6 Tips for Bluffing in Online Poker

Without the benefit of physical tells, knowing how to bluff in online poker is a tricky thing to do. Try some of these tips to master bluffing in online poker.

Bluffing is an important, personalized strategy for every poker player, and knowing how to bluff in online poker can be just as vital. But what makes bluffing in online poker so different is that you have to use specialized strategies — no reading physical tells here. Try some of these tips to master bluffing in online poker and level up your next hand.

1. Learn the Play Styles of Your Opponents

Once you get into a room, manage your own cards conservatively and learn how each opponent seems to play during the first few hands. Observe how much others bet after the flop, the turn, and the river. Write down what hands they had, who won, and how much. Determine if you’re in a room of frequent folders or confident bluffers.

Keep these notes at your side while you play. This information can help you determine each player’s tolerance for risk, which you can take advantage of when the time is right.

2. Make a Reputation for Yourself at the Table

Likewise, your opponents — if they’re smart — are also watching you to learn how you play. Use the first few hands to play conservatively. Avoid making any big moves too soon that might give other players the wrong impression.

Instead, only get into big pots if you truly feel like you have a great or competitive hand. This can help you build a reputation of being a wise and stable player, one who only bets if they’re confident they can take the pot.

This strategy can be particularly effective against attentive players in addition to those who have a low tolerance for risk or aren’t confident enough to bluff.

3. Take On Just One or Two Players in a Bluff

This one is simple math — you are less likely to be overtaken in a bluff if you’re up against fewer people. An easy guideline to follow is to only bluff when there are no more than two players in the hand with you.

When there are more than two people in the hand after the turn or river, you are less likely to “intimidate” — as much as you can in online poker — all of the players to fold since there is a higher chance that someone has a really good hand, or at least thinks they do.

4. Limit Your Betting Amounts

Throughout all of your hands and when you bluff, be conservative with how much you bet. Some guidelines you can stick to include:

• Betting four times the amount of the big blind before the flop.
• Raising at least an amount equal to the current pot after the flop.

This strategy helps you convey yourself as a confident yet stable player, which can throw people off the scent of a bluff in the future.

5. Try a Semi-Bluff

A semi-bluff is when you know you have a good hand but that it’s not the best on the table. You can try this strategy after the flop and win in one of two ways:

• Your opponent believes your bluff and they fold.
• Your hand gets stronger over the course of the turn and the river cards, and you win the hand outright.

You can really pull off a semi-bluff if you’ve maintained the confident-yet-stable player persona, where you bet conservatively and only go in on pots that you’re confident you’re going to win.

6. Spot a Bluffer

While it’s harder to determine if someone is bluffing in online poker than it is in person, there are some signs you can look out for to spot someone who is bluffing and come out on top:

Quick Betting Decisions

Someone who is newer to online gambling may bet quickly when they have a good hand because they’re excited. But if they start to slow down when they make a bet, there may be something fishy there. Noting their play style, including how quickly they typically bet on a made hand, throughout the game can help you better spot this odd, possibly bluffing, behavior.

Bet Sizes

Just like if you are supposed to bet conservatively throughout the game, others should, too, if they want to build a good reputation in the room. However, if you notice that someone is betting outside their typical limits, you may have a bluffer at the table. Be sure to note how much they bet on other hands in which they do have a strong hand to help you better determine if their bet is true.

Something to keep in mind is that it is hard to bluff in online poker because of how different — and limited — the bluffing options are. Even some experts believe that bluffing shouldn’t be used frequently in an online poker strategy, or at all.

However, using these tips can make you a better all-around online poker player because they encourage you to pay attention to who you’re playing with, bet conservatively, and be confident — which are all great tips for a stellar poker game.