Good News! Carbon Poker is available to US players (Restricted in the following states: Washington, Maryland, Kansas, Missouri, DC, Louisiana, Kentucky, Utah, Nevada, New Jersey, Delaware and New York).

Carbon Poker Review

Sign Up Bonus: 100% up to $1,000
Approved Approved Poker Room

Pros and Cons

  • Great Software
  • Loose Games
  • Fast, quality support
  • Withdrawals are expensive
  • Network has issues with consistent cashout speeds
  • Related sportsbook has a terrible reputation
  • Winning players often banned

Carbon Poker Ratings

Where Can You Play Carbon Poker

Carbon Poker is available to US players but restricted in the following states: Washington, Maryland, Kansas, Missouri, DC, Louisiana, Kentucky, Utah, Nevada, New Jersey, Delaware and New York.
Available in most countries worldwide.

Expert View of Carbon Poker

Carbon Poker is the flagship of the Merge Gaming Network.  It was once the largest online poker site that accepted U.S. players.  That occurred after Black Friday.  It has been on a downward spiral ever since.  The network kicked most of its skins off.  It started going after winning players.  The network stopped accepting new U.S. players off and on.  It also ended its affiliate program.  There were periods of slow payouts that sometimes lasted almost a year.  All of these issues contributed to the massive decline of Merge Gaming.  Carbon Poker currently accepts U.S. players from most states.

The Best Poker Site Alternative to Carbon Poker

888 Poker Review
  • Large player traffic
  • Above average quality of games
  • Social, recreational player focused
You can read more in our 888 Poker Review

The Best Poker Site Alternative to Carbon Poker

BetOnline Poker Review
  • Third largest U.S. facing poker room with growing traffic.
  • Excellent and consistent payment processing.
  • Relatively juicy games.
You can read more in our BetOnline Review

Carbon Poker Summary

Carbon Poker tablesCarbon Poker was once known as Poker.com, a domain they leased. The owner of the domain did not renew the lease to this group in early 2007. The Poker.com player base was moved to Carbon Poker and PDC Poker. The Merge Gaming Network was later created with these two rooms. Since then, the parent company of Carbon Poker also acquired Aced, which it closed on July 1, 2014. Aced players were moved to Carbon Poker.

The previously bland software was updated in June 2012 with the release of Merge Gaming 6.0. This software created a more stable platform as well as new features for players. The new platform also corrected several bugs that were present in the previous version.

One recent issue with Carbon Poker is the exclusion of winning players. Some are restricted to just two tables, while others are outright kicked off of the site and forced to withdraw all funds. This is a concern to us at Safest Poker Sites.  There are also issues with cashout speeds from time to time.  The 5% Bitcoin withdrawal fee is outrageous, especially considering many other sites process these payments for free. It’s clear that Carbon Poker does not like winning players.

Personal Opinion of Juicy Stakes

What we do not like about Carbon Poker

Carbon Poker’s first deposit bonus clears at a rate of just 5% rakeback. That is extremely slow. It also expires after 60 days and releases in $20 increments. This means $400 in rake is required to release the first portion of the bonus. Most players will not ever clear even the first increment, must less the entire amount.

The lack of a VIP program makes it hard to give much action to Carbon Poker. Players only receive one free check withdrawal per year. Additional withdrawals incur a 3% fee.  Bitcoin has a fee of 5% per withdrawal. Most of the action at Carbon Poker is on No Limit Texas Hold’em tables with micro blinds.

For these reasons, we recommend avoiding Carbon Poker and instead choosing BetOnline.

What Are Players Saying About Carbon Poker

Most of the discussion about Carbon Poker on the internet is negative.  Most involve bad bonus terms, broken promises and slow payouts. It is difficult to find many positive statements about Carbon Poker after its policies enacted over the past few years.


“Shady. I play on all American facing sites, except Carbon. They lost my business years ago, because of these types of scummy maneuvers on their part. I understand the software is good and player pool soft, but good riddance!”

TwoPlusTwo User


“Outside of soft competition I would assume (I’m not a cash game player), there aren’t really any other incentives. No rakeback, no VIP Program.”

TwoPlusTwo User


“The cash table lobby is designed to benefit recreational players and you don’t even get to pick a table that you want to sit at. I prefer a 9 person full ring game and when you click the button it just sends you to a table. The last time it was just me and another player.

