In order to get an online poker bonus at almost every single poker room online you first have to make a deposit. (There is the rare no deposit bonus, but these are generally around $5 at small poker rooms)  This post look at some of the more common deposit options offered by online poker rooms and how easy these methods are for deposit and withdrawal.  In general when getting an online poker bonus it is better to make as large an initial deposit as possible in order to get a bigger bonus because most first deposit bonuses are given as a percentage of your first deposit.  Keep reading to learn how to deposit at online poker sites:

Credit Card Deposit

Credit card deposits are by far the most common method of depositing.  Credit cards are quick and easy, as long as the credit card deposit is approved.  In many cases your credit card company will not allow you to use your credit card to deposit onto an online gambling site.  In these cases you will have to try one of the other methods we have listed below.  It’s also important to note that many online poker rooms will accept credit cards as payment, but you will not be able to cash out funds onto your credit card.

Online Wallets

Online e-wallets such as Moneybookers, Neteller, Click2Pay and EcoCard are also very common deposit methods for online poker rooms.  Online wallets act as bank accounts online where you can store your money for online purchases.  You can fund your ewallets using your credit card or bank account and then transfer that money onto the online poker site.  This also works for withdrawals with the ewallets allowing fast cashouts directly to your bank account.  There are certain ewallets, such as PayPal who do not approve of online gambling and will not allow you to use your funds from their ewallet to gamble online.

Using Cash

It is also possible to use cash to make deposits to online poker rooms.  By cash I mean purchasing vouchers that basically become gift cards that you can use at the online poker room.  Some companies that provide this service include Ukash and Paysafecard.  The only problem is that since you are buying the voucher you will not be able to cashout using this method.

Conclusion

There are a wide variety of methods to choose from when funding your online poker account.  It is important however to think about how you are going to get your cash out of the poker account.  Most online poker rooms do offer to send cheques through the mail, and that is the only option for many players, especially if they do not have an ewallet account that accepts gambling.

If you ever have trouble funding your online poker account, I suggest you contact customer service.  The poker room wants you to be able to deposit and will go out of their way to make sure it happens.

Lock Poker has emerged as a solid and legitimate online poker room over the past couple of years, so I felt it was time that I investigated the Lock Poker bonus to see if it is a viable option for players looking to clear welcome bonuses.  Lock Poker is one of the main rooms on the Merge Gaming Network, which is the biggest network of poker rooms that are still accepting United States residents.  Let’s take a look at the Lock Poker bonus:

Lock Poker Bonus Details

Lock Poker currently offers a sign up bonus of 150% up to $750 on first deposits.  You must use Lock Poker bonus code LOCK150 when signing up in order to receive this bonus.  For example, if you open an account and deposit $100 using LOCK150 as the Lock Poker bonus code, then you would receive a bonus equal to $150 that would be added to you pending bonus account.

In order to clear the bonus into your real money cashier you must earn VIP points by playing in Lock Poker cash games and tournaments.  Every 75 VIP points you earn gets you $1 of your bonus, which is released in $5 increments every time you accumulate an additional 375 VIP points.  You earn 10 points for every $1 that you pay in tournament fees or contribute in rakeback to Lock Poker, which equals out to about $0.13 of your bonus being released for every $1 that you pay to Lock Poker.

Lock Poker Bonus Compared to PokerStars Bonus

PokerStars is by far the largest online poker room in existence today and although they do not accept US residents at the site we will compare the Lock bonus to the PokerStars bonus to see how it shapes up.

PokerStars currently offers new players a 100% matching bonus up to $600.  This bonus is also placed into a pending bonus account and clears at a rate of 17 VPPs for every $1 of the bonus.  The bonus is then released in $10 increments every time you earn an additional 170 VPPs.  In tournaments you receive 5.5 VPPs for every $1 that you pay in fees and in cash games you earn VPPs at the same rate depending on how much of the rake you have contributed.  This means that at PokerStars you receive about $0.32 of your bonus for every $1 that you pay in fees or rake.  This is more than double what you earn at Lock Poker playing the same games.

