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The Best Pai Gow Casinos for 2024

Best Real Money Pai Gow Poker Badge

Pai Gow poker is a popular online casino game that offers players the chance to play an exciting and fast-paced version of poker without requiring much in the way skill. It’s a simple game to master, just by remember how to sort your cards – but you can always take your knowledge further and use Pai Gow to transition into other poker games like Texas Hold’em.

Here, you’ll find everything you need to know about playing Pai Gow poker at online casinos. You’ll learn about all of the best bonuses and how to choose the best Pai Gow casinos sites on the web. Once you’ve decided where to play, you can move on to learning the basics rules of the game, and even some simple strategic tips that will help you play like a pro.

Wild Casino

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4.9 / 5
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Slots.lv Casino

200% up to $3,000
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4.7 / 5
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Sports and Casino

300% up to $1,500
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4.5 / 5
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Slotastic

150% up to $200
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4.2 / 5
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Bovada

100% up to $3,000
  • Large Variety of Casino Games
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3.5 / 5
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Finding the Best Casinos to Play at

If you want to play Pai Gow online, it’s not as simple as typing the game into Google and registering with the first site that pops up. It’s important you’re discerning about where you choose to play, only signing up to the sites with the best game selection for your needs, bonuses that benefit your playing style and quality customer service.

Pai Gow Bonus Offers

In the online casino world, there is a huge selection of bonuses on offer. Not all of them are made equal, though. Some of the best promotions to keep an eye out for are:

Free Chips

Free spins are very popular at online casinos but, since you’re interested in playing Pai Gow and other card games, you should be on the lookout for online gaming sites that provide you with free chips. These are usually only worth $5 or $10 but they can get you off to a great start while playing table games online.

No Deposit Bonuses

Some online casinos will offer you the chance to earn bonus cash without having to make a deposit. These bonuses are made available to you right after you register and verifying your account, and you can spend your no deposit bonus on any games you like.

Welcome Bonus

If you’re going to accept a welcome bonus at an online casino, you should always go for one that offers you a 100% match or more on your first deposit. Once you make that first deposit, your bonus will be credited to your account immediately. It’s important to pay attention to the criteria, such as minimum/maximum eligible deposits (depending on whether you’re a budget-conscious player or a high roller). Deposit method is another area where there may be limitations, as some sites won’t pay out deposit bonuses if you’ve funded your account with Neteller or Skrill.

Wagering Requirements

Whenever you claim an online casino bonus, wagering requirements will apply. There are some instances when you can claim “wager-free” bonuses, but it’s incredibly rare. These requirements dictate how many times you have to wager your bonus before you can withdraw the original amount.

The best wagering requirements you can hope to find at an online casino are 20x to 25x – although, some sites will only have a wagering requirement of 5x on your first deposit bonus. On the higher end of the spectrum are 50x wagering requirements, which are only really ideal if you’re a high roller.

Game Selection

You may only be interested in playing Pai Gow poker online, but it’s still important to know that there are other options available to you at any online casino that you sign up to. You can always use your Pai Gow knowledge to play other types of card games like Casino Hold’em and Three Card Poker, and sometimes you might simply want to try something different. So, you should always browse the games lobby before you decide where you’re going to register.

Another important factor in the game selection of any site is the stakes that they offer. Some sites may offer VIP Pai Gow for high rollers which allow for larger maximum stakes, and you may even be able to find low limit games if your bankroll isn’t particularly large. 

There are even some online casinos with more comprehensive table game selections. While most destinations will only have the standard version of Pai Gow, if you’re really thrilled by this game, it’s a good idea to look for sites that offer variants of the game – such as Fortune Pai Gow.

How to Play Pai Gow Poker

If you’re new to playing this classic card game, then there’s fantastic news for you – pai gow poker rules are very easy to understand. It shouldn’t be very difficult for you to grasp the concept of the game and get started playing.

All of the players at the table must make a bet, and are then dealt seven cards. With these cards, players have to make two hands: one two-card hand (also called the top, small, minor or low hand) and one five-card hand (also called bottom, high, big or behind hand).  The main thing to remember is that you five-card hand has to rank higher than your two-card hand.

After all of the players have set both of their Pai Gow hands, they’ll place their cards in front of them. You aren’t playing against each other, though; you’re playing against the dealer. There are three possibilities here according to the house rules:

  • If you win both hands, you’ll double your bet
  • If you only win one hand, this is a draw and you’ll get your money back
  • If the dealer wins, then you lose your bet

If you’re wondering how the ranking works for Pai Gow hands, it’s the same as a classic game of Texas Hold’em. There is just one main difference, as a joker is added to the deck. When this card is in your hand, you can use it as a wild in three ways:

  • It can be used to complete a straight
  • It can be used to complete a flush
  • If it can’t be used in either of those situations, it counts as an Ace

Strategies and Tips for Winning at Pai Gow

Since Pai Gow is such a straight-forward game, the winning strategy is quite simple as well. Of course, following these tips won’t always guarantee a win, but you’ll increase your chances of both hands beating out the dealer.

Basically, it all comes down to remember how to split your cards. For the purposes of these strategies, our two-card hand will be called our “front hand” and our five-card hand will be called our “back hand”.

If you have one pair, this should always go in your back hand. Your next two highest cards will go in the front. If you don’t have any pairs at all, your highest card should go in your front hand and your next two highest cards should go in the back.

If you have two pairs, the higher pair should go in the back, and the lower pair should do in the front. In some situations, however, you should put both pairs in your back hand:

  • When you have a pair of 7s and no ace
  • When you have a pair of jacks or higher and a pair of 6s or higher along with an ace
  • When you have a pair of aces with any other pair

When you have three pairs, the highest pair should go in your front hand while the other two go in the back.

If you’re dealt three of a kind, they should all go in your back hand. Unless, you have three aces; then, two should go in the back and one should go in the front. If you have two three-of-a-kinds, the lower of the two should go in your back hand, and the higher should be split up so that they create a pair in the front hand.

When you have four of a kind, it depends entirely on the four cards that you have:

  • Sixes or lower: keep them together in the back hand
  • Sevens through 10s: split them into two pairs – one in the front hand and one in the low hand. If you have an ace, then play three of a kind in the back.
  • Face cards: always split, unless you have another pair that you can play in the low hand.

If you happen to be lucky enough to be dealt five aces (all four aces and the joker), then you should always split them. Play a pair in the front and three of a kind in the back.

So, when it comes to mastering the art of playing Pai Gow poker in online casino games, it’s all about remembering. You don’t really have to strategize – you just have to remember a few key points. It’s all based on which poker hands you’re dealt and how you split them up – if at all.

Now, you know everything you need to know about playing Pai Gow poker online! Head over to your chosen online casino and give the game a spin; you’re certainly in for an exciting online gaming experience with the chance to win some great prizes.