Honest Poker Sites

10-05-2021

Honest Poker Sites

888 Poker has seen their profits soar since Black Friday, one of the few gaming sites that have managed to do so in what is a very unfriendly environment. 888 is the flagship poker room of their eponymously named network, and may be better known to older online poker players by its former name Pacific Poker –a name that should bring back fond memories of some of the loosest games to ever take place in. Honest Online Poker Sites for US Players Many years ago it was easy to find honest internet poker in the United States. Prior to late 2006 we could play at PartyPoker, 888Poker, William Hill and all the other publicly traded poker sites. In our honest opinion, they did a great job reviewing almost all honest poker sites available for the US players. BetOnline – this poker website is fully legit for every US player. It is operated under the Panama Gaming Commission license. Every newly registered player can grab up to 100% of the welcome bonus package on a real money deposit. To provide real, honest, and trustworthy reviews for online bonuses related to poker, casino, sports, and bingo for beginners or grinders in a well organized and easy to understand fashion.

Most Honest Online Poker Sites
Honest Online Poker Sites
Honest Poker Sites

Below are the fairest and most reputable poker sites of 2018. Click a room to start playing !

1.	888 poker	n/a	888poker.com
2.	PokerStars	n/a	PokerStars.com
3.	Party Poker	PPAL500	Partypoker.com

Must be at least 18 to open a new account

The History of Corrupt Casinos

Believe it or not, there are over 90,000 websites where you can go and enjoy a game or two of poker. Well, “enjoy” may be an overstatement actually, because 95% of those sites just mentioned are designed for the owner to commit some type of fraud. Maybe the casino is rigged with ridiculous odds, or maybe there’s not a poker room to wager in at all; but in most of these cases you’ll simply have your money taken from you. Of the remaining 4,500 websites on the internet, the vast majority of them offer “free” tables where actual money is not wagered. That leaves about 100 legitimate websites that offers fair poker games without any type of hidden odds or hassles

Of course, you do not have to be a historian to know that poker houses have always sought ways to cheat their customers. You can look back a mere 100 years to find reputable brick and mortar casinos that would take a suspected cheater out into a back alley and beat him half to death; and most of the time that person was simply on a lucky streak. Sure, there was a fair share of patrons who found ways to hustle the casinos and make off with a small fortune, but that number would nowhere compare to the sheer amount of gambling establishments that have cheated their clientele. Hundreds of thousands of casinos have been shut down by various governments for rigging their games at opportune moments and the internet is clearly no exception.

In fact, just last year two illegal casinos were shut down in Moscow, a territory where gambling has been banned for about a year now. An investigation revealed that they were only allowed to exist in the first place because of a few corrupted police officers which were taking a large chunk of the profits. The British citizen who started these casinos (who has yet to be identified) was forced into nightly payouts to the police regardless of how much was won or lost, so you could only imagine how fair the gaming actually was inside.

Unfair Poker Rooms on the Net

This is not an isolated case either; thousands of similar casinos are shut down around the globe annually, with over 70% of them appearing in cyberspace. The problem with online gambling establishments is that a new poker room can be launched within hours of a corrupt one closing, and it may take months of research to discover that the new website is owned by the same criminal. In fact, since the corrupt poker room already has a large client list with email addresses and other personal information, they often do not lose even a single day’s worth of profits.

Ways that Poker Rooms Cheat

– The Virtual Casino
The most common internet scam when it comes to poker is a completely fictitious website; there is no “real money” casino there at all. The gaming room would be populated by thousands of “bots,” which are computer identities that are made to appear as if they were real people. Since there are only a handful of actual players there, the software intentionally allows them to consistently win hands…up until the point where they make their first deposit. From that point forward, the software would slowly drain the player’s bank account by giving him a series of “unbeatable hands” that end up being beaten.

– The Double Blinds

Other corrupt poker rooms allow the player to bet against other players inside a game that is legitimate, except that a portion of the pot mysteriously disappears at some point during each hand. It is common for online establishments to take a nominal ante each round to cover their expenses, but there casinos end up grabbing much more than their fair share.

-The Payout Con

This type of website would appear fully legitimate to the naked eye. There will be many players there enjoying the game, and everything goes well until it is time to cash out. Even though there is money in the account, these poker rooms will deny the withdrawal because the player has not met a certain quota on hands played or the amount bet. Be aware that legitimate websites never use these types of tactics; this is likely a scam.

