PokerStars review

PokerStars at a glance: who it suits

PokerStars has dealt online poker since 2001 and is still the name most players associate with the game, from quick Spin & Go tournaments to the long-running SCOOP and WCOOP online series and the European Poker Tour in the live arena. Since 2020 it has been part of Flutter Entertainment plc, the NYSE-listed group behind FanDuel, Betfair, Paddy Power and Sky Bet. A casino and a sportsbook share the same account, but poker remains the main event.

This review covers the international site pokerstars.com, licensed in Malta, with notes on national versions. It suits anyone who wants poker first: beginners practising with play money, recreational tournament players and regulars looking for steady traffic and a big schedule. Sports bettors and casino-first players can use it too, but specialists in those areas usually offer more.

Key facts

Our rating

Licensing and trust

The international site runs on a Maltese licence: TSG Interactive Gaming Europe Limited holds MGA/B2C/213/2011 and is named as the operator of pokerstars.com. The MGA register lists the licence as covering casino, fixed-odds betting including live betting, and peer-to-peer poker, with eCOGRA as the dispute resolution provider. Many countries have their own licensed site instead. In Great Britain, Stars Interactive Limited holds Gambling Commission account 39108, with pokerstars, pokerstars casino and pokerstars sports among its active trading names, and the register records no regulatory actions against it.

In France, Reel Malta Limited is approved by the ANJ for poker and sports betting on pokerstars.fr and pokerstarssports.fr. In Germany, the GGL whitelist lists Reel Germany Limited for online poker and virtual slot games on pokerstars.de, while sports betting on pokerstars.de/sports is licensed to a separate group company, Cyan Blue International Limited. According to PokerStars, customer balances sit in segregated accounts with a European bank, apart from the company's own money.

Availability keeps changing. In 2026 Flutter moved PokerStars poker in the US and Ontario onto FanDuel, began offering PokerStars poker through Betfair accounts in the UK from August to pool players across its brands, and PokerStars stopped serving players in Alberta from 13 October 2026 after the province opened its own regulated market. In recent years PokerStars has also left Norway, Peru and Poland.

The brand's past includes a serious episode: in April 2011 US authorities seized the pokerstars.com domain in a case against several online poker companies, which PokerStars settled in 2012 with a $225 million payment while admitting no wrongdoing. That was long before Flutter's ownership, and today's licensing picture is strong, so PokerStars sits near the top of our trust band.

Poker games and tournaments

The poker lobby covers Texas Hold'em, Omaha, Seven Card Stud and mixed games, in cash games and tournaments that run around the clock. Spin & Go offers short jackpot-style tournaments, Zoom is a fast-fold format that moves you to a new table as soon as you fold, and All-In Poker and Power Path qualifiers add further variety. Play Money tables let newcomers learn the software without risking any money, and Home Games let you set up private games for a group of friends.

Flagship online series such as SCOOP and WCOOP, together with the PokerStars Live calendar of European Poker Tour and PokerStars Open festivals, give tournament players a schedule few rivals can match, and online qualifiers offer a route into live events.

The player pool on pokerstars.com is not the same as on ring-fenced national sites such as pokerstars.fr, so traffic, stakes on offer and the tournament schedule depend on where you live. Check the lobby for your country before assuming that a particular series or format is available to you.

Casino and sports betting

On the casino side you get a mix of classic and themed slots, some exclusive to PokerStars with jackpots of their own, plus blackjack and roulette in several versions and live dealer blackjack and roulette. Casino games are built into the poker app, and a stand-alone PokerStars Casino app exists if you prefer to keep them separate.

PokerStars Sports covers more than 30 sports according to the app listing, with football, tennis, basketball and baseball highlighted and live betting on football. It works well enough for a bet alongside a poker session, but its depth and tools are not the reason to choose PokerStars. In some countries these products run under separate licences, and in others they are not offered at all. If you only want poker, the product blocks described below let you switch the casino or sportsbook off for your account.

Software and mobile apps

PokerStars offers a downloadable client for Windows and Mac, apps for iOS and Android and a browser version that needs no download. On a phone you can still play several tables at once, and the same app opens the casino and the sportsbook. Irish App Store users rated it about 4.4 out of 5 across more than 3,000 reviews in October 2026.

The desktop client remains the most complete way to play, particularly for players who enter several tournaments at once, while the browser version is handy on computers where installing software is not possible. Play money is available on mobile too, which makes the app a low-pressure place to learn the controls.

Deposits and withdrawals

There is no single payment list: the deposits page asks for your country first and then shows what is available there. In markets covered by pokerstars.com the options include Visa, Mastercard, Apple Pay, Payz and MuchBetter, and a Fast Deposit option is built into the client for quick top-ups mid-session.

