The first site went live in November 2013, making New Jersey one of the early adopters of regulation online poker. Since then, a steady stream of operators have joined the party with several more on the horizon.
Here’s a list of the current real money online poker sites operating legally in NG under state law. We’ll update this list as new ones hit the scene.
NJ online poker sites
WSOP/888Poker NJ
888poker and the World Series of Poker combined to form perhaps the strongest partnership in US online poker rooms. This alliance has spanned the globe, from India to Spain to New Jersey.
New Jersey players can play on the WSOP network using the 888poker software. Players use either client to access both brands and share the same liquidity.
No Deposit Bonus Slots You Need to Play - Check #5 Out!The WSOP and 888Poker share their player pools in New Jersey, creating the largest online poker site in the state.
The two brands also join forces each summer for the WSOP.com Online Championships in Nevada, New Jersey, and Delaware. Players in all three states combine to play for WSOP gold bracelets and significant prize pools.
This partnership gives the WSOP/888Poker NJ network significant brand recognition and cachet. It hosts all of the official WSOP online bracelet events along with WSOP Circuit events.
Borgata/PartyPoker NJ
Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa partnered with PartyGaming to relaunch PartyPoker in New Jersey.
Under the terms of the agreement, PartyPoker handles the software and network operations while Borgata brings its name and reputation to help market the site.
The reborn site launched in 2016 after taking a few years off in the US following the UIGEA in 2006.
PartyPoker has endured its share of ups and downs over the years but returns to the US market with a strong product and some exciting innovations such as Chance Cards and Chat Wheel.
The Borgata-PartyPoker NJ network competes in the mid-to large stakes tournaments during the WSOP International Circuit online events. While not quite as robust as those offered by WSOP/888 or PokerStars, they still draw a sizeable crowd.
PokerStars MI
After a lengthy legal battle, PokerStars received its VoIP gaming conditional license in May 2021 and soft-launched on June 27, 2021. A hard launch date was set for March 29, 022.
Resorts Digital partnered with The Star Group to bring PokerStars back to New Jersey after a nearly eight-year absence.
PayPal Casino Sites That Accept Deposits in 2023Anyone aged 21 years or older can make a deposit and play real-money poker on PokerStars NJ from any location within the Garden State.
BetMGM / partypoker NJ (formerly partypoker US Network)
BetMGM Poker NJ is a multi-platform that combines BetMGM Poker (powered by partypoker) and partypoker US. Previously called the partypoker US Network, it consists of three skins – BetMGM Poker, Borgata Poker, and partypoker NJ.
All three share the same network and playerpool, so you’re playing on the same tables regardless of which skin you’ve downloaded. You can even log in with your partypoker account if you created one before the merger.
BetMGM is the larger-faced of the two brands. It operates poker alongside BetMGM Casino and BetMGM Sportsbook , while partypoker has long been a standalone brand. Roar Digital, a 50/50 joint venture between GVC and MGM, manages both BetMGM Poker and partypoker US.
Casinos Near Amarillo That Are Worth the Short Road TripIf the names involved aren’t compelling enough, partymaker Ronnie Wood of The Rolling Stones is also a brand ambassador for partypoker US.
For a limited time, new players joining via our review pages can claim $30 free (no deposit required), plus an 100% deposit match bonuses worth up to $1,000. For more details, visit our dedicated BetMGM NJ review page or head there now to sign up.
Pala Interactive NJ
Harry Lovejoy Kirsch died in 1962, but the legend of the humble Tunica dealer lives on through his heirs. Four members of the Pala tribe of California enrolled after discovering their heritage in the 1990s and opened the Pala Casino Spa Resort in 1995.
The Pala band partnered with the Borgata to offer online poker in New Jersey. Although Pala Interactive provides the casino side in other places, the tribal connection stands in New Jersey.
However, small markets don’t provide much opportunity for significant revenue growth, so Pala Poker exited the US market in October 2018.
Best Live Dealer Casino Apps to Play On The Go (2023)It could return in the future if it reaches a new agreement or if the costs become too prohibitive for other operators.
Evolution Live Poker
Evolution isn’t a traditional poker room because it only offers live dealer poker, not virtual cash games and tournaments. But it deserves mention because it offers a unique twist on poker and extensive availability across multiple NJ online casinos.
Evolution’s Casino Hold’em meets all the requirements for a poker game, and its live version puts players right in the middle of the action.
Ceasars Casino Games with the Best Payouts - Get Your Roman OnLive dealers deal the cards, players make their own decisions about how to play them, and payouts are based on the standard poker rankings.