– The Security Breach

Some casinos are 100% legitimate, but their security protocols make them an easy mark for cyber-crimes. Hackers will employ methods to bypass the site’s security in order to see the hidden hole cards at the table; increasing their odds of winning exponentially. In other cases, cyber-criminals will use security exploits to steal personal information like credit card numbers or other consumer information. While the criminal in these cases have nothing to do with the casino, it is the poker room’s fault for not taking security seriously.

What to Look for in a Legitimate Poker Website

As you can see by the above examples, there are a few important traits that every fair poker website should have-

– An affiliation with a certified gaming authority
– Set rakes for each hand
– Top gaming software on a secure server
– Excellent security that continuously looks for hackers
– An automatic hand review archive
– A fully secure deposit procedure
– A knowledgeable customer service team
– Plenty of contact information
– An easy withdrawal procedure

Of all these traits, the certification by a registered gaming authority is by far the most important aspect. This one simple fact means that the website is checked regularly to determine overall payouts, customer satisfaction, security protocols, and dozens of other services to ensure that the player will have a Vegas-like experience. It is also the hardest aspect for a website owner to fake, and as long as players verify that the casino is indeed a member then they should not experience any problems. The key is to pick up the telephone and physically call the casino and the gaming authority before ever depositing a penny…and be sure to ask plenty of questions as well. If they can not answer some or any of them; call the local authorities in the casino’s area and find a different online poker room to play at.

Some of the Most Reputable Fair Poker Websites

The following list is made up of websites that have been independently validated for having excellent pot rakes, solid customer service, and completely secure servers. This does not mean that they are the only safe websites to enjoy playing real money poker at, but they are all player favorites that have an excellent overall reputation within the industry.

Ultimate Bet Poker

Ultimate Bet has captured the attention of poker players worldwide with their exciting promotions and fast-paced play. UB has more freeroll tournaments and loyalty programs that most of the other casinos combined, and that is why players of all skill levels call this website home. Their state-of-the-art security ensures that every hand will be closely watched to ensure fairness, which allows each player to concentrate on having fun and strengthening their overall game.

Absolute Poker

Absolute Poker prides itself on never having a major security breach within their system, something that even the best of websites out there can’t honestly say. With an average of over 2,500 tables being utilized at any given minute throughout the day, this website has plenty of competition for rookie players and veterans alike. The customer service at Absolute Poker is what really makes them stand out though; because if any questions or problems ever arise, problems are handled in a professional yet courteous manner.

Sportsbook Poker

Sportsbook has been around since the early 1990’s and their spotless reputation literally speaks for itself. Protecting the rights of each player has always been one of their top concerns, which is why their software is constantly updated to ensure fair play and a secure gaming environment. Sportsbook is also independently verified by multiple agencies to ensure that high quality gaming is available 24/7, so you’ll never have to worry about fairness on this website.

Players Only Poker

Players Only Poker has some of the most unique bonuses and promotions in the business, including some truly massive tournaments that change people’s lives every week. Like the others on this list, their security is as tight as any banking institutions and they pride themselves on educating players to help them elevate their overall game. Players Only Poker is a great website for those looking for a safe, friendly poker room.

Most Honest Online Poker Sites

Bet 365 Poker

Bet 365 is another casino that has been setting standards on the internet since the beginning of online gaming. Their poker room has excellent graphics and a very simplistic interface that puts the player in control of how much statistical information they receive on every hand. Of course, with millions of previous winners it is safe to say that they are also trend-setters when it comes to customer service, excellent security, and loyalty rewards as well.

Related Entries

So you’re looking to find a poker site that won’t cheat you out of your money, huh? You’re tired of month-long downswings? Can’t stand the thought of another cold-decked table? Want to play at a fair-dealing site, where you’ll get your rightful share of good cards? We all want to be sure we aren’t getting cheated. But let’s ask ourselves — are there really rigged poker sites out there? Do some poker rooms intentionally deal out losing streaks to players? Or are all the ‘rigged’ claims out there just hysterical players making excuses? If we understand how poker works, and we understand how poker sites operate, then we’ll see that it’s quite rare to find a genuinely fixed poker room. We don’t have to go through the trouble of searching for a non rigged poker site to play on, because most sites actually do deal fair games. Below we provide information on things to look for when searching for a “non rigged poker room”. We’ve also listed some of the safest poker sites on this page where you can be assured that every hand dealt is 100% fair.

