Online Poker For Real Money

There has been an upsurge in demand for online poker for real money sites by Indian players in recent times. But knowing how many scammer poker websites exist today, we decided to embark on extensive research into those online poker for real money platforms that we feel offer the best deals, particularly for players in India.

To this end, we picked two of what we firmly believe are the best online poker sites. The overall package that these poker platforms offer is exhilarating, particularly for Indian poker players.

1

Pokerstars

200% bonus up to ₹10,000 and ₹600 free Tournament and Spin & Go tickets.

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Verified on 29 Apr 2024

18+. Make your first deposit of at least ₹100 and up to ₹5,000 with Bonus Code ‘STARS200’. Collect your free Tournament and Spin & Go tickets worth ₹600, which will be credited over a five-day period. Every time you reach 45 redemption points, we’ll credit your account with ₹15 cash. General promotion Terms & Conditions apply.

2

WPT Global

First Deposit Match Up To $1200 & Free Tournament Tickets

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Verified on 29 Apr 2024

18+. We’ll match your deposit of up to a huge $1,200 as a warm welcome to our tables. Deposit $20+ to receive four (4) free $5 WPT World Championship satellite tickets. A minimum deposit of $20 into your account is required. The deposit must be made in one transaction of $20 or more and the offer is applicable to your first deposit only. $2.5 increments for every $10 in rake contribution. Bonus funds expire after 90 days. Terms and Conditions Apply.

Our research took us to the doorsteps of PokerStars and WPT Global, and this combined review highlights why we believe these real poker sites are indeed the best for Indian players in 2022. We will let you into those things you need to be aware of before you play poker online for real money on any of these sites.

Also, we will list at least three unique selling points for each of PokerStars and WPT Global before providing a more in-depth analysis of what you can come to expect from both poker sites. We hope that you are well informed to make up your mind on which poker site to sign up with. Let us first give you a glimpse of three unique selling points (USP) that PokerStars and WPT Global poker sites offer.

PokerStars Information:

• Regulated by MGA and UKGC
• PokerStars reward of up to 18%
• Daily cash game leaderboards with a prize pool of ₹2,00,000
• Hosts many tournaments such as Bounty Builders, the Hot Turbos, Spin and Go, low stake tournaments like Micro Millions etc.

WPT Global Information:

• Regulated by the Government of Curaçao
• Poker games for players in over 50 countries, including India
• NFT avatars- Humans, Cyborgs and Gids to unveil a variety of on-site perks
• Deepstack Tourney, WPT World Championship Satellite, and $1 for 1 million tournaments
• Invitations to VIP Live events and exclusive access to the Discord channel

The Best Place To Play Poker For Real Money

Before you even start looking for the best real money poker sites, you must consider certain things to know why they are the best. You can view theseBelow are a few tips that you can use as critical parameters for identifying the best poker sites or red flags for identifying potential scammers online.

Check for Licensing

An online casino license is not just a seal of approval but also a guarantee of the safety, security, trust, and fairness of games. Always look out for the regulators and licensing bodies of any poker site.

Country Restrictions

Not every poker site accepts players from India, so you need to be sure that India is not a restricted country under the country restriction terms and conditions of the eGaming platform.

User-friendly Interface

You need to check for the ease of access, site launching speed, navigational flexibility of the site, language options, sign-up requirements etc., to sieve out a good poker site from the clutter. You can watch out for a customisable interface to suit your particular preference.

Banking Options

You should know the acceptable currencies and the available banking methods before registering with any poker website. The best poker sites accept multiple payment options like bank transfers, cards, e-payments, e-vouchers, and cryptocurrencies. Most good ones accept currencies, including USD, EURO, AUD, CAD, BTC, ETH and Indian Rupees (INR).

Poker Game Selection

The selection of poker games available on a site will determine the type of tournaments and the amount of traffic it attracts. Popular poker games like Texas Holdem poker online, 5-Card Omaha, 5-Card Draw, 7-Card Stud, Omaha Hi-Lo and Omaha Hi are known to draw massive poker crowds of tournament-seeking poker players from around the world. . You should only join a poker site that offers a wide selection of poker games with highly rewarding tournaments.

