The Complete Guide To The iPoker Network

iPoker is The 3rd Largest Poker Site Online (and Biggest Network)
This Guide Shows you What to Expect in Terms of Games and Benefits

ipoker network complete guide

The iPoker Network is a collection of poker sites who pool their players to offer a huge choice of games and bigger / better offers than they would be able to run individually. Collectively, this is the 3rd biggest poker site online (after PokerStars and 888 Poker). Update: iPoker declined significantly, the new leaders are Stars, GGPoker and a huge Asian site that nobody in the West has ever heard of!

iPoker are famous for the easy games. These are the result of the main members of this network being primarily sport-betting brands including William Hill, Betfair and Coral. What happens is that people join up for a bet, and then discover the poker room from there. This creates a steady stream of new players checking out the tabels, some will enjoy the game and stay, others will lose their money fast (maybe to you!) and move on. The sheer size of the 'high street bookmaker' brands keeps the tables filled with new and inexperienced opponents year after year. 

This guide takes you through everything you need to know about this huge network - and will be the main page for news and updates across the network throughout 2018. News updates start after the main article below.

What You'll Find Below

I’ll start by explaining how the network is set-up, and what you experience playing on different sites. Next the split between iPoker1 and iPoker2 is covered (don’t skip this, it makes a big difference). You will then find a list of iPoker sites, along with an overview of the key members of the top-tier. After this I’ll cover the main events, games and promotions which make this network stand out – including some that are unique to individual sites.

I am lucky enough to have a special deal at the oldest and biggest poker site on the iPoker network to offer to SNG Planet readers. This is $20 free cash on top of your 200% welcome bonus at Titan Poker. This is a very simple offer - players who register with bonus code SNGPLANET get a free $20 into their player account within 48 hours (usually sooner than this). A great way to test out the network! All poker site links open new tabs on this page, so you are free to check out www.titanpoker.com now!

Finally below, how this network compares to others is discussed, after all – no poker network lives in isolation!

How Does The iPoker Network Work?

The software which runs the poker game is made by industry giant PlayTech. What happens is that each member (‘skin’) puts their own branding onto the tables and gives access to their players. You can be seeing the black tables of Titan, while opponents might see the blue of William Hill or grey of Betfair instead. You are all playing the same game, and the branding is just the decoration.

To stop potential cheats, you will not be able to log on to more than one iPoker site at the same time. There is nothing to stop you from having accounts at several different sites to take advantage of signup bonus offers though.

Some sites do have exclusive games and tournaments which are only visible to their players. These are sometimes included in promotions. The huge majority of tables are available to everyone.

iPoker1 and iPoker2 – Now Merged Again

For the last couple of years, this network divided their tables into 2 separate pools. This was designed to stop smaller poker sites, who do not pay for mass-marketing, 'poaching' the best players from bigger members with big cash-back deals. These are known as ‘parasitic skins’ since they added little value to the network as a whole - simply taking players who already enjoyed the game and offering a few % in bigger bonuses. 

The two tiers of the iPoker Network have been merged into one again. Changes behind the scenes on how each of the member sites share revenue has enabled this to happen. As a player the key thing you need to know is that the big brands are still best place to head. While smaller 'unknowns' have come and gone over the years - the high street bookmakers and big players like Titan Poker or NetBet offer you a layer of security and tust that you just never find at a smaller 'skin'. 

 

iPoker Sites List - Biggest and Best Trusted Brands

Below is a list of the main sites you will find on the iPoker Network. There are many names on this list which will be familiar to readers, while some are new. My personal favorite is Titan Poker, who have been around since 2006 and always made that extra effort with promos and service to keep me happy. This site also benefits from 'Titan Treasures' on top of their regular loyalty points scheme. This involves missions and challenges for extra benefits!

