The Best Poker Sites for Texas Hold'em

Texas Hold'em is the most popular poker variation in the world and it can be found at every poker site out there. If you’re looking for the best Texas Hold'em poker sites, this page is just for you. The following online poker sites are considered by poker players to be the best places to play Texas Hold'em poker.

These Texas Hold'em poker rooms are ranked according to their overall quality of games, traffic levels, and variety of stakes, specifically for Texas Hold'em players. There’s always room for a little debate but these poker sites are generally recognized as the top Texas Hold'em poker sites. Feel free to visit any or all of these sites to help you choose the poker site that best fits your needs.

Poker Sites Offering Real Money Hold'em Cash Games

Rank	Poker Site	USA	Sign Up Bonus	Bonus Code	Play Now!
1	Ignition Poker		100% up to $2000	n/a - use links	» www.IgnitionCasino.eu
2	Bovada Poker		100% up to $500	n/a - use links	» www.Bovada.lv
3	Bet Online Poker		100% to $2500	n/a - use links	» www.BetOnline.com
4	Intertops Poker		100% up to $600	n/a - use links	» www.Intertops.com
5	Sportsbetting		100% to $2500	n/a - use links	» www.Sportsbetting.eu
6	America's Cardroom		100% to $2000	n/a - use links	» AmericasCardroom
7	Blackchip Poker		100% to $2000	n/a - use links	» BlackchipPoker

What Makes a Great Texas Hold'em Poker Site?

We must admit, it was kind of tough to pick only three Texas Hold'em sites for this page. There are literally hundreds of online poker sites out there, and every single one of them offers Texas Hold'em games in one form or another. With that in mind, here are the criteria we used for picking the best poker sites for Hold'em games:

• Significant Player Traffic. This is the most important aspect - you need players to play against. All of the sites on this page have enough players online around the clock to spread at least mid-stakes cash games and SNGs up to the $50 level. During peak hours you can play high stakes Hold'em games at any of the sites on this list.
• Easy to Beat Competition. The Hold'em sites on this list are (other than Full Tilt) some of the weakest poker sites online. This means that you will have an easier time making money than if you were playing at a site like PokerStars which has much stiffer competition. In fact, by switching from PokerStars to Ultimate Bet you could reasonably expect to increase your ROI without changing anything about your strategy.
• Cash Games, MTTs, and SNGs. This is another important aspect - you should be able to play Hold'em cash games, tournaments, and sit and gos at the top Texas Hold'em sites. All of the sites on this list offer all three.

Any of the poker sites on this page are a great choice for Texas Hold'em players. If you wish to play Texas Hold'em online but don't know how to play the game yet, read on for the full rules of Texas Hold'em.

How to Play Texas Hold'em

Texas Hold'em is played as a community card game. In other words, some of the cards are dealt on the table and are shared by all the players in the game. In Texas Hold'em, each player receives two hole cards and may combine those cards with any of the five community cards to form the best possible five card poker hand. The player with the best hand wins the pot.

The Blinds

The blind are mandatory bets that are paid by two players at the beginning of each hand. The player to the left of the dealer must pay the small blind, which is equal to half of one minimum bet. The player to the left of that person must pay the big blind, which is equal to one full minimum bet.

Many Texas Hold'em games use a full time dealer so that the players don’t have to pass the deck around table. In these games, a small disc is used to represent the position of the dealer each hand. That disc is called the “dealer’s button.”

The Deal

After the blinds are paid, the dealer deals two cards face down to each player. These cards are dealt one at a time, beginning with the player to the left of the dealer.

Preflop Betting Round

This betting round begins with the player to the left of the blinds. The players now take turns calling, folding and raising until each player has either matched the current bet or folded.

The Flop

The dealer now places three cards face up in the middle of the table. These cards are shared by all the players at the table. Another round of betting begins but this time the first player to the left of the dealer begins the betting round. The players may check, bet, raise and fold.

The Turn

One card is dealt face up in the middle of the table. This is the fourth community card. The players now have a betting round that begins with the first player to the left of the dealer.

The River

One more card is dealt face up in the middle of the table. This card is the fifth and last community card. One more round of betting takes place, beginning with the first player to the left of the dealer.

After this betting round, the remaining players may now reveal their hands. The player with the best five card poker hand, using any combination of his hole cards and the community cards, wins the pot.

Further Texas Hold'em Reading

• Now that you know the rules of Texas Hold'em (as well as all of the best poker sites for playing Hold'em), check out our advanced strategy guide for No Limit Hold'em to learn how to beat the online games.
• My friend Greg runs ThePokerBank.com, which in my opinion is the best Texas Hold'em-specific site online. He has dozens of Texas Hold'em strategy articles as well has his picks for the best Texas Hold'em poker sites.