States With Poker: Where Online and Live Poker Is Legal in the US

Legal Online Poker Sites for US Players by State

Seven brands hold state licenses in the real money online poker states, but they don’t all offer the same game. DraftKings runs a single three-handed format. WSOP Online spans four states. partypoker stays inside New Jersey.

Legal on Paper: Connecticut, Maine, and Rhode Island

Connecticut

Governor Ned Lamont signed HB 6451 on May 27, 2021. Online games went live that fall through two tribal partners, DraftKings with Foxwoods and FanDuel with Mohegan Sun. Neither partner has launched poker.

The math explains why. Connecticut has about 3.6 million residents and no permission to share players with other states. SB 1464 would have let Connecticut join the multi-state compact in 2025, but it died before adjournment, so poker in Connecticut still means the live rooms at Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun.

Maine

Maine became the newest state to legalize online poker in January 2026, when Governor Janet Mills let LD 1164 become law without her signature. The law gives each of the four Wabanaki Nations one online gaming license, a structure the announcement from Governor Mills lays out.

The statute names poker outright. Maine’s Gambling Control Unit still has to write the rules, though, and Oxford Casino filed a federal lawsuit on January 24, 2026, calling the law a race-based monopoly. Most observers expect a launch in late 2026 or 2027 at the earliest.

Rhode Island

Most poker guides count Rhode Island as a legal online poker state. The statute doesn’t support that. Rhode Island’s 2023 law defines iGaming as online slot games and “online table games” run by live dealers, and the state’s iGaming definitions never set up rules for players competing against each other.

Bally’s holds the exclusive license and opened its online product in March 2024 without any poker. For now, Rhode Island poker means the 16-table room at Bally’s Twin River Lincoln.

States With Poker: Online Poker Laws in All 50 States

Here’s where each of the states with poker stands, covering regulated online status, where live games run, and the usual minimum age for live play. Ages at tribal rooms can vary by property.

Live Poker: States Where Poker Is Legal in Person

Online poker gets the legislative attention, but most American poker still happens at a physical table, and the list of states where poker is legal in person runs far longer than the online list. The rules behind those tables vary even more.

Card Rooms in California and Florida

California runs the biggest non-casino poker industry in the country. Its licensed card rooms can’t bank games or take a percentage of each pot, so they charge flat collection fees per hand or seat rental by the half hour. Commerce Casino in Commerce and The Bicycle in Bell Gardens anchor the Los Angeles market, and no online poker bill has made real progress since AB 1677 died in the 2017-2018 session.

Florida splits its poker rooms between two systems. Section 849.086 lets pari-mutuel facilities run card rooms, while the Seminole Tribe operates its own, including 44 tables in the Draper Room at Seminole Hard Rock Tampa. The 2021 Seminole compact covers online sports betting only.

Tribal Poker Rooms

Tribes run poker under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, but poker gets unusual treatment. Because players compete against each other rather than the house, poker falls under Class II gaming, and tribes generally have to follow state law on stakes and hours.

• Arizona: Talking Stick Resort’s Arena Poker Room in Scottsdale has 69 tables and hosts a WSOP Circuit stop in November 2026.
• Oklahoma: The state has 35 tribal gaming compacts and no commercial card rooms. WinStar in Thackerville runs a 55-table room.

Texas Private Poker Clubs

Texas has no commercial casinos, yet it may have the busiest live poker growth in the country. Clubs like Texas Card House, with six locations from Austin to Edinburg, charge membership fees and hourly seat fees but never take a rake. The legal theory rests on Penal Code 47.02(b), which gives a defense when gambling happens in a private place, nobody profits beyond personal winnings, and every player faces the same odds.

The text of Penal Code Chapter 47 never mentions clubs, and officials in Dallas and Houston have challenged them. In 2023, a Dallas zoning board sided with the club Shuffle 214 after the city revoked its certificate of occupancy, and the clubs have kept operating since.

Home Games

Most states protect a friendly game, as long as nobody takes a cut. The details matter, though.

• Iowa: Iowa Code 99B.42 allows social games only when players share a real social relationship, no one takes a rake, and nobody wins or loses more than $200 in 24 hours.
• Florida: The penny-ante statute caps winnings at $10 per hand and requires the game to take place in a home, dorm, or community center.
• Hawaii: HRS 712-1231 offers a social gambling defense, but a defendant has to raise and prove it.
• New Hampshire: RSA 647:2 allows private poker games with no rake, no paid host, and no more than 10 players.
• Missouri, Wisconsin, and North Carolina: No real exception exists, even for a no-rake game at a kitchen table.

Charity Poker

New Hampshire built an entire industry on charity. Licensed charitable gaming rooms, such as Chaser’s Poker Room in Salem, deal hold’em and pot-limit Omaha, and a share of the proceeds goes to local nonprofits under the lottery commission’s oversight.

Kentucky allows poker at licensed charity fundraising events, with a cap of eight event licenses per charity each year. North Dakota lets charities deal poker at licensed sites, and Illinois runs charity poker events under its Charitable Games Act.