Evolution’s live dealer version of Casino Hold’em places each player in a virtual seat at a poker table filled with other players. Each player plays against the house, so no poker skills to learn, and no sharks to worry about.
Casino Hold’em uses the same betting format as poker, allowing players to place side bets, and it qualifies for online casino welcome bonuses.
You won’t find typical poker games and formats, but Evolution’s live dealer poker adds some interesting wrinkles to New Jersey’s online poker options.
Top-Ranked Real Money Gambling Apps Update 2023Geolocation and eligibility
Like all US online casinos and sportsbooks, NJ online poker rooms use geolocation services to verify every player’s location.
State regulators require everyone who participates in actual games—holding real-money poker, regardless of the stake level—must be physically within the state of New Jersey.
VPNs and other tools that mask or alter your IP address to mislead a website into thinking you’re located someplace else are explicitly prohibited. Violators may lose their accounts, forfeit all balances, and face criminal charges.
Geolocation services merely verify your location—they don’t track your movements thereafter. Once you register, you can play poker from home, work, or any other location within New Jersey’s borders.
Nevada and New Jersey share a liquid network, so you can be in Nevada and play against New Jersey players—and vice versa.
Delaware and New Jersey completed their integration in the summer of 2018, uniting the three states under the WSOP umbrella.
Deposits and withdrawals
Each site will have its own promotions, fees, and processing times associated with each method.
- Credit/Debit cards (Visa/Mastercard).
- Bank Transfers (usually from the cashier page of the site).
- Cash in person at the affiliated land-based casino.
- Neteller
- Skrill/Moneybookers
- PayPal (limited to NJ/DE/NV/PA)
- Play+ Prepaid Card
- Checks (paper or couriered)
- Wire Transfer
Remember, you must use the same name on your banking information as your registration information. In other words, you can’t have Ms. X’s bank account connected to your account but provide Mrs. Y’s name in the registration info.
Contributing to problem gambling
As with any form of legalized gambling, the Division of Gaming Enforcement takes problem gambling very seriously, especially among minors. Regulations limit access to underage players and requires players to input or produce proof of age three separate times during the registration process.
In addition, each site posts self-exclusion and various problem gambling resource links prominently throughout their sites.
Exciting Online Casino Games You Should Try At Least OnceThe sites use sophisticated software to identify patterns indicative of compulsive behavior and notify the DGE. Players can also set strict limits on their spending and playing time and receive alerts to take breaks or quit for the day.
Finally, the DGE conducts regular audits of customer data to ensure complete compliance with problem gambling regulations.
Revenue and growth
Online poker didn’t contribute significantly to New Jersey’s internet gambling revenues in the first few years—but that is changing.
The market is still smaller than New Jersey’s thriving online casino and sports betting industries, but online poker’s annual gross revenue has climbed steadily since 2017.
Online poker’s initial failure to generate substantial revenue prompted several operators to abandon their plans to enter the New Jersey online poker market.
Between 2014 and 2017, Ultimate Gaming withdrew from the market, the WSOP dropped Full Tilt and switched to its own platform, and PokerStars canceled its planned launch.
Fanduel Casino Alternatives in Michigan You Can Try This YearEven the existing operators showed little interest in investing further resources in New Jersey until things turned around.
Revenue reports show modest improvements beginning in 2017, leading to a near 25% increase in 2018 and another 8% rise in 2019. The COVID shutdowns of 2020 gave online poker a significant boost, and New Jersey recorded its best year ever despite declining revenue in the second half.
The latest available figures from the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement indicate April 2021 online poker revenues of nearly $2.7 million.
Year-over-year comparisons are tricky due to last year’s COVID bump, but April 2019 generated just under $2 million. So, even without the pandemic’s influence, online poker would likely be showing a year-over-year gain in 2021.
History of US online poker
Federal Wire Act of 1961: The Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA/UIGA) makes it illegal to transmit a wire communication (telephone, telegraph, etc.) involving bets or wagers on any sporting event or contest except in certain circumstances.
- BetRivers Online Casino Review - Slots, Games & BonusesAlthough never specifically applied to the Internet, the Wire Act made it illegal to operate an online gambling site based in the United States.
April 2003: The Department of Justice issues an opinion stating that the Wire Act applies only to sports wagering and does not apply to interstate commerce related to lotteries.
December 2008: The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) becomes law as a rider to the “Secure Water Act.” It becomes illegal for financial institutions to process transactions related to unlicensed online gambling, but doesn’t make online gambling illegal for individuals.
