Top Online Poker Tells

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Poker Tells When playing online poker, it’s more difficult to tell whether your opponents are bluffing or they actually got a premium hand because you can’t see their physical expressions. Nonetheless, there are other useful tells which you can use when playing online.

So what are the most common online poker tells?
The speed of play of your opponents is a fundamental factor when it comes to online poker tells. As a general rule, a quick bet can be interpreted as a sign of weakness, and a delayed action can be a sign of strength, as your opponent is thinking about the best way to act with what he considers to be a premium hand. Pay attention to the amount of time it takes your opponents to make their move, and store that information in a corner of your mind. If you are able to see their cards at showdown, you will the chance to determine with what kind of hand they “slow bet” and what kind of hand they “quick bet.”

You should also think about your own way of playing to hide these tells. The best strategy consists in taking the same amount of time for every action you take, so that your opponents won’t be able to pick up tells from your speed of play.

So let’s have a look at the most common online poker tells:

A delay followed by a check
Most players who take a longer time than normal and then check want you to believe they have a strong hand and that they are thinking about betting. In most cases, they have a weak hand and don’t want you to raise so they can see another card for free.

A delay followed by a bet
Players who wait a longer time than normal and then bet often have a strong hand. They want you to believe they have a weak hand to lure you into calling/raising.

An instant-call after you bet
The opponents who call your bet instantly often have a weak hand. These players want you to believe they have a good hand and are hoping you will not raise again.

An instant-check, or a check / raise
Players who use the check/fold button are ready to fold to any bet, thus meaning that they have a weak hand. In addition, they might be playing at many tables at the same time so they are not paying much attention to the game. It’s easy tell when a player uses a check box as his action comes within a blink of the eye of the previous player. However, you might bump into a player who will check quickly and then raise. You have to be very careful in this case because he wants to indicate weakness to make you bet into his strong hand. Also, if your opponent has checked the “raise any” button, it’s obvious that he has a premium hand.

A bet on the turn
If a player calls and checks on the flop and then bets on the turn, it often indicates he has a weak hand. Those kind of bets often mean that they picked up a draw or that they are semi-bluffing with a draw they got on the flop. You should consider a raise even if you might be bluffing yourself.

An instant-bet / raise on the river
This move usually indicates that the player has a very strong hand. If they raise or bet so fast, they want you to believe they are bluffing. This move is also often used on the turn and in most cases (less frequent that a bet on the river) it denotes a strong hand.

Watching the chat box
An easy way to pick up tells is by paying close attention to the chat box. Usually, if a player who has a big mouth suddenly gets quiet, you can be sure he’s playing a strong hand and he’s concentrating to get the most out of the pot. However, if a quiet player suddenly becomes a bit too talkative in the chat box, he’s probably trying to bluff with a weak hand or he’s on “tilt,” thus emotionally unable to play good poker until he calms down.

Fold / Call / Raise percentage
This is another easy way to pick up tells. Watch your opponents to get a sense of what their fold/call/raise percentage might be. You’ll spot tight players easily because they rarely play if they don’t have a good starting hand. When they bet, you can be sure they have a premium hand. In addition, paying attention the way your opponents are playing should also give you an edge over the “calling stations,” players who nearly always pay to see the flop and thus have poor starting hand selection.

Waiting for the Big Blind
When you sit down to play a Texas Holdem game online, you’ll often have the possibility to “wait for the big blind,” or you can put up a matching big blind to start playing instantly. This tells you if an online player is patient or not. If he doesn’t want to wait for the big blind to get to him, he may not be patient enough to wait for a good starting hand and he’s probably a loose player.

Beginners’ tells
New poker players might be difficult to pick up tells on. They often play erratically you can’t figure out anything about their game. For example, most beginners (or some sharks, see later) act on their hand exactly the opposite of its strength, meaning they place bets for their weak hands and check for their strong hands. If you can see their cards on showdown, you’ll be able to tell if a player is playing like that, and mark him as a beginner. But don’t get confused by a shark who might be using the check-raise move!