Taking your first steps can be difficult, and if you haven’t ever played before you might not want to risk your own money straight away. That's why we offer free games so that you can test things out and get a feel for the game.

To get started playing for free:

PokerStars is a real heavyweight of the online poker world, in fact, it’s the heavyweight. It’s an extremely safe place to place Poker with family, friends, or people from around the globe. Download & Install. Click the download button on this page and select ‘Run’ in the subsequent pop. Find the Best Online Poker Bonus & PokerStars Free Chips If you are looking to play real money poker games, our PokerStars free chips bonuses are just the thing to help you get you started. These are no deposit bonus bonuses that are given by casinos as a way to attract new players. Shockwave is the premier destination for free online games and premium download games. Gamers looking to have some serious fun can subscribe to Shockwave® UNLIMITED. As a member, you'll enjoy unlimited play on hundreds of download games, ads-free.

• Download our free, secure software and create your new Stars Account
• Select ‘Play Money’ in the software (you can play for free in both the desktop and mobile software)
• Take your pick from the web’s largest choice of free ring games, tournaments, Sit & Go’s and more!

You can find more detailed information below, as well as how to claim a great free offer when you’re ready to play for real money.

How to play free poker

At our free tables, all that is at stake is play money, and you can always get more chips when you run out! Thousands of players try out our play money tournaments and ring games every day, as it’s the perfect way to learn the game and refine your online strategy.

To get started, download our free poker software and create a new Stars Account now - it only takes a couple of minutes. Choose your username (which will be your nickname at the tables), select a password and confirm your email address. Once your registration is complete, you will receive virtual play money chips to join our free games.

There are two main types of online poker game: ring games and tournaments. Ring games are the ‘classic’ type of game than can be joined, and left, at any time. Players can choose how much of their real or virtual funds - known as their bankroll - to bring to the table, and are free to top-up or buy-in again if they lose their chips (and have more in reserve). Tournaments start at a specific time, or when a certain amount of players have registered, and usually require a one-off buy-in to play. Players who lose all their chips in a tournament are knocked out, until there is just one winner remaining. The combined prize pool of all the players’ buy-ins is shared between the players who last the longest, with the winner receiving the greatest share.

To try our free games, open the software, and select the ‘Play Money’ option. Then simply choose the game you want to play. If you run out of play money chips, take a seat at a ring game table and you’ll receive a free top-up.

Real money and play money

There are plenty of options and games available when playing with play money, and if you wish to play for real money, you can deposit funds into your account and take advantage of our first deposit offer. To see your current balance, of both real and play money, just open the ‘Cashier’.

We offer a huge range of different poker games and tournament formats in both free and real money variants.

Once you’re comfortable with how the games work, you can also try our fast-paced Zoom tables, available in both real and play money versions.

By playing at our play money tables, you’ll get a feel for everything we have to offer, as most of the special features at our regular tables are available at our free tables too.

And don’t forget that however experienced you are, you can always learn, practice and improve with our free Poker School.

Free money with daily Freeroll poker tournaments

In addition to free poker games, we offer you the chance to win free money with the many freerolls that run every day. Enter these free poker tournaments and you’ll have the chance to come away with real money in your account - and it's all on the house. To find freerolls, head to the ‘Tournaments tab’ (desktop), or ‘Tourney’ tab accessed via the Lobby (mobile), and select ‘Freeroll’ from the ‘Buy-in’ filter.

Once you’ve got to know the game software and the different games, you’ll be ready to give real money a shot. Simply download our free software and start honing your skills. With a game starting every second, there is only one place to play.

If you have any queries, please visit our Help Center as this is the most efficient route to getting your questions answered.

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