1. PokerStars is the only poker site authorised to offer real money poker games to PA players. This is the only PA poker site where you play free games to win real money (freeroll tournaments), play.
2. Video poker is a game of strategy, so it definitely pays to get in some practice before you start wagering any real money. This is where free video poker comes into play. Free video poker allows players to test the waters and develop your skills without having to risk any money, which is something not available at land-based casinos.

All real money online casinos in PA will have to meet a rather hefty 54% tax rate for their online slot games, but this hasn’t scared the state’s land-based properties away. Quite on the contrary, casino licenses have been even more popular than poker, and operators have readily coughed up the $4 million per license.

Online poker is legal in Pennsylvania since 2017. PA players can access real money poker sites and play different games with poker players in the state.

PokerStars PA is the only legal PA poker site right now to play real money poker games online.

If you want to play (and secure a free $30 bonus to start with your first games) continue to this page.

On this page, you are going to learn:

• How to play online poker in Pennsylvania
• What are the best PA poker sites
• Why Pennsylvania gambling laws allow PokerStars to operate in PA
• Lots more

If you want to play the BEST online poker games in Pennsylvania, and you want to do so with the largest bonuses available to PA poker players, you'll love this new guide.

Let's dive right in.

PA Online Poker Sites

PokerStars PA is the best online poker site to offer real money games in Pennsylvania.

You can play legal real money online poker games in Pennsylvania from November 4, 2019.

That day, industry-leader PokerStars celebrated the first-ever 'shuffle up and deal of their PA-focused poker site.

888poker and partypoker are also expected to launch an online poker site in Pennsylvania in 2020 to compete with their arch-rival.

The opening of more PA online poker sites like 888poker PA and partypoker PA represents a great opportunity for all PA poker players.

More competition between international giants like these three is sure to result in great online events, synergies between online and offline operations and (why not) all great PA poker bonuses.

Here's a recap of the best PA online poker sites available to play real money poker games in Pennsylvania right now:

PokerStars Pennsylvania

PokerStars is the only poker site authorised to offer real money poker games to PA players.

This is the only PA poker site where you play free games to win real money (freeroll tournaments), play all the most popular poker variants, and experience international hits like PokerStars' Spin and Go tournaments.

When you register to play online poker games in PA on PokerStars, you get:

• An excellent bonus package with tickets to play Spin and Go tournaments
• A bonus match bonus on your first deposit
• The best customer support service in the industry
• Unlimited access to the only online legal poker games in PA

PokerStars PA has seen well over 600 players activate an account during the first night of action alone — with that number growing ever since.

The games on PokerStars PA are ring-fenced. Pennsylvania gambling laws do not allow the PA online poker sites to share liquidity (and player pool) with any of the poker sites in NJ, Delaware, and Nevada.

PokerStars' PA online poker site is operated in cooperation with the Mount Airy Casino Resort, the brands' partner in the State.

Games and Tournaments on PokerStars PA

Since this is the only legal poker site in Pennsylvania, PokerStars PA is where you find all the best online games.

The PokerStars PA poker client features an extensive offer of both cash games and poker tournaments.

Cash Games on PokerStars PA

The ring action reaches its peak in the evening when PokerStars PA continues to register the highest number of active players at its tables.

The cash games feature stakes that start at $0.01/$0.02 and go all the way up to $25/$50.

While not many PA poker players can afford the $25/$50 tables, you get a lot of action when you join the $1/$2 NLH games.

The majority of players on PokerStars PA are on the site to play no-limit hold'em games. However, this poker site also features a great range of other options, including:

• Limit Hold'em
• Omaha
• Seven-Card Stud
• H.O.R.S.E
• Razz
• 2-7 Triple Draw

Online Tournaments on PokerStars PA

As a tournament player, you are going to love the offering and the tournament calendar that PokerStars has planned to become the top online poker site in Pennsylvania.

The offer of no-limit hold'em is great and so are some of the guaranteed prizes available every day.

Some of the top daily events run by PokerStars in Pennsylvania include tournaments like the Hot Turbos, the KO Fever, the Moonlight Express, and the Nightly Stars.

You can also enjoy some Omaha, Omaha Hi/Lo, and Stud poker action with the Change Up daily events.

