Online Poker for Money. Play poker online with friends at the best US online poker sites. Sign up to play real money poker online games for free. We review the best legit poker sites so you can safely choose where to play real money poker online. Our top pick for March 2021 is Intertops Poker. Intertops Poker 2. We strongly recommend you join one of the real money poker sites we endorse. We explain why, what we look for, and more in the next section. Then, we’ll show you why you should consider switching to playing online poker in CA, including how it can save and make you more money.

These days, the privacy of your home may be the best place to play poker in NewJersey. Poker went online in the Garden State in 2013.

Online poker rooms were a part of the synchronized launch of NJ’s first legal online gambling sites.

Today, the online poker market includes seven sites, interstate player pools, and apps so you can play anywhere in New Jersey.

These days, you can find juicy cash games and big-time tournaments running all the time. You might even bank a six-figure score or win a World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet when playing online poker in New Jersey.

Best NJ online poker sites in 2021

Today’s best online poker sites combine great software, large player pools, and lucrative welcome bonuses to enhance your online poker experience.

Poker sites in New Jersey are well-known for offering cash games and tournaments across a wide variety of poker variants. Each also offers the best seasonal poker tournament series with lucrative guarantees and unparalleled cash game action 24/7.

The following poker operators in New Jersey are the best in the online poker business.

NJ online poker reviews

Each poker site uses its own software client, which creates small differences in presentation. Available stakes and game types also vary from site to site, as does the size of tournaments and prize pools.

1. Pala Poker

Free play poker vs. real money poker

Real money online poker has been around New Jersey since 2013. Most licensed NJ operators brought free play money online poker to the market with it. In some cases, free play money online poker has been around a lot longer.

Free play money poker games do offer a way to learn the game without risk. However, few people take it seriously, so gameplay is often a poor simulation of the real thing.

So much so that real money micro-stakes may be a better place to learn, particularly if players plan to move up to real money stakes eventually.

Play money poker sites are often linked to social media. Furthermore, they offer player loyalty programs where players might be able to earn something while they play.

So, if you want to play poker to earn, you should hit the real-money games instead and keep play-money poker around just for fun.

Is real money poker legal in NJ?

Yes, real money online poker is legal in New Jersey.

It has been since Feb. 26, 2013, when a bill permitting internet gambling in the state was approved by the New Jersey Legislature and signed into law by then-Gov. Chris Christie.

Almost nine months later, the state’s first legal online poker sites were a part of the synchronized launch of online gambling in New Jersey on Nov. 21, 2013.

Online poker operators have generated an average of about $2 million in revenue annually ever since.

New Jersey signed on to an interstate compact known as the Multi-State Internet Gaming Association (MSIGA) in October 2017. This changed the law to allow NJ sites to apply for regulatory approval to share player pools with those in Delaware’s and Nevada’s legal online poker markets.

Of course, WSOP.com and 888 Poker are the only other NJ online poker operators that run sites in these other states. As a result, they were the only sites to apply.

The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (NJDGE) granted the sites the necessary approval and the first interstate games launched May 1, 2018.

WSOP.com has gone on to run a schedule of online WSOP bracelet events available in New Jersey and Nevada the past two years.

How to play online poker on Android

WSOP.com on Android

The WSOP.com Android app is available for download from the WSOP.com website.

The app promises to be optimized for on-the-go Android poker play. It is an excellent product for the one-trick, one-table No Limit Hold’em ponies.

Unfortunately, WSOP.com mobile apps only support playing one table at a time. Also, the Pot Limit Omaha games and tournaments you might find on the desktop client are not there.

Game selection functions are also more frustrating than functional. The cash game and Sit and Go sliders work, but you can’t see these lobbies, so it makes it a guessing game.

The mobile software is the same employed by 888 Poker, but the WSOP.com features the more robust better tournament selection and an efficient and easy-to-reg lobby.

The WSOP.com Android app does deliver on bringing the most prestigious name in the game to your Android device. But unfortunately, the actual desktop online poker experience is not available on WSOP.com mobile.

