Are you looking for which online poker site offers the best sign up bonus? While they all seem to offer $500, there are some differences, explained below.
Here is a table summarizing the different bonuses offered by the poker sites.
| Poker Link | Poker Name | Deposit Bonus | Bonus Code | Poker Software | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Paf Poker | 200% $2500 or $1000 or $500 or $250 or $100 or $50 |
WELCOME2012 No code required |
Boss Media/GtechG2 | OnGame | Review |
 |
888 Poker | 100% | No code required | Random Logic | Review |
 |
Betsson Poker | $2000 or $1600 or $1000 or $555 or $150 €1000 or €300 or €100 |
OPOKER2000 OPOKER1600 OPOKER1000 OPOKER555 OPOKER150 MPOKER1000 MPOKER300 MPOKER100 |
Microgaming | OnGame | Review |
 |
Betsafe Poker | 1000 (€) or 500 (€) or 250 (€) or 75 (€) or 25 (€) 2500 ($) or 1000 ($) or 250 ($) or 75 ($) or 25 ($) |
BLACK1000 BLACK500 BLACK250 BLACK75 BLACK25 RED2500 RED1000 RED250 RED75 RED25 |
Microgaming | OnGame | Relax Gaming | Review |
 |
Betfred Poker | 250% | POKERWELCOMEBONUS | Playtech | Review |
 |
Betway Poker | 200% | No code required | Microgaming | Review |
 |
William Hill Poker | 200% | No code required | Playtech | Review |
 |
ComeOn! Poker | 110% | No code required | Revolution Gaming | Review |
 |
NordicBet Poker | 100% or 50% |
Poker1000 Poker25 |
Microgaming | Review |
Online poker bonuses
When you sign up at an online poker site, the most common and important bonuses are the first deposit bonuses. This is usually doubled up to a maximum of $500.
When we talk about a “100% poker bonus”, this means that the amount of the bonus is equal to the total amount of your first deposit: for example, you receive $100 for every $100 deposited. Except in exceptional cases, they correspond to the table below:
- STAKE AMOUNT | $5 | $20 | $100 | $500 | $1,000
- BONUS AWARDS | $10 | $20 | $100 | $500 | $500
How to unlock poker bonuses?
With the exception of the small amounts offered at registration and the Freerolls that allow you to play free poker, the welcome poker bonuses require you to play on the site and accumulate points before hitting them.
In the meantime, they are credited as pending bonuses, i.e. bonuses that you can legitimately claim as long as you unlock the necessary points in cash-game or tournament play.
The amount you receive is actually part of the rake that the room takes from your games. This rake entitles you to points and after a certain number of points you will receive a certain amount of the bonus which will be transferred to your player account (for example, 1$ for 30 points on PartyPoker).
The promised amount will be released within a limited period of time, usually 3 months after registration; only PokerStars makes an exception to this rule, extending this period to 4 months. The real differences are in the way the money is released:
- most rooms release the money in 10 or 20% increments (e.g. 10% increments at Betway Poker, for every $200 deposited, 10 increments of $20 are released).
- some release it gradually after only a few cents (Betclic and Everest) or a few euros ($5 at PokerStars)
Tiered payments are less advantageous, because if the amounts collected are more “visible” than a few cents per session, it is not said that a casual player can really go through more than 1 or 2 tiers in 90 days.
What is the best sign-up poker bonus?
To unlock the pending deposit bonus after the 1st deposit on an online poker site, you will need to earn points. The quality of a welcome offer depends on the number of points required (and therefore the amount to be spent) to release the poker bonus.
The less it is, the more competitive the bonus is. Conversely, the more you have to play to get the points needed to release the bonus, the less attractive the offer will be.
Calculation of rakeback
The percentage of the money spent that will be returned to you as part of the welcome offer is called “rakeback”. It is usually around 20%.
With a 20% rakeback, you will have to spend $100 to unlock a $20 bonus. The number of points required to release the bonus is included in the calculation. On the other hand, the welcome bonus can be released either at the poker tables or at the sports betting tables.
Conversely, PMU offers the highest payout: 200%! However, the maximum bonus is only $25 ($20 + $5 without deposit). However, to unlock it, you only have to spend $12.5.