 

Poker Site Bonus Code Bonus Review Visit Now
Titan Poker (my personal favorite) SNGPLANET $2000 + $20 Free Titan Review Titan Poker
NetBet Poker (Ex Poker 770) FREE20 €1500 + €20 NetBet Poker Review NetBet Poker
Betfair Poker - €1500 + €5 Free Betfair Review Betfair Poker
Everest Poker - €750 + €10 Free - Everest Poker
William Hill Poker - €1500 + €10 Free William Hill Review William Hill!
Bet365 - $400 - Bet365 Poker
Paddy Power - $500 + $10 Free - Paddy Power
Ladbrokes Poker  - £1,200 - Ladbrokes
Coral Poker - £1,200 + £20 Free - Coral Poker
BetFred - £1,200 +£10 Free - BetFred

Smaller iPoker Sites List

Dafa Poker, Winner Poker, Boyle Poker, MyBet, Genting Poker, Mansion Poker, Expect and many more smaller sites...

iPoker Network Guide – Summary Of The Key iPoker Sites

#1 Titan Poker (Exclusive $20 free offer) 

titan poker my top ipoker network pick for 2016Titan Poker were the original poker site on this network and make the top of my list for their focus on Poker. While most of the other sites are betting brands who offer poker as an extra, Titan are a poker site who later expanded into sports and casino gaming.

You’ll notice the difference.

What you get here are exclusive promotions (lead by the entertaining ‘Titan Treasures’) and regular offers (support will pop up in chat and offer you more from time to time). New players will also get the exclusive SNG Planet $20 extra free cash on top of your 200% matched welcome bonus. All you need to do is register with bonus code SNGPLANET, deposit for the first time, and I will ensure that the extra $20 is paid direct to your player account within 48 hours (usually a lot sooner). Titan are my top iPoker pick for their focus on poker players and big benefits – you can check them out at www.titanpoker.com

#2 NetBet Poker (Long-running site, used to be called Poker770 - €20 extra here too!)

This deserves a special mention - Canadian and German players (and those from many other countries) can not play on Titan Poker due to licensing issues. NetBet has been a solid and trustworthy site for the last 10 years, and does not have so many restrictions on different countries. Even better, I have the same deal to offer readers who register with bonus code FREE20 - €20 extra. This comes in 2 parts, you get €10 as soon as you deposit, then another €10 in 7 days time. This is on top of the already huge welcome bonus. There are always a great list of offers at NetBet - so their website is worth checking out. Check out NetBet Poker for yourself at: www.netbet.com 

#3 BetFair Poker

betfair cool ipoker2 siteBetfair were a late joiner on the iPoker Network, bringing with them a lot of loyal players from their former home at OnGame (before that they were a stand-alone site). They stand out from the rest with a long list of one-off and special promos, for example a free £5 sports-bet or chances to win VIP tickets to major sporting events.

The added advantage here is that you get access to the famous Betfair betting platform (where you can lay as well as take odds). A great site and solid choice to try out those famously soft iPoker Games. You can check the latest offers at www.betfair.com

 

Ultimate iPoker Network Guide – What Games And Events To Expect On This Network?

What Games are Available on the iPoker Network in 2016There are a ton of games to choose from at iPoker. All the popular poker variations are there in just about every table size, speed and betting style. What I have done here is to focus on the games and variations which make this network stand out from the other sites.

Jackpot Sit N Go Tournaments: You win 5 or 6 of these in a row, and get a jackpot payout of $2000 to $50000 or even more via the progressive prize pools. Buy-ins and sizes differ, with the first level ‘Dirty Dozen’ games starting at $2.40c and the biggest ‘Fort Knox’ prizes in $58 games. These are very popular as you might expect. This detailed article covers the games and a strategy guide for beating Jackpot SNGs.

Twister Sit N Goes: These come into the category of 'Lottery Sit N Goes'. They are 3 handed, and give you the chance to win up to 2000 times your buy-in. Most will pay 2x, with some paying 4x, 10x and so on. These are short-stacked super-turbo games - and you'll find them very entertaining. 

Speed Holdem: This is the iPoker ‘Fast Fold’ variation, with pools of players getting recombined to start each hand. Play is wild enough that you should be able to make a nice profit, as long as you can keep up with the super-fast game-play of this variation.

iPOPs: The iPoker Online Poker Series (iPOPs) is a tournament event that now runs a few times each year. There are big guarantees and a ton of qualifier games, which makes them very popular. In the most recent running smaller buy-in games were introduced alongside the big games, adding yet another angle. Keep an eye on my online poker events listing for the next iPOPs (and also the regular 'Tournament Sales').