PokerStars on Android

The PokerStars NJ Android app is among the biggest in the market at over 80MB. What you get is mobile access to the industry-leading poker software and the PokerStars brand, which is optimized for your Android device.

That means No Limit Hold’em (NLH) and Pot Limit Omaha (PLO) cash games and tournaments, Sit and Gos (SNG) and the popular Spin and Gos. There are even Zoom Poker fast-fold games, although these tend to run only sporadically.

The PokerStars NJ Android mobile app offers access to all the account management features.

Some serverlag and unresponsiveness issues remain, but these are minor problems for an Android app.

The app also includes chatfeatures, quickseating, multi-tabling and tutorials for how to optimize it for phones and tablets.

You must go to the PokerStars NJ mobile page to download and install the app. However, once that’s done, you’re in for something special.

888 Poker on Android

888 Poker NJ promises the slickest poker app in the business for Android devices available for download from the 888 Poker website.

All of its poker games are there, including cash, tournaments, Sit and Gos, super turbo games and SNAP poker fast-fold. However, the app features the same frustrating game selection sliders as WSOP.com. The problem is you can’t see these lobbies and what games are running first.

Other than that, the 888 Poker NJ app does feature smooth functionality, quick deposits and real poker games with real opponents, in real-time.

It’s just not as close to the desktop client experience as others in the NJ market.

How to play online poker via your iPhone / iPad

PokerStars for iPhone / iPad

PokerStars NJ seems to understand the need to replicate the desktop computer experience on mobile devices as much as possible. It does that with the PokerStars iOS app available for download on the PokerStars NJ website and the Apple App Store.

It’s designed natively for iPhone or iPad devices and features almost everything you’ll find on the desktop client.

There’s a “PlayNow” button, allowing you to instantly join your favorite games, tournaments and access to about every poker game and popular PokerStars’ product.

WSOP.com for iPhone / iPad

You can download the WSOP.com mobile app for iOS devices on both the WSOP.com website and the Apple App Store.

Unfortunately, the same limited functionality you find with its Android app is there on the Apple app as well.

That means No Limit Hold’em is the only game and it’s a single-table only experience. That said, there are freerolls, Sit & Gos, multi-table tournaments, cash games and even casino games available.

It provides 24/7 access to games and customer support.

Plus, the WSOP.com app is optimized for iPhone and iPad users.

888 Poker for iPhone / iPad

The 888 Poker iOS app is available for download on the 888 Poker NJ website and the Apple App Store. Plus, the mobile app seems to be designedbetter for iOS devices than Android.

It’s got the full account functionality of the desktop client. Plus, Sit & Gos, multi-table tournaments, satellites, step tournaments and cash games including Hold’em Omaha, Omaha Hi-Lo and Seven Card Stud Hi Lo. There’s even access to the 888 Casino games.

Plus, 888Blast poker jackpot games are there as well.

How to clear online poker bonuses

The top online poker sites in New Jersey offer a variety of online poker bonuses to players. These include everything from free tournament tickets to no-deposit and deposit-match bonuses.

Most include wagering requirements that players must complete before they can withdraw the bonus funds. There is a straightforward way to meet these wageringrequirements and clear the bonus: play online poker.

Of course, the amount you must play to clear a bonus is specific to that bonus. That’s why it’s always essential to understand the terms and conditions of a bonus before you try to clear it.

You’re going to want to know how many days you have to clear the bonus, if it will be released incrementally, and if and when it expires. Plus, you’re going to want to know exactly how much poker you need to play to clear the bonus.

In most cases, players earn frequent player points (FPP) based on the amount of rake they pay on a site. Poker bonuses are cleared when certain FPP thresholds are met.

It’s always a good idea to look for times when online poker rooms run promotions allowing you to earn extra FPPs. You might be able to clear a bonus faster as a result.

Another rule of thumb worth noting is that the bigger a bonus, the harder it is to clear.

That means you’ve got to be willing to put in the time at the tables to clear a significant bonus. Most recreational players would be better off choosing smaller and easier-to-clear bonuses they may be able to get their hands on playing only part-time.

