RakeAtPoker - Online Poker Rake Comparison

Rakeback & Rewards Loyalty Program

PokerStars uses the weighted-contributed method to calculate rake contribution.
This means that for every hand, you receive rake credit proportionally based on how much you contribute to the size of the pot.

This method is generally seen as favoring "action players" who are more willing to put money into the pot, while potentially disfavoring tight players who fold more often.

Conclusion: If you fold preflop, you earn no rakeback, and for all heads-up pots you play you share the rewards equally with your opponent.

This is different from methods like "dealt" rake (where everyone dealt into a hand gets a share, regardless of contribution) or "weighted contributed" (where loose players who contribute more in later streets can get a disproportionate share).

Under the new Stars Rewards loyalty program, launched on January 24, 2024, PokerStars players receive from 15% to 60% rakeback and additional bonuses.

Regular Stars Rewards levels provide from 15% to 40% rakeback when playing for 28 days, from $20 to $2,500 rake.

There are six regular levels in the new PokerStars rakeback program and two VIP levels.
They are volume-based (awarded for the amount of rake paid by the player): the higher the level, the higher the rakeback percentage.

The player is given 28 days to complete each level.
If he does not meet this deadline, the system automatically resets the scoring progress for the current chest.

Stars Rewards Chests

PokerStars players receive regular rakeback payouts by opening chests in exchange for Reward Points:

You receive 100 reward points for every $1 paid in rake

The payout amount for each level's chest is fixed

The player must collect at least 5 chests to advance to the next level.

Overview:

Level	Reward Points	Rake	Chests for next level	Chest payment	Rakeback
Blue	2,000	$20	5	$3	15%
Bronze	6,000	$60	5	$10.50	17.5%
Silver	20,000	$200	5	$40	20%
Gold	50,000	$500	5	$125	25%
Diamond	120,000	$1,200	5	$360	30%
Black	250,000	$2,500	-	$1,000	40%

The validity period of the chest is 30 days; after this period, the bonus is considered overdue and is not paid.

Policy Towards Professional Player

On the one hand, PokerStars have long hinted that regulars should look for another place to "work".
On the other hand, trackers are still allowed, bumhunt is somehow possible, and there are practically no alternatives among large operators with similar conditions.

Let's highlight some features of the PS policy towards pros:

Tracking software: Applications like PokerTracker, Hand2Note, Holdem Manager, DriveHUD are allowed.

Hand History: You can download your hand history, but third party hand histories are treated as unfair advantage.

Track player activity through search

Take notes

Restrictions: PokerStars does not allow to queue on a waiting list without at least one active table and multi-tabling more than 4.

Deposits & Withdrawals

Pokerstars offers a regular cashier with e-wallets and cards for deposits, but cryptos are still unavailable. Skrill, Neteller, ecoPayz, Webmoney can be used, and CAD, USD, British Pound, and Euro are included in the currencies list.

The minimum deposit is $5, and the default maximum is $1,000, although it can be increased with customer service. There are no related fees for money transactions.

As usual, the final list of payment methods depends on your country. The withdrawal time ranges from minutes to e-wallets to 5-10 days to cards.

Payments	Deposit	Withdrawal
Visa	$5-$10,000	$100-$10,000
MasterCard	$5-$10,000	$100-$10,000
Skrill	$10-$10,000	$10-$10,000
Neteller	$10-$10,000	$10-$10,000
Webmoney	$10-$10,000	$10-$10,000
ecoPayz	$10-$10,000	$10-$10,000
MuchBetter	$10-$10,000	$10-$10,000