But the daily guaranteed multi-table online poker tournaments are events where everyone end up, sooner or later.

_{All times are EST}

The Sunday Majors on PokerStars PA

Now that online poker is legal in PA you can join your share of weekend actions with PokerStars' legendary Sunday poker tournaments.

The Sunday Majors are the best poker tournaments in PA. There you find the most exciting action and, of course, the best real money prizes.

The Sunday action at PokerStars PA begins with the $8,500 GTD Sunday Warm-Up, a $50 buy-in event starting at 4 p.m., and leads to the $500 buy-in Sunday Special, the marquee event of the day where the players compete for a guarantee of $15,000.

PA Online Tournament Series

PokerStars brings to Pennsylvania poker players also some of their most successful annual online tournament series.

This is the site where you find massive multiplayer events like the Pennsylvania Spring Championship of Online Poker (PASCOOP), the Pennsylvania Championship of Online Poker (PACOOP), and the Summer Series.

Keep visiting PokerNews.com to know more about these events and their online qualifiers as the respective schedules are released.

888poker Pennsylvania

888holdings is expected to launch their own 888poker PA poker site shortly after PokerStars.

The 888poker PA website will be the result of a cooperation between 888poker/WSOP.com and Harrah’s Casino.

The fact 888 and WSOP.com might merge their player pools could lead to their product being the one with the highest number of active players in Pennsylvania.

However, we do not have an official date for the launch of 888poker PA.

Back in September, 888poker's Head of Commercial DevelopmentYaniv Sherman announced that the company intended to adopt a 'selective approach' to online poker in Pennsylvania and would launch a new product in the state 'as soon as possible.'

Sherman mentioned PA's tax and fee regime as the main reason why the company decided to take a more cautionary approach and intended to work closely with their partners Harrah's and WSOP.com to make sure a jump in the PA online poker market would be as cost-efficient as possible.

partypoker Pennsylvania

partypoker is also expected to join the race and compete for a share of the market contended by the other PA poker sites.

GVC's online poker site intends to enter Pennsylvania in partnership with the Valley Forge Casino.

Like in the case of 888poker, we have yet to receive the official date of partypoker's launch in Pennsylvania.

Other Pennsylvania Poker Sites

PokerStars, 888poker, and partypoker are not the only companies that have decided to shape Pennsylvania's online poker market.

More names in the industry have decided to secure a license to offer real money poker games online to PA players, and so we can only expect other Pennsylvania poker sites to launch soon.

The list of companies that hold a license to launch poker sites in Pennsylvania includes:

• SugarHouse Poker
• Harrah's Poker
• Hollywood Casino Poker
• Mount Airy Poker
• Parx Poker
• Valley Forge Poker
• Wind Creek Poker

Pennsylvania Poker F.A.Q.

Can you play poker online in Pennsylvania?

Yes. PA players can play online poker games for free and for real money. Free-to-play poker apps like the WSOP Poker app are all legal in Pennsylvania.

PokerStars PA is the only poker site authorised by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board to offer real money games online.

Can you play online poker for money in PA?

Yes. You can play real money cash games, tournament, sit-and-go and more on the PokerStars PA website. At present, this is the only real money poker site that operates in Pennsylvania under a license issued by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board.

When will online poker start in PA?

Real money online poker in PA started on November 4, 2019, with the official release of the PokerStars PA online poker client.

How to play online poker in PA?

• Select one of the PA poker sites approved by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board
• Register a free gaming account
• Confirm your identity
• Choose a poker game and play

Where can I play online poker in PA?

To date, the only online poker site authorised to offer real money poker games to PA players is PokerStars. Other PA online poker sites are expected to enter the state between Q1 and Q2-2020.

Is online gambling legal in Pennsylvania?

Online gambling is legal in Pennsylvania. On October 30, 2017, PA governor Tom Wolf signed into law the bill that legalised online sports betting, online casino gambling, and online poker in Pennsylvania.

PA online casinos and sports betting sites started to offer their services to PA players on July 15, 2019. The first real money online poker hand in Pennsylvania was dealt on PokerStars on November 4, 2019.