PokerStars publishes a withdrawal policy under which money may be routed back to a method you used to deposit, and segregated player funds add reassurance. We have not tested withdrawals and give no processing times; complete verification early to avoid delays when you want to cash out.

Welcome offers and promotions

PokerStars runs welcome offers for new poker, casino and sports customers and ongoing promotions for existing players. The specific offers depend on your country site and change regularly.

Each product's offers come with their own conditions, so read the terms before opting in, including any wagering requirements, qualifying stakes and expiry dates. A bonus is always optional, and taking up a poker promotion does not commit you to the casino or sportsbook.

Customer support

The PokerStars Help Centre is built around a search box, with articles grouped under headings such as Stars Account, Deposit and Withdrawal, Poker, Technical Support, Special Offers, Responsible Gaming and Events. Signing in first tailors the answers to your account, and if no article solves the problem the centre offers a Contact Us option. Responsible Gaming has its own category, so questions about limits and exclusion are easy to find.

The help pages we reviewed do not say when or how you can reach a person, so you cannot tell in advance whether chat or e-mail is offered in your country. For a brand of this size, that lack of transparency is a weakness.

Safer gambling tools

PokerStars has one of the more detailed toolkits we have reviewed. You can set weekly deposit limits, cap the cash game stakes and tournament buy-ins you are allowed to play, block casino games or sports betting entirely, and stop yourself from reversing withdrawals. That last option is small but useful: it prevents you from cancelling a pending cash-out and putting the money straight back into play.

If you need distance, you can choose a short cooling-off of 12 or 24 hours, a longer time-out of 7, 30, 60 or 120 days, or self-exclusion for at least six months, all from the account menu on desktop, mobile or the web. The responsible gaming pages also point to blocking tools such as Gamban and GamBlock and to Gambling Therapy for support.

Pros and cons

How to sign up with PokerStars

1. Check that online poker and casino play are legal where you live and that you are 18 or over, then open the PokerStars site for your country.
2. Download the client or app, or use the browser version, and create a Stars Account with details that match your identity document.
3. Complete identity verification when asked, ideally before your first withdrawal request.
4. Set a weekly deposit limit and, if you like, caps on cash game stakes and tournament buy-ins before you play for real money.
5. Deposit with a method in your own name, or start on Play Money tables while you learn the software.

Opening an account is only for adults and only where online gambling is legal for you. Decide on a budget first and use the operator's limit tools. Responsible gambling help

PokerStars FAQ

Sources

1. pokerstars.com footer – TSG Interactive Gaming Europe Limited (C54266), MGA/B2C/213/2011, copyright 2001-2026
2. Malta Gaming Authority – licence verification, TSG Interactive Gaming Europe Limited (MGA/B2C/213/2011)
3. UK Gambling Commission register – Stars Interactive Limited, account 39108 (licence summary)
4. UK Gambling Commission register – Stars Interactive Limited trading names
5. UK Gambling Commission register – Stars Interactive Limited regulatory actions (none recorded)
6. ANJ – list of approved operators (Reel Malta Limited, pokerstars.fr)
7. GGL whitelist (as of 2 Oct 2026) – Reel Germany Limited and Cyan Blue International Limited, pokerstars.de
8. Flutter Entertainment – PokerStars brand page (European Poker Tour, PokerStars Casino and Sports)
9. Flutter Entertainment – our brands (FanDuel, Betfair, Paddy Power, Sky Bet)
10. PokerStars – about (operated by Flutter, NYSE-listed)
11. Wikipedia – PokerStars (founded 2001, 2011 domain seizure and 2012 settlement, Flutter 2020, US/Ontario changes 2026, Peru exit 2024)
12. FanDuel – our story (PokerStars poker launched on FanDuel, April 2026)
13. Gaming.net – PokerStars on Betfair in the UK from 13 Aug 2026
14. Pokerfuse – PokerStars exiting Alberta on 13 October (9 Oct 2026)
15. Poker.org – PokerStars exits Polish market (2025)
16. Poker.org – PokerStars completes exit from Norway
17. PokerStars – mobile (established 2001, iOS/Android, browser play, multi-tabling)
18. PokerStars – real money (payment methods, Fast Deposit, segregated funds)
19. PokerStars help – deposit options by country and withdrawal policy
20. PokerStars Help Centre – topics and contact route
21. PokerStars – responsible gaming (limits, blocks, cooling-off, time-outs, self-exclusion, Gamban, GamBlock)
22. PokerStars – live tournaments (EPT, PokerStars Open)
23. Apple App Store (Ireland) – PokerStars poker app (casino, 30+ sports, rating)
24. Apple App Store (Ireland) – PokerStars Casino app

This review is an editorial assessment based on public information such as licence registers, terms and conditions, help pages, app store listings and reputable press reports. We did not open an account or play with real money. Products, offers and availability change often and differ by country, so check the operator's current terms before you sign up. Facts last checked on 14 October 2026.