In conclusion the PokerStars bonus is still quite a bit better than the Lock Poker bonus.  At Lock you receive a larger bonus with a better matching percentage, but the clearing requirements aren’t nearly as good as at PokerStars.  If you plan to play at Lock Poker a lot regardless then the full $750 bonus may be more appealing even if it takes triple the time to clear than the $600 bonus from PokerStars.  Be sure to use a reputable PokerStars Marketing Code if you sign up at PokerStars to get the $600 bonus!

GuruPlay is an online poker room on the OnGame network, which is currently the 5th largest poker network in the world.  This article will investigate the GuruPlay poker bonus, looking at the bonus size, matching percentage, clearing requirements and expiration.

GuruPlay Poker Bonuses

GuruPlay offers two different poker bonus options for new players.  We will look at both separately and you can decide which would be better for you.

GuruPlay $1000 Sign Up Bonus

GuruPlay offers all new players who deposit at least $500 a sign up bonus equal to $1,000.  There is no matching percentage involved, simply make a deposit of over $500 and you receive the $1000 bonus.  It is also important to note that you must use bonus code BIGPOKER in order to receive this massive bonus.

Your bonus is initially placed in a pending bonus account and you receive $100 of the bonus for every 1000 Guru Points you earn.  Guru Points can be earned by playing at GuruPlay Poker cash games and tournaments.  In cash games you earn 3.25 points for every $1 that you contribute to the rake and 5 Guru Points are awarded for every $1 that you pay in tournament fees.

The bonus expires after 60 days and any amount that you have not cleared after that time will be forfeit.

GuruPlay $600 Sign Up Bonus

The $600 sign up bonus is best for everyone who isn’t looking to make an initial deposit of $500 or more.  The minimum deposit for the $600 bonus is just $25 and there is also no matching percentage so every deposit earns the full $600 bonus.  Use bonus code POKER100 to receive this bonus.

This bonus is released in $50 increments every time you earn 500 Guru Points, which are earned in cash games and tournaments at the rates listed above.  The $600 bonus also carries an expiry of 60 days.

Which Bonus To Choose

Basically you should choose the $1000 bonus if you are going to deposit $500 or more and take the $600 bonus if you are depositing less.  In tournaments you are earning $0.50 of the bonus for every $1 you pay in fees, while in cash games you earn $0.35 of the bonus for every $1 you contribute to the rake.  These are both very good ratios for bonuses, but obviously playing tournaments is a more economical way to clear the bonus, however in cash games you will often rack up points faster, which can result in you earning a greater amount of the bonus within the 60 day period.

Overall, the GuruPlay bonus is one of the best in the industry because you earn a massive bonus, regardless of the amount of your first deposit.  I suggest new players play through this bonus because the clearing requirements are fair and the bonus the ratio is better than the bonus or rakeback you will find at the majority of other online poker websites.

Party Poker is currently the second largest poker room online now that Full Tilt Poker has closed its doors.  It is a significant distance behind PokerStars, but Party Poker is a valid option for players from outside of the United States who are looking to play poker online.  This post will investigate the Party Poker bonus, looking at it’s size, clearing requirements and expiration.

Party Poker Bonus Size

Party Poker currently offers all new players a 100% matching bonus up to $/£/€500.  Of course the £500 is the highest amount so if you can deposit with £’s then that would be advantageous.  You should enter a satisfactory Party Poker bonus code in order to ensure that you receive this size of bonus.

Party Poker Bonus Restrictions

The Party Poker bonus is initially placed in a pending bonus account and is released in increments of 10% of the bonus total.  For example, if you go for the entire $500 bonus then you would receive $50 increments of the bonus, while if you only deposit $100 initially then you would receive ten $10 increments.

We mentioned earlier that depositing in pounds sterling or even Euro’s may make more sense and this is true if you want a bigger bonus.  However, the clearing requirements for these currencies are more strict than that of the US dollars.  In dollars you must earn 6 times the bonus amount in Party Points, while with Euro’s you must earn 8 times the bonus amount and for pounds sterling you must earn 9 times the bonus amount.

Party Points are earned by playing in cash games and tournaments at Party Poker.  In cash games you earn 2 points for every $1 that you contribute to the rake and in tournaments you earn 2 points for every $1 that you contribute in rake.  There is no way to earn extra points with the contributed rake model that Party Poker uses.  But if you are an aggressive player you will generate Party Points faster.

