Best Low Stakes Online Poker Sites

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• Best Low Stakes Online Poker Sites Online

Low stakes poker has achieved huge popularity online in recent years, and for a variety of very good reasons. Playing poker for low stakes is the more affordable option, obviously, but it also appeals because you can play in high volume and this may increase your overall chances of achieving a profit. What Counts as Low Limit Poker? In a live casino, the smallest stakes poker games are $1 / $2 – with a buy-in of $200. When you go online, you'll find the games start a lot lower than this. Almost every online poker site will have games with 1c / 2c blinds. Your maximum buy-in for these is $2, though you do not always need a full stack. Best Low Stakes Poker Sites. Low stakes poker sites offer the easiest poker games online and to be honest low stakes poker is the easiest limit there is. Unless you count micro stakes as a separate limit, you aren't going to find easier games than the low stakes. Online Poker » Best Poker Sites » Best Low Stakes Poker Sites Few beginning online poker players dive directly in to high stakes poker games as they either not yet confident in their skills, do not feel like investing an adequate amount of money in the poker site or want to take the opportunity to learn how the poker site works before moving on to higher stakes. Note: The SNG column indicates the lowest stakes single-table (STT), non-turbo SNGs on offer. How I've rated these sites. These poker rooms have primarily been ranked based on players looking to play no limit Texas Hold'em poker online for small stakes, whether that be in cash games or tournaments (i.e.

Enjoy Online Poker at Low Limit with this Detailed Guide

You don't need to be a high roller to enjoy online poker. In fact, there are more cash games and tournaments available at the lowest stakes than big buy-in games. This guide takes you through everything you know to get the best from low limit poker sites – including a strategy overview for the different game formats.

Here is what you will find below:

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What Counts as Low Limit Poker?

In a live casino, the smallest stakes poker games are $1 / $2 – with a buy-in of $200. When you go online, you'll find the games start a lot lower than this. Frederiksborg slot denmark. Almost every online poker site will have games with 1c / 2c blinds. Your maximum buy-in for these is $2, though you do not always need a full stack. As you can imagine, play is loose and wild at these levels – making the games easy to beat.

If the penny games are too small for you, there are always options to play ‘bigger'. Cash games have buy-ins at $5, $10, $25, $50 and up from there to the high stakes. You'll find that the standard of play dramatically improves at 10c / 25c blinds and above. This is the smallest level that multi-tabling grinders use to generate an income.

Tournaments start with buy-ins at 50c to $1. Those games often attract large fields of recreational players. To win in those games you'll need to survive a lot of bad beats. Low limit tournaments are available anywhere between $2 and $10. Above this level you will find players who sit in a lot of games and have a decent level of strategy knowledge.

For the purposes of this guide to small buy-in tournament poker rooms, I'll cover deposits between $10 and $50.

Pros and Cons of Low Limit Poker Sites

Getting started with online poker is easy, even with the smallest bankrolls. While there are a lot of benefits to starting small, there are also some drawbacks. Here is what to look out for:

Pros:

• Easy to beat games: With so many opponents having no concept of poker strategy, you should be able to turn a profit.
• Big Choice: Not only can you enjoy all the formats at low-limits, there will be a big choice of tables – meaning you can find plenty of profitable situations.
• Bonuses and Incentives: Poker rooms offer welcome bonuses for the smallest deposits (as well as bigger ones). Look out for extras like tournament entries and beginner-only tables.

Cons:

• Frustrating Beats: The nature of players at the smallest stakes means you will inevitably get bad-beats. Opponents with any 2 cards sometimes get lucky and crack your aces. Keep in mind that solid play will get you the money over time!
• Big Tournament Fields: Low-Limit tournaments tend to attract huge fields. While this increases the prize pool, it also means you'll need to play for many hours to have a shot at reaching the final table.
• Loyalty Tiers Harder to Climb: Poker site loyalty schemes require you to collect points from real money games. At the lowest stakes these can accumulate slowly.

