Play Online Pai Gow Poker for Real Money or for Free

Play Pai Gow Poker for Free

If you've never played the game before, it makes sense to tread carefully. While the game isn't very complicated to learn, it is wise to avoid playing with real money until you are more confident with the rules. Luckily, most online casinos offer you the ability to play the game for free, which is incredibly useful to you if you're just starting out.

There are two main ways that you can explore the game of Pai Gow Poker without risking any of your own money: you can play in demo mode, or you can claim and use a sign-up bonus. Let's take a closer look at each of these options so you can decide which is right for your experience level. 

Free Pai Gow Demo Mode

Playing in demo mode is the perfect place to start if the game of Pai Gow Poker is completely alien to you. The last thing you want to do when exploring a new game is to play with real money as you're bound to make mistakes during the learning process, and when playing with real money, those mistakes can be costly. That's where demo mode comes in.

Pai Gow Poker is one of the games that you can usually explore for free at most online casinos. Also labelled as 'free play', 'try free' or 'demo', demo mode can be accessed by clicking on the button on or near the game image in the online casino's games collection. The game will open, and you'll be able to play just as you would in real money mode. The only difference is the balance and winnings are in-play chips.

If you play from the US, you can practise in demo mode with some sweeps coins on the Global Poker app.

Promos to Play Pai Gow

Another free way to play Pai Gow Poker is to claim a sign-up bonus. You'll find plenty of online casinos offering sign-up bonuses to new members to encourage them to start playing. While some sign-up bonuses are only for specific games, you tend to find most of them are open for use on a wide range of games, including table games like Pai Gow Poker.

Claiming a sign-up bonus for Pai Gow Poker is generally a simple case of joining the online casino and completing the registration process. Once that is done, the sign-up bonus is usually added to your balance immediately. To use it, just open the game and start playing.

Bear in mind that while no deposit is needed to claim a sign-up bonus, that doesn't mean there aren't any limits. Some games may not be included in the list of eligible games, and any winnings will most likely need to be wagered before a withdrawal is permitted. Be sure to check the site's bonus terms before claiming.

Play Pai Gow Poker for Real Money

So once you've had a taste of Pai Gow Poker, either by playing in demo mode or by claiming and playing with a sign-up bonus, you might start to wonder what playing with real money is like. Maybe Pai Gow Poker has just become your game of choice, and you think you've got a pretty good chance of beating the dealer. If you've reached this stage, you're ready to start playing Pai Gow Poker for real! But how do you do that?

There are two ways of playing Pai Gow Poker for real money. You can make a deposit and play with your own money, or you can choose to claim a bonus of some sort for extra funds to play with. Each option has its pros and cons list, so check below and see which one appeals to you the most.

Top-up Your Balance for Pai Gow

The most obvious way of starting to play for real is by making a deposit and playing with your own money. If the idea of such a thing fills you with dread, don't worry! As long as you choose a reputable and trustworthy online casino, such as those featured on this site, that has all been carefully reviewed, you can rest assured that your deposited funds will be 100% safe, just like when you shop online.

Making a deposit is usually a simple case of choosing one of the many available payment methods, filling in your details and clicking the Deposit button. Your uploaded funds will be added to your account, usually instantly, when you can start playing Pai Gow Poker for real! Here are the most common deposit methods to play Pai Gow online:

Payment Provider	Accepts Deposits	Accepts Withdrawals	Payout Speed	Fees	More Info
	Yes	Yes	up to 72 Hours	up to 5%	Neteller Casinos
	Yes	Yes	48 to 72 Hours	up to 7%	Skrill Casinos
	Yes	Yes	48 to 72 Hours	up to 3%	PayPal casinos
	Yes	Yes	up to 45 Mins	no fees	Bitcoin casinos

*In many cases, the casino may waive or even pass on fees associated with transacting with the casino. Ensure to clarify fees with the casino that you choose.

Bonuses Available for Pai Gow Poker

So what kinds of bonuses can you expect to find for Pai Gow Poker? As mentioned above, bonuses come in all shapes and sizes, with online casinos keen to encourage gameplay by all types of players. Pai Gow Poker bonuses can be found at most online casinos in several forms as a result.