Steps Qualifiers: In addition to an established 3-stage tournament qualifier system, you’ll find Step Sit N Goes. These give you the chance to work up levels from a tiny buy-in. What you’ll like about these games is that you can use Steps entries to switch over to multi-table tournaments at any time.

Titan Treasures: Not so much a game, as a series of challenges like ‘Finish top 3, 3 times in a row’ or ‘get aces in a cash game’. As you complete these, you get awarded Gold Coins, which you can then exchange for scratch cards with bonus amounts of up to $1000. This ‘gamifies’ the games, adding a new dimension for recreational players (along with rewards). What you’ll like about this one is that it runs in addition to the regular VIP reward system. This is exclusive to Titan Poker.

Satellite Qualifiers: You can win tickets in a range of poker events including some live ones around the work (think Irish Open, Vegas and more), and the biggest online tournaments (iPOPs events, Sunday Major etc).

I have two more articles here which explain games in a lot more detail:

This one covers iPoker tournaments

This one looks specifically at Sit N Goes at Titan Poker.

iPoker Network Guide, What Does The Software Look Like At Different Skins?

You’ll find some screen shots below, click them to enlarge. The software at iPoker used to be a negative, nowadays it is pretty good – though still has a couple of irritations. My main gripe is that there are too many pop ups, and that you can not take action in the games until you have ‘ok’d’ them. Gets frustrating when the pop up (notification or advert) goes behind another window.

Now that is off of my chest, the software is a ton better than it was a couple of years ago. The play is smoother and faster and the navigation makes a lot more sense. They even introduced synchronized breaks for tournament fans eventually!

detailed-titan-sitngo-review-table Pokerstars-site-review-table

Screen Shots - Click To Enlarge

Complete Guide To The iPoker Network – How Does This Compare To Other Popular Sites And Networks?

This is the key question, and rightly so. I’ll add my thoughts below in no particular order.

#1: The games are noticeably softer than PokerStars / Full Tilt, with far more recreational type players compared to pro-grinders. You really need to be on iPoker 2 to benefit from this.

#2: Compared to MicroGaming you have a far bigger choice of games, though maybe not the community feel offered by the MicroGaming network. Tournament guarantees are bigger and better at iPoker.

#3: Party are the closest rivals in terms of soft games, though for me they are a bit of an ‘acquired taste’ nowadays. iPoker beat them into the 3rd place in the rankings and I do not expect to see Party return with their current, ‘social’ offerings any time soon.

Complete iPoker Network Guide – Final Thoughts

I play at iPoker, and recommend you check out just how soft this network can get (particularly in the Evenings and at weekends). If anyone tells me ‘poker is getting harder’ the first thing I do is ask them if they have played on this network recently!

$20 extra free cash is waiting for you at Titan Poker – in addition to your first deposit match of 200% (max $2k), register with bonus code SNGPLANET, deposit for the first time and I’ll ensure that the extra money is paid into your player account within 48 hours.

Check out www.titanpoker.com for the latest promos now!

iPoker Network Guide 2017

iPoker Network News Updates

1st December 2016: Several iPoker sites have announced a 'Winter Warmer' promotion. This gives you missions for each day of the week ( and 'A' and a 'B'). As you complete them you will win prizes (gifts) and entries into tournaments. The missions look entertaining too. 

30th November: After a change in ownership I am warning SNG Planet readers not to deposit at Iron Poker. This was a good option for players in countries (there are a lot of them!), which Titan did not reach. I am now recommending NetBet for Canada, Germany, Netherlands and other countries. This brand has a very long track record (going back to when they were called Poker770). 

1st September 2016: Golden Rivers is an odd name for a new promo - though this can earn you prizes + tournament entries. The idea is that you collect special golden river cards on your own jackpot board - and win a part of the €30,000 prize pool. This is available at both Titan Poker and NetBet.

7th June 2016: iPoker feature heavily in my new blog post which looks at some of the special offers available to players during Euro 2016. NetBet in particular have stand out offers. Check you can find the post here

15th April 2016: World Series of Poker qualifiers are now running at Titan Poker... except they are careful not to mention the actual WSOP, calling the promo a 'Viva Las Vegas' offer. You can win a prize package which includes entry into one of the NL Holdem side games, accomodation and cash for your flight + expenses. This uses the regular 3 level sub qualifiers, along with regular super-satellites - see you at the World Series!