Low Limit Poker Cash Games

Cash games describes the poker format where the chips in front of you have a real monetary value. If you win a $10 pot, then your bankroll increases by exactly this amount. There are 4 main formats for these games at almost every poker site:

• Full Ring: These games are 9 or 10 handed.
• 6-Max: Six players this time, with 4-max also spread at some sites
• Heads-up: You can play cash games against a single opponent
• Fast-Fold: This format includes names like Zone Poker or Zoom. You go to a new hand as soon as you fold, with players from a large pool.

All poker sites have a huge choice of games at these limits. They are characterized by loose, passive play, with a lot of players seeing each flop. With only small amounts of money at stake, players are reluctant to fold. If someone connects with the flop even slightly, or has a draw, you can expect them to call bets all the way to the river.

Strategy for beating these games is simple. You'll get an immediate edge on the field simply by playing fewer hands. By folding more often, you will have a card strength advantage when you do get pots. Avoiding the ‘passive' (limping and calling) style – and playing your good hands aggressively will win you the money. Add to this awareness of playing in position – and your edge will be magnified.

Low limit cash games are high-variance. With so many opponents calling bets with marginal holdings, there is always the risk someone will ‘catch up'. Keep in mind that this style of play will lose them money over the long-run. As long as you stick to solid ‘ABC Poker', you will profit over time.

Small Buy-in Poker Tournaments

The smallest buy-in poker tournaments are free. Known as ‘freerolls', these games are used as promotions or loyalty rewards. At the bigger sites, you'll be battling with 1000's of opponents for some real money prizes. Fields in these are a mix of people who simply don't care (going all in every hand), and players with little idea of poker strategy. Getting to the money is tough, as you'll have to survive spots where opponents playing any two cards hit unlikely flops!

While there is a jump in the number of players who take the game seriously once you get to tournaments with real money buy-ins, the standard is still poor. Loose, wild players in the early stages create a dilemma. Playing against them is risky, as you never know what hand they might turn up with. At the same time, if you don't take their chips, you'll have to fight for them in pots with better players during the later stages.

Again, simple, solid ‘ABC Poker' will win over time. Play better hands (on average) than your opponents – and play them aggressively from position. You need to build a stack, as the profit from tournaments comes from those times you hit the final table. Playing overly tight to get into the money is not a profitable strategy over time.

There are a lot of tournament formats to choose from at the lower limits. These include rebuys, turbo games and tournaments where each player has a bounty – awarded to whichever player knocks them out. I recommend checking out satellite qualifiers. These start from just a few dollars, and have prizes of tickets to bigger buy-in tournaments.

What Other Low-Limit Poker Games are Available?

Sit N Goes are a great way to build your small deposit into a bigger bankroll. The most popular format is a 1-table tournament. 3 players get paid, with the winner getting 50% of the prize pool. Strategy for these is different to a multi-table tournament. You'll need to stay tight earl – and learn the math for the all-in or fold strategy when only one or two players need to be eliminated before the cash.

Lottery Sit N Goes are a fast and enjoyable variation. These games allow low-limit players to win big prizes. The key feature is random prize pools, which are decided after the game starts. The exact format varies from site to site, though 3 handed and super-fast blinds is the common theme. It is possible to win 10,000x your buy-in via these games.

It is not just Texas Hold'em that can be enjoyed for a small buy-in. Omaha poker variations are rising in popularity. These games have 4 hole-cards instead of 2. You can play ‘Pot Limit Omaha', Omaha Hi-lo or even exotic 5 and 6 card variations. Blinds start at just 1c / 2c – making these games accessible to even the smallest bankrolls.

Depositing at Low-Limit Poker Sites

If you are only depositing small amounts, you will not want to pay fees (which could take up a large percentage of your bankroll). In general, the smallest amount you can deposit is between $10 and $20. This will depend on the site, and the method you choose to deposit with. I recommend you check the bonus terms before you make a payment. You might find that adding a small amount to your deposit gets you extra benefits like tournament entries or matched welcome deals.