Underground Games

Illegal games usually put the legal risk on the host, not the players. New York shows the split clearly. Penal Law 225.05 makes promoting gambling a crime, but the statute defines a “player” as someone who gambles without profiting beyond personal winnings, and players don’t commit that offense.

New York police closed famous clubs like the Mayfair Club in 2000 and raided a wave of Manhattan rooms in 2005. The moment a host takes a rake, a legal home game turns into an illegal gambling operation, and that line holds in nearly every state.

States With No Poker Rooms

Eight states have no licensed poker rooms at all: Alabama, Alaska, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Utah. Hawaii stands out, with no lottery, no sportsbook, and no casinos, and every gambling expansion bill of its 2026 session died in committee.

Utah goes further. Article VI, Section 27 of the state constitution forbids the legislature from authorizing any game of chance, so even a bill would face a constitutional wall. Utah players who want a licensed table usually drive to Wendover or Mesquite in Nevada.

Offshore

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Regulated, Offshore, and Sweepstakes Poker

Three kinds of online poker compete for American players, and they work under completely different rules.

Regulated Sites

Regulated rooms hold a license from a state agency, use geolocation to confirm each player stands inside the state, and keep player funds in segregated accounts. They also go through independent testing before launch. The trade-off is reach, since a Georgia resident can’t touch a single one.

Offshore Sites

Ignition, Bovada, and BetOnline operate from outside the US, hold no state license, and accept Americans in most states. No state regulator oversees them, so players who hit a payment dispute have no US agency to call.

States have started pushing back hard. The list of states with Bovada Poker shrank to 31 after cease-and-desist letters from Michigan, Colorado, Tennessee, Arizona, and others. Michigan also sent letters to BetOnline on April 28, 2025, and to Ignition on July 30, 2025, yet Ignition still doesn’t list Michigan among its restricted states.

Sweepstakes Poker and the States Banning It

Sweepstakes sites like Global Poker sidestep gambling law by selling Gold Coins for fun play and giving away Sweeps Coins that players can redeem for cash. Legislators stopped buying the argument in 2025, and California’s AB 831 took effect January 1, 2026, with the text of AB 831 naming poker among the banned games. Other states passed their own laws:

• Connecticut: Public Act 25-112, signed June 24, 2025
• New York: S5935A, signed December 5, 2025
• New Jersey: a 2025 ban signed by the governor
• Indiana: HEA 1052, effective July 1, 2026
• Maine: LD 2007, effective July 14, 2026
• Louisiana: HB 883 (Act 182), effective August 1, 2026
• Tennessee: Public Chapter 1117, a broader ban on unlicensed online gambling apps, signed May 22, 2026

Bans died in Maryland, Minnesota, and Mississippi in 2026. Kentucky took a different route when Attorney General Russell Coleman sued VGW, the owner of Global Poker, on June 17, 2026.

Offshore Poker Site Reviews

Ignition

Offshore poker room

Welcome offer: 100% up to $1,000

Ignition runs one of the largest offshore poker rooms open to Americans, taking players from every state except Delaware, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, and New York. It shares the PaiWangLuo network with Bovada. Every table runs anonymously, which frustrates tracking-software users and shields recreational players. Zone Poker fast-fold games, Jackpot Sit & Gos, and about $2 million in weekly guarantees keep the lobby busy. Crypto depositors get a 150% poker match up to $1,500, while card depositors get 100% up to $1,000. A January 2026 video alleging a bot ring drew scrutiny. Ignition said the footage dated to 2022 and that it had already closed those accounts.

Play Poker at Ignition

Bovada

Offshore poker room

Welcome offer: 100% up to $500

Bovada’s poker room shares tables with Ignition, but its reach keeps shrinking. After cease-and-desist letters from Michigan, Colorado, Tennessee, Arizona, and other states, Bovada now blocks 19 states plus Washington, DC. Players in the remaining 31 states get the same anonymous tables, Zone Poker, and tournament schedule found on Ignition, including a $200,000 guaranteed Sunday event. The main appeal for many players is one account covering poker, sports, and other games. Bovada’s poker welcome bonus matches 100% up to $500, half of Ignition’s offer, and the site lists no larger crypto version.

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BetOnline

Offshore poker room

Welcome offer: 100% up to $1,000

BetOnline runs its poker room on the Chico network, sharing tables with sister site SportsBetting.ag, and pairs hold’em and pot-limit Omaha cash games with a daily tournament schedule. Guarantees on its biggest events reach $150,000. Crypto handles most cash-outs, and Bitcoin payouts typically land within 24 hours, while checks and bank wires take several business days. Regulators keep circling. Michigan’s Gaming Control Board sent BetOnline a cease-and-desist letter on April 28, 2025, then named it again among 45 offshore operators on April 7, 2026. New players can claim a 100% poker match up to $1,000.

Play Poker at BetOnline

How to Start Playing on a Regulated Poker Site

Signing up takes about 10 minutes, but the order of the steps matters, especially for the bonus.

