Best Poker Sites for Beginners

Mark Patrickson• 14,240 Views • on 29/1/21

To find out which are the best poker sites for beginners, the PokerVIP team has been busy testing all the different options

Taking up poker as a hobby can be a daunting experience. The game is tough enough as it is even without considering all the different places to play and the plethora of software add-ons.

Back in 2003, when online poker exploded into a massive industry, all of the sites were similar. For sure, there were small sites and big sites, but for the most part they all had a similar spread of skill levels.

Today, in 2021, the situation is different. Following Black Friday in April 2011 the industry was forced to reinvent itself with each site having their own ideas on how best to proceed. The net result of this was some became unsuitable for beginners for various reasons.

To find out which are the best poker sites for beginners, the PokerVIP team has been busy testing all the different options. Our criteria were simple and we are confident that our final choices are perfect for any new players of the game.

Unibet

Why Play at Unibet?

Unibet is a great place to play poker for anybody, but for beginners is a great choice for a few reasons.

We couldn’t find another poker platform that is as dedicated to giving casual players an enjoyable experience. The management at Unibet clearly set the stall out for their business when they made it known that software assistance, such as databases and heads up displays - HUDs - would not be welcome.

It is no secret that the last 13 years saw a massive increase in the skill level of the average player. For this reason it became much tougher for beginners to compete. Many simply walked away from the game before they ever really got going. The assistance of a HUD only widened the gap even more and this was not a good result for the poker community as a whole.

Beginners can sign up for a Unibet account in the full knowledge that they will be protected from predatory behaviour by sharks using all manner of tools to increase their advantage.

Unibet is all about making the game fun for everyone.

Customer Service

The customer service at Unibet is conducted via a 24/7 live chat facility where any questions will be answered promptly. New players are able to quickly resolve any issues that prevent them from enjoying their poker experience.

Bonuses and Promotions

EU: €200 Bonus + Free €10.

UK: £500 Bonus + Free £20 Playthrough Bonus.

Rakeback is rewarded based on the Unibet VIP Program which differs per game variant.

Tournament freerolls run on a regular basis, allowing beginners to gain experience without investing real money at the start of their poker career.

Software

The Unibet software has a wide range of customisable features that are geared towards recreational players. From background choices to avatars representing the player, it’s all there.

One particularly useful feature for beginners is the option to change your identity up to three times every day. This helps to protect them from the more experienced players who are quick to observe any mistakes and later exploit them.

The visual experience is very pleasing to the eye. Players who already folded are blurred out, helping players to speed up the game flow. The deck can be switched to a four-colour setting to avoid embarrassing errors of misidentification of suits.

Hand strength is clearly highlighted. This is a major help for first-time players who worry about misreading the board under time pressure.

Another helpful setting that beginners might find handy is to be able to view cash game stacks in big blinds rather than monetary amounts.

This is a way to concentrate on playing the game by avoiding making decisions based on the money at risk.

Game Toughness

Unibet has some of the softest games players will ever experience. The nature of the platform is aimed at pleasing casual players with both general policies and the software. It is definitely not ideal for professionals looking to play more than 20 cash game tables at once while extracting the maximum profit from their opponents.

These points are responsible for keeping the sharks well away.

There is no better site out there for soft games right now.

Summary

The combination of soft games and an environment aimed at preventing predatory behaviour makes Unibet an ideal place to start your poker career.

TigerGaming

Why Play at TigerGaming?

TigerGaming is 22-years old, so we can safely assume that the company operates with integrity. Coupled with a constantly high player approval rating players can be confident that their funds are safe.

Currently operating on the Chico Network, TigerGaming is currently undergoing a renaissance. Traffic figures have risen considerably during 2020 improving the quality of the games. The network now sits in the top 15 for traffic figures.

As you will see below, the welcome bonus on offer is reason enough on its own to make TigerGaming the best place to play poker as a beginner.

Some software packages that offer in-game assistance are banned but databases and HUD’s are allowed.

Customer Service

TigerGaming also doesn’t offer telephone support for their customers but that really isn't a reason to consider playing elsewhere, most other things being equal. There is still 24/7 live chat and email support to put the minds of beginners at rest over any issues they might face taking their first steps into online poker.

Bonuses and Promotions

The bonus for TigerGaming is as good as it gets in this industry.

Deposit at least $50, and as much as $1,000, and TigerGaming will match it!

This 100% bonus is released in chunks of $5 as you pay rake through playing hands. Every $50 of rake paid unlocks a chunk.

The following promotions are just the icing on the cake.

Win up to $150,000 JACKPOT SIT & GOES

With buy-ins starting from $3, these 3-player Hyper-Turbo Sit & Go's serve up a shot at landing the MAX PRIZE (5,000x your buy-in), OR triggering a progressive Jackpot prize, in which you’ll play for a share of 85% of the Jackpot (15% reseeds the next one).

That means a monster $150,000 is up for grabs at the highest limit ($30 buy-in)!

Jackpot Sit ‘n Go’s! $1 Million Windfall

These are 3-player Hyper-Turbo Sit & Go with buy-ins between $3 and $30 with a random prize pool that can now go to up to 100,000x your buy-in with the new $1M Windfall Jackpot.

Once you choose your buy-in watch the spinner in the center of the table to see how much cash you could be playing for, then the game will play out fast and furious.

$10,000 Survivor Freerolls

Starting January 4th, 2021 the poker tables are at war in Survivor contest rewarding poker players with cash prizes from weekly Freerolls running Sundays at 1:00 pm ET.

Each week there is a daily challenge available to players Monday through Saturday. Players have to survive each day.

On Sundays, all players that survived will get to play in a Survivor’s Freeroll.

Beat the competition and win the top prize in your Sunday Survivor Freeroll. Challenge yourself and play all 4 events with $10,000 in prizes.

$40,000 in Cash Game Leaderboards
$20,000 in Sit & Go Leaderboards

Tournament freerolls also run throughout the day just as with Unibet.

Software

TigerGaming recently updated their software client to include full usability on both PC and mobile devices. It is bug free and gameplay tends to be smooth without any interruptions.

The interface is clean and simple to understand and lends itself to multitabling more so than Unibet which some beginners might prefer.

Game Toughness

The games on TigerGaming are comparable to Unibet. If there are softer games out there than these two sites then they are unknown to the community for the most part.

Summary

TigerGaming is another suitable choice for a beginner with game toughness around the same level as Unibet. What is different is the interface is more suited for players who wish to learn how to multi table effectively while using a HUD.

Our Verdict

Beginners who are treating poker as a casual bit of fun and have no ambition to ever take the game more seriously might have a more relaxed time at Unibet. Those who have ambition to go further in the game will learn the ropes of using HUDs and other software on TigerGaming.

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Author

Mark Patrickson

Mark Patrickson is a professional cash game player grinding stakes up to 100nl 6 Max NL Hold'em13 years experience of poker, across MTT SnG and cash, FL PL NL.Currently living in South East Asia and trying to make it back to mid-stakes befo ... Read More