Online Washington, D.C. Poker Rooms

If you’re looking for poker or other poker casino games in Washington, D.C., you’re out of luck. The city has no land-based casinos, poker rooms, or other gambling venues. If you wish to gamble, you must travel outside the city limits to Baltimore, Oxon Hill, or Perryville.

Things aren’t any better in the online gambling department, either. This type of entertainment is restricted to daily fantasy sports, online lottery, and sports betting. Therefore, you won’t find any native online poker rooms or casinos. Luckily, legal restrictions pertain only to companies facilitating online gambling, so players can still play poker on offshore sites.

The guide below takes you through D.C.’s legal landscape concerning online poker. It also provides all the information you need to pick a safe and reliable offshore gambling site or poker room.

Best Online Poker Sites in Washington, D.C.

Considering Washington’s legal restrictions on online gambling, offshore online casinos are the only viable option for D.C. poker enthusiasts. However, many of these sites are unregulated and downright dangerous to play at.

Don’t worry — you won’t have to go on a time-consuming hunt for trustworthy offshore sites, as we’ve done the legwork for you. The list below is the result of a thorough assessment by our iGaming team of experts, containing sites that passed the tests with flying colors.

Choose any operator from the list, and you can be sure you’ll have a top-rated poker experience in a secure gambling environment.

• 100% Legal & Licensed
• Verified Bonus
• Mobile Friendly
• Advertiser Disclosure
  Kindly be aware that some links on Top 10 Poker Sites are affiliate links, for which we may earn a commission. Find out more on our terms & conditions

• Must be 18+ to participate.

# 1  Poker Site

5

5.0 / 5.0

100% up to $1000

18+. T&Cs Apply

Regulated by

• 100% First deposit bonus
• Top 3 in US player traffic
• Great selection of games
• Banking through cryptocurrencies

Payout speed 1-3 days

Deposit options

+10

Exclusive bonus

100% up to $1000

18+. T&Cs Apply

Visit Site Read Review

# 2

5

5.0 / 5.0

100% upto $3000

18+. T&Cs Apply

Regulated by

• Increased Poker Crypto Bonus $1500
• Exclusively for US players
• Many Payment Options
• Rich Player Traffic

Payout speed 1-3 days

Deposit options

+4

Exclusive bonus

100% upto $3000

18+. T&Cs Apply

Visit Site Read Review

# 3

4

4.0 / 5.0

200% upto $1000

18+. T&Cs Apply

Regulated by

• Recreational Player Traffic
• Get a 200% Match on Your Initial Deposit
• Wide Tournament Selection
• High-Quality Games

Payout speed 1 - 5 days

Deposit options

+9

Exclusive bonus

200% upto $1000

18+. T&Cs Apply

Visit Site Read Review

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Is Online Poker Legal in Washington, D.C.?

Online poker was briefly legalized in D.C. in April 2011, only for the regulations to be repealed in February 2012, before poker ever went live. Since then, the Washington law has considered this form of entertainment illegal.

There are no explicit mentions of poker in Chapter 17 of the Code of the District of Columbia. However, the document does mention games of chance and gambling for money, so we can safely assume poker belongs to these categories.

According to the chapter, persons who facilitate games of chance are guilty of a misdemeanor and must face legal punishment. Luckily, the city doesn’t prosecute players who participate in poker games. Moreover, offshore sites are outside of D.C.’s authority, so you don’t have to worry about legal repercussions while playing on them.

Washington, D.C. Poker Laws

You can find out more about poker laws in Washington, D.C., from the following documents:

• § 22–1701 — Lotteries; promotion; sale or possession of tickets
• § 22–1704 — Gaming; setting up gaming table; inducing play

How to Choose the Best Online Poker Room in Washington?

The poker sites on the enormous offshore poker scene all compete for players’ attention, but you shouldn’t take them at face value. Many are known to have scammed users in the past, so you should learn how to pick out the gems from the rubble.

Read on to discover the most important factors when selecting an online poker room. Our team of experts used these criteria to conduct its research, but you can also use them to check an offshore site before playing on it.

Licensing & Security

Since offshore poker rooms aren’t regulated by a domestic authority, you should check whether they have a valid operating license from other notable licensing bodies. Some examples of offshore licensing bodies include the Gibraltar Gambling Commissioner and the Malta Gaming Authority.

