Top Online Poker Sites in Ontario 2025: Legal Safe & Thriving
Online poker in Ontario is a robust and rapidly growing market within the province’s thriving regulated iGaming environment. In the fiscal year from April 1, 2024, to March 31, 2025, Ontario’s overall regulated online gambling gross gaming revenue (GGR) reached CA$3.20 billion (approx. US$2.32 billion), demonstrating a 32% increase year-over-year. Of this, online poker contributed significantly with CA$1.7 billion (about US$1.22 billion) in wagers, indicating its strong presence in the market. The total number of active player accounts across all online gambling services reached approximately 1.1 million by March 2025, with the average monthly revenue per account around CA$278 (US$201.90). Mobile platforms dominated play, accounting for 72% of activity, revealing a major shift toward mobile poker and casino sessions. Players tend to engage with multiple sites, averaging 2.3 different accounts per user, reflecting a highly competitive market landscape with abundant choices and offerings.
Ontario’s online poker market is regulated under a dual-agency framework: the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) oversees licensing and compliance, while iGaming Ontario (iGO) manages the commercial operations. The market launched officially in April 2022, making Ontario a pioneer in legal online poker regulation in Canada. Key licensed operators including PokerStars Ontario, GGPoker, BetMGM Poker, 888poker, PartyPoker, and bwin ensure variety in game types, from traditional Texas Hold’em and Omaha to fast-paced tournaments and innovative formats like fast-forward poker. These platforms also run large-scale poker series such as the Ontario Championship of Online Poker (ONCOOP) and the Spring Championship of Online Poker (ONSCOOP), which regularly attract thousands of players and sizable prize pools, enhancing player engagement and competition. This legal and regulated environment prioritizes player protection through age verification (minimum age 19), responsible gambling tools, and secure payment methods, building player trust and safety.
From a market business perspective, Ontario’s online poker segment ranks as the second-best performing regulated online gambling market in North America in its initial years, just behind Michigan. Over the first three years since launch, Ontario generated an estimated $5.221 billion USD in total gaming revenue, including poker, sports betting, and casino games, with poker showing solid growth despite fierce competition from casino games. The province hosts over 50 licensed operators across more than 80 gambling platforms, reflecting a mature and diversified ecosystem. BetMGM is commonly reported as a market leader in poker revenue. However, the province recognizes that roughly 16% of online gambling still occurs on unregulated grey market sites, indicating room for further market growth by increasing consumer migration to licensed sites.
Looking forward, Ontario is actively seeking legal clarity and permission to open its online poker tables to foreign players, including from the United States, to join larger player liquidity pools. This move would significantly enhance game liquidity, tournament prize pools, and player experience by allowing Ontario poker players to compete internationally under regulated frameworks. The Attorney General of Ontario has filed applications seeking court opinions on the legality of shared player liquidity with other jurisdictions. Industry experts, including legal counsel, assert that this expansion is feasible and could materialize soon pending favorable court decisions. Additionally, Ontario may collaborate with the upcoming Alberta regulated poker market, expected to launch in 2026, to create regional liquidity-sharing frameworks, further boosting the Canadian online poker framework.
In summary, Ontario’s online poker environment is distinguished by strong regulatory oversight, a diverse operator presence, growing revenues with increasing player engagement, and promising future expansions to international player pools. Its sustained growth and innovation position Ontario as a leading global market in regulated online poker, offering competitive game selections, high security, and responsible gambling features tailored to a broad demographic primarily aged 25-44, the core segment driving the market’s vitality.
FAQ
How Much Does It Cost to Play in the World Poker Tour (WPT) 2025?
Playing in the World Poker Tour (WPT) in 2025 involves varying costs depending on the specific tournament and level of competition. The flagship event for the WPT is the highly prestigious WPT World Championship held at Wynn Las Vegas, which features a buy-in of $10,400. This event typically runs from mid-December for about a week and attracts thousands of players globally. To enter, players pay this buy-in which covers their seat in the tournament. For instance, in the previous year, the tournament had 2,392 entries with a total prize pool of over $23 million, and the winner, Scott Stewart, took home over $2.5 million. Besides the main event, the WPT World Championship festival features 78 tournaments spread across three weeks, with buy-ins ranging from a minimum of $600 for lower-tier events to as high as $25,800 for high roller tournaments. These tournaments include various formats like No Limit Hold’em, PLO Mystery Bounty, Mixed Games, and Seniors events, providing options for all kinds of players from amateurs to professionals.
Will Ontario Poker Players Rejoin the Global Market in 2025?
Will Ontario Poker Players Rejoin the Global Market? Ontario’s online poker market is at a pivotal crossroads as of 2025, with significant discussions around whether its players will rejoin the global poker scene. Since Ontario launched a regulated, ring-fenced online poker market in April 2022, players have only been allowed to compete against others physically located within the province. This closed liquidity approach has created a mixed landscape where the market enjoys some benefits but also faces clear limitations. Ontario poker operators generated C$6.3 million in revenue in May 2025, marking a 19% year-over-year growth, suggesting healthy local activity despite market limitations. However, poker accounts for only 1.8% of the overall C$7.5 billion gamblers wagered in Ontario’s online casino and sportsbook sectors in July 2025, signaling room for growth if liquidity expands.
Can You Play World Poker Tour (WPT) in Canada?
Playing the World Poker Tour (WPT) in Canada is currently possible but with specific limitations and evolving legal considerations. ClubWPT Gold, a sweepstakes-style poker platform affiliated with WPT, has been preparing to launch officially in Canada in 2025, aimed at replacing the void left by Global Poker’s recent exit from the Canadian market. Initially, ClubWPT Gold was open for pre-registration to Canadians (excluding Quebec), but legal advice delayed their full participation in games or tournaments. However, recent developments and statements from the platform hint at a rollout “later this year,” potentially filling the gap for Canadian players who seek legal online poker options. This platform uses a subscription-based, sweepstakes model which is legal under Canadian law and allows players to win cash and prizes without gambling with real money directly. This approach differentiates ClubWPT from traditional online gambling and positions it as a compliant option for Canadian residents intending to play WPT-style poker online.
Is WPT Global Poker Available in Ontario?
WPT Global poker is available across much of Canada, but due to Ontario’s provincial legislation, players from Ontario are blocked from accessing the platform. Ontario has a regulated online poker market that requires operators to obtain a local license and comply with strict rules, such as ring-fencing player pools so that Ontario residents compete only against other Ontario-located players. Since WPT Global operates under an international license from Curaçao and does not have an Ontario-specific license, Ontario players cannot legally use WPT Global to play poker. Instead, Ontario residents must use provincially licensed platforms like GGPoker Ontario or 888poker Ontario to participate in online poker, including the WPT World Championship events.
Poker Global Ontario - The best online poker site in Ontario, Toronto, Canada. Poker offers online poker and casino games in Montreal also.
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