Remember, there’s no such thing as a free lunch, and if you want to clear a poker bonus, you are going to have to put in some work to do it. The bigger it is, the more practice you’ll have to do to get it.

However, those with a clear understanding of how to clear the bonus they seek and a willingness to grind it out should find the pursuit of poker bonuses profitable.

Moving money on and off poker websites

NJ online poker sites work hard to make moving money on and off the sites as quick and easy as possible. Each site offers a variety of easy-to-use deposit and withdrawal methods and is continually adding new ones.

Whatever method you used to make a deposit can usually be used to withdraw funds. If not, NJ online poker sites are happy to make other options available.

Here’s a list of some of the mostpopular deposit and withdrawal methods at NJ online poker sites:

• Visa and Mastercard: NJ online poker sites accept major credit cards as long as the bank the card is issued by approves. Some issuing banks may not authorize online gambling transactions. If that’s the case, you’ll need to find another deposit method. However, several exist where you still can use your Visa or Mastercard.
• Play+: Several online poker sites in New Jersey take the Play+ prepaid credit card. The card can be funded using a Visa, Mastercard, Discover card or even your checking account.
• Prepaid Cards: Prepaid cards can be a safe and convenient option for making deposits on NJ online poker sites. Players load money onto the prepaid cards and then use the funds to deposit on a poker site. Several major credit card companies offer prepaid credit cards and some NJ online poker rooms have their own branded cards.
• Cash at the Casino Cage: NJ online poker sites run under licenses held by Atlantic City casinos. Most will accept cash deposits at the cashier cages inside the associated casino.
• PayPal: This third-party payment processor is the largest in the world and available at several online poker sites in New Jersey. You can fund a PayPal account from several sources, including your bank account and credit cards.
• ACH E-checks: ACH e-checks is an online money transfer service that essentially lets you write an electronic check to an online poker site. It’s a great way to move money from a bank account to an online poker site.
• PayNearMe: Financial services provider PayNearMe has partnered with 7-Eleven convenience stores and CVS Pharmacies to create a financial services app. The app allows users to make bill payments via retail sites. Also, you can make payments at several NJ online poker sites with cash.
• Online Banking: Those that make bill payments with their online bank account can often deposit to an NJ online poker site directly as well. But this too is often subject to authorization issues.

Types of poker games available to NJ poker players

Most of the tournament and cash-game action in the NJ online poker market revolves around No Limit Hold’em. There’s also some Pot Limit Omaha around and some sites that have software capable of running other poker variants.

The thing is, games don’t run without players and most of the time, it’s hard to find even six players willing to sit at RAZZ, HORSE or 2-7 Triple Draw games.

So, even the sites that advertise a wide variety of poker variants available don’t run much outside of No Limit Hold’em and Pot Limit Omaha games most of the time.

That said, it’s all about timing. You might be able to jump in a cash game or tournament featuring your favorite poker variant.