Software Developers

The software developers ruling the different poker games is essential to set the expectation for the gameplay you can expect from the game and have a great gameplay. Good software can cope with a large number of poker players on a day without any glitches.

Audio-visual Quality

You would love to experience HD graphics with a crisp soundtrack that makes you believe that you are seated in a brick-and-mortar poker room of a high-class casino.

Mobile Compatibility

Sites that offer full compatibility with mobile devices are always preferred by punters who are always on the go. The sites should be optimised for mobile poker players, providing them with comfortable, convenient, and seamless gameplay anytime.

Bonuses

Bonuses are a great way to start a game. Welcome bonuses and other promotions always steal the limelight from mediocre poker sites.

In this online poker for real money review, we highlight the key features of each poker site, including the types of video poker games available at each site. We will also highlight their welcome bonuses so that you know what to expect when you sign up with them.

We also list their did the complete research on the pros and cons before revealing our ratings of the best online poker sites for Indian players in this review. If you still want to check out other sites and different Poker games, you can check our “Real Money Casino Apps” article.

PokerStars

We rate PokerStars very highly, and this poker site is our top pick for Indian poker players. We selected PokerStars for the following reasons:

• Experience: PokerStars has more than 20 years of video poker online experience.

• Dual License: PokerStars is licensed by both the MGA and UKGC.

• Daily Cash Game Leaderboards: PokerStars offers many real money poker games for instant play and tournaments. Players can win up to ​​₹1.25 Lac with NLH leaderboards and 75K with PLO leaderboards, ₹2 lakh in total. There are eight leaderboards where the players can participate in and can win up to eight prizes daily. The broad categorisation of leaderboards are as follows:
  • Challenger Leader Board- Points earned with ₹1/₹2 bet.
  • Apprentice Leader Board – points earned with ₹2/₹5 and ₹5/₹10 bet.
  • Masters Leader Board – points earned with ₹10/₹25 and ₹25/₹50 bet.
  • Elite Leader Board – points earned with ₹50/₹100 bet and above.

• PokerStars Rewards: At PokerStars, you will be eligible to participate in the ‘PokerStars Rewards’ once you sign up with the poker site and stake. For each ₹1 spent, you will receive one reward point that you can use to get Starcoins that can be further converted into bonuses or cash. It will give you back as much as 18% of all your stake, which is paid via six-level treasure chests- Blue, Bronze, Silver, Gold Diamond, and Black depending on your reward points.

PokerStars is home to a comprehensive collection of instant-play game tables. You have low-stakes real money tables with stakes as low as ₹1 and high stake tables with stakes as high as ₹30,0000.

The most popular real money poker games are PLO and NLH, Heads-up, Full Ring and Six-Max. There are also other trendy poker games that you can try out, such as Seven Card Stud and Limit Hold’em, which are my particular favourites.

What impressed us about PokerStar was the sheer variety of banking options available to poker players from India. The popular payment methods include wire transfer, debit/credit cards and e-payment options, such as PayPal, Neteller, MuchBetter, and Skrill.

PokerStars Welcome Bonus

As a newbie to PokerStars, you will receive a welcome bonus upon your registration with this online poker real money site. This welcome bonus is 100% up to ₹30,000 and 200 free Spin and Go Tickets worth ₹200 given over five days.

To claim this bonus offer, you need to make a first deposit of a minimum of ₹100, which will fetch you free tickets for poker tournaments and funds credited to your PokerStars gaming account. You can use the PokerStars bonus code ‘STARS30000’ to avail this offer.

PokerStars Pros and Cons

Pros

• A fully licensed site.
• Multiple poker table tournaments, such as the World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP), Micro Millions, and Spring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP).
• Weekly tournaments like Sunday Billion and Sunday Majors.
• Multiple convenient and secure payment methods.
• A deposit match welcome bonus.

Cons

• Highly competitive online poker tournaments.
• Frequent short stacking.

PokerStars uses a highly advanced security protocol to protect users from cybercriminals in line with IS/ISO/IEC 27001. They also run an excellent 24/7 customer support system on live chat, email and phone calls. In all, we rate PokerStars 96 out of 100.

WPT Global

We rate WPT Global as India’s second-best online poker for real money. They also offer a variety of poker games of different levels and formats to players in more than 50 countries worldwide, including India. WPT runs on technologically advanced firewalls and SSL encryption that ensures that players are fully protected from the threat of hackers and cybercriminals while on the platform.

