Summary (Rated 9 out of 10)
With 150,000+ players online at any time, PokerStars is the current King of online poker. From Pot Limit Omaha to Badugi, PokerStars offers the widest selection of games and stakes online. Combine this with their industry-leading software and excellent customer support and you have a recipe for success.
Players earn FPPs the fastest at PokerStars via Sit N' Go Tournaments - at a rate of 5.5 VPPs / $1 Tournament Fees paid.
Game Selection (Rated 10 out of 10)
For cash games, PokerStars is the leader of the pack. You can find a game for any and all forms of poker at your fingertips, from Hold'em to HORSE. PokerStars offers a broad range of stakes to accommodate all bankrolls sizes. Just starting out? You can literally play penny poker as your skills and bankroll grows. Are you the next Patrik Antonius looking for high stakes action? PokerStars provides limit and no-limit games up to $1000/2000 and $200/400 blinds, respectively.
Tournaments strike your fancy? PokerStars can scratch that itch. In similar fashion to their cash games, PokerStars offers plenty of variety to satisfy your needs. Looking for a quick fix? Try their Sit & Go's, which start with a $1 buy-in and offer intermediate stakes all the way up to $2000. Only got an hour (or less)? Give the turbo Sit & Go's a shot which provide you with the most action for your buck.
Looking for multi-table glory? PokerStars does that too. Buy-ins start from $0.50 which allow you to sharpen your skills before venturing out into their prestigious weekly $215 buy-in Sunday Million, which guarantees a prize pool of $1 million!
Can't dish out the money for a full buy-in? PokerStars offers tons of satellites into many of the biggest events, including the Sunday Million and the ever-looming WSOP.
Quality of Players (Rated 6 out of 10)
With the vast amount of players that PokerStars draws, competition varies immensely. At the lower limits, the competition is full of players who seemingly saw a PokerStars ad on TV and are putting their poker skills to the test. However, as you move up in stakes, you will find some of the strongest players on the Internet, who play because of the superb gaming experience PokerStars provides. Each individual will need to decide whether or not they have the goods to compete with tougher opponents relative to other sites.
Software (Rated 10 out of 10)
PokerStars offers industry-leading software. They allow each player to customize the software to suit their needs. Multi-tablers can rejoice. Re-sizable tables were recently added to the software. In addition, it provides the ability to tile and cascade the tables inorder maximize monitor real estate. PokerStars also allows the player to save custom table layouts, so you don't have to spend time moving the tables into place every new session. The software provides smooth, fast, bug-free gameplay.
Graphics (Rated 8 out of 10)
The table graphics are equally customizable. PokerStars offers several themes for both table background and card designs. Each player is also allowed to upload their own personal avatar for free. The lobby design is simple, but user-friendly. Standard cash games and tournaments are displayed in monotone. Notable tournaments are given special colour codes, be it for rebuys, guarantees, or other special structures.
Profitability (Rated 7 out of 10)
PokerStars offers stiffer competition than other sites. However, with good game selection, one can still be profitable (as in any poker). PokerStars offers a small deposit bonus of 100% up to $50. PokerStars also offers periodic reload bonuses. They are cleared by earning Frequent Player Points (FPPs). For the smaller stakes players, this bonus is somewhat difficult to clear because you can only earn FPPs in cash games if the rake reaches $0.40. However, if you plan to play tournaments, this bonus essentially returns 100% of your tournament fees. Fortunately, these FPPs also have value independent from the bonuses. You can utilize them in the PokerStars FPP store to purchase various items including clothing, poker accessories, electronics, gift certificates, entries to bigger tournaments, and cold hard cash.
