Playing low stake poker games online can be a great way to build up an initial bankroll. You might just enjoy playing these games, because well they’re low risk and fun.
Whatever the reason is penny poker games such as playing stakes as low as 1 cent 2 cent poker do exist. I like to call these games the lower end of the barrel to what’s available.
I do believe you should eventually move up once your bankroll allows you to since you’ll likely be grinding out a few thousand dollars max per month playing these games. And that’s if you’re putting in some serious volume.
Why Play Low Stakes?
- Higher Win Rate
Also known as micro stakes games you should be able to grind out a profit much easier. The idea is to sit back and wait for good hands and play them to the best of your abilities. For example, you will be folding almost everything in these games except for your premium hands such as AA, AK, AQ, KK, JJ, etc.
- Not Much Thinking
This is a good thing. You won’t be using much brain power to play these games as you’ll be on autopilot waiting for hands and playing them optimally. This means multi tabling to see more hands per hour makes a lot of sense.
- Multi Tabling
You need to multi tabling when playing these games. I would say it’s a must. It will help increase your win rate per hour and you should eventually grind out a nice profit as long as you’re using a sound poker strategy. Like the one I already mentioned ABC poker style.
Okay, now that I’ve gone over some of the basics of playing this type of poker format, let’s look at some of the top low stake poker sites. I’ve played on and tested each one out to save you the hassle.
1. Ignition Poker
Ignition Poker is currently my top pick if you’re looking for easy competition with great software. The players on here are simply not very good, especially at the low to mid stake games. And this is from my own experience playing here for years.
If you do manage to win the pay out times are always under 15 minutes via cryptocurrency. They also provide bank wire and other methods to get your money out as well. You can play up to 4 tables at a time and customize each table with different colors and card deck options which is very cool.
The game selection is also large since player traffic tends to dip over 6000 players at the most active hours. This ensures you will have no problem finding a game whether it’s a cash game, sit and go, or large multi table tournament.
Speaking of tournaments, they offer up to millions of dollars per month on here in guaranteed prizes. They also have great bonus options for first-time players. You can learn more about Ignition Poker here.
2. Bovada Poker
Bovada Poker is one of the most reputable and reliable low stakes poker sites in the game. They’ve been operating now for over 10 years and have great software and customer service.
They run on the same network as Ignition, meaning it’s a shared player pool from each site. This is a good thing since the traffic is larger with a lot of less experienced players sitting at the tables.
Which is why I think it’s good to play on here because it tends to be easier to win in my opinion. Getting paid is also very smooth via cryptocurrency, and they provide 24-hour live chat support if you ever run into a problem.
I wouldn’t even hesitate to give them a try, especially since they have all kinds of great bonus offerings as well for first-time players. You can learn more about Bovada here.
3. BetOnline Poker
BetOnline Poker is another excellent option for crushing the low stakes online poker games. They have very low limits here at 1 cent 2 cent which is about as cheap as it gets. This is also one of the oldest poker rooms online being around now since the very early 2000’s.
They have a great reputation for taking care of players with good customer service, and a solid rewards program for regular players.
The mobile poker app has also improved drastically in the last few years, making it very competitive with everything else available in the poker market. I honestly, am starting to think it’s one of the best and plays great in both landscape and portrait mode.
Getting started here is very straightforward. They also have a full-blown sport book and lots of slot games if you would like to dabble in that area. You can learn more about BetOnline here.
4. ACR Poker
Next up we have Americas Cardroom. Also known as ACR Poker, this is one of the largest poker rooms in terms of tournament offerings. They have literally millions of dollars in prizes every single month. You can also buy into the Venom Series which is one of the biggest tournaments online with a 10-million-dollar prize pool.
I must admit the cash games on here are a bit harder than other sites. However, the software is top notch and allows you to create custom avatars, and chat with other players at the table.
The social aspect of playing ACR Poker can’t be overlooked, and I think it’s one of the reasons they’ve been so successful in the space. They also have good customer service via email support and fast withdrawal options via cryptocurrency. You can learn more about ACR Poker here.
5. Sportsbetting.ag Poker
Last up we have Sportsbetting.ag Poker. Don’t let the name fool you, they do offer sports and casino games, but the poker is excellent here as well.
They currently share the same player pool with BetOnline and have been in business for a long time. In that time, they’ve created an awesome place to crush low stake poker games on the regular.
The player traffic here is good especially at peak playing times like late at night or the weekends. And the competition is very soft here, but I wouldn’t recommend bluffing a lot. Most players here like to call you down with whatever you have.
You can also do things like add custom avatars to your player profile, change color and design of tables, and card decks. The chat box feature here also works well if you want to socialize with other players, or possibly yap at them for cracking your pocket aces.
Okay, seriously though this is another good option to check out if you want to add them into the mix. I would also recommend checking out some of the poker bonuses for first-time players because they are very good. You can learn more about Sportsbetting.ag Poker here.
Excelling at Low Stakes
If you want to become a successful low stakes grinder aggression needs to be applied. You obviously want to have a strategy which I already mentioned for what hands to play. But you also need to be aggressive with those hands.
The thing is that when you’re playing the penny tables players will often play a lot of junk hands. In these games it doesn’t make sense to slowly play your pocket aces or king’s pre-flop.
You need to be aggressive as possible so that they think you’re either bluffing or continue calling you with second or third pair.
And accept that not everyday you play will be a winning day. Sometimes the micro stakes can be brutal with people stacking you off with hands like Jack Ten off suit all in against your Ace King. These things tend to happen, just accept it and continue playing good poker.
Final Thoughts
It’s never too late to get started playing some micro stakes poker sites to work on your game. The goal of playing these games really should be to grow your initial role and move up levels. Competition will get harder later but if you’re not pushing yourself in the realm of online poker what’s the point?
Or that’s how I look at it anyways. Also, keep in mind that you will need some kind of strategy if you hope to win consistently at these games. This could mean you fold everything except for premium hands. It’s up to you, just go into each session with an idea of how you’re going to play.
I also want to give you some advice on giving yourself a cash out. Once you’ve doubled your initial roll it be a good idea to withdrawal it completely. This would allow you to play with house money and see if you’ve got what it takes to succeed at this. And you won’t be that upset if things go south.
Just remember to play responsibly and have fun. Poker is a game we all love to play but it can be brutal at times as well. Take it all in stride and keep a level head while playing and you’ll do just fine.
