Since this entire site revolves around poker bonus codes, we figure it would make sense to offer a basic explanation of how online poker bonuses work. You experienced players out there probably already know the basics, but new people are discovering online poker every day, so this is as good a time as any to explain the whole gist of things.

Poker bonus codes are comparable to coupon codes that you use at online stores to get discounts on purchases. The difference is that poker bonus codes are used to get extra money added to your first deposit at various online poker sites. The idea is that you sign up, make a deposit and play poker. The poker site agrees to match your first deposit on a percentage basis.

For example, Carbon Poker offers all new players a 100% bonus for up to $600 extra. So if you sign up and make a $100 deposit, Carbon Poker will give you $100 on top of that. You end up with a total of $200 in your poker account even though you only deposited $100.

What’s the catch?

There’s always a catch, isn’t there? Well in the case of poker bonus codes, the poker site asks only one thing of you in return for the bonus: to play poker. As long as you’re willing to play poker, the bonus money is yours to keep. Here’s how it works:

Let’s say you sign up at Carbon Poker and make a $100 deposit. After you make your deposit, you’ll find $100 sitting in your pending bonus account. This money is then released in $5.00 increments by playing in real money poker games and earning frequent player points. This continues until you have released the entire bonus.

A serious poker player can clear a bonus very quickly, while casual players will take a little longer. The speed of clearing a poker bonus depends on what stakes you play at, what types of games you play and how many tables you play on at a time. I’ve never had a problem clearing a poker bonus and I doubt you will either.

Why do sites use poker bonus codes?

Poker bonus codes are basically just a form of competition among poker sites. After one poker site offered a signup bonus, all the others had to follow suit to stay competitive. Poker sites know that if you become a long term player, you will more than make up for the bonus money by generating rake and keeping the games active.

Some poker sites also use bonus codes to track their marketing efforts. You will often see multiple bonus codes for one site, even though every bonus code results in the same exact signup bonus. Poker sites just use that so they can figure out which marketing campaigns are the most effective at attracting new players. Plus, I imagine the poker site feels like it adds a sense of exclusivity for the player.

And that’s really about all there is to it. You sign up, get a bonus and play poker. The poker site gets a new player and can continue to keep the games running. It’s vital to always have new players coming in, because it’s not easy to break out of that early cycle of empty tables. Everyone benefits in the end.

More Poker Articles