US players can deposit with Visa or MasterCard credit cards, prepaid Visa cards, Bitcoin or money transfers (for example MoneyGram). If you are outside the US, there are many more options available. These include PayPal, Skrill, Neteller, local bank transfers and virtual visa cards.

The guide to small deposit poker sites here at GambleOnline.co has details of these options.

Which Low Limit Poker Sites are Legitimate / Safe?

Every player likes to make sure that the poker room they deposit at is safe before parting with money. Fortunately, there are a lot of options out there with rooms which have been running for many years – and looking after players fairly and responsibly.

Poker rooms have a big interest in maintaining their reputation for fairness. Once this has gone, the poker playing community will soon move elsewhere. You will find reviews of the biggest and best brands here. For US players, I recommend you check out Bovada Poker or BetOnline – both sites have been running for years and are known for fast pay-outs.

International players have a huge choice. This includes many rooms which were around since the beginning of online poker and have remained scandal-free throughout. Party Poker, 888 Poker and Bet365 all have big brand respect – and welcome low-limit players to their rooms.

Wrapping Up: Is Low-Limit Poker Right for You?

Enjoying online poker does not need a huge bankroll. Games start with blinds at penny-levels, and tournaments at less than $1. The low standard of play, and lack of strategy knowledge of your opponents at these levels means you should be able to beat the games. Keep in mind that the loose / passive style (and many opponents seeing each flop) can be frustrating – especially when a bad player gets lucky and hits that miracle river.

With solid, aggressive play, and a view to the long term – you could be moving up to the bigger buy-ins before you know it!

Many poker players don't even realize that there's a built-in cost to playing poker online. It's called rake, and it's how online poker rooms make their cash. If you play at a low rake poker sites, you can keep your costs down. That is how online poker sites facing the US such as Ignition Poker and Bovada Poker keep players happy, by keeping these costs down. (If you are in Canada, 888 Poker is a great low-rake option).

But if you choose a high rake poker room, you might find it hard just to break even. Thus it's important to know all about rake: how it works, how it's charged, and which poker sites are considered 'low rake poker sites.'

What is Rake?

When you play roulette, the casino makes money because the odds are stacked against you – same for craps, baccarat, and any other table game. You lose more often than you win, and so the casino makes a profit.

Poker is different – the house doesn't directly play the game against other players. In online poker, the house makes money by taking a cut of each pot as a playing fee. This cut is called the rake.

For real-money games, low rake poker sites siphon a portion of the final pot as rake. For tournaments, low rake poker sites charge a tournament fee on entry. Both charges are basically equivalent: they are rake, ways for the house to make a profit from running games.

Why Do Poker Sites Charge Rake?

It costs money to run a poker site. Don't believe me? Try starting one. You'll have to pay for:

• Web servers that can handle huge bandwidth.
• World-class software development teams to come up with a great product.
• 24/7 support staff to handle customer service.
• Head office employees to handle security, accounting, and legal affairs.
• Advertising and marketing.

When combined, these things represent a massive expense on the budget sheet. Thus low rake poker sites need massive profits to even it all out.

How Do Poker Sites Calculate Rake?

Most poker sites set rake levels as a percentage of the pot, and charge rake in predetermined increments. For example, a low rake poker site might charge 5% per $1 in a pot. This translates to $0.10 per $1. If you played in a $10 pot, the house would take $1 as rake at showdown. Seems like a lot, right? It is, but I've left out a key element of the rake charge: rake caps.

A rake cap is a set limit determining how much rake a site can take per pot in real money cash games. Think of it as a rake maximum. In the example we used above, a realistic rake cap would be $4. A low rake poker site might cap as small as $2, which would obviously save you some money.

Free casino bonus no deposit uk. As far as real money poker tournaments go, the general rule is for 10% of the tournament entry to be charged as a fee. So for a $10 buy-in tournament, you'd pay $1; for a $20 buy-in tournament, you'd pay $2; and so on.

