Learn how to play poker online and find the best online casinos for poker with our expert guide. From the basics of the game to intermediate strategy, you'll find all you need below. We also have recommendations for the best online casinos for poker, with a complete list of all the casinos that offer legal online poker.
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We let you know about the latest casinos to offer online poker, the latest tips from experts, and how to use your bonuses to your best advantage.
You can read more about each of these casinos in the List of New Jersey's Online Poker Sitesbelow.
888 is one of the first casinos that ever came on the map, and by teaming up with Harrah's and WSOP (World Series of Poker), they are one of the best places to play poker in New Jersey.
888 has 2 kinds of live dealer poker! They also have a great selection of virtual poker games.
By clicking on the link below, you'll get $20 in bonus money plus up to $1,500 in a matching deposit bonus.
The biggest casino in Atlantic City brings you a string of great promotions and tournaments. These include:
Borgata a great selection of video poker games and good user experience for your online poker.
Get started with their offer of $20 in bonus dollars (10x wager requirement) $600 on matching deposits, with a super low wager requirement of only 20x.
BetMGM is gaining a lot of fans in New Jersey.
With over a dozen types of video poker games and a great user interface, BetMGM is becoming a favorite among poker players.
They start you off with a generous $25 no deposit bonus just for signing up, plus offer a $1,000 matching deposit bonus.
The best poker sites will rank high based on:
User Experience
If you can't access a website, if the app crashes, or if the graphics are so bad you can't see what you're doing, that makes for a bad game. Accessibility, speed, graphics, and generally non-problematic programming have to do with the user experience. As technology improves and there is more competition among online casinos, there is no reason to put up with a poor online casino.
Selection
Next, you'll want to find the specific game you're looking for. If Texas Holdem or Jack or Better is your game, selection may not be as important as user experience. After all, most online casinos that offer poker have these games.
But if you're looking for higher stakes or Aces and Faces poker, your options will be limited. Also, if you're the kind of player who likes to play a few kinds of poker, you'll want a casino with a good selection of poker games.
Bonus and Promotional Offers
Registration bonuses let you start out ahead of the house, plain and simple. If you can find $20 or more in no deposit bonus cash for poker, and couple that with a matching deposit bonus, you give yourself a great head start.
Bonus dollars can take the sting out of a loss and give you some cushion while you're learning a new game or new format. By taking advantage of a casino's registration bonus, you automatically increase your bankroll and decrease the house edge.
Legality
Last, it is important that your online poker site is legal, and that means it must be hosted within a state where online casinos are legal (such as New Jersey, Pennsylvania, or Delaware).
Illegal, off-shore sites are increasingly being denied recognition by credit card companies. And worse, they leave you without legal support if they abuse you.
Online poker is essentially the same game that you would play at a table with friends. The same rules apply to the game. You can play against other real players or a computer.
Online poker comes in 3 types:
You can choose, depending upon your preferences and experience. For this article, we'll focus on online poker and live dealer.
Online poker is a software-based game. The software has a Random Number Generator (RNG) to ensure that the draw of the cards is random, and therefore fair. You'll also notice that:
Live dealer poker is filmed and streamed from a studio in Atlantic City. You have real dealers, real cards, real chips. You can chat with and see the dealers, but they can't see you. So if you have questions or want tips, the dealer can respond.
Most live dealer poker tables offer three-card poker and Holdem.
These New Jersey online casinos offer the best live dealer poker:
Casino | 3-card | Holdem |
---|---|---|
888 | Yes | Yes |
Borgata | No | Yes |
BetMGM | No | Yes |
Caesars | No | Yes |
Golden Nugget | No | Yes |
Hard Rock | Yes | Yes |
PartyCasino | No | Yes |
SugarHouse | Yes | Yes |
1. Find an online poker room. In New Jersey, your options are:
2. Register for an account.
3. You might want to take advantage of a special welcome offer for first-time customers.
4. If you want to play for real money, then deposit. Several poker rooms will let you play for free at novice tables. We're always fans of putting at least a few cents into a game because it will make you take it more seriously.
