Poker Stars Review

Review last updated on March 21, 2023

Poker Stars was launched in 2001, during the gold rush of online poker, at a time when all types of player were testing the waters. Since then, other online poker rooms have fallen by the wayside, but Poker Stars has remained successful as one of the strongest brands.

Come 2014, the brand was purchased by current parent company Amaya, now renamed as The Stars Group. From a licensing standpoint, Poker Stars is capable of operating in a variety of jurisdictions. Among the licences held are those from the Isle of Man and Malta, alongside a variety of European nations and US states.

Profile

Awards

GIA Poker Operator 2020

GGA Online Poker Operator of the year 2020

IGA Online Poker Operator 2019

GGA Online Poker Operator of the year 2019

IGA Online Poker Operator of the Year 2016

EGR Poker Operator 2016

IGA Online Poker Operator of the Year 2015

EGR Poker Operator 2015

IGA Online Poker Operator of the Year 2014

EGR Poker Operator 2014

IGA Online Poker Operator of the Year 2013

Games

Poker Stars runs on proprietary software that is developed and updated in-house, like with most major operators. A smoother Aurora engine means that the action is now processed more efficiently and that the graphics can be even crisper across a wider variety of devices.

Poker Variants

Poker Stars provides how-to guides that explain Texas hold’em and a whole heap of other poker variants. Ones that are most familiar would be Omaha, Omaha Hi/Lo, 5 Card Omaha, 5 Card Omaha Hi/Lo, Stud, Stud Hi/o, and Five-card Draw.

A glance at the other guides shows that Poker Stars also covers an array of lesser-known or sometimes even played variants. Nevertheless, watch out for Courchevel, Courchevel Hi/Lo, Razz, 2-7 Triple Draw, 2-7 Single Draw, HORSE, 8-Game Mix, Hold'em/Omaha, Badugi, Showtime Hold’em, and Fusion.

Great Selection of Games

10 different online poker games are available at Poker Stars.

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Screenshots

Banking

Poker Stars presents a wide variety of suitable deposit methods, catering to players who prefer credit/debit cards, eWallets, eVouchers, or bank transfers. In fact, VISA, MasterCard MuchBetter, NETELLER, and Skrill are suitable for engaging the Fast Deposit feature. Quite simply, this speeds up the processing time when visiting the cashier.

Additional deposit methods are also accepted, such as Maestro, PayPal, Local Bank Transfer, PokerStarsTopUp, paysafecard, NeoSurf, Direct Bank Transfer, Wire Transfer, and Rapid Transfer. Not all deposit methods are suitable for withdrawals, so be sure to check with the Poker Stars cashier.

Payment Methods

Name

Deposit

Withdrawal

AstroPay

MasterCard

MuchBetter

NETELLER

PayPal

QIWI Wallet

Skrill

Todito Cash

Visa

WebMoney

Yandex Money

paysafecard

Check

IPayHere

Maestro

Moneta

Payd

Solo card

Wire Transfer

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Mobile

The option is there for Poker Stars users to sign in directly from their web browser, but it makes much more sense to download the dedicated software client or app. This route to play is intended to provide the most stable gaming experience possible.

For desktop, there are dedicated applications that can be downloaded and installed to either Windows or MacOS. On smartphone or tablet, meanwhile, there are Poker Stars mobile apps that can be installed to Android or iOS devices.

VIP & Bonuses

Offers are always open to change, but the Poker Stars welcome offer typically encourages new players to deposit and receive a free play opportunity. Beyond that, players can get involved in sit & go tournaments, leaderboard competitions, and prize draws.

Stars Rewards is a loyalty initiative that promises to tailor rewards to players. Basically, the system is driven by playing poker hands with real money. In turn, this leads to reward points that can open chests for the chance to gain Stars Points that are then redeemed with the Rewards Store.

Poker Tournaments

A mind-boggling variety of tournament types are used in the schedule, including Heads-Up, Sit & Go, Multi-Stack, All-in Shootouts, Knockouts, Spin & Go, Turbo, Zoom, and too many others to name. Thankfully, Poker Stars provides a full list of explanations of how each tournament variety works.

In the main schedule, look out for Major Tournaments in the form of Saturday Line-Up, Sunday Warm-Up, Sunday Storm, Sunday Million, Sunday Billion, Hot Turbos, and Bounty Builders. Each one can be found in the schedule, listing details relating to buy-in, rebuy (if available), rake, and prize payouts.

A special mention has to go to the Annual Series, comprising of huge prize funds that are given out in even bigger tournaments. Examples in the yearly options include MicroMillions, WCOOP, SCOOP, and Turbo Series.

Poker Events

Players can even have the chance to enter special events to compete against the pros. This can be undertaken either by flying out to play in tournaments or else through going head-to-head online via YouTube and Twitch. Any upcoming opportunities can often be found shown on the homepage.

Qualification for the special events usually begin with entry to a freeroll, with rebuys sometimes available. Depending on the size of the event, this can lead to entry to further Satellite tournaments. Eventually, the winner and the highest finishers identified will win a prize package guaranteeing their entry to the main tournament.

Security & Fairplay

The standard Poker Stars site does not make all security information available in web browsers. As such, it is recommended to install either the desktop poker client or mobile app in order to benefit from the full level of secure sockets layer (SSL) encryption provided by PokerStars.

At the time of this Poker Stars review, it can be confirmed that the site holds a Certificate of Integrity from independent auditor Gaming Labs International (GLI). A pass was issued after GLI tested the fairness of the random number generator (RNG) used by Poker Stars.

Certificate of Security	Yes / SSL