Bwin poker bonus: the best on the market today
Bwin is probably not the most popular poker site in UK. And yet, it is indeed he who offers the best welcome bonus. In any case the most balanced.
By registering on Bwin, you can win up to $120. The sum is quite low compared to the $500 promised by Betclic or PartyPoker, but the rakeback is 50%. In order to win the full amount of the contribution, you will only have to spend “only” $240.
Bwin proposes a balanced offer, both in terms of the sum offered and the ease of obtaining it.
Bonus poker: the questions to ask yourself before you choose
The offers at registration are significantly different from each other. Here are a few questions to ask yourself before choosing your poker room:
- Gambling bonus or cash? Some sites will force you to replay the paid deposit. Others (such as Betclic) will allow you to withdraw it.
- Do I win game tickets? In addition to the deposit bonus, Betway and Betclic offer tickets to certain Freeroll tournaments reserved for new players. You will therefore be able to practice quietly while avoiding the sharks that regularly hang around on this type of tournament.
- What are the conditions for obtaining the bonus? On PMU, the bonus is fixed (25 $) and only your game actions are taken into account in the release of the deposit. On the other sites, it is the value of the 1st deposit that determines the maximum amount you can win.
Please note: the points needed to release the bonus are calculated from the rake, i.e. the withdrawals made by the room. The rake is deducted from buy-ins (for MTTs for example) or directly from the pots.
Almost all sites operate in “No Flop No Drop” mode. If you fold before the flop (first 3 open cards) is revealed, no rake will be taken, even if you paid a blind.
One-Time Promotional Offers
In addition to the 500$, other temporary promotions and discount codes can give you the following advantages:
- Bonuses offered without depositing money (often between 5 and $20 cash)
- Free tournament tickets
The freerolls
Want to play poker without risking a big loss? All online poker sites allow you to play for free thanks to freerolls. These free poker tournaments are often offered at registration, but some sites like PokerStars regularly offer them to their loyal players.
Without betting a penny, you can try to win sums of up to several thousand dollars.
List of Rogue Online Poker Sites to Avoid
| Poker Link | Poker Name | No Deposit Bonus | Deposit Bonus | Bonus Code | Poker Software | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Whitebet Poker | – | 1000% or 1200% or 800% or 800% or 500% or 250% |
PLAY2000 PLAY1200 PLAY800 PLAY400 PLAY100 PLAY50 |
OnGame | Review |
 |
Heypoker Poker | – | 500% or 400% or 500% or 200% or 100% |
2500WELCOME 1000WELCOME 500WELCOME 100WELCOME 20WELCOME |
OnGame | Review |
 |
Genting Poker | – | 400% | No code required | Playtech | Review |
 |
bet365 Poker | – | 200% | No code required | Playtech | Review |
 |
Cool Hand Poker | – | 200% | No code required | Microgaming | Review |
 |
GNUF Poker | – | 200% | No code required | Microgaming | Review |
 |
Ladbrokes Poker | – | 200% | No code required | Microgaming | Review |
 |
Paddy Power Poker | – | 200% | PPP2000 | Playtech | Review |
 |
Players Only Poker | – | 200% | FIRST200PK | Merge Gaming | Review |
 |
Poker Heaven | – | 200% | HEAVEN | Boss Media/GtechG2 | OnGame | Review |
 |
Stan James Poker | – | 200% | No code required | Microgaming | Review |
 |
Vernons Poker | – | 200% | No code required | Playtech | Review |
 |
PKR | – | 125% or 100% or 50% |
welcome500 welcome150 welcome5 |
Proprietary | Review |
 |
PokerStars | – | 100% or 100% |
STARS600 FREE20 |
Proprietary | Review |
 |
Full Tilt Poker | – | 100% | No code required | Proprietary | Review |
 |
PokerTime | 5 | 100% | No code required | Microgaming | Review |
 |
Redbet Poker | – | 200% 100% or 200% or 500% or 400% or 500% |
FirstBossmedia FIRST20 FIRST50 FIRST100 FIRST250 FIRST500 |
Boss Media/GtechG2 | OnGame | Review |