The possession of a license signifies that the site operates in accordance with the law and that its players are protected from scams and fraud. If the poker room doesn’t display its licensing information clearly, it’s probably not regulated, and you should avoid it.

When it comes to online gambling of any kind, security is the number one concern. An online poker room must ensure that your personal and banking information is protected from possible cyber attacks at any time.

Therefore, you should read the site’s Privacy Policy and check whether it uses firewalls and encryption tools like 128-bit SSL encryption protocols. These security measures protect the site and its users from unauthorized access.

Traffic

Even more important than the range of games and tournaments offered, player traffic can make or break an online poker site. If the site doesn’t have good traffic, you may need to wait a long time for available games to appear. Conversely, a substantial player base makes it easy to join the action while also providing healthy competition and larger prize pools.

To ensure a site has what it takes, check how many active players it has at different times during the day. You can usually find this information in the lobby or use a traffic tracker like PokerScout.

Bonuses

In a competitive offshore poker market, bonuses are a given. Naturally, you should go for sites offering the most generous promotions while maintaining reasonable bonus terms. Therefore, it’s essential to read up on the promotion rules to ensure that the wagering requirements, winning caps, and other terms aren’t too harsh or restrictive.

Game Selection

A good online poker room should offer a variety of games and tournaments you can participate in. Most sites let you play Texas Hold’em and Omaha variants, but they should also spice things up with other games, such as Razz, Seven-Card Stud, or fast-fold poker.

A poker room should also host regular tournaments of different types. You should be able to participate in freeroll, multi-table, and sit-and-go tournaments and choose from various daily and weekly events with sizable prize pools.

Tournament Depth

Most online poker rooms nowadays have at least a mobile-compatible website, if not standalone apps, for Android and iOS devices. While apps are preferable, mobile websites can also serve you well. However, you should give them a test drive to see how responsive and functional they are.

Desktop and Mobile Sites and Apps

In addition to that, you should read the banking policy to learn about the site’s deposit and withdrawal limits, fees, and transaction times. Preferably, a poker room should apply no fees to players’ transactions and should facilitate fast payouts.

Banking

When it comes to banking, not all offshore poker rooms may offer payment methods popular in Washington, D.C. Therefore, you should make sure the site accepts an array of banking options, including different types of cards and e-wallets.

Benefits of Playing Online Poker in Washington, D.C.

• Convenience — This is the most significant advantage of online poker. You can engage in your favorite gaming activity without leaving your sofa. Thanks to mobile sites, you can also play online poker wherever there’s an internet connection.
• Availability — Online poker rooms may have different levels of traffic at different times of day, but they don’t have working hours. Therefore, you can play your favorite poker games anytime, night or day.
• Lower rake — Compared to land-based casinos and poker rooms, online gambling sites generally charge lower rakes. This means you can enter the games even with a small budget and keep more of your winnings.
• Wide selection of games — Online poker rooms have a wider range of games and tournaments. Not only does this help you diversify your gaming experience, but it also makes it easier to find games that suit your skill level.
• Bonuses and promotions — iGaming market is quite competitive, so poker rooms and gambling sites must offer generous bonuses to attract players. This means an increase in bonus money, which can bolster your bankroll and provide more winning opportunities.

Famous Poker Players From Washington, D.C.

While Washington, D.C. considers land-based and online poker illegal, it has still produced many successful poker players. The most prominent names include:

• Jim Collopy — Jim has total recorded earnings of more than $4.5 million, over a million of which he won at WSOP events. His most significant achievement is second place at the 2022 Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open, where he won $614,775.
• Eric Froehlich — Eric has two tournament wins and has accumulated over $2.7 million in winnings. His highest-grossing achievement was winning first place at the 2005 36th Annual World Series of Poker, taking home $361,910.
• Cate Hall — Despite not winning any tournaments yet, Cate Hall has amassed more than a million dollars in total poker earnings. Her most notable success so far is coming fifth at the 2015 Five Diamond Classic (WPT) and walking away with $291,320.

Best Land-Based Poker Rooms in Washington, D.C.

Unfortunately, there are no land-based poker rooms in Washington, D.C. However, poker fans can take a short drive to nearby states, where they can find the following casinos with poker rooms:

FAQs

Adrian Sterne

Editor

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Hi, I am the Chief Editor of top10pokersites.net, this site is dedicated to all thing poker. I have been working around the poker industry for the last 15 years, with different brands. The main purpose of this site is to keep you uptodate with the industry and offer you the best deals around.