Do you want to learn poker but are not willing to risk your own money? Are you just playing casually with friends and don’t want any of them to walk away upset? Good news! There are still some free online poker sites out there where you can have a blast without having to pay a dime (or win anything). In this article we will cover the best free poker sites, what kind of games they offer as well as what other features are available.
Free online poker is offered in following poker rooms:
Online Casino No Deposit Bonus Codes for December, 2023- GGPoker Free Games
- Play Money on PokerStars *exclusive for new players*
- Play Money on partypoker *exclusive for new players*
- Play Money on Unibet Poker
- Play Money on 888poker
- Play Money on Natural8
- Play Money on BLITZ POKER
You might wonder why would a business allow its customers to play for free? Wouldn’t that decrease their revenues? That might be true for most businesses but not for online poker operators. The purpose of an online poker room is to bring together as many people as possible who want to play poker at the same time and stakes. It does not matter to the operator if players gamble with real money or play fake chips – they get paid anyway, since they take a cut (called “rake”) from every pot in virtually every poker game.
That’s also the reason why free online poker is usually limited to cash games, which never end and can start instantly. Tournaments require exact player counts and set starting times, so there is no use running free events which cost the operator money. By the way: Zoom tournaments (aka SPINS) on STARCASINO Poker are free and pay out real money prizes. You can learn more about these games here:
Casinos Around Florida You Need to VisitFree Online Poker for Real Beginners - No Registration
If you want to play poker with your friends or family but most of them are absolute beginners and don’t even know the values of the cards, you have different options to choose from:
- Desura: This is a browser based poker client that offers simple 2D graphics. Features like emotes and a shop where you can buy virtual items with in-game currency add some fun for beginners. The games offered are Texas Hold’em and Omaha Hell-I-N. Up to six players can play at a table and there are both, live and automatic dealers available. To start playing, simply click “Play Now” on the desktop version or go to play.desuragames.com from your browser. No registration needed!
- YouSTAND: This is another browser-based poker solution by NetEnt that allows up to five players to play at one table. Both Texas Hold’em and 6+ Hold’em are available. What makes this free online poker site very special is the fact that it is integrated into a video slot game. If players run out of play money balance, they can try their luck in the linked slot YouBet™ where they can win back some coins to continue playing poker. Of course real money balances are completely separated. NetEnt calls this innovative feature “community gaming”.
- ESPN Pokernight Fallout: After a Beta test in 2015, ESPN finally launched their free online poker app Pokernight Fallout in March 2016. The game offersTexas Hold’em in 6+ (also known as Short Deck) and standard format, as well as private tables where you can invite your friends. The artwork has been heavily criticized but who knows, maybe this is just part of the post-apocalyptic game concept? Download the free app here:
- Pokerist Table Live: This app is different from the former three because it turns your tablet into a virtual poker table. Your friends sit around the device and can play pretend money cash games of Texas Hold’em simply by touching the buttons. There are different background themes to choose from and you can even tilt the tablet to simulate a real felt table. You can find Pokerist Table Live in the Apple Appstore and Google Play Store.
All those recommendations are great if you want to play fake money poker with your loved ones without having to sign up first. However, if you want to join free online poker games with players from all over the world and benefit from a professional software and hundreds of players at every limit around the clock, you should follow this guide:
Top Real Money Casinos in the USA for 2023How to Play Free Online Poker for Money (“Play Money”)?
Step 1: Open a new account at any of the poker rooms listed above. You may have heard of some of these brands before because they also operate large real-money poker sites. This is because free online poker is just a small part of the business but a great tool to acquire new customers. Once you win all their play money can easily change to real cash.
Step 2: Most likely your new account will be credited with some free play money right from the beginning. For example, new players on GGPoker receive 20,000 chips per day. PokerStars gives you 500 play money chips right from the beginning plus an additional 35,000 every day for the first two months.
Step 3: Find a cash game in the lobby that meets your needs. Usually there are plenty of shorthanded ($NL$) and heads-up ($01) tables available. As an alternative you could also search for specific usernames that are known to host free games. For example "Pokermaster".
Step 4: Take a seat and adjust your bet sizings. Unlike in real money games where blinds are fixed, play money tables allow you to pick the limits yourself. The minimum blind level is usually $0,01/$0,02 with a $0,01 ante on each street. You can go as high as you want but note that whales (big stakes players) usually hang out at the bigger real money tables anyway.
Play Money on GGPoker
GGPoker has always been very open minded towards Play Money players. Not only do they offer the highest play money limits by far but also special weekly freerolls with real cash prizes (see image below). All you need is a balanced playmoney account.
First of all, you need an account at GGPoker (if you don't have one yet, check out our ). Then enter the lobby and go to tab „Play Money“. There you can either create a new account or login with your social media accounts (Facebook, Twitter, Google, VKontakte or Telegram).
