# PokerNow explained: poker with friends in the browser Source: https://flopnight.com/en/pokernow/ Updated: 2026-11-04 Language: en In German: https://flopnight.com/de/pokernow/index.md License: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Free to use if you credit Flopnight and link this page. > PokerNow explained: what it costs, whether you need an account, how to set up a table and how to bring your friends to it with a link. **PokerNow** is a free poker site for private games in the browser. You open a table on [pokernow.com](https://flopnight.com/go/pokernow?from=en), send your friends the link, and you play with play money. Nobody needs a download or an account, and up to ten players fit at one table. Playing costs nothing, and you can't buy chips on PokerNow. It makes money with the Plus subscription and with NOW Coins for avatars and extras. Nobody plays for real money there. ## PokerNow at a glance - Where: In the browser, no download, on phones too. There is no app. - Games: No-limit hold'em and pot-limit Omaha, also as hi-lo. - Sign-up: Not needed. Whoever opens the table sends the others a link. - With friends: Private table for up to ten players, free tournaments with up to 50 players. - Ads: Notes about its own offers, hidden with the Plus subscription. - What it costs: No chips for sale, playing stays free. For money there is the Plus subscription (video chat without a time limit among other things, free for 30 minutes a day) and NOW Coins for avatars and extras. - Link: https://www.pokernow.com/ From PokerNow, as of November 2, 2026. ## How to set up a table 1. On pokernow.com, click "Start a New Game", enter a nickname and choose "Create Game". You set the [blinds](https://flopnight.com/en/poker-terms/#blinds), the starting chips and the game when you create it. 2. At the table, enter your starting chips and sit down with "Take the Seat". 3. Send the link from the middle of the table to your friends, for example in your group chat. Whoever opens it asks for a seat. 4. Under "Options" at the top left is the list of players. Let each of them sit down with "Approve". 5. Once everyone is there, click "Start Game" at the bottom right. That is how PokerNow's own tutorial describes it, and the buttons may look a little different by now. If you don't know the rules yet, read the [poker rules](https://flopnight.com/en/texas-holdem-rules/) first. ## Blinds for a night online At a normal table, the host sets the blinds when creating it, and they stay the same. If you want rising blinds like at a tournament at home, create a tournament on PokerNow, at one table or over several. There, every level has a small blind, a big blind and, if you like, an ante, a small bet from everyone. Which levels fit a night is shown by our [tournament clock](https://flopnight.com/en/poker-tournament-clock/): twelve levels from 5/10 to 500/1,000, each 15, 20 or 30 minutes long depending on the pace. You can copy the table under the clock when you set up the tournament. ## What PokerNow does and where it stops - **No hurdles:** no download, no account, up to ten players at a table without a subscription. - **Games:** [no-limit](https://flopnight.com/en/poker-terms/#no-limit) hold'em and [pot-limit](https://flopnight.com/en/poker-terms/#pot-limit) [Omaha](https://flopnight.com/en/poker-terms/#omaha), also as hi-lo. We found no other games in PokerNow's information. - **Settling up:** an overview shows who bought in with how many chips and left with how many. - **Regular groups:** for groups that play often there are clubs with a member list and tables of their own. - **Video chat:** free for 30 minutes a day, without a time limit only with Plus. - **Ads:** PokerNow shows notes about its own offers, with Plus they are gone. - **No app:** on a phone, PokerNow runs in the browser. ## Alternatives to PokerNow If you would rather have an app, look at **EasyPoker**: for iPhone and Android, without an account, free for three players. From four players the host needs its Plus subscription there. It is in our [comparison of free poker sites](https://flopnight.com/en/poker-with-friends/#easypoker). If you are looking for players outside your own group, [Replay Poker](https://flopnight.com/en/replay-poker/) is the site for that. You need an account there and get free chips every day. ## Our game for regular groups We are building our own free poker for groups of friends who play regularly: one link, everyone at the table, and a league table over the whole season. No real money and no chips for sale. It starts in German. ## Questions and answers **Is PokerNow free?** Yes. Playing costs nothing, and you can't buy chips there. For money there is the Plus subscription, for video chat without a time limit among other things, and NOW Coins for avatars and extras. **Do I need an account for PokerNow?** No. Whoever opens the table enters a nickname and sends the others the link. The others ask for a seat through the link, and the host lets them sit down. **How many players fit at a PokerNow table?** Up to ten. For more people there are tournaments over several tables, free with up to 50 players. **Is there a PokerNow app?** No. PokerNow runs in the browser, on a computer and on a phone. You don't have to install anything. **Can you play for real money on PokerNow?** No. PokerNow says itself that there is only play money with no cash value and no cash prizes. ## Sources - PokerNow: home page: https://www.pokernow.com/ - PokerNow: Start a new game: https://www.pokernow.com/start-game - PokerNow: No Download Poker with Friends Tutorial: https://www.pokernow.com/blog/no-download-poker-with-friends-tutorial - PokerNow: How to create a one table Tournament on Poker Now: https://www.pokernow.com/blog/how-to-create-a-one-table-tournament-on-poker-now - PokerNow: Tournaments: https://www.pokernow.com/mtt - PokerNow: Clubs: https://www.pokernow.com/clubs - PokerNow: Plus: https://www.pokernow.com/subscription/plus - PokerNow: NOW Coins: https://www.pokernow.com/poker-now-coins --- Flopnight: no real money, no prizes. Gambling can be addictive. Free, confidential help in the US: 1-800-MY-RESET (National Problem Gambling Helpline).