No More Bad Beats: Finding Non Rigged Poker Sites Online

Let’s examine the nature of variance in poker, and consider how poker sites make their money. We’ll soon see that really, most of the poker rooms out there fall under the ‘non rigged’ category.

How Poker Works

Nobody wins all the time in poker. Luck is huge factor in the short-term, to the extent that even the best player in the world will have seemingly endless losing streaks. Downswings are inevitable, and we can’t avoid them.

Imagine: you’re dealt KK on the button in a hand of Holdem. A player in middle position raises preflop, and everyone folds. Perfect! A big pot for a big hand. Everyone folds to you, and you reraise. Everyone folds to the player in middle position, who pushes all in. You snap-call. Your opponent shows QQ.

This is pretty close to a lock for you. Your opponent is completely dominated. 99% of the time, you should win this hand, right? There’s a pretty slim chance that you’ll lose… Right?

If we run the hand through an EV simulator, we find that you have 82% equity in the pot. Your opponent has about 18% equity. In terms of trials, you expect to win this hand 4 out of every 5 times you run it. So it’s actually far from a lock — 1 out of every 5 times, you expect your opponent to win.

That’s just the theory of it. In practise, you could run this hand 3 times back-to-back and lose every single time. That’s certainly an unlikely outcome. But unlikely does not mean impossible, and that’s what most players fail to grasp. There’s a low probability of your kings losing three times in a row; but that doesn’t mean your kings won’t lose three times in a row. In fact, the probability that you lose three of these all-ins in a row is 0.008% — certainly a possible outcome.

That’s variance: when the actual outcome of your decisions differs from the outcome you’d expect. And it’s a real pain in the butt. But variance happens — we go on extended cold streaks, and we lose more than we expect to. It’s totally normal. Just because we’re losing doesn’t mean that a site is rigged. It’s more likely that we’re playing at a non rigged poker site, and we’re simply experiencing the natural swings of the game.

How Online Poker Sites Work

The shuffle at an online poker site is powered by something called a Random Number Generator (RNG). The RNG is a snippet of code that — shocker! — constantly generates random numbers in the background of a poker site’s software client. Each poker site will have an algorithm in place that links certain numbers to certain cards. When the RNG spits out a number, it’s fed through this algorithm; and the result is another number that corresponds with the ace of spades, or the two of hearts, or the seven of clubs — and so on.

Sound pretty complicated? It is. But that’s how every non rigged poker site out there is built. The deal isn’t controlled by a guy sitting there watching you play — it’s completely automatic. And it’s not like poker sites have some built-in artificial intelligence that can figure out whether you’re winning or losing. It’s just a constant stream of random numbers. Nobody’s keeping track of your success but you.

How Could a Poker Site Be Rigged?

Some players claim that a poker site could code its software to deal specific players terrible cards. Is that possible? I’m sure it is. But is it realistic? Heck no. Imagine the complexity of a piece of software that would deal individual players cards based on whether or not they should lose or win. How would it even work? Texas Holdem is a community card-based game; so what if there are two players who are supposed to win at a single table? How would the software rig the deal to make sure that they both come out on top?

The ingenuity and time investment required to code a program that could do this would both be near infinite. Simply put, it’s not practical.

Always remember this: poker sites are in the business of raking hands; and all they need to do to rake hands is to keep players playing a fair game! What it comes down to is this: any poker site that likes making money is a non rigged poker site. It just doesn’t make sense to rig a game, from a financial standpoint. It’s much easier to just give players what they want — a non rigged game — and watch the dollars roll in.

How to Find Non Rigged Poker Sites

There are non rigged poker sites all around you. Just look for the ones with a good reputation, some decent software, and a dedicated base of players sitting in at the tables.

888 Poker has long been one of the most legitimate poker sites in online poker. They’ve been dealing fair games since 2002, and they’ve shown no signs of stopping any time soon. Any of the bigger names in the industry, really, are proven to be non rigged poker sites. Take your pick: Party Poker, BetOnline Poker, Bovada Poker — all of them are legit.

While you’ll certainly run into bad streaks on any of these sites, the bad streaks won’t be because of rigged games. Running bad is just something we have to deal with, no matter where we play.

Is Online Poker Rigged?