Best Florida Online Slots (2023 List) - GamblesplentyEvery account starts with 20,000 Play Mony Chips per day. You don‘t even have to verify your email address. The only limitation: You cannot transfer funds to your Friends Club Account or third party accounts.
By the way: Even if you go bust, you can restart with the daily maximum anytime. Just contact the support via Facebook or Telegram and they will help you out.
As I mentioned earlier, GGPoker also hosts special Play Money tournaments. Those have real cash prizes and take place every Sunday at 4 pm (GMT). The Best 300 Play Money Players (at the moment of registration) will receive:
- 1st Place: USD 500 + ICM Booster
- 2nd Place: USD 300 + ICM Booster
- 3rd Place: USD 100 + ICM Booster
- 4th Place: USD 75 + ICM Booster
- 5th Place: USD 50 + ICM Booster
- 6th Place: USD 50 + ICM Booster
- 7th Place: USD 50 + ICM Booster
- 8th Place: USD 50 + ICM Booster
- 9th Place: USD 50 + ICM Booster
- 100th Place: USD 25 + ICM Booster
- 101st Place: USD 25 + ICM Booster
- 151st Place: USD 10 + ICM Booster
- 175th Place: USD 10 + ICM Booster
- 201st Place: USD 10 + ICM Booster
- 251st Place: USD 10 + ICM Booster
ICM stands for "Independent Chip Model" and calculates the real money value of your play chips. For example, finish 4th and you will receive USD 50 + ICM Booster. Let’s say your Play Money balance is worth USD 300 according to the ICM. In this case you would get a total prize of USD 350.
Play Money on PokerStars
When signing up for a new account on PokerStars you not only receive 500 Play Money Chips but also 35,000 every day for the next two months. Keep in mind that you can only have one play money account per IP address and household. So you cannot sign up for multiple accounts if you want to abuse this system. Also, using more than one account at the same time is not allowed. Otherwise you risk getting banned.
Most of the cash games on PokerStars play really loose and juicy. At $0,01/$0,02 with a $0,01 big anchor you will encounter players who move all-in with weak hands like 7-8o or lower. Every now and then you also spot shorters who min-bet pocket pairs all the way up to $3-$6. But that’s also the beauty of free online poker: You can easily make money if you have the basics of the game downshore.
New on PokerStars? Play Fast Forward Challenge!
Fast Fold Poker is perfect for beginners because you will rarely see the same opponents twice. Simply unfollow players from the lobby or by clicking the "X" button at the table when buying in. Another option are the beginner tables where only new players are seated.
The biggest difference between GGPoker and PokerStars play money mode is the number of players. Unless it’s peak hours you often have to wait for the GG tables to fill up while it’s rather easy to get a decent PLO game going on Stars, even at the higher limits. Another advantage of PokerStars: You can easily reshuffle the deck for free if nobody has cards to speak of. Useful to mix up your streaming content!
Play Money on 888poker & 888casino
Massachusetts Online Casinos To Try Out In 2023Another great place to enjoy free online poker are 888poker and their partner site 888casino. The benefits are similar to PokerStars and GGPoker: You receive free play chips every day (max. 180,000 until Aug 30th), can go bankrupt and start fresh, get access to special freerolls and - if you sign up through our link - you will receive TWO prizes:
- 888casino Welcome Bonus Package of $1,500 / £1,000 / €1,200 PLUS up to 180,000 FREE CHIPS / TOURNAMENT ENTRIES
To be eligible for the free chip promotion you must create a new account at www.888poker.com or www.888casino.com before August 31, 2023 and claim one of the following Welcome Deals:
- 100% Match Bonus up to $200 / £100 / €150 when depositing $20 / £20 / €30 or more at 888poker (full terms here)
- 50% Deposit Bonus up to $300 / £200 / €300 when depositing $20 / £20 / €30 or more at 888casino (full terms here)
In addition, you will receive up to 180,000 FREE CHIP/TOURNAMENT ENTRIES by clicking the opt-in link in the 888poker/888casino lobby and completing simple tasks such as playing 888poker games or 888casino games. Each completed task rewards you with a mystery chip amount between 2,000 and 60,000! The promo runs until August 31, 2023. Terms and Conditions apply. At least 18 years or of legal drinking age in your jurisdiction. Please play responsibly.
best online pokerPlay Money on partypoker
Like their main competitors, partypoker also welcomes new players with free play chips. The maximum amount is 300,000 per day. If you want to participate in the free chips offer, you need to download the partypoker via our review page and create your account before August 31, 2023. Then, open the Cash Game lobby and opt-in to the campaign via the Mission Center. Completing Missions will reward you with Mystery Chests, each containing a random number of Play Chips between 2,000 and 60,000. The offer is valid until August 31, 2023. More details in our .
Besides that partypoker has a special beginner’s table only experienced players who have not yet flipped a card can be seated there. Furthermore, the action is usually very loose at the lowest levels, especially at off-peak hours. During summer vacations you can find plenty of tourists, students and holiday makers at the tables, some of whom played blackjack or roulette before and think “let’s give it a shot with deuces!”
