Online Poker in Singapore
Poker is a family of card games that share common elements but have distinct rules and strategies. The most popular form is Texas Hold'em, which is often the focus of poker tournaments and casual games.
Online poker, which first appeared in the late 1990s, grew alongside the rapid expansion of the internet. Various forms of poker are available at Singapore online casinos, such as casino poker, video poker, live dealer poker, and you can find the best casinos offering online poker games below.
As for actual online poker rooms, where you can play cash games and tournaments against fellow players, these are only available at a couple of reputable SG casinos.
Best Singapore Casinos for Online Poker
How to Play Poker Online
While different variants of games like online Baccarat and online Roulette all resemble one another and have virtually identical rules, same cannot be said of Singapore poker games. Each of them has its own set of rules that needs to be read carefully before playing, so if you are looking to play online poker games, then you should definitely start with poker hand rankings.
Once you learn all poker hands from strongest to weakest, any other rules that you come across will be much easier to follow. Another thing to bear in mind that in some poker variants a poker hand consists of five cards, in others the strongest hand consists of two or three cards, so make sure to always get acquainted with the rules for the game you are about to play.
Regardless of whether you play online poker at live dealer tables or at RNG operated tables, you will be playing against the house and not versus other players. The main object of the game is for your hand to be stronger than the dealer’s, while certain games also feature bonus bets that can be won even if your hand loses.
As this is by far the most popular poker game at online casinos in Singapore, we’ll use Casino Hold’em as an example for how you can play online poker games.
Main Bet
- The main objective is to obtain the best possible five-card hand, using your own two cards and five community cards, and beat the dealer.
- Before the cards are dealt, you need to place the Ante bet.
- You will then receive two cards face-up and the dealer will receive two cards face-down. Three community cards are also dealt.
- At this point you need to decide whether to Fold or Play on. If you choose to continue, you will need to place a bet equal to 2x the Ante bet.
- If you Fold, the Ante bet is surrendered and you wait for the next hand.
- After you place a Play bet, the dealer will reveal last two community cards and his own two cards.
- The hands are compared and the winner is announced.
- It is important to note that the dealer needs to have a pair of 4’s or higher to qualify.
Side Bets
Bonus bet can be placed alongside the Ante bet in Casino Hold’em. The outcome is determined only by the first hand of five cards, i.e., your own two cards and the first three community cards.
A pair of Aces or higher-ranking hand is required for the Bonus bet to award a payout. The payout obviously depends on your hand strength and it ranges from 7:1 to 100:1. You can check out all the outcomes with corresponding payouts below.
Outcomes
| Result | ANTE | PLAY |
|---|---|---|
| Dealer does not qualify | Win | Push |
| Dealer qualifies and you win | Win | 1:1 |
| Dealer qualifies and you lose | Lose | Lose |
| Dealer qualifies and you tie | Push | Push |
| Player folds | Lose | Lose |
Ante Payouts
| Hand | Payout |
|---|---|
| Royal Flush | 100:1 |
| Straight Flush | 20:1 |
| Four of a Kind | 10:1 |
| Full House | 3:1 |
| Flush | 2:1 |
| Straight | 1:1 |
| Three of a Kind | 1:1 |
| Two Pairs | 1:1 |
| One Pair or less | 1:1 |
Bonus Payouts
| Hand | Payout |
|---|---|
| Royal Flush | 100:1 |
| Straight Flush | 50:1 |
| Four of a Kind | 40:1 |
| Full House | 30:1 |
| Flush | 20:1 |
| Straight | 7:1 |
| Three of a Kind | 7:1 |
| Two Pairs | 7:1 |
| One Pair or less | 7:1 |
Most Popular Online Poker Games in Singapore
Online poker is not as popular in Singapore as Baccarat or Fishing casino games, and there are not too many highly regarded providers developing poker games. Evolution stands head and shoulders above the competition, while BBIN, SA Gaming, Dream Gaming, and World Entertainment are the other providers worth the mention.