5. Pick your level, find a table, and begin playing.
Online poker uses a Random Number Generator (RNG) in the software - instead of an actual deck - to assure that the cards are random.
You play against other real players. The online environment it made to give you all the information you would have in a face-to-face game. In short, you can see your cards and those in the pool. Obviously you can't see your opponents'.
No one can see you. This is good news if you don't have a good poker face. But it means that you won't be able to read others' faces either.
These basic tips offer guidelines that are useful for all poker players. These will help you to make the best decisions based on 1) the hand you're dealt, 2) your position, and 3) decisions made by other players.
All casino games involve an element of luck, but poker also involves a significant amount of strategy. That's why you always see the same players at the finals in the poker tournaments: they have a good strategy. Let's look at some of the best strategies to get you winning video poker!
One of the most important aspects of winning in poker is to be sure that you know the order of winnings hands for the game you're playing. You need to be sure that you know what you're working toward and the likelihood of others being able to beat your best hand.
At its most basic level, you are playing to make the strongest hand possible in poker. Below is a list of the order of the strongest hands. Your steps go as follows:
That's simple enough. Let's say you're dealt 4♣ and 6♥, and the shared pile shows 2♠, 4♦,5♠, 7♦, and 10♥. What is the highest hand you can make?
You'll see you already have a low pair (two 4s). Sounds useless, right? Actually it's #16 on the chart, meaning it beats at least 20 other hands. So even though you can make 4♣,4♦,5♠,6♥,7♦ (#21. 4 card Straight with no high cards below), you will want to work with that pair of 4s. That low pair (#16) beats that 4 card Straight (#21). And if you're you're dealt another 4, you'd be even better placed with 3 of a kind (#7).
In fact, even if there were more impressive looking cards in the pile, say 4♦,5♠, 7♦,10♥,Q♦, this would give you a 4 card Straight with 2 high cards (#17). Still, you'd still discard your 6. You're already stronger with the pair of 4s, and you might turn that into a triple.
It is important to know the hand values in any poker game.
One of the primary ways players lose games that they could have won is by not playing aggressively enough. Many players are good at playing defensively, and if you're out of position, that's the right way to play. But if you're in position, i.e., at the back end and close to the button, you need to be on the offense.
You might also want to keep in mind this word of advice: 'If it’s good enough to call, it’s good enough to raise.'
Many new poker players want to stay in the action. Unfortunately staying in can be expensive if you're not playing smart.
In reality, you should only be playing no more than 20% of your hands. That means you should not play at least 80% of your hands.
If your a beginner, and don't have a limitless supply of money, you should be playing tight. That means only play your best hands. If you start out with one of those big pocket pairs (10-10 - AA), then, by all means, try to play it through. But if you're dealt a weak hand, you're better off to fold and watch the action.
But just because you're out of the action, that doesn't mean you can switch off. Be sure that you're actively watching: assess what's happening on the table, put yourself in other players' shoes, try to determine the weaker and stronger players, and keep in mind how your hand might have played out had you continued.
Learning poker even after you've folded is a valuable exercise. It gets you more familiar with your table and poker in general.
Intermediate poker strategy builds upon the basics. You'll want to play in accordance with the order of hands and learn to bluff (selectively) if you're playing against other actual players.
It is crucial to know the advantages you have based on your position at the table. If you're playing in the late position, you stand to make more money here, so pay to win.
When you’re out of position, you don’t know what’s will happen after your play—you might get bluffed or raised. Many bad things could happen. In short, if when you’re out of position, stay on your toes and keep your guard up. Generally, this is the time to play tight and rely only on strong hands.
While there's some debate among expert players and statisticians, they all agree on the first 3 strongest hands to start with:
Most would put A-K suited next. After that, your highest pairs enter in again to make your strongest beginning hands:
Even if you're out of position, these are going to be strong hands. Being in a position with a strong hand just makes it stronger!
Bluffing is probably the most famous move in poker. When you bluff, you play as if you have a stronger hand than you do. In order to win, you do not need to have a stronger hand. You just need to be the last person still playing. So a weaker hand can win.