1. Get inside a regulated state. You need to stand in Nevada, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Delaware, or West Virginia. You don’t need to live there.
2. Pick a site licensed in that state. A New Jersey player has six brands to choose from, while a West Virginia player has only BetRivers.
3. Register with your real details. Sites ask for your name, address, date of birth, and the last four digits of your Social Security number, and every one requires you to be 21.
4. Download the app and allow location access. No hand gets dealt until the site confirms where you are.
5. Opt in to the welcome offer before you deposit. BetRivers uses the code POKER, and PokerStars on FanDuel requires you to opt in to each part of its offer.
6. Keep a photo ID handy. Most sites ask for one before your first withdrawal.

How to Check a Poker Site Holds a State License

Plenty of sites look official. A few quick checks separate real licenses from marketing.

• Look for the regulator’s name in the footer. Licensed sites list the Nevada Gaming Control Board, New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement, Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, Michigan Gaming Control Board, Delaware Lottery, or West Virginia Lottery.
• Check the regulator’s own list. The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board publishes its approved online poker operators, and other regulators post similar lists.
• Count the states. A site that takes players from 31 or 45 states can’t hold a US state license, because no state license reaches past its own border.
• Look for a land-based partner. Licensed sites tie back to a licensed property or a state lottery, such as Borgata in Atlantic City or the Delaware Lottery.
• Be wary of crypto. No state-licensed poker site in the US accepts Bitcoin deposits.

Poker Apps and Location Checks

Every regulated site offers downloadable apps for iPhone and Android, plus desktop clients for Windows and Mac. The apps need location services turned on, and location software can flag a Philadelphia player whose phone grabs a cell tower across the Delaware River in New Jersey, so players close to a state line should connect over home Wi-Fi.

Offshore rooms work differently. Ignition and Bovada skip native mobile apps entirely and run poker in a phone’s browser, while both offer downloadable desktop software.

Online Tournament Series

The biggest regulated tournaments now draw from multiple states at once, and the guarantees reflect it.

• WSOP Online summer bracelet events: 30 events from May 30 to July 14, 2026, with about $7 million in guarantees
• WSOP Online fall series: 33 more bracelets from September 27 to November 10, 2026, open to players in Nevada, New Jersey, Michigan, and Pennsylvania
• PokerStars Sunday Million: Back on April 12, 2026, as part of the three-state FanDuel relaunch
• Borgata Big, Big Series: $6 million in live prizes across 11 events, with online satellites on BetMGM, Borgata, and partypoker
• BetRivers Multi-State Summer Series: August 2 to 16, 2026, with more than $450,000 in guarantees and a $200 Main Event
• Ignition and Bovada: A $200,000 guaranteed Sunday tournament plus regular Black Diamond and Golden Spade series

How Shared Player Pools Work

Online poker needs crowds. A slot machine works fine with one player, but a tournament with 40 entrants can’t compete with one that draws 400, which is why the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement matters more to poker than any single state law. The agreement lets member states pool players on licensed sites, so a Michigan player and a Nevada player can sit at the same WSOP Online table.

1. February 25, 2014: Nevada and Delaware sign the original agreement. Shared WSOP and 888 tables start in March 2015.
2. October 2017: New Jersey joins. WSOP runs the first New Jersey and Nevada tables on May 1, 2018.
3. May 23, 2022: Michigan signs on. PokerStars links Michigan and New Jersey on January 1, 2023, and WSOP adds Michigan on May 27, 2024.
4. November 2023: West Virginia joins, 19 months before any poker site opens there.
5. November 6, 2024: BetMGM connects Michigan and New Jersey.
6. April 28, 2025: Pennsylvania’s shared games begin after Governor Josh Shapiro signs the agreement.
7. June 10, 2025: BetRivers links Pennsylvania, Michigan, Delaware, and West Virginia.
8. April 1, 2026: PokerStars on FanDuel merges New Jersey, Michigan, and Pennsylvania.
9. July 8, 2026: DraftKings pools Electric Poker across the same three states.

Connecticut isn’t a member. Neither is Maine, and nothing in LD 1164 authorizes interstate pooling, a gap that could keep Maine’s market small even after a launch, since the state has only about 1.4 million residents.

Taxes on Poker Winnings

The IRS treats poker winnings as taxable income, whether they come from WSOP Online in Michigan, an offshore room in Georgia, or a Tuesday game at a Texas club. Two changes from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act hit poker players starting with tax year 2026.

• Reporting threshold: The general minimum for reporting payments rose from $600 to $2,000 for 2026. Poker tournaments report net winnings (after the buy-in) per tournament once they meet the applicable threshold, according to the IRS Form W-2G instructions.
• Withholding: Sites may withhold 24% when winnings minus the wager exceed $5,000.
• Loss deductions: Players who itemize can now deduct only 90% of gambling losses, and still only up to the amount of their winnings. A player who wins $50,000 and loses $50,000 in 2026 can deduct $45,000 and owes tax on the other $5,000.

That last change matters most for high-volume players, who can now owe tax in a year when they broke even.