Compare · Head to head · Italy
iPoker.it vs PokerStars.it
The two rooms that make Italy one of the best regulated markets in the world. I've played both for over a decade.
Italian regulated poker has a well-earned reputation: Italian players love to gamble, and traffic runs deep all the way up to NL1000 with genuine whales at the tables. Two rooms dominate the ADM-licensed market — iPoker.it, the Italian instance of Playtech's iPoker network, and PokerStars.it, the Italian instance of PokerStars. I've been playing Italian iPoker since the very start of my professional career, eleven years and counting, and PokerStars.it alongside it. This is the closest call on the whole site, and the honest answer is usually to play both.
At a glance
| iPoker.it | PokerStars.it | |
|---|---|---|
| Licence & pool | ADM (Italy); Italian residents only, geolocated | ADM (Italy); Italian residents only, geolocated |
| The games | Deep up to NL1000; whales with VPIPs over 70% are a regular sight | Deep up to NL1000; same recreational, action-heavy pool |
| Buy-in rule | €1,000 table cap, no top-ups mid-session | €1,000 table cap, no top-ups mid-session |
| Rake | Lower than international rooms under ADM rules; caps vary by stake | Lower than international rooms under ADM rules; caps vary by stake |
| Tournaments | Ongoing series with strong Italian guarantees | Major series with the largest Italian-market guarantees |
| Software | Playtech iPoker client | PokerStars client — the most polished in the business |
| Deposits | Cards, bank transfer, PostePay, e-wallets; EUR | Cards, bank transfer, PostePay, e-wallets; EUR |
| Support | Live chat and email, Italian and English | Live chat and email, Italian and English |
Where they're the same
Almost everywhere that matters to a regulator. Both are ring-fenced to players physically in Italy, both run in euros with the same PostePay-friendly cashier, both rake lower than the international rooms because ADM rules require it, and both live with Italy's one genuine quirk: the €1,000 buy-in cap. You cannot top up mid-hand or mid-session. Sit at NL1000 with €1,000, lose €500, and you're playing a short stack until you leave and re-sit — which at NL500 and NL1000 means occasionally being stuck short against a weak player, or scrambling to re-take a seat before another regular grabs it. It cuts both ways: sometimes you're the one taking the seat a regular just lost €1,000 from.
Where they differ
iPoker.it — the action
PokerStars.it — the schedule and the software
Two pools, twice the table selection
Rakeback
Which one?
Pick iPoker.it if…
- ✓ You're a cash-game player first
- ✓ You want the loosest opponents at NL200–NL1000
- ✓ You can only manage one room and want the one I've played most
Pick PokerStars.it if…
- ✓ Tournaments are a big part of your game
- ✓ You value the PokerStars client and its stability
- ✓ You already play PokerStars elsewhere and know the ecosystem
Do I need to live in Italy?
You need to be physically in Italy when you play — both rooms geolocate you — and you'll need to pass ADM's identity checks, which are designed for Italian residents. If you're in Italy for part of the year, both are playable during that time. If you're elsewhere, look at the international rooms instead.
Is Italy really softer than the international pool?
In my experience, yes. It's a closed market, so the ratio of recreational players to professionals is better than on the global networks, and Italian recreational players play big. The cost is the smaller pool and the €1,000 cap. Compared with the other regulated European markets — France, Portugal — Italy has by far the most action.
What about 888.it and PeoplesPoker?
Both are worth having as third and fourth rooms. 888.it is smaller but still action-heavy; PeoplesPoker is the smallest of the four but runs every table four-handed, which is a real win-rate edge when a weak player sits down. The Italy page covers all four.