Although still in its infancy in comparison to neighboring New Jersey, PA online poker is on its way to becoming a competitive force in online gaming.

In Pennsylvania, casinos that hold an?online gambling license may offer online sports betting, online casino games, and online poker rooms. Although the state issued seven online gaming licenses, only one online poker room is live as of now – PokerStars Mount Airy Casino. ?

Although other poker sites are pending, the delay may be because?Pennsylvania poker sites are ring-fenced. This means the pool of players does not include the other three states with legal online poker (Nevada, New Jersey, and Delaware). That means everyone you play on a PA online poker site?is also located in Pennsylvania.

However, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board will likely open the door for interstate player pools in the near future. This means more brands will launch in the state. For example, Party Poker and 888/WSOP already partnered with brick-and-mortar casinos to launch online poker.

Once interstate player pools become a reality in PA, it?s also reasonable to assume that poker players in NJ, NV, and DE will be happy to see the number of possible opponents double. This increases overall win potential considerably.

List Of Online Poker Sites In Pennsylvania

The one online poker site currently available to anyone 21 and over located in the state of Pennsylvania is PokerStars Mount Airy Casino.

PokerStars Mount Airy Casino

Although PokerStars is a well-known online poker site, it operates in a unique way in Pennsylvania. This particular PA online poker site operates in?partnership with Mount Airy Casino. For bettors knowledgable with PokerStars, though, it’s important to note that players in Pennsylvania can’t access this site through pokerstars.bet. That site is limited to players located in Nevada, New Jersey, or Delaware. Instead, players in Pennsylvania need to?visit pokerstarsmtaircasino.com rather than pokerstars.bet.?

The good news is that the combined population of those three states is about 12.9 million compared to 12.8 million who live in Pennsylvania alone. That?s basically the same size potential player pool.

New Jersey and Nevada are gambling hotspots that launched legal online poker in 2013, so they’ve had a head start. ?March 2020 saw approximately $3.6 million in revenue for all of the online poker sites combined in these three states. In contrast,?PokerStars Mount Airy saw $2.5 million in revenue in its first month?in November 2019. Despite its late start, PA online poker is poised to take off.?

Online Poker Partnerships In Pennsylvania

Your Five Minute Guide To Legal Pennsylvania Online Poker Sites

Bonuses At PA Online Poker Sites

Much like with online sportsbooks, the promotions and bonuses at online poker sites are dependent on the season. If it?s the Super Bowl or World Cup, the sportsbook will focus on that. If it?s the World Series Of Poker (WSOP), that?s what the online pokers sites will focus on.

It is possible to?qualify for the WSOP by playing online poker. Needless to say, one of the biggest enticements for an online poker site is offering the chance to play against world-famous players in Las Vegas. You can enter the satellite qualifiers multiple times. And you can enter some qualifying tournaments for as little as $10.

Even when WSOP is months away, the qualifying tournaments abound. People are training to compete all year. To get in on that action is an exciting prospect that?s far and wide the most common and, intuitively speaking, the most effective bonus offer for joining an online poker site.

Right now, for Pennsylvania players, there is only one option: PokerStars. Thankfully, they offer a pretty generous welcome bonus for new players. If you deposit $20, they?ll match it with $30, giving you $50 in your account to get introduced to the platform.

Once you become a member at an online poker site in Pennsylvania, you?ll likely receive promotional offers wherein you can enter large prize pool tournaments for a low buy-in. You may also receive a reload bonus that, like the welcome bonus, gives you free money for making a deposit.

Online Poker Cash Games In PA

A cash game is the most straightforward form of online poker. The chips represent precise amounts of money. You can top up to as high as the table maximum whenever you feel like it.

Players can access cash games at PokerStars in Pennsylvania 24 hours a day, seven days a week. To play with a variety of other players, though,?the best time to play cash games is at night when the majority of players are home from work or done working for the day.?

The lowest stakes cash game is $0.01 for the small blind, $0.02 for the big. The maximum small/big is $25/$50. There?s a ton of middle ground. In fact, the largest pool of players is found at the $1/$2 tables.

The most popular cash game is No-Limit Texas Hold?Em. It?s extremely rare that you can?t find a $1/$2 No-Limit Hold?Em game any time of the day or night at PokerStars Mount Airy. However, that?s not the only option.

