Where Online Poker is Legal in America

There is a big misconception about the legality of playing online poker in America. In all but six (6) states, it's technically illegal. However, the way existing laws are written, it's nearly impossible for anyone to be charged with such a crime.

From shore to shore, online poker players from all 50 states are playing poker online. They will have no problem doing so as long as their poker rooms of choice are willing to accept players from the U.S. If a U.S. resident does decide to join in the fun, there are two concerns with which they will need to deal.

First, U.S. unregulated online poker room operators are not supposed to allow players to fund their accounts with credit or debit cards and wire transfers of any kind. It happens, but it's illegal. It's better for U.S. players to hide behind the safety of eWallets accounts if they want to avoid any possibility of trouble.

Second, U.S. players may not be protected from problems with poker room operators. Since they don't have a U.S. regulatory agency ready to advocate for them on their behalf, U.S. players are pretty much at the mercy of the operator when disputes arise.

This is the online poker environment in which residents in 44 states must navigate if they want to use poker sites like WSOP.com or maybe PartyPoker.com. In the remaining six (6) states, residents can legally play online poker and reap the benefits of doing so.

States in Which Online Poker Fully Legal

In 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the federal ban on sports betting and online gambling was unconstitutional. They further ruled it would be up to each state to decide for themselves whether they wanted to let residents participate in such activities. To date, six (6) states have passed the needed online poker legislation and given the green light to online poker players in their respective states.

The six (6) to which we are referring are

• Delaware


• Michigan


• Nevada


• New Jersey


• Pennsylvania


• West Virgnia
  

It is worth noting that in the states of Delaware, Nevada, and New Jersey, online poker playing was legalized in 2013. This was done under special circumstances that allowed these states to bypass federal law. The legalization of online poker in Michigan, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia is directly attributable to the Supreme Court's 2018 decision.

Let's review a little online poker history by state.

Delaware

Delaware was one of the first states to legalize online poker and casinos. That took place in 2013. They were able to bypass federal law with a couple of interesting twists that came from state law. The poker-playing population is rather small in this state. However, the state teamed with Nevada in 2015 to sign the first Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement (MSIGA). That opened the door to playersfrom both states being able to access he same poker games at the same time. More on that later in this article.

Regulator: Delaware Lottery

Michigan

In 2021, Michigan decided to join the U.S. online poker-playing community. As the new kid on the block, Michigan still has a bit of work to do to draw attention from more of the top poker sites. Unlike Delaware, there appears to be a rather large population of online poker players in action in this state. Regulators are currently looking at the possibility of signing the existing MSIGA.

Regulator: MGCB

Nevada

Technically, Nevada was the first state to legalize and regulate online poker. That took place in the early part of 2013. As the gambling mecca of the world, it makes sense that Nevada would be a leader in the online gambling space.

As one might expect, the online poker-playing community in Nevada is quite large. Also, they were the originators of the MSIGA that is generally being used in other states.

Regulator: Nevada Gaming Commission

New Jersey

New Jersey holds the distinction of being one of the most active states in terms of online gambling. They to opened the door to online poker rooms and casinos in 2013. To boost activity, they also signed the MSIGA in 2017, putting all three states together to offer huge player pools for cash games and major online tournaments. The state also holds the distinction of having regulated the largest number of domestic and international poker sites. That impressive list includes PokerStars, partypoker, 888 Poker, BetMGM Poker, and WSOP.com.

Regulator: New Jersey DGE

Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania was the first state to legalize online poker after the SCOTUS made its historical decision. Given the state's large population, it's understandable why PA has the largest pool of online poker players in the U.S. The state is expected to sign the MSIGA agreement sometime in the near future. It's noteworthy that PokerStars PA is a dominant force in the PA online poker market.

Regulator: PGCB

West Virginia

West Virginia was a surprise entrant into the U.S. online poker community. Lawmakers quietly passed the needed legislation online poker legislation in 2020. Given the fact online poker has not been heavily marketed, the WV online poker community is very much a work in progress. As of now, BetMGM has no competition as far as online poker rooms.

Regulator: West Virginia Lottery

States That Could Soon Join the Fray

Admittedly, online poker and casinos have limited popularity in most other states. That explains why 30+ states have passed sports betting legislation without even mentioning the other online gambling options. With that said, there are five (5) other states that have recently been talking about bringing legalized online poker to their respective states. That list includes:

• Arkansas


• Kentucky


• Illinois


• Massachusetts


• New York
  

It will be interesting to see how things shake out soon.

About the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement

According to the laws in each state, all online gambling legislation is state-specific. It does not authorize any level of participation from other states or residents from other states. That became an issue within the online poker-playing community because poker lends itself to being a more social form of gambling. It was also considered a problem in states where the population of poker players is or would be rather small. That's exactly why Nevada took the lead and created the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement (MSIGA).

The purpose of the MSIGA was to increase the liquidity of poker tournaments and cash games by pooling players across state lines. To avoid infringing on state boundary clauses, the MSIGA was put in place to serve as an agreement among states to allow residents from other states to gamble online together. By increasing player access and enlarging pools, the WSOP now sponsors gold bracelet events on websites that sponsor "pooled" tournaments.

Summary: Aside from Indiana, there a very few laws in place that forbid U.S. residents from playing online poker. For the most part, everyone has access to international pokers sites. In Indiana, any form of online poker playing has been outlawed with said laws regularly enforced. If you live in a state that has not legalized online poker, be cautious. You are at the mercy of the operators. If you live in a state where such activities are legal and regulated, have fun but never gamble with more money than you can afford to lose.