Biggest and Most Popular US Poker Rooms
The game of poker, both online and live, soared in popularity during the early 2000’s, thanks in large part to Chris Moneymaker’s win of $2,500,000 in 2003 at the World Series of Poker Main Event. Moneymaker winning the $10k buy-in event was huge in the scheme of things for a few reasons. He was an amateur so it proved that even the average Joe had a shot at becoming a poker millionaire! He also qualified for the Main Event through an online poker satellite, and so as a result, many recreational players began playing poker online, with one thing in mind, to make a lot of money! This WSOP win was catalyst behind the online poker boom and what has resulted from it.
Today, although poker in the US will likely never reach the soaring heights experienced during the Moneymaker period of online poker, there still are a number of reputable online poker sites that still accept players from America. Although the traffic at some of these poker sites took a hit, many have survived and are still going strong till this day.
A List of the Biggest USA / United States Poker Sites
| Rank | Play Now Poker Room | Bonus | Poker Room Highlights |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
 |
200% up to $1,000 |
|
| 2 |
 |
25% up to $900 |
|
| 3 |
 |
25% up to $900 |
|
100% Bonus to $1000!
Ignition is a standalone poker network but they have managed to establish themselves as one of the largest in the US. The site peaks at around 2,500 players at any one time, rivlaing that of poker rooms from around the world, never mind just the USA. The fact that there are so many cash players on site regularly makes this a brilliant site to play on around the clock. With a great number of fish on site too, there are great opportunities with Ignition.
25% Bonus to $900!
Bet Online claims to be the fastest growing poker room in the US, so this would suggest that it is doing rather well in terms of player numbers. The company is part of the Chico network which has an average of around 550 cash players online at any one time. Even off-peak time can see the site sit at around 1,500 players across the network, so there is usually enough players around to get plenty of action.
25% Bonus to $900!
Sportsbetting belongs to the Revolution network, which gives it access to a large number of players. Recent stats indicate that at peak times there are just fewer than 2,000 cash players vying for poker success. With a 7 day average of over 1,000 - including cash players - this is a site that always has games on the go and money up for grabs. As a result, Sportsbetting is one of the best places for people form the US to divulge in a game of online poker.
However, since Moneymaker’s win, online poker has had its fair share of drama, scandals, and setbacks that impacted on the industry. In 2006 the UIEGA bill was passed in congress, changing the online gambling landscape by making it illegal for online gambling companies to accept deposits from US based customers if the funds are deemed to be associated with illegal internet gambling activity.
As a result of the legislation being passed, major players such as Party Poker and Pacific Poker left the U.S. market. It resulted in a huge shakeup within the online poker world, with new rooms entering the market and many players leaving since it was more difficult getting funds onto these sites. The online poker world also took another big blow in 2011, which will come to be known as Black Friday (April 15th). On this day, the two biggest online poker sites, PokerStars and Full Tilt, stopped offering real money games to their US customers. So again, Americans were forced to relocate to smaller poker sites in order to get their online poker fix.
If you are from the United States and looking to play online poker in 2024, because of what’s happened in recent times, it’s unrealistic to expect that US poker sites will have the same player traffic as the good ole pre Moneymaker days. But there are still a good number of real money poker sites with decent traffic to play on. Furthermore, you can play speed poker on these sites, which is one of the latest online poker innovations to hit the scene.
Carbon Poker is a good choice. The site has decent traffic and promotions so it won’t be difficult finding action for the games you like to play. With all that has happened with online poker in the U.S., it’s good that US poker players are still able to test themselves against other players in the US and from around the world to help improve their game.
If you prefer playing non-hold’em games, there’s a decent chance you may not find many active tables for your game of choice since most people prefer texas hold’em. In this instance, you should check out many of the other biggest US poker sites with good reputations. You can also see a full list of online poker rooms in our online poker reviews section where you can also get a better idea about the number of active players online for each poker site.