18th February 2016: A new game is now available on the iPoker Network. Six Plus Holdem uses a deck with the cards 1 through 5 removed, which changes a lot more in relation to odds and outs than you might expect. With bigger hands, the idea is that there is more action. Aces count as the low card (5) to make straights too. I like this idea and will be trying it out over at Titan... stay tuned for a blog post on how I got on!

11th February 2016: iPoker to get a new member. Austrian owned poker site Win2Day has announced their intention to join the iPoker Network. The move is expected by mid-March. Look out for a review and details here at SNG Planet soon!

2nd February 2016: An interesting new promotion at Titan, worth a total of EUR100,000 - this involves a carnival of free tournaments, twister SNG entries and a tie-in with their missions (which earn you gold coins for the Titan Treasures bonuses). This one is definitely worth a look!

4th January 2016: BetFair has pulled out of Canada.I'm not really sure why, Canada allows online gambling as long as the sites are not based in Canada... if you are looking for a great alternative (with exactly the same poker tables), then Iron Poker is the place to head. 

28th December 2015: Titan Poker go mobile. One of the biggest issues with iPoker has been their lack of real mobile compatibility. Titan are now going mobile with responsive browser based games. 

19th October 2015: iPOPs is Running now! This series of tournaments includes a €250,000 guaranteed main event and many more which are sure to see new players breaking through to the next level. This is easily the softest online poker event of all - check out the schedule over at www.netbet.com (and claim your free $20 while you are there!).

15th October 2015: Master Classics of Poker Qualifiers are running at Titan Poker. This event is held in Amsterdam in mid-November - you can win a prize package which includes hotel, flights and entry starting from just €1 at Titan Poker. 

2nd October 2015: 10th Anniversary at Titan Poker. I was one of the first to join (back in 2006, so not the very start), and already we hit 10 years. There are some promos worth checking out, including a €10k lottery, 3x3 royal promo (see site for this interesting number!) and reunion freerolls too. It may sound like a cliche, but this one one worth checking out - see www.titanpoker.com for the details. 

16th September 2015: iPOPs Micro III has been announced. This is the smaller buyin version of the popular 'iPoker Online Poker Series', and features smaller €1 to €50 buy-ins - rather than the €100 to €500 range of the full iPOPs events. Some players always break through during this event - so make sure you are in with a shot. See www.titanpoker.com for the details.

10th August 2015: The 2-tier network system, which got started in 2012, is to come to an end. This was brought in to stop small skins 'poaching' players by offering bigger rakeback deals. Now the network has moved to a source based rake system, the split is not required (as rewards will be based on deposits, not just volume of play). This means everyone at iPoker will see the same cash game tables and Sit N Goes from the 11th of August.

20th July 2015: Coral and Ladbrokes to merge. 2 of the biggest names on the British high street are to undertake a corporate merger. It is not yet known how this will affect the poker sites - with both brands being so well known it would not surprise me to see them both continue, though players from one could be moved to the other of course.

28th Jan 2015: Sourced based rake model set to make the iPoker Network even softer. From Feb 2015, profits made from this network will be divided among the poker sites depending on how many deposits their players made. If a network has a lot of multi-tabling grinders, and not too many depositors, they will get a smaller share of the pot. This means they will not be able to pass as much money to the grinders, who may well move to a different network. Remember freer grinds = softer games, giving even inexperienced players a great chance to make a profit. I already feature Titan heavily my Fish-o-Meter rankings of the fishiest poker games (take a look for yourself!)

20th Jan 2015: Winter Tournament Sales are back. You can get up to 60% off of the regular price on some of the biggest tournaments from Jan the 26th (for 1 week). The prize pools of these events stay the same. This will give a lot of players on the iPoker Network the chance to break through.

23rd July 2014: The Titan Poker summer sale if coming back! This promotion is a personal favorite, the regular bigger guarantees have between 33% and 50% off of their regular prices while the guaranteed prize remains the same. This includes the Sunday Major. This promo always makes the fields busy, and always helps one or two players break through to the next level. The dates this time are the 28th July until the 3rd August. 