• No Limit Hold’em (NLH): The biggest cash game in NJ online poker is far and away No Limit Hold’em. There are usually tables running with stakes ranging from $0.01/$0.02 to $25/$50 with six-max and nine-handed tables. However, the majority of the action is at the micro- and low-stakes levels. Most NJ online poker tournaments are No Limit Hold’em as well.
• Pot Limit Omaha (PLO): Most NJ online poker sites run Pot Limit Omaha (PLO) games, just not as many as No Limit Hold’em. The stakes online in New Jersey run from $0.01/$0.02 to $25/$50, but the $0.50/$1 and $0.25/$0.50 tables are the most popular. If your timing is right, you might also find Omaha Hi Lo games running, too.
• Stud: A lot of NJ online poker sites claim to offer studgames. In reality, the games run rarely. Stakes range from $0.50/$1 to $40/$80 when they do get off the ground.
• HORSE, 2-7 Triple Draw and other variants: While mixed games are fun and everybody knows poker is more than hold ’em and Omaha, NJ online poker isn’t. Alternative poker variants are usually only found in specialized seasonal tournaments. Cash games do not run regularly.
• Fast fold games: Most online poker sites in NJ run some version of fast-fold games akin to PokerStars NJ’s Zoom Poker tables. In this format, you are instantly transported to a different table to start a new hand when you fold one. Zoom cash games and the like requires a large player pool, so it doesn’t always run on NJ sites.
• Multi table tournaments: All NJ online poker sites offer a daily schedule of No Limit Hold’em multi-table tournaments (MTT) with buy-ins ranging from $1 to $50. However, the bigger buy-in MTTs are on Sundays in New Jersey. Larger online poker operators run SundayMajors with buy-ins ranging from $50 to $500. Prize pool guarantees for these events go up to $50,000.
• Sit and Go tournaments (SNG): Online poker sites in New Jersey host No Limit Hold’em, Pot Limit Omaha and Pot Limit Omaha Hi-Lo Sit and Go tournaments. Most are nine-handed, six-max or heads up. Buy-ins start at $0.25 and go up to $500. Prime-time peak hours are the best time to find Sit and Go tournaments running.
• Lottery Sit & Go tournaments: Lottery Sit & Go tournaments akin to PokerStars’ Spin & Gos run on a variety of NJ online poker sites. These are three-handed Sit & Go tournaments with randomized prize pools awarded. That means they are playing for anywhere from two buy-ins to $1,000. The Sit & Go tournaments that run regularly in NJ will range from $1-$25 and are even more popular than standard Sit & Gos.

Is it safe to play online poker for real money in NJ?

Online poker is legal and regulated in New Jersey. That doesn’t mean big brother is watching; however, it means theNJDGE provides oversight in the state. It ensures it is entirely safe to play online poker for real money in NJ.

The NJDGE vets every operator, issues permits, and tests and approves software and games. Fair play is a part of the equation every step of the way.

Offshore online poker rooms are the ones to concern you. Unlike legal and regulated NJ online poker sites, these are unlicensed and don’t undergo any testing.

You may have read about superuser scandals in the past where someone was able to see an opponent’s hole cards and take advantage. The NJDGE has strictguidelines in place to make sure nothing like that ever happens in the state’s legal, regulated online poker market.

Licensees are also required to keep customer funds separate from their operational budget. That means your money is always safe and secure with an NJ online poker operator.

Even if an online poker operator goes belly up, your funds will be safe.

You may remember that UltimatePoker left the NJ online poker market in 2014. Every dollar on deposit was paid back to customers before the site closed because those funds were held separately from the site’s operating budget.

More resources on multistate online poker:

You’ll find no shortage of live poker cash games and tournaments in California. But these games are expensive between their multi-hundred dollar buy-ins and their flat-fee rake structure.

Why not make the switch to online poker? The buy-ins and rake are reasonable. There are more games and variants to choose from. And you can claim a deposit bonus, which no live cardroom offers.

All you need is an account with one of the best California poker sites online.

We strongly recommend you join one of the real money poker sites we endorse. We explain why, what we look for, and more in the next section.

Then, we’ll show you why you should consider switching to playing online poker in CA, including how it can save and make you more money compared to playing live.

If that sounds good to you, then let’s get started.

If you want to play real money poker online in California, your first step is to find a safe and reputable poker site to join. This isn’t a step you want to take alone. Here is why.

Poker is unique from most other gambling games in that you’re not playing against the house but other players like yourself. The site you join needs to have adequate traffic, otherwise, you won’t find a game to play.

This information is available online if you know where to look. And when it’s not, there are usually a few tells you can pick up in the online poker room’s lobby.

If you don’t know how to find this information, or how to interpret the clues, you might as well choose a poker site blindfolded. There’s really no difference if you insist on finding your own CA poker site to join.

On top of that, there’s other criteria you should consider, such as the poker room’s games, variants, stakes, rake, promotions, and more. It’s a lot to uncover.