The cash games at PokerStars PA extend to Limit Hold?Em and Omaha. You can also play Razz and Seven-Card Stud, as well as multi-game H.O.R.S.E. and 2-7 (Deuce to Seven) Triple Draw Lowball.

Pennsylvania Poker Tournaments

The PA online poker tournaments available at PokerStars Mount Airy Casino are categorized by Daily Tournaments, Sunday Majors, and PokerStars Live.

Daily Tournaments

The daily tournaments at PokerStars PA begin at 10 AM EST and run until midnight. All of these tournaments have players start with 10,000 chips.

• Daily Bigs: Freezeout tournaments. Buy-ins range from $5 to $10. Blind levels are eight to ten minutes long.
• Hot Turbos: $5-$50 buy-ins. 5-minute blind levels. Tables of six to nine players.
• Bounty Builders: Get rewarded the cash bounty of a player when you eliminate them. Every time you do, your cash bounty grows.?
• Nightly Stars: $100 buy-in that starts at 7 PM EST. Nine-player tables. 12-minute blind levels.
• Moonlight Express: ?Hyper-Turbo? structure, wherein blind levels are only three minutes. $20 buy-ins.

Sunday Majors

Sunday Majors offer some of the satellite qualifiers used for entry into?professional-level tournaments.?

While all Sunday Majors at PokerStars PA have enormous payout potential, the ?Sunday Storm? is the highest guaranteed prize pool, whereas the ?Sunday Storm? has the lowest buy-in. The prize pools, while they vary, are always impressive (to most players).?

Is PokerStars Live Available In PA?

Unfortunately, PokerStars Live in-person satellite tournaments are not yet available to players in Pennsylvania.

What Online Poker Sites Are Coming Soon In Pennsylvania?

The only two online poker sites that are on the horizon in PA are Party Poker and 888 (in partnership with WSOP).

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board is yet to greenlight these two products although the licenses, partnerships, and platforms are ready to launch. The hold up seems to relate to the interstate player pools. Once PA online poker players can legally play against players in New Jersey, Delaware, and Nevada, it should be smooth sailing.?

Pennsylvania Online Player Pooling

The population of all three states outside of Pennsylvania where online poker is legal is 12.9 million. The total PA population is 12.8 million. While that doesn?t necessarily mean that the player pool would double if interstate online poker were legalized in Pennsylvania, it would significantly increase.?

At the very least, existing players at PokerStars PA would be thrown into the mix, which is a good thing. The more players at a poker site, the higher the guarantees, the more poker variations are available, and the better the promotions.

Also, with a greater variety of players comes more challenging gameplay. This practice helps players take steps towards the World Series.

Legal PA Online Poker Sites Versus Illegal Online Poker Sites

Despite being ring-fenced and only having one option, the Pennsylvania online poker market has more than enough action for the vast majority of players. Plenty of high-rollers are in there playing for big money. Further, you can find a whole host of $0.01/$0.02 buy-in cash games. There is sufficient variety that there is no reason to risk playing on illegal online poker sites.?

First, with almost a population of almost 13 million people, there is potential for a large poker player pool in Pennsylvania.?

Second, despite the relatively long history of online poker in the US, there are inherent risks. From the early-1990s, when people could safely make transactions online, they began gambling over the internet. While that extended to offshore online sportsbooks and casinos, it was online poker that was the most popular form of online betting in the US. People have been doing it for years even if it was illegal to do so.?

Despite this history, illegal online poker sites carry inherent risks. They can subject players to criminal penalties. Offshore sites also do not have the same regulations in place to protect players or systems in place to identify and ban cheaters.

With that being said, PokerStars Mount Airy PA is on-par with a lot of the popular illegal websites when it comes to the variety of games offered and the available player pool. This makes it a better, and more safe, option.?Plus, you?re not going to qualify for the WSOP by playing through an illegal poker site.

How Do I Know That Legal Online Poker Sites In Pennsylvania Are Fair?

Frustrated players become ex-players, and ex-players mean lost revenue. And there?s no better way to frustrate players than to have a select few users always win.?

