Is it possible for an average player to win enough money in freerolls to buy food for their basic needs?

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For an average player, it's possible to win money in freerolls, but it's not a reliable way to cover basic living expenses. Freerolls are better for building a bankroll than earning a steady income.
 
I think it's possible, but it would be very difficult for the average player. Freerolls have huge fields and a lot of variance, so you can't rely on them for steady income. They're great for building a bankroll from nothing, but I wouldn't want to depend on them to cover basic living expenses.
 
I think many people will lose more than they get because this is the rule of the game, just play it like a hobby
 
cwdignus said:
Here where I live in Brazil, in Brasília, the capital of Brazil, near my house there's a wholesale supermarket where, for $50 a week, you can buy basic food for one person for the week, based on the typical diet in my region, for example: rice, beans, beef, chicken, eggs, vegetables, and greens, I based this value on my own personal weekly food expenses.
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Interesting. Lucky you can buy weekly food for just $50. Here in Sweden the living cost at a tight budget would be more like $150
It should be possible to grind 50 dollars in a week, but I would question if this is a task to pursue. But good luck to you, hope you can make it happen.
 
Since it's from Brazil, it ends up sounding like a social program—something like "My Poker, My Life" or "Poker Family"—referencing the names of Brazilian social programs.
 
When playing at the 888 poker room, you can often win small amounts, and in tournaments where the prize is a $109 ticket, you can win a little more.
 
It's possible. Just play where you win. The key is to stop playing and withdraw your money when you've won a certain amount. Otherwise, you'll lose all your winnings!
 
No, it is not possible for an average player to secure a basic livelihood or buy food by playing only *freerolls*. Although poker is a game of skill and is legal in many countries, the specific financial structure of this format makes it impossible to generate any regular or predictable income without an exceptionally high level of skill and professional dedication.
 
Is it possible for an average player to win enough money in freerolls to buy food for their basic needs?

As someone that made quite a few bankroll challenges online over 15+ years of playing, like '0-$100/$500... I can say that nowadays it's tougher and tougher to start making money from nothing (even as low as $50/week like you've mentioned in the 1st post), IMO the best way is to be able to make some small deposits from time to time (at least until you build a decent bankroll to start grinding your favorite game* I recommend low stake cash games), use freerolls/community games/deposit bonuses as a way to get extra money and work on your bankroll management for both poker and IRL expenses... CardsChat has great community games on many sites (password protected, games usually under 100 players), I play only on 888 and I still make a decent amount per month/year + the fun of playing against active members here; also 888 has a pretty good loyalty program and on their social media, especially Twitch, they do lots of giveaways* follow popular streamers and/or poker ambassadors, especially on Twitch/YouTube and you can get lots of free stuff- most of this giveaways are free to enter, just for following a channel/enter a keyword - random draws that will require a lot of luck, but if you participate in many giveaways you'll eventually win quite a bit - great way to boost your bankroll if you can't make deposits...
 
Freerolls are good for increasing your initial bankroll, so that you can then invest in buy-in tournaments/cash games. But I don't think you can make a living from freerolls alone. Not even at the price of playing 0-24.
 
The "average' player is a losing player.

Only around 10% of players are winning players.

So you would have to work hard enough to be a winning player to pay the bills.
 
Freerolls are meant to build a bankroll, not to make a living. Many players recommend using them only as a starting point before moving on to micro-stakes tournaments ($0.25, $1, $2, etc.), where the expected return is higher.
Tournament variance is enormous. Even winning players can go weeks or months without a significant cash. That's why almost everyone insists on keeping the money you rely on for living expenses separate from your poker bankroll.
The opportunity cost is very high. When someone asks whether it's possible to make a few hundred dollars by playing only freerolls, the usual response is that a regular job provides much more reliable and predictable income.
 
cwdignus said:
Here where I live in Brazil, in Brasília, the capital of Brazil, near my house there's a wholesale supermarket where, for $50 a week, you can buy basic food for one person for the week, based on the typical diet in my region, for example: rice, beans, beef, chicken, eggs, vegetables, and greens, I based this value on my own personal weekly food expenses.
Click to expand...
In Ukraine, the prices for a grocery set like the one you described are also about the same. Here, $50 is enough for a week of food. But since freerolls bring me an average of $130-$150 a month, I only eat 3 weeks a month 😶
 
An average recreational player who doesn’t study, doesn’t review hands, and plays mostly for fun will probably struggle to beat the rake over the long run. On the other hand, someone who puts in consistent work, studies fundamentals, manages their bankroll, and keeps improving can definitely become a long term winner, even if they aren’t a poker genius. The edge might not be huge, but small edges add up over thousands of hands.
 
So, we're talking about $250.
I think a focused and disciplined player whose main motivation is "not to starve" can do it. I think it's realistic.
 
When I started playing about 20 years ago, it was easy to make that amount just by playing freerolls. In fact, I used to make much more than that. Nowadays, I'd say it's not. You might be able to do it once in a while, but every single week? I highly doubt it. We have about 90% fewer freerolls than we used to.
 
Unfortunately I really don't think you can earn consistent money to feed yourself on freerolls or micro stakes.
There are months of good luck and then mouths of bad luck.
If you think you can do it GOOD LUDK TO YOU !
 
It is possible to win this amount, but since it is not constant, it is best to look for another source of work, or perhaps with a lot of luck, it may depend only on the poker game.
 
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