The traffic is also down because of their payout problems in the last year and the site punishing consistent winning regulars. By trying to cater to recreational players this site will eventually put itself out of business.”

PokerScout User

Carbon Poker Deposits and Withdrawals

D+

Making a Deposit

Players in the U.S. have several deposit options.  Bitcoin is the best option. Some credit cards and debit cards work for depositing. Players may also opt to use cash transfer services such as Western Union for deposit. If you plan to make a large deposit then Carbon Poker has been known to cover the fee charged by Western Union.  Players outside the U.S. have few other options.

Making a Withdrawal

Players in the U.S. always have to be careful to research how they will be paid by an online poker room once they win.  All players have checks available as a withdrawal option.  The fee for check withdrawal is 3% up to $75.  The maximum check amount is $2,500 and checks arrive in about one month. Bitcoin and bank wire are available to some players. Bitcoin is available with a 5% fee.

Checks are delivered in about one month.  Bitcoin withdrawals are processed in a day or two.  Players receive one free withdrawal per year.

Customers outside the U.S. must take a bank wire or Bitcoin withdrawal.  These take about one month to process.

Notable Payment Processors
  • bitcoin
  • debit-cards
  • mastercard
  • visa
  • westernunion
Deposits
  • bitcoin
  • check
  • wiretransfer
Withdrawals

Carbon Poker Safety

Carbon Poker has the worst reputation of all U.S. online poker sites. We are concerned with Carbon Poker’s traffic decline in recent years as well as generally lower than average payout speeds and options. With that said, they haven’t put as much focus on the poker room (versus sportsbook and casino) but they have improved their payment processing recently and have overcome obstacles before.

This goes without saying with any online poker room, but make sure to not keep any more of your money online at Carbon Poker that you could not afford to potentially lose. The site has a history of going through periods where players get slow-paid.

Is Carbon Poker Legit?

The origins of Carbon Poker date back to more than a decade. They have survived serious obstacles such as payment difficulties, the UIGEA and Black Friday — and they are still here. This gives us a little respect for Carbon Poker.  However, it still is not one of our first options due to its repetitive payout issues, high cashout fees and problems with the sportsbook.

Carbon Poker Bonuses

Deposit Bonus

New players will receive a 100% up to $1,000 first deposit bonus. Players may deposit as little as $10 to receive the bonus. The bonus clears at a rate of 200 VIP Points per $1 in bonus money. This gives the player a 5% cash back rate just for clearing the bonus. The bonus expires in 60 days, if a withdrawal is requested, or the player makes a deposit to claim a different bonus. The bonus releases in $20 increments.

Monthly Reload Bonus

Carbon Poker offers a reload bonus every month. The unfavorable terms of the first deposit bonus are used for the reload offer.

Carbon Poker VIP

Carbon Poker discontinued its VIP program on July 15, 2014.

Carbon Poker Promotions

Bad Beat Jackpot

Carbon Poker offers a Bad Beat Jackpot. A player that loses quad deuces or better will release the jackpot. Both the winner and loser must use both hole cards. The loser of the hand wins 38%, the winner gets 20.5%, the remaining players at the table split 20.5%, while the other 21% funds the next progressive jackpot. The Bad Beat Jackpot meter goes up $.10 every minute, regardless of the action. Unlike the previous jackpot promotion, there is no additional rake. It is only available at No Limit Texas Hold’em cash games with 3 or more active players.

Carbon Poker Game Selection

Carbon Poker offers little in the way of game selection.  Players will only find Texas Hold’em, Omaha and Omaha High/Low these days.  That is quite a change from its number of stud, draw and mixed games in the past.

Games Offered
  • No Limit Hold’em
  • Fixed Limit Hold’em
  • Pot Limit Omaha
  • Limit Omaha Hi/Lo
  • Other Games
  • 0.05 / 0.10
    0.10 / 0.20
    0.25 / 0.50
    0.50 / 1
    1 / 2
    2 / 5
  • 0.10 / 0.20
    0.25 / 0.50
    0.50 / 1
    1 / 2
    2 / 4
    4 / 8
    8 / 16
    15 / 30
  • 0.05 / 0.10
    0.10 / 0.25
    0.25 / 0.50
    0.50 / 1
    1 / 2
    2 / 5
  • 0.50 / 1
    1 / 2
    2 / 4
    4 / 8
    8 / 16
    15 / 30
  • None
Items in red bold represent limits that have games running. Limits are in $USD.