Bonuses are attractive for playing Pai Gow Poker in that you have extra funds to play with, giving you longer to play the game and maybe boosting your chances of winning. With such an array of different bonuses at your disposal, it's wise to take a closer look at them and see which ones suit you best. Next, we'll take you through several of the most common types of Pai Gow Poker bonuses, including how to claim them. 

No-Deposit Bonuses

The most popular type of bonus for playing Pai Gow Poker is the no-deposit bonus, mainly because, as the name suggests, you don't need to deposit to claim it! Sign-up bonuses are the most common kind of no-deposit bonus offered at online casinos, with the funds credited to your new account simply for completing the sign-up process. However, sign-up bonuses are not the only type of no-deposit bonuses available to you.

Other no-deposit bonuses can be offered at casino sites depending on your status. For example, you may receive a no-deposit bonus as a reward for reaching a new level in the site's VIP programme.

If you haven't been active on the site for some time, the online casino may send you a no-deposit bonus offer via email as a way of tempting you back. That's why it pays to make sure you're on their promotional mailing list!

Welcome Bonuses

The most common type of bonus that can be used to play Pai Gow Poker is the welcome bonus. As the name implies, a welcome bonus is offered to new members to welcome them to the site. It tends to be based on the player's first deposit at the online casino and is usually as a percentage of that deposit up to a certain maximum amount, eg. 100% up to €200.

Different online casinos offer different welcome bonuses. Some may be free spins for specific slots, while others may be cashback on certain games. If you're keen to use those extra funds to play Pai Gow Poker, be sure to check the T&Cs to confirm that the welcome bonus can be used to play the game before claiming.

Reload Bonuses

Another very popular type of bonus is the reload bonus. Chances are, once you've made your first deposit, you will probably want to make another one at some point and this is exactly where to reload bonuses come in.

Just like the welcome bonus, reload bonuses tend to be offered as a percentage of deposited funds up to a certain maximum amount. Many online casinos give you a range of reload bonus offers to choose from, including those specifically for table games like Pai Gow Poker.

It's also common to find monthly, weekly and even daily reload bonus offers, which effectively give you extra funds every time you deposit.

Claiming a reload bonus is usually a simple case of depositing at least the minimum amount as stated, after which your bonus funds will be added to your balance instantly. Bear in mind that some sites require you to type in or select the relevant bonus code first or you may have to contact the support team in order to claim.

Get a Cashback

Though it may not be obvious at first, cashback is another form of bonus that can be used to play Pai Gow Poker. This type of bonus is unique in that it tends to be credited after gameplay, rather than before.

Cashback bonuses usually come in two main forms: net losses based and gameplay based. The most common type of cashback is based on your net losses over a specified period and can be thought of as insurance against a portion of your losses. Some online casinos offer gameplay based cashback that takes your entire gameplay over the specified period into account, which is even more attractive!

Why is cashback listed as a bonus? Contrary to what the name implies, cashback isn't straight cash, it's credited as a bonus. That means it's subject to bonus terms such as wagering requirements, so be sure to check the T&Cs before claiming.

Tournaments for Pai Gow

Tournaments are another way of obtaining bonuses to extend your Pai Gow Poker gameplay. Lots of online casinos run tournaments on a regular basis, giving players the chance to put their gaming skills to the test for a prize payout, usually a bonus. It's common to find weekly and monthly tournaments for slots, live dealer games and also table games like Pai Gow Poker that you can take part in.

The way these tournaments work is that your Pai Gow Poker gameplay over the tournament period is awarded points based on how much you've spent. These points are displayed on the tournament leaderboard and the players with the most points at the end are awarded prizes. If you're one of the lucky winners, you can then use that bonus prize to play even more Pai Gow Poker!

How to Play Pai Gow Poker

Pai Gow Poker may appear complicated at first glance, but it only takes a minute or two to learn the rules.

In this game, you play against the dealer with a single deck of 52 cards plus one joker. To start, you place your bet, then seven cards are dealt with both you and the dealer. These seven cards must then be split into two separate hands, one with five cards and the other with two cards.

The two-card hand must have a lower poker hand value than the five-card hand. Once you're happy with your hands, all cards are revealed and if both of your hands beat those of the dealer, you win. To learn the rules of this game in more detail, check out our article on How to Play and Win at Pai Gow Poker.

References

• Massive Pai Gow Poker Wins (Casino City Times)
• $2.3 millions won at Pai Gow Poker in LA (Las Vegas Sun)