For years, Pennsylvania online poker players were forced to play at unlicensed websites. And for a long time, even to this day at some sites, coming across someone who?s rigged the system in some way or another just came with the territory.

But as of November 2019 and the launch of PokerStars, those days are over. This is because the state of Pennsylvania does a good job of regulating all legal online poker sites in the state.?

Who Regulates Legal Online Poker Sites In Pennsylvania?

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board regulates all in-state poker sites. This is is probably part of the holdup in regards to interstate player pools. As one of the strictest licensing and oversight bodies in the world of online gambling, the PGCB is not going to give their okay to any new internet betting development without a thorough review.?

But more importantly, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board protects the players located in the state. If players face issues with online poker sites in the state, the players can report to the PGCB and request investigation. Moreover, they ensure that money deposited is protected and always accessible for withdrawal.?

Further, the PGCB ensures that the proper amount of tax is collected and allocated from the online gambling operators to the state of Pennsylvania. The state ensures regular auditing and takes claims of fraud?extremely seriously.

Why Should I Trust Legal PA Online Poker Rooms Sites?

PA online poker sites are safe and trustworthy. It is in the poker sites’ best interest to keep players happy so that they return and continue to play. In contrast, allowing players who cheat is not only a violation of Pennsylvania state law but it creates a poor environment for players who are by the book. It makes sense that PokerStars PA employs incredibly high levels of anti-cheating measures.

PokerStars Integrity Team tracks for bots, player-to-player communications, and other cheating measures through powerful computers and complex algorithms that comb-over billions of hands. The system flags anomalies and anything suspicious and the site investigates these issues. If the site determines someone is cheating, they ban the cheaters, confiscate their money,?and refund losses to any of the cheater?s victims.?

You can also report any suspicious activities directly to the PokerStars PA team. In fact, while 95% of cheats are caught through the efforts of the Integrity Team, 5% are player-reported.

How Do I Get Paid If I Win?

When you have money in your account that you want to cash out, simply head to the cashier and select one of the withdrawal options. At PokerStars Mount Airy, cashout methods include Skrill and PayPal, two ewallet companies, and Instant eChecks, which is a kind of direct deposit.?

Pennsylvania Legal Online Poker Rooms: Common Questions

What Kinds Of Online Poker Site Games Are Legal In Pennsylvania?

All online poker games are legal in Pennsylvania. These include:

• No Limit Hold?Em
• Limit Hold?Em
• Omaha
• Razz
• Seven-Card Stud
• H.O.R.S.E.
• 2-7 (Deuce to Seven) Triple Draw Lowball.

Because Pennsylvania also offers online casinos, you can also play a wide range of casino poker games. This includes digital casino hold?em as well as the Live Casino version.

How Old Do I Have To Be To Play At Pennsylvania?s Legal Gambling Sites?

21. The legal age to gamble in Pennsylvania is 21 and up. The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board requires operators to verify player ages and monitor for any underage online betting. The 21 and up rule applies to online poker, casino games, and sports betting. It also applies to brick-and-mortar casinos, card rooms, and sportsbooks.

Does Pennsylvania Share Online Poker Player Pools With Any Other States?

No. The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board has not allowed cross-state online poker playing. This is despite the fact that New Jersey, Delaware, and Nevada all offer player pools with each other.

The good news is that there have been talks of Pennsylvania being open to interstate online poker. Only time will tell.

What Is The Tax Rate For Online Poker Sites In Pennsylvania?

Real Money Poker Sites In Pa

16%. The tax rate for online poker sites is significantly less than any tax imposed on online betting operators. Table game taxes sit at 34%, slots at 54%, and sportsbooks at 36%. Compared to 16%, and we?re starting to really wonder why other operators aren?t flocking to open up a platform of their own.?

Real Money Poker Sites In America

Who Can Get A License To Run A Legal Internet Poker Site In Pennsylvania?

Real Money Poker Sites In Palm Desert

Just like all other forms of online betting in Pennsylvania, the state limits online poker licenses only to?existing brick-and-mortar casinos. Of the 13 currently in the state, seven have online betting operator licenses. Of those seven, the PGCB only approved PokerStars to date. We expect?Party Poker and 888/WSOP to launch soon in PA.