You can tell how much rake you'll pay for a specific tournament by its stake listing. Most sites list tournament stakes in the $XX + Y format, where XX equals the tournament buy-in and Y equals the entry fee. So a tournament listed as $10+1 has a buy-in of $10 and an entry fee of $1, which works out to 10% rake.

What are the Best Low Rake Poker Sites?

Most poker sites online don't qualify as low rake poker sites. Even at some low rake poker sites you might find specific game stakes or game types with a higher-than-average rake. So how do we tell which sites are good low rake poker sites overall?

It's all about doing your research, and that can be time consuming. I sense that your time is valuable, so I've gone ahead and done this research for you. I've scoured rake schedules and player reviews to determine which are the best low rake poker sites online. The figures below apply to pot limit and no limit cash games with 6 or more players. Rake rates sometimes differ at tables with fewer players, but you can infer what rates will be like from the 6+ player statistics.

Micro Stakes Low Rake Poker Sites

A good micro stakes low rake poker site will charge a reasonable pot percentage. It will also keep its rake caps low. Bodog Poker meets both of these criteria, and is indeed miles ahead of the competition when it comes to low micro stakes rake. At Bodog, you pay:

• $0.01 per $0.20 in the pot to a maximum of $0.10 at 10NL.
• $0.05 per $1 in the pot to a maximum of $1.50 at 25NL.
• $0.10 per $2 in the pot to a maximum of $2 at 50NL.

Compare these figures to a site like Party Poker, where you'll pay:

• $0.01 per $0.20 in the pot to a maximum of $1 from 2NL through 10NL.
• $0.01 per $0.20 in the pot to a maximum of $3 from 25NL and up.

The real difference here lies in the rake cap: Bodog Poker's cap is miniscule compared to Party Poker's. This will make a huge difference in gross rake paid, and is a great reason to choose Bodog Poker as a low rake poker site.

Small to Medium Stakes Poker Sites

A good small/medium stakes low rake poker site only take rake in large increments. In addition, low rake poker sites at this level will have relatively low rake caps. Bodog Poker is the clear winner here again, mostly because of its increment structure. Rates for small stakes tables are:

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• $0.25 per $5 in the pot to a maximum of $3 at 100NL.
• $0.50 per $10 in the pot to a maximum of $3 from 200NL through 600NL.

Take note that the increments at which Bodog charges rake are massive. For 100NL you won't pay any rake unless a pot hits $5, and for other stakes you won't pay any rake unless the pot hits $10. Compare this to a site like Bet365, where you'll pay $0.05 per $1 in the pot for a maximum of $3. The rake increment here is much smaller than at Bodog, which means you'll pay rake at lower pot amounts. To make this concept clearer, let's run through an example.

Say you're playing a hand of 100NL. At showdown, the pot amounts to $12. You would pay $0.50 in rake at Bodog Poker, and $0.60 in rake at Bet365 poker. Rake at Bodog works out to be significantly less because of the wider rake increment. Hence why Bodog Poker consistently ranks as a top low rake poker site at pretty much all stakes. Caps are low, rates are fair, and most importantly the increments at which rake is charged are quite wide.

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High Stakes Vs. Low Rake Poker Sites

Rake structures at higher stakes tables vary in subtle but important ways across sites. Low rake poker sites will charge reasonable rates while managing to keep caps low as well.

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Bodog Poker wins again in this category, but there's an important caveat: there's little to no high stakes traffic at Bodog. If you can convince a few friends to move over, you'll all be better off for it; but as it stands, you might as well choose to play elsewhere.

Bet365 Poker is a decent option. At 5000NL and above, you'll pay $1 per $20 in the pot to a maximum of $5. The good thing about Bet365's rate is the high charging increment. You don't pay anything unless a pot hits a multiple of $20, which will save you money in the long term.

Both sites can be considered low rake poker sites. Which one you play at should depend on what you estimate your average pot size to be, as well as your style of play. If you tend to take down many small pots without a showdown, Bet365 is a better option. If conversely you tend to wait for huge pots and show down a lot, you might want to pick Bovada Poker instead.