When we look at this based on the American dollar deposit this means that every $1 you contribute in rake or as a tournament fee you receive $0.33 in bonus dollars.  For example if you are set to receive the full $500 bonus then you must earn 300 Party Points ($150 in rake) to receive the first $50 of your bonus.  The $0.33 on the $1 is a pretty average clearing requirement.

Party Poker Bonus Expiry

Whatever amount of the bonus you have not cleared after 60 days will be forfeit regardless of the currency.

Analysis

The Party Poker matching percentage and maximum bonus are on the low side when compared to most other online poker rooms, but the clearing requirements of approximately $0.33 in rake is fairly average within the industry.  The 60 day expiration is quite short, so you should make sure to play enough in the first two months at Party Poker in order to get the most out of your bonus.

The roulette table is easily seen as one of the most glamorous places in a casino and this is for a number of reasons. TV shows and films have often chosen the roulette wheel as the place where the drama and excitement happens but it has to be said, a game of roulette can be great fun. The tension and drama as the ball spins around the wheel and the click-clacking sound is enough to have people poised, desperate to know where the ball will land. At its simplest form, roulette betting is one of the easiest games for people to play, which means there is always a big audience for the game.

Roulette betting is fun and simple

The fact that roulette features some of the simplest bets you can find in a casino means it will be one of the most popular games. After all, what can be simpler than choosing between red or black, and this is why there will always be a lot of people eager to play at the roulette table. Roulette betting is far from difficult but it is possible to make a lot of money if your luck is in and your nerve holds out. This is not for everyone but there is no doubt that casino play is greatly enhanced by the introduction of the roulette wheel.

For casino players who are looking for something a bit more extensive, there is still a lot of fun and entertainment to be had from the roulette wheel. After all, the odds or even and the red or black bets are just a tiny part of what makes up the full range of roulette betting. For adventurous players, stating the number that the ball will land upon is the most difficult bet to get right but of course, it will provide the most profitable return.

Bets are available for everyone

There are plenty of bets in between the simplest and most challenging though and playing on the combinations can often bring a great return for a keen betting man or woman. There is definitely nothing difficult about roulette betting and placing a bet is a simple matter of placing chips on a certain part of the table. Placing chips on a corner position between numbers gives you a wider chance of your bet being successful but of course, the returns provided for betting in this manner are not quite as attractive. There is a continual trade-off being played out at the roulette table and it is important to know what you personal limits of comfort are.

Not everyone has the same attitude towards gaming and some players will be happy with simple and minimal bets. This may not be the best way to win a lot of money but it is a great way to have fun while knowing that you are minimising your losses. However, roulette betting definitely offers something for the player that is looking to change their life through one spin of a wheel but you need to be at the table to be in with a chance.

You like to get something for nothing don’t you? You work hard for your money and it sometimes feels as though the cash doesn’t go far enough so anything that helps you to have a bit more fun has to be a good thing. Some people will say save your money for the future, you never know what might happen but that sort of logic can easily be turned on its head. Have some money in savings if you can, it’s always prudent but if you don’t know what will happen in the future, why not have some fun and live it up a little while you can?

Have fun with a Party Poker bonus code

There are many different things that people enjoy but when it comes to having fun, a lot of folk would say that poker and being at a party would rank highly in the enjoyable things to do list. This is why having a Party Poker bonus code at your disposal is one of the best treats you can find. After all, people enjoy poker, they enjoy being at a party and as already pointed out, getting something for nothing is excellent so when something comes along that combines all three elements, it is great news.

This is exactly what the Party Poker Bonus provides for the users and you should find that the Party Poker site provides you with all of your poker needs. This is because the site is one of the longest running online poker sites you can find and they have been pleasing poker players for well over 10 years. This experience means that they know exactly what poker players want and the Party Poker Bonus code is a perfect example of this. Poker players want to be able to enjoy as many games as they can and making money stretch further is a key factor in enjoying more games. Using a Party Poker Bonus code when you sign up for the online poker action will give you a whopping bonus from your first moment on site, which is brilliant news for anyone wanting to see what all of the fuss is about.

Keep up to date

The Party Poker Bonus code is updated on a regular basis so be sure that you have the most up to date one or you may find that you do not get everything that is due to you when you come to sign up. This would be slightly embarrassing but there is nothing to fear because there are always plenty of Party Poker Bonus codes available and you should find one without any great deal of looking. This means that your time can be better spent playing poker games as opposed to trawling through websites looking for a bonus.