26th June 2014: iPoker and 888 are now seriously neck-and-neck in the poker site rankings. These sites are competing for 2nd place (PokerStars are way ahead in first). The 7-day average for cash game players is now idential at 1900 each, with iPoker slightly ahead on the peaks. Note that this is cash game players only an does not include tournament players. My thinking is that iPoker will still be ahead on this measure.

11th April 2014: Russia does not seem to be a popular place for iPoker members at the moment, with two of them announcing they are to leave within the last week. Betfair and Everest / BetClic are both pulling out - I wonder if any more members will follow?

6th April 2014: Great news - iPOPs is back! This is the iPoker Online Poker Series, it is an online mini-festival of tournaments, with combined guarantees of €1 million and tons of satellite qualifiers to ensure packed fields. I am happy to go on record stating there are no easier big-buy-in tournaments anywhere online. You can find the schedule and info on the many qualifiers over at www.titanpoker.com

7th March 2014: BetFred are the latest member of the top-tier iPoker2 network, where the big brands hang out and the games are much softer. This is great news for BetFred players, who can now enjoy the softer games - and also good news for the players on other sites on the top tier, who will enjoy more opponents.

30th January 2014: Check out the new game 'Twister Jackpot Sit N Goes', these are 3-handed super-turbos with a special twist, the prize pool is random and is set by a 'wheel of fortune' before each game. These are prices in dollars (strange choice with a new game just as all the other games moved to Euros) with buy-ins of $1, $2, $5 and $10 and a max prize of $10,000. Check them out at Titan or for more info check my overview and strategy guide in this article.

26th January 2014: The move to Euros is gaining pace, with USD cash tables gone and tournaments too, the latest development is that the Jackpot Sit N Goes have all moved over to Euros (and with nice rounded buy-ins too).

12th January 2014: Titan Poker's 'Tournament Sale' is back! This is one of my favorite promos, they offer discounts of between 40% and 80% off of a big selection of guaranteed tournaments - while keeping the prize pools the same. A great chance to take part in games you would not normally be able to afford and maybe break through to the next level. This runs Jan 13th through to the 26th.

4th January 2014: The move to Euros is now well underway and all tournaments are now priced in this currency rather than US Dollars. This makes great sense, since US players have not been allowed on iPoker since 2006. You can still deposit in Dollars, and you can find some cash game tables in British Pounds too. I wonder how long it will be before some of the other non-US poker sites follow suit?

12th December 2013: Canada is back! According to sources, iPoker have reversed their policy of pulling out of Canada. I'm really not sure that this flip-flopping is going to win many fans among the players, but at least Canadian players will be able to access their favorite fishy games for the upcoming snowed-in winter months...

9th December 2013: Here come Ladbrokes! The UK sports-betting giant is still on the MicroGaming network, and have announced they are to shift over to iPoker on the 21st December. This will be yet another betting brand bringing their recreational player base to the network - good news for Ladbrokes players (who will escape the grinders at MicroGaming) and good news for everyone at iPoker2, too!

26th November 2013: iPoker to drop many high-stakes tables. Heads up games and nosebleed stakes will be removed soon, along with all SNG tournaments above 18 players - this will be tied in with the move to EUR and GBP tables when the USD ones get phased out.

25th November 2013: Bad news for Canadian players on Titan Poker, they are stopping new sign-ups from Canada with immediate effect. You'll have until the 22nd December to cash out of the system - after which you'll need to go via support and cash out manually. I am still waiting to find out if other iPoker brands (+ PlayTech Casinos) are affected by this - at the moment just an unconfirmed rumor that Winner Poker will also be leaving.

18th November 2013: iPoker have announced that they are to drop US Dollar games, in fact these are already being phased out in favor of British Pounds and Euros. This makes good sense, this network pulled out of the US after the UIGEA and so none of their players use USD as the regular national currency.

18th November 2013: Just to confirm the news I broke on my blog last week. iPoker are pulling out of the Netherlands and Finland. This is due to PlayTech, who own and manage the software which this network runs on pulling out. There is a grace period for existing players in these countries, though my advice is to use this for cash out requests. The news that Canada was included has now been withdraw, hopefully for good.

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