Why Poker Rooms Charge Rake

Poker Rooms Charge Rake?

The reason poker rooms charge rake is because that is how the poker room makes revenue for the service of running the game. The game of poker is different from other casino games in that you are not playing against the casino but instead you are playing against other players. Blackjack, craps, pai-gow and roulette all have been created with a built in advantage for the casino so in the long run the casino will always win. The odds are set up in the casino’s favor in order to pay for the cost of operating the casino.

In poker games the casino is not directly involved in who wins or loses and the casino does not win or lose money when poker games are being played. Instead, the casino just runs the games providing the space to play, the table, the chips, the dealer and the floor personnel. To make money from offering poker games the poker room takes a few dollars from each pot, a process known as rake. The rake is a small percentage of the pot usually 5% for online poker rooms and 10% for land based poker rooms. Both online poker rooms and brick and mortar poker rooms cap the rake at a maximum of a few dollars – typically $3 – so no matter how big the pot gets the casino can only take a few dollars.

For online poker rooms the rake is a smaller percentage because their costs are a bit less then running a brick and mortar poker room. Online poker rooms need to charge rake in order to pay for updating and improving the poker software, the servers the games are hosted on, the customer service and technical employees, management and marketing efforts to attract new players.

Reasons Why Poker Rooms Charge Rake?

Poker is Different Than Casino Games

The game of poker is based on each player playing against other poker players and not against the house (casino). Poker is different than other casino games like blackjack, roulette and craps because in those games the casino operator has a guaranteed percentage built into the game. The odds being in the casino's favor ensures guarantees the casino will win considerably more than they will lose in the long run. However, in poker the casino only operates the game and does not have any interest in who wins each hand. The money won is taken from other players at the table and not the casino.

Rake

In order for the casino to make money having poker games the casino must take a small percentage from each hand. This small percentage is called the rake, a term derived from the action in which a dealer rakes a few dollars from the pot at the end of the hand.

Rake Revenue Pays for Poker Room Operations

In brick and mortar poker rooms this rake pays for the dealers, floor personnel, the building, electricity and the many other costs associated with running a poker room. In the online world the rake pays for the customer service employees, the poker software, the servers the games are hosted on and the poker room's marketing efforts.

Brick and Mortar and Online Poker Rooms Rake Comparison

The cost to run an online poker room is quite a bit less then running a brick and mortar poker room. This fact combined with the much faster speed each hand played online is compared to a hand played in a brick and mortar poker room makes online poker rooms more profitable. Because of this online poker rooms charge a smaller rake to their players percentage wise per hand, usually 5% instead of the 10% land based poker rooms charge. Both online and brick and mortar poker rooms cap the amount of rake collected in each hand, usually the rake is capped at about $3.

Thanks to online poker rooms we get a chance to compete against other poker players. Your skills are challenging the skills of other players to determine who wins the most amount of chips. In the long run, the more skillful players will beat the less skillful player because in the long run luck will even out. But rakeback benefits everyone, as all players can earn rakeback putting more money in everyone's bankrolls.