When playing poker, either online or in a live game, you will hear about something called a rake. What is the rake in poker? It’s actually fairly important that you know what the rake is because it directly impacts the amount of money you can make when playing poker.
The rake refers to a commission that is taken by a company that’s operating a poker table. It’s a scaled commission, so the amount taken will depending on how much is in the pot. It’s often around 5 to 10 percent. In live games, chips are manually removed from the table by the dealer, and online games usually deduct this automatically. Some online versions of poker will indicate the size of the rake somewhere on the screen.
To win a game of poker, you don’t just need to beat your opponents. You will also need to win a sum of money that’s more then what you’ve given to the house.
Of course, the rake is an important part of a poker game for whoever it is that’s offering it. This is often the way that the casino makes money (at least one of the ways). If you’re in a live game the money goes on employees, the building etc. In online games it also pays for the employees as well as the costs of operating the website.
There is a bit of competition among casinos to provide lower rakes then others. This can and should influence where you want to play poker. In some cases the poker website actually charges no rake. In these situations the website will direct players to something else to make them money (such as other casino styled games).
The rake simply refers to the commission that’s taken by the company operating the business. It’s something you should watch out for, as different companies charge different rakes.