With value betting, you wager on the fact that your hand is stronger than another player's. Value betting is only effective when you are relatively sure of the value of your opponent's cards.
Indicators of your opponent's hand are:
The best reasons to play online poker are:
Let's look at these two factors in more detail.
Playing from home is not only convenient. It also helps you save money. No money for tips, food, or drinks. That means you can keep that money for yourself to spend as you like.
You can take your poker money saved from your budget on playing more hands or making larger bets. Those are two great ways to increase your winnings!
The key to getting better in poker (and winning) is practice. The masters have played thousands of hours. Since the invention of online poker, you can play whenever you want.
Use your notes and charts to practice making the right decision.
Online poker houses also provide great bonuses, especially for first-time players! These allow you to play for free with bonus dollars. You can take your winnings after satisfying wagering requirements, or just enjoy the free games.
You can also get access to the latest casino promotions. These might be special deals on poker tables, or offers for other games. Casinos also regularly give double rewards points. Be sure to check out the promotions.
There are dozens of poker variants, and you'll find plenty of these online. Let's look at the 3 most popular.
Texas Holdem is the most popular form of poker. You seek to make the best hand (or make everyone else believe you have the best hand!) using your 2 private dealt cards and the 5 cards in the community pool.
The excitement is in combining what is known - i.e., the community cards - with what is not - the players' private cards.
With Omaha, you try to make a winning 5-card hand. You're dealt 3 cards (instead of 4). You use 2 of these and 3 of the 5 community cards.
There are many versions of Omaha, including Omaha Hi, 5-Card Omaha, and Omaha Hi-Lo.
Just like the same says, 3 card poker involves only 3 cards. You're dealt three cards and play only against the dealer. That is, like in blackjack, you play against the dealer, not other players.
There are only two bets:
Due to its simple rules and fast action, 3 card poker is a favorite of many players.
Yes, you can play online poker 100% legally in New Jersey. All of the casinos we list are legal. This means you can use your credit card for payments and receive payments legally. You also have 100% legal protection as a consumer.
Every legal online casino operating from New Jersey must obey New Jersey state laws. Online games are regulated by the Division of Gaming Enforcement.
Online poker software has high security to be sure that no one can, for example, see your cards. Players who are caught colluding will be barred and blacklisted.
Yes, you can play online poker for free if you use a bonus from an online casino. Grab a bonus from one of the links on this page, which can let you play online for free with a casino bonus.
You can also try out a game by playing in a novice room. This great if you're a beginner. However, you cannot win money from free games.
Generally, you cannot play live dealer poker with casino bonus money (check your casino's T&C). Live dealer poker also does not have demo mode.
New Jersey has more options for playing online poker than any other state. If you live there, or just visit, you have the good fortune to be able to play in the USA’s best online poker rooms.
As the home of Atlantic City, New Jersey has a close relationship with its casinos and the world of legal gambling. So when the Department of Justice changed its opinion on whether states could legalize online gaming, New Jersey was one of the first to act.
The first hand of legal online poker in New Jersey was dealt on November 21, 2013. Since then tens of thousands of poker players have played online in a safe legal environment.
Here we take you through all you need to know about playing online poker in New Jersey; the law, where you can play and what games are available.
It is legal to play online poker in New Jersey. However, you must play at a poker room licensed by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE). On February 26, 2013, Governor Chris Christie signed bill A2578 which legalized online poker and online casino games as well as some other forms of betting.
The new law stipulated that you must be:
You don’t have to be a legal resident of New Jersey to play, you can play even if you are just visiting the state. You can even open your account from outside New Jersey, but you won’t be allowed to play poker for real money unless the geolocation software used by the poker rooms identifies that you are within the state borders.
All New Jersey licensed poker rooms show a DGE logo, usually at the bottom of the home page. Check for this logo to be sure you are playing at a legal state-regulated site. The law gives you a lot of protection, in particular it ensures that you can legally make deposits and withdrawals and that the games are fair.