Getting involved with the site will allow people to see why so many online poker players have chosen to make the Party Poker site their online base. The Party Poker bonus will be a strong reason for this but it is far from being the only reason people have been signing up in their masses.

BetCRIS is one of the longest standing online betting sites you will find online.  They are primarily a sportsbook, but they also offer poker and casino rooms for their players.  When a player deposits it is initially added to the sportsbook account, but the cash can easily be transferred to either the poker or casino cashiers and there are bonuses associated with each of these transfers.  This post will take a quick look at the BetCRIS bonuses for the various segments of their online gambling business including the poker room, sportsbook and casino room.

BetCRIS Poker Bonus

BetCRIS offers a 150% matching bonus up to $750 on each players first transfer to the BetCRIS poker room.   In order to receive the bonus you must contact BetCRIS customer support and request the bonus amount after the transfer has taken place.  The bonus is paid out in $1 increments every time you earn 500 Frequent Player Points.  You earn 1 FPP for every $0.01 of rake generated.  This means that you receive $1 of your bonus for every $5 of rake generated.

BetCRIS Sportsbook Bonus

You receive a 20% matching bonus up to $500 and 200% Betpoints on your first deposit into the BetCRIS sportsbook.  In order to qualify for the bonus you must make an initial deposit of at least $50.  The rollover requirement on the bonus is 5 times, which means that you must play through the deposit amount 5 times, before the bonus is available for a payout.  For example, if you deposit $500 you are in line for a $100 bonus, but you must wager $2500 before the $100 bonus is available.

BetCRIS Casino Bonus

BetCRIS is currently offering a 100% matching bonus up to $150 for use on the BetCRIS slot machines.  In order to receive the bonus you must request it over live chat or by sending an email to BetCRIS.  It is important to note that after the rollover requirements are met only the winnings from the bonus will be credited to your account.  For example, if you receive the full $150 bonus and you have $100 remaining after the requirements are met you don’t receive anything added to your account.  However if you end up with $200 after the requirements are met then you have $50 added to your account.  The casino bonus expires after 90 days.

It is important to use BetCRIS bonus code BMBONUS when signing up in order to ensure that you receive each of the bonuses outlined above.  BetCRIS is a highly regarded and reputable online gambling site that has been around since 1985.

Bet365 is one of the top gambling sites online and with everything that is happening in the United States with poker rooms and even sports books being shut down it would likely be a smart move for non-United States residents to move to a gambling site that does not accept American players.  Otherwise another Full Tilt situation could occur.  Bet365 has been in the business for a long time and has a great reputation within the industry.  Their bonuses aren’t too shabby either.  We will go through each of the various bonuses you can receive at Bet365.  They all add up pretty quick.

Bet365 Poker Bonus

Bet365 offers a 200% matching bonus up to $1000 on all first deposits.  The bonus is released at a rate of $10 for every 100 merit points earned by playing cash games or tournaments at Bet365.

Bet365 Sports Betting Bonus

The Bet365 sports betting open account offer is a 100% matching bonus up to $200.  Once you play through the amount of your bonus once, while betting at Bet365, the bonus will be available for betting.  In order to withdraw you must play through the deposit and bonus three times.  So if you deposit $100, you will need to wager $600 before withdrawing the bonus.

Bet 365 Bingo Bonus

The Bet365 bingo bonus is a flat £25 bonus for all deposits of £5 or more.  This isn’t quite a free bingo bonus, but having to only deposit £5 makes it about as close as you can get.  After you purchase the £5 of bingo cards the £25 bonus will kick in.

Bet365 Casino Bonus

The standard initial deposit bonus for Bet365 Casino is a 100% matching bonus up to $200.  There is also a slots only bonus of 200% up to $400 and a VIP bonus of 50% up to $1000.  You must choose your bonus when making the first deposit by using the correct Bet365 referrer code.

Once again, Bet365 is one of the most trustworthy companies in each of the various gambling verticals.  They are primarily known for their sportsbook, but the Bet365 poker room, casino and bingo room are all top notch as well.