That’s why we suggest you rely on us. We have decades of online poker experience. And we’ve researched and tested almost every online poker site in existence, so we know exactly which ones Californians should join.

Here’s what we look for in the best online poker sites for California.

• The poker site’s license and the commission that issued it
• The banking options you can use
• The withdrawal limits i.e. how much of your winnings can you withdraw each month?
• Can you claim a deposit bonus or participate in a VIP program, guaranteed tournaments, etc.?
• Are they trustworthy? What do other poker players think of them?

This covers the basics and tells us whether the poker room is safe, secure, trustworthy, and reliable enough to join.

But we’re not done yet.

We also need to make sure they’re a GREAT poker site, especially for poker players in California. Here’s what else we look at.

• What features does the room have? Do they have hand history players, four-color decks, odds calculators, quick play, etc.?
• Can you use a HUD?
• What kinds of tournaments can you play? Can you play guaranteed tournament? Satellites? Knockouts? Turbos? 6-max?
• What real money poker games and variants can you play?
• Do they allow multi-tabling? How many tables can you play at once?
• Is their rake reasonable?

We compare every site we review, take the top choices, and order them from best to worst. The result is a list of the top poker sites or, in this case, the best California poker sites.

We’re thorough in our research and testing, as you can see for yourself if you read our poker room reviews.

The goal is to save you all that time, money, and energy, then help you find a California-friendly online poker room as quickly as possible.

We think we achieved that. But you’ll only know for sure once you choose a CA poker site to join, create your account, and get some real money hands and tourneys under your belt.

Rake at California Poker Sites

One unique thing about playing live poker in California is how you pay rake. The rake is the money the poker room collects as their fee for hosting the game.

Most poker rooms charge you a percentage of the pot and cap how much they can rake. For example, a poker room might take 10% of every pot up to $10.

Many cardrooms do not rake the pot if no one sees a flop. This is known as a “no flop, no drop” policy.

California flips all this on its head. Here’s how.

By law, California cardrooms cannot rake a percentage of the pot, so they charge a flat rate and/or charge an hourly fee instead.

For example, you might pay $10 every hour to play. Or you might as much as $7 (at $5/$10) plus whatever the room takes for their promotions, such as a bad beat jackpot. They also rake the pot even if no one sees a flop.

Best Real Money Online Poker

Now, let’s compare this to online poker.

One of the California online poker sites we like charges 5.5% rake for their highest limit games and even less for their micro stakes.

If you play $5/$10, like our live example above, you’ll pay $0.01 for every $0.18 in the pot (5.5%). You’ll pay $1 to $5 max per hand depending on the number of players in the pot. That’s 70% less on the high side, just for playing online.

That’s not all the money you’ll save either. Here are the other ways you’ll save by choosing to play real money poker online instead of live.

• Not having to travel
• Not wasting time waiting for a game or seat to open
• Not playing at rooms without a no flop, no drop policy
• Choosing whether to play bad beat jackpot games

You’ll save money, but you can also make more money playing poker online because you can play more than one table at a time and you can participate in promotions like deposit bonuses and VIP programs.

The bottom line, you’ll increase your hourly rate and take-home pay. And all you have to do is choose to play games at the top CA poker websites instead of live.

This doesn’t just apply to cash games either. It applies to tournaments, too.

California is also known for their poker tournaments. They host some of the largest and most popular poker tournaments in the world.

• WSOP circuit events
• WTP tournaments such as the WPT Deep Stacks Championship
• Battle of the Bay
• California State Poker Championship
• Memorial Day Tournament Series
• Bay 101 Summer Open
• Commerce Hold’em Series
• A. Poker Open
• Gold Rush Poker Series

These are great live tournaments to play in. They can add a nice boost to your total live earnings column, especially since they routinely pay six and seven-figure prizes to the winner.

There’s also a little prestige and notoriety in doing well in these tournaments, which some poker players care about.

But do they offset the downsides?

• Buy-ins range from several hundred to several thousand dollars.
• The rake is expensive. You should expect the cardroom to collect $15 to $20 for every $100 you pay to play.
• The bigger tournaments can take days to complete.