Thousands of players are convinced each year that online poker is rigged. Sure there have been some sites that have intentionally committed fraud and stole from their players. A couple of poker rooms rigged their games to see the hole cards. This is the downfall for playing at a fly by night operation. Players that choose to play at these sites are putting their money and their game in the hands of some unknown company with no recourse of action should the site rip them off or rig the games.

If you’re going to play poker online, you have to choose a poker site that is reputable, has a solid history and fair games. Below you will find a list of poker sites that are licensed and regulated. These sites offer fair games, secure programming and have a zero tolerance policy on board for cheating and rigged poker games.

Sometimes in poker, we lose. Plain and simple. We miss our draws, our opponents suck out, and we can’t get any action with our aces. Sometimes these things over and over again, for days (or weeks!) at a time. Could it be that our losing streaks aren’t just a function of bad luck? Could it be that the poker sites actually want us to go broke? Are there rigged poker sites out there, designed to make sure we lose all the time? Let’s find out.

Why Do People Think Poker Sites are Rigged?

Players who think poker sites are rigged generally think this because they keep losing. And since none of us likes to admit we might be playing poorly — making bad bets, tilting, or both — we tend to look for some external cause to blame for our bad results. Hence we find all sorts of “OMG THIS SITE IS RIGGED” style posts all over the web. Players lose, go on monkey tilt, and begin a personal crusade against whatever poker site they play on. Thanks to anonymous internet forums, anyone can do this without any real repercussions.

Most of the players who scream about rigged poker sites are just bad players. Many are stuck on a downswing, which is completely normal. But bad players don’t recognize variance for what it is, and so they make stuff up about sites cheating them, players colluding, and so on.

Losses Happen Playing Poker Online

Here is the fact that bad players don’t want to face: losses happen. Poker is a swingy game. We need to expect that downswings will happen, because it’s a mathematical certainty that they will. Consider the following. When you’re dealt aces preflop, you figure to win about 85% of the time if you go all-in preflop against an opponent’s random hand. So out of every 20 aces you get preflop, you expect to win 17 all-ins against this range. The flip-side of this is that you also expect to lose 3 times.

This means that having your aces cracked isn’t so rare an event at all. It should happen quite often, actually. But bad players don’t see it that way. A bad player thinks: “aces are the best hand in the game; I should always win with aces; if I don’t win with aces, the site is RIGGED!”

It’s clear that most claims of poker sites being rigged are really misguided expressions of frustration from poor poker players. Once we realize this, all those angry forum posts actually become amusing. I love reading about the scenarios hysterical players invent regarding how poker sites rig games.

Just for fun, let’s run through two of the more popular arguments.

Rigging Method #1: Stacking the Deck

Some players claim that poker sites somehow rig the deal to make sure they never get good cards. The general line of thought is this:

-I never get good cards!
– …
– …
– Poker site X is rigged!

Obviously, this isn’t a very rigorous argument (pardon the pun). Sure, sometimes we run into streaks where we see more than our share of bad hands. That will happen anywhere we play poker — in a casino or online. But it doesn’t mean that a poker site is rigged. It’s just a part of the game.

If we think about this claim on a strictly logical basis, we find that it’s ridiculous. A poker site has no incentive to make sure that you’re dealt bad hands. If anything, a poker site would be better off dealing you tons of great hands. That way, you’ll stay in action longer; and the site would be able to collect more rake from the hands you play.

Rigging Method #2: The Boomswitch

Some players claim that poker sites have a built-in luck distribution tool. This tool, the claim goes, is like a lightswitch: flipping the ‘boomswitch’ makes a player ‘luckier’ than normal, and flipping the ‘doomswitch’ makes a player unluckier than normal.

I like this claim because it’s pretty creative. But it’s still completely bogus. Why would a poker site want to make any player luckier than any other player? How would a poker site decide which players get luckier than others? Would it be worth a poker site’s time and money to program a complex algorithm that dooms a player’s chances at winning?

The answer is no: there is no boomswitch. There are simply players who run bad and don’t want to face up to the facts. There is no incentive for a solid poker site to make sure certain players go busto quickly. That would be counterproductive.

Honest Online Poker Sites

An honest poker site wants you to stay in action, because whenever you’re playing, you’re generating rake. Rake is the only source of profit for a poker site. So why would a poker site want you to go bust? So it could stop taking your money?

Yeah right.

Are There Really Rigged Poker Sites?