BetOnline Poker v Carbon Poker

Most poker players have a favorite room, others like to flit between a few depending on many factors. We thought it would be good to directly compare a few Online Poker rooms heads up. There will be no clear winner of course as we are all different and each room has something to offer that may pull us toward it. Here's a comparison between two of the biggest US Friendly Poker Rooms available today, BetOnline Poker and Carbon Poker. The two make a suitable match up as they both have a full product offering, and as well as poker both offer sports wagering, casino and racing, however we will focus on the poker side of things.

What is it that you want from a room? A tournament schedule that suits you? Software that you find easy to use? Or is customer support your priority? There are many factors that make up room that is the one for you and it could come down to the smallest personal thing such as a tourney starting time that suits you perfectly. With all of these things to take into consideration here's a look at two monsters of the US online poker scene.

BetOnline Poker and Carbon Welcome Bonuses

When signing up to a new room you of course expect a welcome bonus and in this instance we can directly compare, you would think....but that's not really the case as you will see. Carbon Poker offer a specific poker bonus, BetOnline do not and that's a big difference. However, BetOnline will offer all members a 25% bonus on each and every deposit and that could be the type of deal you are after, i,e small and regular.

The Carbon Poker bonus is a lot bigger at 200% up to a maximum of $5,000. This is a one time offer and is released as you play and earn poker points over a period of time. So, as you can see, there is no clear 'better bonus' and it really does come down to what suits you more. Maybe you are a bigger player and intend to play high stakes and create a lot of rake, this would mean the Carbon bonus would all be released pretty quickly giving your balance an automatic boost. Should you be a smaller stakes player or enjoy low buy in tournaments then may be a small but regular bonus would suit you.

Tournaments and Cash Games

In this area we find a big difference. Carbon Poker offers many large tournaments, whilst BetOnline focuses on smaller tourneys and even Free Rolls, and again the deciding factor is what type of player you are...or want to be. If you are a purely recreational player who likes hitting the felt for smaller stakes cash games and lower buy in tournaments then BetOnline is the better option. For higher stakes players then it has to be Carbon as their Sunday's alone can offer up to $500K in tournament guaranteed tournaments.

The Carbon Poker signature tourney is the Sunday $150,000 Big Ticket and will beat anything that BetOnline has to offer in prizes, and it comes with a buy in of $215, however you can use the large satellite schedule to get there. It also has to be said that the Carbon Poker schedule in general is much better with more variety and plenty of action around the clock. This does not deter from the fact that BetOnline has a good schedule, it simply means that it's different and if you prefer smaller fields then it's the choice for you. One big factor is who you will be playing against in these tourneys. Sure Carbon offers the big money guaranteed events, but they will have a large field and will also attract some great online players from the US. If you think you can mix it with them, then great go for it. If you are unsure about playing against some very experienced players and don't want to risk your cash by doing it then maybe BetOnline tournaments are a safer bet.

Banking and Support

These can often prove to be the single most important factor when deciding where to play. Both Carbon and BetOnline Poker are sensible in that fact that they realize this. Support is often overlooked by some rooms and it's sometimes underestimated on how much players value good support. When speaking to reps that understand what you are talking about, are friendly and professional it does give the player confidence in the room. Both poker rooms offer support around the clock and in our experience there is nothing to choose between the two, they both take it seriously. Banking is a huge issue, as when you win, you want your cash.

Both BetOnline and Carbon offer checks and bank wires as their principal payment methods as is pretty standard for US facing rooms. Also, when depositing then major credit cards are by far the most popular option for both room and customer as it's easy and fast. There really is little to choose between the two, and because they are the bigger rooms that service the US market it's good to see them leading the way in this area...maybe it's the reason they are the biggest rooms for US players?

Carbon Poker v BetOnline in Summary

As we mentioned at the beginning, there is and will never be a clear cut winner as we are all different and want different things. These two great rooms are stand out rooms and while they cater for different types of players, they each offer a superb all round product for the US market. You could say that Carbon Poker is better because of the game offering and it's certainly well known for having a great schedule and all manner of cash games and tourneys, but getting to the money seats in those tourneys can be a big ask for inexperienced players. Small players may not feel comfortable in those surroundings and prefer the smaller, low risk games. At the end of the day it's your call, Carbon Poker or BetOnline Poker are both here for you to enjoy and to have such good options is never a bad thing.