Special Freezeout Series on Natural8
Natural8 is part of the Same Squad as Bovada and uses the Soft Flop technology which moves you to a new table after you folded. This is great for practicing and learning without being distracted by the action. The downside is that the player pool is much smaller than at GGPoker or PokerStars, therefore games are pretty scarce unless it’s peak hours.
But every Friday, Saturday and Sunday Natural8 hosts free poker tournaments that draw thousands of players: The #Freezy Friday, #Frostbite Saturday and the Frosty Sundays. Those are frozen guaranteed tournaments where the prize pool only thaws when players bump the prize pool. Of course you can also satellite in for a couple of cents on most days. The best way is to follow Natural8 on Twitch, Facebook, Instagram or Discord to not miss any update.
Free Poker Games on Wild Casino
roulette strategy real casinoWild Casino is a rather new competitor in the online gambling space but they already offer a wide variety of No-Limit Hold’em cash games with blinds ranging from $0,01/$0,02 to $50/$100. Buy-ins start at $1 and go up to $2,000 for recreational players. Wild Casino also has a bad beat jackpot that recently went up to $1.1 Million. Unfortunately there is no play money option and new customers only receive a 250% welcome bonus up to $5,000.
BLITZ Poker: Free Poker App With Real Money Prize
BLITZ Poker offers free and real money poker games. Although you cannot play for free on their web client and must download the mobile app first, the installation is quick and the software is stable. Moreover, you can win real money prizes in the free games.
Top-Rated Free Slots with Free Spins to Play OnlineWhat sets BLITZ Poker apart from other free poker apps is that you can participate in daily missions and earn prizes. For example, you could play 50 free hands or complete ten avatars. Another nice touch is that you can undo your actions for free within the first 60 seconds. We all know how frustrating it can be to put in the wrong bet size or forget to raise before the flop.
Unfortunately BLITZ Poker currently only offers one free No-Limit Hold’em variant with blinds $0,05/$0,10 and a $0,50 big blind ante. The maximum number of players per table is eight, currently three out of four seats are occupied. It seems like the app is still in beta testing and more features will be added later. However, if you can’t play real money poker, but still crave for some action, BLITZ Poker is definitely better than nothing.
Why Don’t They OFFER FREE ONLINE POKER TOURNAMETS?
You might have noticed that none of the recommendations above offer free online poker tournaments. Unfortunately it doesn’t pay off for the operators to run such events for free. While heads-up or six-max cash games can start immediately and don’t need many players, tournaments require exact participant numbers and fixed starting times. The operator cannot predict how many players show up for a free event and most likely will lose money with too many overlay. That’s also the reason why Blitz Spirit, the free fastfold poker tournament series on GGPoker, comes with a hefty $125 buy-in.
Free Online Poker Hole Cards Trainer
If you want to practice poker basic skills like identifying hand strengths, there is a better option than playing free online poker with random players - the PokerListings Hole Card Trainer. Pick up the fundamentals of the game by flipping virtual poker cards and trying to build the best hand. The trainer covers Hold'em, Omaha, Stud and Draw variations and lets you customize several settings such as community cards, number of rounds and betting structures. Have fun improving your knowledge in a risk-free environment!
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Of course it is possible to make a profit by only playing at free online poker sites. The methods are slightly different compared to taking risks:
If you play with play money chips, the action is usually extremely loose which means you should adopt a tight-aggressive style. Only play strong hands and bet/raise frequently to bleed chips from your opponents. Many new players don’t quite understand that they are playing with “fake” money and get frustrated when they go broke.
A somewhat advanced strategy is to pick certain positions at the table - e.g. the small blind and the button. Raise or re-raise from those spots whenever it’s in your range and let the other players battle without you. You can even use a to fold whenever you don’t have pockets pair or better. Due to the high variance you might go bust several times in a row but if you stick to this method in the long run you should end up with a positive result.
However, things get interesting when you find a way to transfer the play money chips to your real money account. Usually free online poker sites allow you to resume your balance after going broke, but sometimes you get a second chance if you contact customer service. For example via Facebook or Telegram. Always keep some real money aside for emergencies and inform the support that you want to minimize your losses by moving the play chips to your real money account. Often they agree on reasonable rates depending on your skilsl level compared to the opponents.
free mobile casino gameAlternatively, you can try to , i.e. transfer fake money from another account to yours and start over again. Selling or trading play chips for real money is only permitted in the country of Curacao where the poker servers are located. Again, it’s a grey area and entirely up to the discretionary of the support agents whether they honour your request or not. Some players even offer services to grind the free online poker games for a certain percentage of the winnings.
Of course you should not rely on this income and rather see it as a funny extra. Additionally, you need a lot of patience because the games are mostly filled with recreational players who only play occasionally. Peak hours are the time right after work and school, i.e. in the evenings and on weekends in your opponents’ time zone (probably United States, Brazil, India).