Online Poker Room Evaluation Criteria

How to select an Online Poker Room

There are now an estimated 250 online poker rooms doing business. Everyone wants a slice of this booming industry. Many online casinos and sportsbooks have ventured into the world of online poker. However, running a poker room is a very different proposition to running a casino or sports gambling site. We believe it takes some serious skills and know-how, which unfortunately many online poker room operators do not possess. Players will suffer in the end. They will get bad service, unattractive promotions and run the risk of being short-changed. There are some very specific criteria to look at when selecting an online poker room:

Backing

Although not necessarily critical, is the room backed by a known entity? Does this company have experience in the online gambling industry? Are the people involved reputable? Although these questions are sometimes difficult to answer, there are many forums and websites that publish information about the poker rooms and their backers. 

Financial Standing

Again, this is difficult to research, but there are some basic pointers to consider. If the poker room is owned and backed by a large, successful gaming company it is unlikely to disappear. Having said that, there are numerous online poker rooms that have been very successful without such backing. Unfortunately many smaller poker rooms are unlikely to survive. Ask yourself this: if a new online poker room offers huge bonuses, huge added money tournaments and other promos, how can they survive if there are a mere couple of hundred players active at peak hours? Of course, many will come through but only those with big money behind them. 

Traffic, traffic, traffic

If you walked into a restaurant and there is nowhere to sit, are you going to place an order? No. Traffic is critical. The bigger the traffic the bigger the stakes, the wider the spread of limits and the better the tournament action. Not rocket science to figure this out.

Software

The top poker rooms differ dramatically in terms of their software, but there are some criteria that must be met:

• Security 
• Integrity of customer data
• Fraud and collusion detection
• Reliability (i.e. infrequent and preferable hardly any downtime at all)
• Speedy and smooth play  
• Quick load time of tables
• Not too big downloads
• Basic user features such as player notes, hand statistics and chat.

There are many other factors that play a role, but these criteria are most important.

Sign up Bonus and Terms

Does the room offer a decent sign-up bonus? These vary greatly and are structured very differently. Some bonuses will appeal to small depositors whilst other will appeal to large depositors. Some bonuses depend on how much rake you generate so be sure to understand exactly how they work. ALWAYS read the terms and conditions before you make a deposit.

Tournaments

Tournament action is more important to some players than others. There are a variety of tournament types, from free rolls, to guaranteed satellite tournaments for land based events. A good poker room will offer tournaments for all types of players, big and small, and will introduce new tournaments every month to keep things interesting.

Shuffle Audit

Always check if an independent auditor checks the randomness and fairness of a poker room on a regular basis. Most poker rooms publish reports from audit firms like PriceWaterHouseCoopers on their websites. if they don't send them an email and ask them. If you get no decisive answer, move on.

Player Comments

A very important factor is what players have to say. Join forums, read news feeds and chat to other players in the poker room to get a feel for the place. We have dumped poker rooms from our portfolio because of too many bad players experiences.

In the end, the decision is up to you. Consider these pointers, and go with your gut feel. Our recommended online poker rooms are in line with these criteria and we are confident that you will have a good experience.