOJ) maintained that the Wire Act applies to all forms of online gambling, but in December 2011, they corrected that stance by stating that the Wire Act only applies to sports betting – a result of a 13-page memorandum from the Office of Legal Counsel to the Criminal Division of the DOJ (source).

State laws, however, often indirectly prohibit gambling. Or to put it another way: it would be difficult to claim any forms of online gambling legal with absolute certainty in most states (lotteries and such aside). Most state laws indirectly prohibit gambling simply by making all forms of gambling unlawful that have not been made lawful.

Purely based on history, it’s unlikely you’ll get into legal trouble; then again, if something is illegal, you can get into trouble, and someone probably will. Gambling online may be illegal where you live. Contact a local gaming lawyer to get a better idea of your local laws.

Legal Troubles

Industry-changing events have taken place in the online gambling world – mainly concerning online poker – such as the UIGEA and Party Poker’s exit from the US market, or PokerStars’ exit from the US market in 2011.

Those crimes were committed by online poker operators, though, not players. Still, the mere fact that online poker companies were targeted was enough to cast a shadow over the legality of US online poker, and furthermore, players grew more and more worried about one of these sites getting shut down along with the money on their player accounts.

In fact, there is a legitimate reason to worry about dishonest US gambling sites taking your money. Some sites have indeed taken off with the money – a recent example is Lock Poker, which currently may owe its customers over $15 million. I created LegitGamblingSites.com mainly to give more exposure to the sites with strong track records of honest business practices.

The lawmakers, in that regard, have a point about not allowing unlicensed sites to provide online gambling games to US citizens. While that may not be the reason, it’s likely one of them. (If I had to guess, I’d say they’re more concerned about losing out on tax dollars and protecting the interests of brick & mortar casino owners such as Sheldon Adelson, although through the RAWA – Restore America’s Wire Act legislation – he tries to do that by himself.)

How to Move Money Around

Ever since the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA) became a law, US citizens have had a more difficult time finding a suitable deposit method.

There are only a few left, actually.

The most common deposit method for US citizens is still credit card deposits, out of which VISA is the most widely accepted brand, followed by Mastercard, with American Express being a distant third. Cards must be eligible for both international and online transfers.

The alternative method is to use a money transfer service such as Western Union. Western Union is mostly a deposit-only method. (Bovada is an exception since they only allow you to withdraw money via a check.)

Why to use a money transfer service instead of a credit card?

• A card deposit fails to go through. This happens every now and then, and the only way to know if your card will be accepted is to try. According to various forum reports, Vanilla VISA is declined at most sites while Netspend VISA has been successful.

  Surprisingly, players have had problems with card deposits even at state-licensed sites due to banks like Bank of America outright declining all gambling transactions. Things will likely get better with the new MCC codes for VISA, Mastercard, American Express and Distant which will help casinos to identify gambling transactions more accurately. It’s unclear how much of a help this will be since banks still have the right to decline transfers marked with the new MCC codes, and due to not wanting to violate the UIGEA (according to which they’re prohibited from knowingly processing unlawful gambling transactions), banks may decide it isn’t worth it and keep cancelling transactions even if they were for state-licensed sites.

  This is expected to change once bigger states – perhaps even the biggest of them all, California – join internet gambling, since declining the transactions will then affect such a large percentage of any bank’s customer base.

• You want a faster cashout. While money transfer services cost more (many sites, like Bovada, allow one free check cashout a month), the money is usually delivered to be picked up at a local Western Union location in five days or less.
• You don’t want a check cashout. You need to go to a cashier to cash a check. Most people would rather avoid doing this, especially since banks aren’t allowed to knowingly process online gambling related transactions (unless in Delaware, Nevada or New Jersey, but people have had problems in those states as well).

In general, you’ll have higher transaction costs with money transfer services than with a combination of credit cards and checks. BetOnline and Bovada are the only major USA sites charging for credit card deposits and most allow one free check cashout per month – some, like True Poker, allow a free check withdrawal every seven days.

How to use a credit card/check combination?

1. Enter your credit card details online after which you have the money on your player account instantly.
2. When done playing, order a check cashout, which will take from a week to over a month depending on which site you’re dealing with.
3. Go to your local bank to cash the check.

How to use a money transfer service (like Western Union)?

1. Go to their website or a live Western Union location and send money to the gambling site. (You’ll need to contact the gambling site first to get their transfer details.)
2. When done playing, initiate the withdrawal from your player account.
3. Go to a live location to collect the money.

State-Licensed Sites

As mentioned, Delaware, Nevada and New Jersey have legalized and regulated some forms of real-money online gambling. Delaware started with online poker but has since expanded into casino games as well; Nevada offers online poker games only; New Jersey offers online poker and casino games.

As you can see, not a single one of these states offer online sports betting. In New Jersey – clearly the biggest market of the three – there’s a clause according to which sports betting may be considered to be added in the future.

