Ways to Play Online Poker With or Against Friends

Playing online games has become the norm these days, with technology continually improving and bringing forth new ways to enjoy your favorite pastime. Since playing games online is nothing new, many new players and poker enthusiasts are turning to online poker.

Moreover, lots of players enjoy the thrill of playing against real people instead of an RNG-based game. With this in mind, joining an online poker game with friends can be especially entertaining.

Top10PokerSites.net published step by step guide on online poker with friends. Have a look at that if you are looking for detailed guide and list of poker apps and poker sites where you can play with friends.

However, not many people know how to start an online poker game or play poker online with their friends. This article will serve as your ultimate guide to online poker games with your pals. If you’re stuck at home or prefer to play poker from the comfort of your sofa, keep reading to find out more!

Private Poker Game — Set it Up at Home

If you prefer to play poker with a select group of friends, your best option is to set up an online private poker game from home. Luckily, that isn’t a demanding task and you can get it done in a few simple steps.

There is an abundance of online sites that offer the possibility of setting up your own private poker game. Players won’t need to download any software to enjoy online poker since all games are played in-browser. All you need to do is pick a site, open it, select a game, and invite your friends to join.

There are two sites that we would recommend because they offer the best possible playing conditions. You can expect lag-free, smooth poker games on these platforms.

 PokerStars
 888 Poker

PokerStars

PokerStars has long been the leader of the online poker industry, so it’s no surprise that it serves as an excellent private poker platform. The only condition for playing a private poker game with your friends is that you all have PokerStars accounts.

PokerStars does not skimp on the selection of games or game types. Players can choose one of many available games, including Texas Hold’em, Omaha, Card Stud, and much more.

When choosing your game, you will also need to select whether you will be playing a real money game or a free one. Great news for inexperienced players is that stakes can be quite low for cash games — $0.01 or $0.02.

Whichever game you choose, you only need to send the unique game ID to your friends, and they will be able to join you for a private poker game.

888Poker

888Poker is another highly-respected online poker platform that offers the possibility of playing private poker games. The registration process and setting up the game is even simpler than on PokerStars, so you can start playing sooner.

Once you’ve registered with the site, you will need to select one of the many online poker games (Hold’em, Omaha, 7 Card Stud, Omaha Hi-Lo, Pick’em, etc.). After this, you will receive information to share with your friends, which will enable you to start playing.

888Poker is the perfect site for a friendly game of poker among a smaller group of players. The stakes vary, making it possible to place bets as low as $0.50 and up to $2.

Unfortunately, neither 888Poker nor PokerStars offers the possibility of playing private poker games on mobile platforms. Hence, you will be restricted to using your desktop or laptop computer.

Mobile Poker

Luckily, if you’re interested in playing poker on the go, downloading the PPPoker mobile app is the perfect solution that has been around for four years. Moreover, if your friends want to stick with playing poker on their computers, PPPoker also offers that option.

Players will only need to download a PPPoker app to their devices, which is entirely free. You can choose to play cash games or tournaments with your friends by setting up your club.

The club allows you to invite fellow poker players, and choose one of the currently available games — Hold’em, Omaha, and others, including even a few Chinese poker variations.

Online Poker Tournaments

Most people are not familiar with the possibility of setting up a private poker tournament with your friends. Doing this is a great way to experience the thrill of the game without having to spend a lot of money for a seat at a real poker tournament.

If you’re a competitive player, friendly online poker tournaments might be the right choice. You can set up a poker tournament online on almost any site, including the three previously mentioned, and send invitations to other players.

Eliminating other players (or your friends) from the game can be a lot of fun with the right attitude and in a friendly atmosphere. If you’re planning to set up an online poker tournament, you can choose between two popular options — a regular tournament and a rebuy tournament.

The first option is the more competitive one, with the possibility of players being eliminated just ten minutes into the game without a chance to come back. In contrast, the other one allows players to rebuy their place at the table after being removed from the game.

Online Cash Poker Games

You can also opt for a more fun-oriented way of playing poker where players do not get eliminated, but simply buy-in again and keep playing. The process of setting up a cash poker game is the same as a poker tournament.

To be specific, players can choose to play with real money or virtual money. Playing with virtual money is an excellent way for newcomers to gain some experience and begin to feel comfortable playing online poker.

However, when playing with real money, things can quickly turn from harmless and fun to serious poker business. Most cash poker options allow for low-stakes games, so players can still enjoy the game casually. Yet, some players prefer to play high-stakes games, which makes the whole experience more intense.

Final Thoughts

If you have never set up an online poker game, you might need some help getting everything ready. Asking your poker buddies to lend you a hand could be a good idea. If you’re not sure whether this is your cup of tea, give it a try and decide for yourself — trust me, it’s worth it.

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