Texas Hold'em Poker Rooms
There are absolutely loads of Texas Hold'em poker rooms out there. Some bad, some good and some really good. Below is a shortlist of the ones I believe are the most popular and best for Texas Hold'em players.
Some of the rooms offer rakeback, so have a look at the rakeback poker rooms page for more information on that.
Texas Hold'em rooms.
| Room | Network | Mac | PT3 | HM | Rakeback | Bonus | Match | Visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent |  |
|
|
- | $50 | 100% | Visit | |
| Independent | |
|
|
27% | $600  |
100% | Visit | |
| Merge | |
 |
|
30% | $500 | 100% | Visit | |
| iPoker | |
|
|
- | $500 | 100% | Visit | |
| Cake | |
|
|
33% | $600 | 100% | Visit | |
| Independent | |
|
|
- | $500 | 100% | Visit | |
| Independent | |
|
|
37% | $1,000 |
100% | Visit | |
| OnGame | |
|
|
40%  |
$2,000  |
500% | Visit | |
| OnGame | |
|
|
40% |
$2,000 |
200% | Visit | |
| Independent | |
|
|
- | $500 | 110% | Visit | |
| IPN | |
 |
|
30% | €1,000 | 200% | Visit |
Which Texas Hold'em poker room is the best?
I'll go ahead and say that you can't go wrong with any of the rooms above, so go for the one that you like the look of the most. However, if you want my honest thoughts to help you if you're really unsure, I would recommend either Full Tilt or PokerStars.
- PokerStars - The most popular online poker room. Says it all really.
- Full Tilt - 2nd most popular poker room, but offers an attractive 27% rakeback deal.
These are the two most popular rooms mainly because they have amazing software and accept US players. They also have have more traffic than anyone else, which makes them attractive for new Texas Hold'em players.
If you want rakeback, then go for Full Tilt. If you are not too bothered about getting rakeback, PokerStars would be my #1 choice out of all the Texas Hold'em poker rooms.
US friendly Texas Holdem poker rooms.
Not all of the Texas Holdem poker rooms in the table accept US players (due to the UIGEA), so if you're from the US you're choices are a little more limited than if you're from the UK or Canada for example.
Don't worry, it is legal to play online poker for real money in the US. It's just that some rooms find it easier to work with US players and make transactions than others.
To make it easy to find the perfect room, I have placed a little 
icon next to US friendly rooms to make them easy to spot. Alternatively, have a browse over the US friendly poker rooms page for more information.
Useful poker rooms links.
- Poker networks.
- Poker bonuses.
- Poker room traffic.
- US friendly poker rooms.
- Top UK poker room.
- Mac friendly poker rooms.
- Paypal poker rooms.
Texas Hold'em poker rooms FAQs.
- Is it safe to play for real money at these rooms?
-
Yes. I have played at all of the poker rooms listed on this site and they are some of the most popular rooms around for playing real money Texas Hold'em.
If I felt that any of the rooms above were unsafe to play at in any way, I would not be recommending them on this site.
- What is rakeback?
-
Rakeback is simply where you get a percentage of the rake you pay back to your account, which can help you save/earn money as you play. Only some poker rooms offer this though.
The what is rakeback? page explains this in a little more detail.
- Is it legal to play real money poker online?
-
Yes, it's legal, even if you're from the US. I am not a lawyer, but from my knowledge of online poker I will say that online poker is legal for many of the larger countries such as the US, Canada, Australia, UK and many other major European countries.
If online poker is not legal in your country, the online poker rooms will not accept your registration.
- What is a network?
-
Some poker rooms are part of a large network with other rooms. Rooms on the same network share the same software and players, but are simply run by different companies. This is fairly common.
It is beneficial for some poker rooms to become part of a network so that they can share players and keep tables busy throughout the day. Independent rooms on the other hand such as Full Tilt and PokerStars do not share software with any other rooms as they have enough players for themselves.
See the poker networks page for further information.
- Why are only some rooms Mac compatible?
-
Not all poker rooms offer Mac compatible software, as Mac computers are unable to run and install the .exe poker room files.
However, you can still play Texas Hold'em online for real money just as easily at the Mac friendly rooms. These rooms tend to offer no-download versions of the poker client which will run safely within your browser without you having to download or install anything.
- Can you win money from playing Texas Hold'em online?
-
Yes you can. In fact, some players are so good that they actually make a living from playing online poker. Even if you don't make it that far, there is nothing stopping you from winning a nice amount of money from the tables on a regular basis.
You have to get good at poker first though to be able to win money, which is why I recommend you check out the Texas Hold'em strategy section.
Ask me about Texas Hold'em poker rooms.
I like to think that I cover all the most important information about the most popular and best rooms for Texas Hold'em. However, if you have any specific questions about playing Texas Hold'em online, please ask.
My name is Greg and my email address is webmaster[at]thepokerbank[dot]com.
I'm always more than happy to help, regardless of whether you are a seasoned veteran or completely new to playing Texas Hold'em online!