Requirements

You must be physically located within a state’s boundaries to play at the licensed sites. If you’re currently located in California but live in Nevada, you’re unable to play until you return to Nevada; if you’re currently located in Nevada but live in California, you can play as long as you stay within Nevada’s state boundaries.

Licensed sites have to make sure nobody outside of the state can participate in the games. Geolocation – identifying exactly where a person is located – has been difficult, and there are still people who are unable to play even though they’re located within those states. This is one of the reasons licensed online gambling sites have done financially worse than expected.

Only existing brick & mortar casino owners within those states can apply for licenses, although they can apply together with an existing online gambling site in a software-licensing agreement, like Caesar’s Interactive and 888.com have done. If a poker site kept operating in the US after the UIGEA of 2006, it will be subjected to a ”bad actor” clause in Nevada and be prohibited from operating in the state for now.

Performance

Each state has had a rocky start, although New Jersey is doing OK. In March 2014, they did $11.87 million in revenue, which grew into $13.16 million in March 2015. A growth rate of 14.57% year-over-year is better than nothing, but still a far cry from the $1 billion within the first 7 months of operating Governor Christie expected (New Jersey gambling sites were launched in November 2013). In other words, his expectations were a little over $140 million a month on average, or about ten times the current revenue.

According to PokerScout.com, Nevada’s online poker revenue is going downhill. Year-over-year decrease in revenue of around 44% (from February 2014 to February 2015) is, no matter how you look at it, a disappointing result. Problems with card deposits and geolocation – both of which exist in other states as well – and player liquidity have undoubtedly contributed to the significant decrease. Players have to deal with fewer problems when playing at offshore sites, and as long as that continues, it will be difficult for state-licensed sites to gain major traction.

Is Viabestbuy A Legitimate Site

In Delaware, the state keeps all yearly revenue up to $3.75 million. Since total revenue for 2014 was around $2.1 million, gambling operators have made nothing. The main reason for such a low amount of revenue is Delaware’s population of 0.94 million (in comparison, New Jersey has a population of 8.9 million). Liquidity is important for online poker since you need lots of players to run games at various stakes, in several forms and throughout the day. Delaware is trying to improve its poker liquidity by combining player pools with Nevada but so far there hasn’t been a significant improvement to its online gaming revenue.

If all of the three states were to combine their player pools, it would create a poker economy of around 12 million people, which could add significant liquidity to the games and thus bring in more revenue to each of the states.

Offshore Sites

Gambling sites accepting US customers from outside of the three states are all ”offshore” sites, meaning they operate from outside of the US and have no license to operate within the US. They have obtained a license in some other jurisdictions – such as Antiqua & Barbuda or Panama – but many of those jurisdictions have less-than-stellar reputations.

The disadvantage of gambling at offshore sites is the lack of safety. For an outsider, it’s impossible to know how strict testing measures these sites go through to prove their legitimacy, and hypothetically, if one of them were to disappear from the internet tomorrow along with your money, what could you do about it?

Lock Poker, as already mentioned, is an ongoing example. They’ve now lost their license in Curacao (weirdly, they were able to keep the license easily over a year after refusing to process customer cashouts) and there’s nothing anyone can do to make sure Lock Poker’s customers have their money returned. All we can do is spread the word to the people who are considering signing-up and depositing money to their site.

The best thing you can do is consider the reputation of the site rather than the jurisdiction since all jurisdictions have had dishonest sites. The longer a site has been fully operational, and the fewer complaints it has generated, the better. Essentially, Bovada has been in the online gambling business since 2000 when Bodog.com was founded (the US-friendly operations of Bodog were re-branded as Bovada in 2011), and as mentioned, they’ve achieved an excellent reputation with a high level of customer service.

But there are advantages to playing at an offshore site, too, and you can legitimately argue that the advantages override the disadvantages. Offshore sites place fewer restrictions on customers, need less personal information and have to compete with lots of other sites (within US states, competition is limited) which forces them to be at their best in order to succeed. There are no geolocation issues either.

Safety and legality aside – although obviously, both are big considerations – offshore sites are the better option in almost every area. Since only three states have legalized some forms of real-money online gambling in the US, they’re the only places for internet gambling for around 96.4% of US population.

What’s Next?

US online gambling is in a transitional phase: after a long wait of legalization, three states have done it, mostly with lackluster success. Suggesting geolocation and deposit issues are resolved, revenue streams may grow. With online poker, though, most likely at least one of the bigger states has to legalize it and combine player pools with the others to create a meaningful poker economy.

A federal legalization would create much-needed competition and player pools, which in turn creates a bigger incentive for operators to participate and, in many ways, a better environment for gamblers. If internet gambling was to be legalized nationwide, every operator and their grandmother would want a license. As of now, it’s more beneficial for most operators to stay outside of the US.