Online Poker Sites Supporting Multiple Tables (Multi-Tabling)
Many players like to play at more than one poker table at a time online. This is called multi-tabling. You can multi-table real-money cash games, tournaments, or sit-and-gos. If the game is spread online, you will be able to play more than one table.
Multi-tabling poker sites vary. Some poker rooms only allow up to four games simultaneously, while others will allow up to 20 or more. This page lists the top multi-tabling poker rooms, bonuses available to new players and the number of tables you can play at each site.
Why Do Players Multi-Table?
Some players multi-table at poker sites because it’s more fun than playing a single game. Imagine playing a No Limit Holdem freezeout, and in between hands getting some Stud action at a cash game table, too. The lulls in tournament play go by significantly faster when you’ve got cards coming on the side.
Some grinders look at hourly earn rate as the golden metric for success. These players multi-table solely to see more hands per hour. More hands per hour means, generally, more money earned per hour.
Other players want to earn as many player points as possible as quickly as possible. Usually these players are trying to clear bonuses, or to qualify for VIP promotions. More hands per hour means more rake paid, and more rake paid means more player points. Multi-tabling allows bonus grinders to clear promotions faster than usual.
Will Multi-Tabling Poker Sites Hurt My Game?
You may have heard that multi-tabling is a bad idea because it will hurt your game. There is some truth to this, but it depends entirely on the player. If you’re a solid player with a sound knowledge of poker strategy, you can probably play your A-game on up to 6 tables simultaneously. Above this threshold, you’ll have too little time to make important decisions; and thus you’ll end up making sub-optimal choices in a rush.
Some players have the gift of unbreakable focus, and can play great poker on more than 6 tables. Players like this will be able to maintain a solid winrate as they stack on the games; but they won’t be improving while they play. There just isn’t enough time for analysis when new decisions are required every 5 seconds.
The gist of it is that multi-tabling at poker sites uses up a lot of brainpower. It’s a trade-off: you max out your thinking abilities to increase your hourly earn, and give up the chance to improve your game.
Which Multi-Tabling Poker Sites are Best?
Any multi-tabling poker site with a four-color deck, an auto-rebuy feature, and advanced table layout options will be great for overloading on games.
An auto-rebuy feature like the one at 888 Poker is also a lifesaver for multi-tabling. When you’re playing cash games, you always want to make sure your stack is fully topped up; but when you’re playing multiple games at once, topping up in between hands can be all but impossible.
Hence why 888 allows you to set a rebuy threshold for your stack. Once your stack falls short of your set threshold, the 888 Poker software will automatically top up your chips to the maximum. This saves you time, hassle, and can prevent costly mistakes.
Can Software Tools Help Me Multi-Table?
If you’re really serious about multi-tabling poker sites, there are tools designed just for you. These include tracking programs, Heads Up Displays (HUDs), and hotkey scripts.
Tracking programs scan your hand histories while you play, and store player data in a database on your computer. A tracking program will run all sorts of calculations and compile a variety of statistics you can then use to analyze both yours and your opponents’ games. The big-name trackers right now are PokerTracker and Holdem Manager.
A Heads Up Display works in tandem with a tracking program, and displays tracked data right on the multi-tabling poker site’s software. For example when you’re seated at a cash game table, a HUD will automatically show you detailed playing statistics for each of your opponents. You can use these statistics on the fly to help you tailor your strategy to individual opponents. Most tracking programs come with a built-in HUD.
Many programmers in the poker community develop and maintain hotkey scripts, which are basically shortcut tools designed to make life easier for poker players.
Most hotkey scripts are absolutely free to download and use. If you’re serious about multi-tabling poker sites, you should try as many as you can. Stick with what works for you.