Now, these will apply to live tournaments. But you also have the fact that you can spend hours playing, bust the tournament, and walk away with nothing.

This will apply to online tournaments too, but they have advantages that California poker tournament players do not have.

If you want to play real money poker tournaments in California, we recommend you play online. Here are a few reasons why, relative to the points made in the last section.

• The largest tournament buy-ins online are between $215 to $600 (with a few rare exceptions).
• The prize pools still reach six and seven figures because online poker sites aren’t confined to California or a specific square footage. They can allow a larger number of players to play, which increases the prize pool without increasing the buy-in.
• You pay less rake. You’ll usually pay $9 to $10 for every $100 you pay to play.
• Most tournaments are done in a (long) day.

Now, we mentioned that you can play a tournament for hours only to bust and walk away with nothing. That’s possible in any tournament, online or live. But here’s why online poker tournaments are better.

Online poker rooms can run more tournaments since they’re not limited on space. This means you can play more tournaments. And most CA poker sites let you play more than one tournament at a time.

Since you can put in more volume (play more tournaments), you can get through your variance (losses) faster. This enables you to cash out and win more often. You don’t have to go weeks, months, or years without a score. You’ll cash out far more often than that.

There are many other benefits to playing poker tournaments online instead of live, too.

• You can earn VIP perks.
• You’ll have a larger variety of tournament games, variations, and stakes to choose from.
• You can satellite into larger poker tournaments for much less than you can online.
• You can buy into many tournaments for less than $20. Many of these have three- or four-figure prize pools/payouts.

While there’s more money, prestige, and notoriety to gain playing in California’s live poker tournaments, it also costs a lot of time and money to play these tourneys.

Online poker tournaments are a middle ground. You can still play in tournaments with large prize pools. But you won’t spend as much to play them. And you have the added benefit of multi-tabling, which will enable you to play, cash in, and win more tournaments than you ever could offline.

Yes. We highly recommend it. The traffic at each poker site fluctuates, both in terms of overall traffic and traffic to the specific game you want to play.

You’ll have better odds of finding a profitable game or tournament the more poker site accounts you have.

The most common is the deposit bonus. Make a deposit and the poker room will match a percentage of it up to so many dollars.

For example, if the poker room you join is offering a 100% match bonus up to $500, then they’ll give you $1 for every $1 you deposit. You can get as much as $500 free.

Poker rooms also offer VIP programs, rebates, tournament tickets, guaranteed tournaments, VIP exclusive freerolls, and more.

It depends on the poker room.

A typical guaranteed tourney during a Sunday schedule is $100,000. That said, we’ve seen guarantees as high as $1 million.

You should take a two-pronged approach.

One, figure out what you want in a poker site — the games, variants, stakes, promotions, etc. Then, read the reviews for every site we recommend and choose the site that offers the closest to what you’re looking for.

Yes. Most poker sites offer mobile poker.

Some poker sites offer a native app. Others have a browser-based setup where you’ll play poker in your mobile web browser.

There are tons of variables to consider, too many to cover here. If we had to give a sweeping statement, it’d be the one below.

If you play medium stakes or higher, chances are you’re better off playing live. You can find games like $5/$10 or $10/$20 online, but you’ll probably find more consistent action offline. And depending on where you live in California, it might even make more sense to drive to Reno or Las Vegas.

Best Poker Sites Real Money

For micro and small stakes players, as well as tournament players, we think there’s a lot of value in playing at online poker sites for all the reasons mentioned above.

Poker is popular in CA. You’ll find loads of live cash game action and poker tournaments. Many of these poker tournaments pay life-altering sums to the players who win them.

But live poker in California is far more expensive, less profitable, and less convenient compared to playing online.

There’s no reason you can’t play both formats, both live and online. But if we had to choose, we’d choose to play real money poker online.

If you see where we’re coming from and want to make the leap to playing poker online, then join one of the best California poker sites and create your account now.

Cash games and tournaments are running all day every day. Are you going to be part of the action?