WPT Global has many poker games and tables to try out. But these tables only accept stakes in USD and CNY. Also, WPT Global has limited series and major events, but there is a huge possibility that this will change in the future.

You can play 6+ Hold’em and No-Limit Hold’em real money poker games with low-stake tables ranging from USD 5 to USD 10. You also have Pace Poker, which is a proprietary fast-fold poker variant.

In addition, you can find straddle and Bomb Pot tables if you are eagerly looking for all-action poker tables to join. If you prefer tournament gameplay, you can also participate in Pot-Limit Omaha and Hold’em tournaments on WPT Global.

There are many payment options available to players from India as well. You have bank transfers, epayment, e-wallet, debit/credit cards and cryptocurrency banking options that you can explore for both your deposits and cash out.

WPT Global Welcome Bonus

Registering with WPT Global will see you earning a 100% deposit match welcome bonus up to USD 1,200 when you make a first deposit of a minimum of USD 20 (approx. 1,635.25 INR). The welcome bonus will be released in increments of USD 5 for every USD 20 you stake in tournaments and games. The deposit bonus has to be claimed within 90 days. Use the WPT Global bonus code WPTGPOKER to redeem the offer.

WPT Global Pros and Cons

Pros:

• A fully licensed poker site
• NFT avatars available for your favourite poker players
• Hold’em and PLO leaderboard tournaments
• Free entry to WPT World Championship qualifier!
• Special poker games like ‘Poker Flips’

Cons:

• Tables accept only United States Dollars (USD)and Chinese Yuan (CNY)
• Limited poker events, series and tournaments

We liked the WPT Global app, as it proved reliable, functional, and visually aesthetic, offering a comparable experience to the desktop version. We currently rate WPT Global at 94 out of 100.

Is It Legal to Play Poker for Real Money in India?

Many players play online poker for real money on international betting sites. It must be stated that according to the Gambling Act of 1867, the law that governs gambling in India, casino games requiring some level of skill are not prohibited. But, there is no special mention of laws relating to online gambling.

So you can sign up with PokerStars or WPT Global without any fear and have a great poker time with friends or family. What’s more, these two platforms are licensed, safe, secure, trusted and fair poker sites.

How to Select the Best Online Poker Site?

Remember to do some due diligence before you sign up with any poker site. As stated earlier, you should consider the following factors before choosing a Poker site to play:

Poker Games

Make sure the poker site allows you to play various poker games online. Like on PokerStars and WPT Global, you can play online poker and join tables, providing different types of poker gameplay and bet limits.

Software and Graphics

You should also check to see if the site has mobile-compatible software and if the graphics of poker games do not become grainy or pixelated when you play on devices with different screen sizes.

Welcome Bonuses

You can get welcome bonuses after signing up with a poker site and meeting the terms. You should ensure that the site you intend to register with has welcome bonuses with reasonable wagering requirements.

Payment Methods

Look for a poker platform with various payment methods, including bank transfers, e-payments, e-wallets, debit/credit cards, and cryptocurrencies. This way, you can choose from several payment options and play poker without any hitches.

Licensed Operators

Never register with any unlicensed online poker operator. A licensed poker site must comply with stringent security, safety, AML and KYC conditions before being allowed to operate. PokerStars is approved by UKGC and MGA, while WPT Global is licensed by eGaming Curaçao, which are all reputable, globally renowned licensing bodies.

Most Popular Poker Games in India

Do you want to play online poker with friends? Are you looking for the most popular online poker for real money games for Indian players? Well, at PokerStars and WPT Global, you can play a vast number of games, tables and tournaments.

Popular poker games among Indians include Texas Hold’em, Omaha, PLO, NLH, Heads-up, Six-Max, Full Ring, Seven Card Stud, Limit Hold’em, 6+ Hold’em, Zoom Poker, Tempest Hold’em, and many more. Some Indian players love participating in Poker tournaments. Poker tournaments offer you a chance to gain a share of prizes like those provided in the WCOOP and SCOOP tournaments available on PokerStars.

Online Poker for Real Money FAQs

Here are a few quick FAQs that poker players might be interested in when playing online poker for real money.