Things That Will Instantly Expose You as a Casino NoobSeptember 2009: The DOJ issues a memo officially rescinding its 2003 opinion, stating that the Wire Act prohibits all forms of interstate gambling, including online lotteries. Several US states, led by Kentucky, challenge the ruling in federal court.
January 2011: The Justice Department freezes the domains of online poker sites like PokerStars, Full Tilt, and the Cereus Network, claiming they violated the UIGEA.
Players eventually received their funds, but the companies were barred from operating in the United States.
May 2011: The Department of Justice issues a statement clarifying its position regarding the Wire Act, stating that the law applies only to sports wagering and that each individual state can decide on intra-state lotteries and games of chance.
Each branch of the DOJ must secure this opinion every six months to maintain the precedent.
Best Slots with a Casino Theme You Need to Play OnlineNovember 2013: Governor Chris Christie signs bill S3501 into law, authorizing online gambling for in-state residents where a handshake deal already exists between the operator and a licensed Atlantic City casino.
November 21, 2013, Ultraplay Limited begins offering Delware Park Racing and Casino as the first legal online gambling operation in the US. Ultraplay’s license through the British Virgin Islands allowed it to begin operations before the Borgata-owned EveryMatrix AS could get online.
EveryMatrix finally went live with Betfair Casino and later teamed up with Golden Nugget to build one of New Jersey’s stronger online gambling offerings.
Ways to Find Real Online Casino Free Money BonusesUltimate Poker goes live under the Station Casinos banner on April 30, 2013, becoming the first locally owned US online poker site. Unfortunately, Ultimate failed financially and exited the market in 2014.
Ultimate Gaming followed a similar path, pulling out of the US in 2014.
Ultimate Gaming had previously merged with the Streetcasino network, only to see all three sites fail by year’s end. WSOP/Stadtium announced it would launch the “ultimatebet” NJ online poker site in early 2018 but changed course in September 2017 and launched in November 2018.
June 2018: The Supreme Court overturns PASPA, allowing individual states to legalize sports betting.
July 2018: Delaware completes integration with the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement, allowing it to share player pools with Nevada and New Jersey.
November 2018: PokerStars announces it has reached a licensing agreement with Resorts Casino Hotel and plans to go live in February 2019.
March 2019: Pennsylvania joins the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement, becoming the third state to link with Nevada and Delaware.
Red Casino Review - Top Games & Deals for AustraliansPennsylvania does not currently offer consumer-face poker, but it can participate in liquefaction with NV, DE, and NJ. If and when it licenses consumer-face poker, it can add those players to the shared liquidity player pools.
March 21, 2019: With a soft launch starting earlier in the month, PokerStars NJ officially returns to the New Jersey market on March 24, 2019, almost seven years after the UIGEA shutdown.
August 2020: The COVID-19 worldwide shutdowns accelerate the growth of US online poker revenue, but the trend continues in 2021.
FAQs
What is NJ iDEA Center?
The NJ iDEA Center is a consortium of the NJ Higher Education Secretariat consisting of the five research universities in New Jersey: Rutgers University–New Brunswick, New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT), Princeton University, Stevens Institute of Technology, and Stockton University.
Is PokerStars legal in New Jersey?
Yes. After a lengthy legal battle, PokerStars received its VoiP gaming conditional license in May 2021 and soft-launched on June 27, 2021. A hard launch date was set for March 29, 2022. Anyone aged 21 years or older can make a deposit and play real-money poker on PokerStars NJ from any location within the Garden State.
How many people work in the NJ online gaming industry?
According to the NJ iDEA Center, the New Jersey online gaming industry employs nearly 6,000 people, with another 11,500 in the broader iGaming ecosystem. These numbers do not include employees of brick-and-mortar affiliates.
Who teaches at Thunder@SMUSH?
Industry experts teach at Thunder@SMUSH, including leaders and executives from the New Jersey online gaming industry and beyond. Some of the confirmed speakers for the 2023 event are Susan Stoerrle, Executive Director of the NJ iGA; Steve Mayans, Chief Product Officer at Unibet US; and Jonathon Pritchett, President of Poker Innovations and Games.
casinos in mcalester oklahomaWhere can I learn more about the NJ online gaming industry and Thunder@SMUSH?
Smith Entrepreneurial Institute at Rutgers Business School is a great resource to learn more about the NJ online gaming industry and Thunder@SMUSH. Their website provides detailed information about the conference agenda, speaker lineup, registration, and sponsorship opportunities. They also share news and updates about the NJ online gaming industry through their social media channels and publications.