Evolution Poker Games
B9Casino and AW8 offer the best selection of Evolution poker games, and almost all of these are played at live dealer tables, with First Person Video Poker the only exception. The games on offer include several variants of Texas Hold’em or Casino Hold’em, Triple Card Poker, Caribbean Stud Poker, Side Bet City, and live dealer version of Video Poker.
All these games are quite interesting, they feature impressive visual and sound effects, and offer numerous betting opportunities via main and side bets. The return to player percentages are quite high for their games, especially for main and Ante bets.
- Casino Hold’em (97.84%)
- 2 Hand Casino Hold’em (97.84%)
- First Person Video Poker (97.96%-99.54%)
- Video Poker (97.96%-99.54%)
- Extreme Texas Hold’em (99.47%)
- Triple Card Poker (95.51%-96.63%)
- Caribbean Stud Poker (98.19%)
- Texas Hold’em Bonus Poker (97.96%-99.47%)
- Side Bet City (94.34%-96.69%)
BBIN Poker Games
BBIN is an Asian provider of both live dealer and blockchain games, and they definitely deserve a place on this page. The only live casino version of online poker they offer is Bull Bull, and it is a pretty standard version of the popular Chinese game. If you prefer blockchain wagers and playing against the computer, then you will have a choice between Blockchain Three Card Poker, Blockchain 3 Face, Blockchain Hi Lo, Blockchain Lucky 5 Cards, and Blockchain Bull Bull. This is a pretty decent selection of online poker games with varying rules, bet types and payouts, and you can find all these at IB8 Casino.
World Entertainment Poker Games
If you are into Asian style online poker games, then make sure to check out what World Entertainment has to offer at Uwin33 casino. Their Bull Bull and Win 3 Cards are available in both the live dealer environment and as blockchain games, so this is definitely a great addition to the Singapore online poker scene.
Bull Bull involves dealing five cards each to Banker, Player 1, Player 2, Player 3, and comparing its strengths. The main objective here is not only to beat the Banker, but also get the strongest possible hands as the payouts range from 0.95:1 for Normal hand to 4.75:1 for Supreme hand.
In Win 3 Cards, three cards each are dealt to Gold and Silver sides before hands are compared to one another. You have the option to bet on Gold, Silver or a number of special hands. Payouts range from 0.95:1 to 120:1.
Other Poker Games
Besides the one I already covered, there are not too many other poker games you will find at online casinos in Singapore.
Pok Deng from SA Gaming is hosted in a live dealer environment, and it is in many ways similar to online Baccarat. Each player receives two cards and his hand is compared to the dealer’s with 9 being the highest score and the best result. In addition to the standard Player bet, you can also bet on Player Pair or a number of special bets with high payouts.
Three Card poker from Dream Gaming is available in live dealer and blockchain version. The game uses standard poker hand rankings, with three cards each being dealt to Red and Black areas. A number of special bets make this game even more interesting, with payouts going up to 120:1.
Meanwhile, Gembet casino has an outstanding selection of Video Poker and table poker games, offering 50+ different titles, while you can also try Casino Holdem (Creedroomz), Bet-on-Poker (BetGames) and 6+ Poker (BetGames) at live dealer tables.
Strategy & Tips for Playing Poker Online in Singapore
Playing poker games online in Singapore can be an entertaining activity, but, with such a diverse game portfolio, it may not be easy to find your true match. Having tested a huge number of online poker games myself over the past 10+ years, I will try to help you out with some poker strategy and tips that some of you should find useful.
- Try and register accounts at several online casinos in Singapore in order to get access to more poker games.
- Play the games with high return to player percentage whenever possible.
- Bonus bets often offer significantly lower RTP’s than main bets, so steer clear of bonus wagers if you want to improve your winning chances in the long run.
- Make sure to get properly acquainted with the game rules before playing as some of these games can be quite complicated.
- Learn about poker hand rankings and probabilities in order to make better decisions when playing Casino Hold’em and similar games.
- If you enjoy Video Poker games, stick to Jacks or Better as this variant has by far the lowest house edge.
- Even though bonus bets and special wagers with high payouts can be quite tempting, these are usually not a good idea as winning odds are very slim.
- Playing online poker should be a fun activity. Never bet more than you can afford to lose.
