The Value In Online Poker Sign-Up Bonuses
08/30/2011
If you’re a RakeTracker rakeback player, chances are that sign-up bonuses are pretty low on your list of reasons for signing up for an online poker room. That’s certainly a fair position because online poker bonuses are not nearly as great as they once were. In fact, a few years back -- as poker sites aggressively competed for your play -- it was not unheard of to find bonuses that were close, if not over, 100% rakeback.
Are Online Poker Bonuses Worth The Trouble?
Unfortunately for players, the days of extremely easy-to-clear bonuses are mostly gone. But does that mean that players should totally discount the benefits of bonuses when deciding where to play?
While I don’t think players should base their decision on which site to play solely on bonuses, I think it helps a player to be familiar with a site’s bonus. After all, when clearing a sign-up bonus with rakeback, some players will actually receive more benefit from the bonus itself than from their rakeback. So, the benefit from bonuses it still material and should not be discounted.
With the launch of our new in-depth reviews on RakeTracker, I thought it would be a good time to look at the rakeback deals available through RakeTracker and examine at the extra benefit from bonuses that our rakeback players receive.
| What Do Bonuses Add to Rakeback at RakeTracker? | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Site | US Facing? | Network | Rakeback | Added Bonus Benefit | Total |
| RaiseandFold | Yes | Everleaf | 40% | 20%-25% | 60%-75% |
| Minted Poker | Yes | Everleaf | 40% | 14%-25% | 54%-65% |
| PokerView | Yes | Everleaf | 40% | 14%-25% | 54%-65% |
| PKR | No | Independent | 30% | 35% | 65% |
| Cake Poker | Yes | Cake | 33% | 18%-27% | 51%-60% |
| Broadway Tables | Yes | Cake | 33% | 18%-27% | 51%-60% |
| Red Star Poker | Yes | Cake | 33% | 18%-27% | 51%-60% |
| Intertops Poker | Yes | Cake | 33% | 18%-27% | 51%-60% |
| NoiQ | No | Entraction | 30% | 20% | 50% |
| Poker Heaven | No | Boss | 30% | 20% | 50% |
| Fortune Poker | No | Boss | 30% | 20% | 50% |
| Paradise | No | Boss | 30% | 20% | 50% |
| Interpoker | No | Boss | 30% | 20% | 50% |
| What Do Bonuses Add to VIP Offers at RakeTracker? | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poker Room | US-Facing | Network | VIP | Bonus Value |
| Party Poker | No | Party | Up to 50% | 33% |
| WPT Poker | No | Party | Up to 50% | 33% |
| Carbon Poker | Limited | Merge | Up to 47% | 13% |
| Aced | Limited | Merge | Up to 47% | 13% |
| Overbet | Limited | Merge | Up to 45% | 13% |
| Black Chip Poker | Limited | Merge | Up to 47% | 13% |
The Charts Explained
In the “Added Bonus Benefit” column we have added the rakeback equivalent of clearing a bonus after any applicable deductions have been made. The total column represents the total rakeback equivalent players can expect to earn while clearing a bonus with rakeback. As you can see, in some cases, RakeTracker players can earn up to 75% rakeback when clearing a bonus with their regular rakeback deal. This is before other special RakeTracker promotions, promotions offered by the site itself or VIP programs.
Some Final Thoughts
With the VIP rakeback deals we offer at RakeTracker, it’s a bit more difficult to determine total value because the actual return will be based on a number of factors, most notably, the amount you play at the room. What we can provide players is a precise sign-up bonus value in rakeback equivalent terms.
When signing up at your next poker room, take a look at the sign-up bonus a site offers but do not put too much weight in it. There are many other important factors to consider such as game availability, game quality and payment processing options, not to mention other promotions and special RakeTracker promotions.
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by George B on January 26, 2012
Poker Promotions
Online Poker
Offers
RakeTracker | The Rakeback Pioneer.
Believe it or not, there was a time in online poker’s history that there was no such thing as rakeback. When the seeds of Rake Tracker were first planted in 2003 almost all poker rewards came in the form of bonuses. Soon players wanted more. The RakeTracker business first started small, offering rakeback to players on a one-on-one basis and through referrals.
As the business grew, RakeTracker.com was launched as one of the first full-scale rakeback providers on the internet providing players with additional perks that they could receive in addition to bonuses – payout out rakeback since 2004. Now many years later, players still flock to RakeTracker for industry leading rakeback deals, monthly poker promotions in the hundreds of thousands of dollars and top quality customer support.
What is Rakeback?
All live and online card rooms take “rake” and “tournament fees” to run and operate their games. The amount of rake or fees taken will vary by game type and stake levels, but will generally be 5% of each pot for ring games and around 10% of the buy-in for tournaments.
With rakeback, players are returned a percentage of the rake that is attributed to them, usually 27%-40%. Simply put: Receiving rakeback and other promotions help winning poker players win more and losing poker players lose less. There is no reason not to get rakeback!
Getting rakeback is easy through RakeTracker: simply create a RakeTracker account, then using our referral links download the poker site’s software, add the tracker to your account and you are ready to go! Detailed instructions are available on each site’s review page.
Why Should I Join RakeTracker?
Joining RakeTracker is FREE and easy. Creating a FREE account will give you instant access to rakeback from two dozen rooms on all major networks. RakeTracker members will also receive access to over $300,000 in monthly promotions including: Rake Races, Rake Chases, Freerolls and free poker coaching. Refer your friends to RakeTracker and earn $40 per friend and up to 4% of the rake they generate – income for life! Join the community at RakeTracker TODAY!