Click here to visit Bet365.com…

Almost every online poker site allows you to play for real money.  One exception might by Zynga Poker, that took off on Facebook and now has a ton of play money players.  Most online poker rooms also have play money versions of their software that are meant to “teach” players how to play.  These are usually .net extensions.  For example, FullTiltPoker.net or PokerStars.net are play money versions of the poker rooms software.  These are mainly meant to allow the poker rooms to promote themselves on television in the United States because they can market themselves as an “educational” site, rather than a gambling site, seeing as online gambling is not exactly legal in the States.  This post will look at some real money poker sites and compare them to the play money counterparts.

The Main Differences

To compare real money poker sites to play money ones you first have to look at the goal of each site.  Real money poker sites want to make money by taking a rake or tournament fee from players that have uploaded funds in order to play for real money online.  Play money poker sites typically market themselves as educational and entertainment sites, when in reality they are trying to get the players hooked enough to want to switch over to the real money version.  Zynga is an exception to this rule because there is no real money version of their poker software, but I’m sure this will change in time.  The golden rule is every poker room online wants to make money in some way.  The majority make their money through the typical channel, ie rake etc.  But some make their money in other ways, I have even seen a poker room that gave players $10 to start, but there were ads running while you played and you would have to watch a commercial every few minutes in between hands.

Real Money Poker Sites Give Bonuses

This is an obvious difference, but it’s one I wanted to touch on quickly.  Real money poker sites are able to give bonuses because they know that they will earn this money back through rake and tournament fees.  Almost every poker bonus online is set up so that the poker room will earn at least double the size of the bonus in revenue from you before you receive the entire sum of your bonus for use at the tables.  Play money sites obviously can’t give bonuses because there is no guarantee they will make that money back off of you.  If you watch enough ads during the game then maybe, but overall play chip bonuses are still play chips.  To find poker sites with the best signup bonuses you should look for rooms that provide player friendly clearing conditions.  One way to look at this is tournament fees.  Check how many dollars of your bonus you clear for every $1 you spend in tournament fees.  If it’s above $0.40 that is actually a good bonus.  That’s how the poker rooms make sure they make money off of you even if you earn a large bonus.

If you are looking to play poker just for fun and don’t care about money at all play money poker may be right for you.  That being said play money poker isn’t even close to real poker.  It’s a totally different game.  Make an online poker deposit and try out some real poker before you choose what you prefer…..Even if it’s just a small amount.

We have yet to check out Carbon Poker’s bonus here on ComparePokerBonuses.com.  This post will do that and see if it is smart to take down Carbons bonus rather than continuing at the room you currently play at.

Carbon Poker offers a 100% up to $600 initial deposit bonus, which is pretty standard among online poker deposit bonuses.  You must use Carbon Poker bonus code UPTO600 in order to ensure that you receive the bonus after making your first Carbon Poker deposit.  The minimum deposit at Carbon is $10, but if you really want to take advantage of the bonus offer you should deposit $600 in order to receive the maximum bonus available.

Now let’s take a look at how you clear this bonus, which is the most important part when looking at any online poker initial deposit bonus.  The Carbon Poker bonus is released in $5 increments to your cashier every time you earn 375 Carbon VIP points.  This simplifies to $1 for every 75 VIP points.  Now that we know the VIP to bonus dollars ration we have to take a look at just how easy it is to earn these VIP points.

In tournaments you earn 10 points for every $1 you pay in fees.  For example, if you played a $30 + $3 tournament you would receive 30 VIP points.  In cash games you also receive 10 points for every $1 that you pay in rake.  The amount of rake you generate is determined by the portion of the pot that you contributed.  For example, if you contributed $15 to a $45 pot with a rake of $1.50 then you would be said to have contributed 1/3 of the pot and the amount of rake you generated would have been $0.50.  In this example you would receive 5 VIP points.

So let’s break this down further.  Doing some simple math determines that you are paying $7.50 in fees for every $1 of your bonus that is released.  This is not a very good ratio.  In fact it is about 3 times worse than Full Tilt’s clearing requirements.  The one good thing about the Carbon Poker bonus is that it only expires if you make a withdrawal before clearing the entire bonus.  If this happens whatever bonus was yet to be cleared is forfeit.  So if you were planning on playing at Carbon Poker anyways and you can combine this bonus with rakeback then it’s not such a bad thing.  Carbon is becoming a much better room by the day so it is possible that they improve their bonus offer in the future.