Has There Ever Been a Scandal at Carbon Poker?

Carbon Poker’s slow withdrawal speeds in the past are a serious concern to Safest Poker Sites.  We feel that any site that takes more than three months to process cashouts to U.S. players has serious issues behind the scenes.  While the speeds have improved, we are still concerned.  Its sportsbook has a history of not paying winning sports bets.

The Best Poker Site Alternative to Carbon Poker

888 Poker Review
  • Large player traffic
  • Above average quality of games
  • Social, recreational player focused
You can read more in our 888 Poker Review

The Best Poker Site Alternative to Carbon Poker

BetOnline Poker Review
  • Third largest U.S. facing poker room with growing traffic.
  • Excellent and consistent payment processing.
  • Relatively juicy games.
You can read more in our BetOnline Review

Carbon Poker FAQ

Carbon Poker is a member of which network?

Carbon Poker is a member of the Merge Gaming Network.

Can Americans play at Carbon Poker?

Carbon Poker currently accepts new U.S. players from most states.

Which states are banned at Carbon Poker?

Delaware, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Utah and Washington state players are not accepted at Carbon Poker.

How do U.S. players deposit at Carbon Poker?

Carbon Poker only accepts Visa, cash transfers and Bitcoin for deposits from U.S. players. Those that wish to deposit via their Visa card may be disappointed as most credit cards are declined.

How do I withdraw from Carbon Poker?

Carbon Poker offers just one withdrawal method for all U.S. players, which is a check up to $2,500. The fee is 3% up to $75. These take about one month to process at this time. Bitcoin is available to players that used it as a deposit method.  There is a 5% fee and they are processed in less than one week.  Bank wires are available to players outside the U.S. Carbon Poker players may receive one free withdrawal per year.

What is Carbon Poker’s first deposit bonus?

Carbon Poker offers players a 100% up to $1,000 first deposit bonus.

How does the Carbon Poker bonus clear?

Carbon Poker bonuses clear at a rate of 200 VIP Points for every $1 in bonus. This is equivalent to 5% rakeback.  The bonus releases in $20 increments.  This makes the first deposit bonus mostly worthless.  It requires $400 to even clear the first $20.

Does Carbon Poker offer reload bonuses?

Carbon Poker offers reload bonuses every month or two.  The terms are just as bad for reload bonuses as they are for first deposits.

What games are available at Carbon Poker?

Carbon Poker offers Texas Hold’em, Omaha, and Omaha High/Low.

Where can I get Carbon Poker rakeback?

Carbon Poker and the entire Merge Gaming Network do not allow rakeback. There is also not any form of loyalty program. Deposit bonuses are the only way to receive any form of rakeback, which comes in at 5 percent.

Can I modify Carbon Poker tables?

Carbon Poker’s software offers a number of card and table mods. Third party modifications are also available.

How do I convert VIP Points into cash?

Carbon Poker does not provide any way for VIP points to be converted into cash. They have no value.

Where is Carbon Poker licensed?

Carbon Poker is licensed in Curacao. This is the same as having no license at all. Curacao was the regulator for several failed sites that include Lock Poker, Superwins, and Muchos Poker. In fact, all of these sites shared the same license number currently used by Carbon Poker. This is another reason we feel that Carbon Poker should be avoided.

What other rooms are members of the Merge Gaming Network?

Sportsbook, PlayersOnly and Superbook all share the main cashier of Merge Gaming. This is the same cashier used by Carbon Poker.

Does poker tracking software work at Carbon Poker?

Carbon Poker and the entire Merge Gaming Network allow poker tracking software including HUDs.

Is there a mobile version of Carbon Poker?

Carbon Poker offers an Android, iPhone and iPad app.

How can I reach Carbon Poker support?

Carbon Poker offers just one support contact. Players should email support@carbonpoker.ag for poker, casino and sports support.

How many tables can Carbon Poker players open?

Carbon Poker players may play up to four tables. Some winners are restricted to one or two tables.

Does Carbon Poker ban winning players?

Carbon Poker has been known to ban players that win too often.
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