Australian Poker League Confirms 2026 Rake Increases Amid Intensifying Australian Poker Market

On November 10, 2025, the popular Australian Poker League (APL), Head of Poker, Joel Williams, officially confirmed a rake increase for the upcoming year.

Australian Poker League Increases For 2026 Season

Two Australian Poker League events in particular will have an increased rake as of 2026 including the APLPT Main Event with a buy-in of AUD 480 (AUD 400 + 80) and the 6-Max Event, which increases from AUD 360 to AUD 400 (AUD 330 + 70). For the latter, more staff and dealers are needed for the tournament to run smoothly.

According to Williams, both adjustments were made “after careful consideration and extensive feedback from the player community”. Both events will feature the same rake as other key tournaments according to the operator.

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During the hiatus of the annual Aussie Millions live series which is set to return from April 24 to May 10, 2026, the APL has become one of the most successful and prominent live poker options for enthusiasts from Down Under with real money online poker still prohibited in the country. More than AUD 20 Million in prize pools were generated during the current year with the brand hosting the largest live poker event on Australian soil, drawing 3,375 entries in the AUD 1,500 APL Million Main Event last September.

Despite the updated and stream-lined rake structures across the entire schedule, the APL remains very competitive in an Australian market that contains only a handful of large scale operators. Impressively, the brand is doing so without any specific home venue and currently dominates the mobile live poker landscape under the leadership of Williams.

Other Australian Poker Industry Rates

Poker Palace Continues Its Push In Sydney

Several other competitors are aiming for their share of the Aussie market with Sydney-based Poker Palace at Club Marconi gaining more momentum via flagship festivals. Most multi-flight Main Events boast buy-ins of AUD 1,150 of which AUD 150 goes to the rake while High Rollers are raked between 8 and 12 percent. Lower stake buy-ins such as the AUD 350 range will feature a rake of more than 14 percent.

Victorian Poker Championship Shows Wide Rake Spread

The 2025 Victorian Poker Championship in Melbourne was headlined by a AUD 2,500 Main Event with a 10 percent rake and a lower percentage for High Roller competitions. Select Side Events, however, had between 12 and 15 percent rake with a select few reaching more than 18 percent.

WSOP International Circuit Sets Gold Coast Benchmarks

For the upcoming WSOP International Circuit at The Star Gold Coast, the highest rake can be found in the AUD 475 price tags with AUD 400 going to the prize pools. The AUD 2,500 Main Event includes a AUD 300 rake which is slightly higher than the APL whereas more expensive tournaments also follow the same path of reduced rake rates.

WPT’s Regional Stops Maintain Tiered Rake Structure

Another prominent brand to visit Down Under regularly is the World Poker Tour with the Prime Championships and Main Tour stops at The Star. Outside of Australia in countries such as Cambodia and Taiwan, the WPT charges a staff fee of four percent for lower buy-ins which is reduced to three percent for tournaments with a buy-in above USD 500 whereas the rake structure for High Roller events is more generous than most other brands.

During the 2025 WPT Prime at The Star Gold Coast, the AUD 1,150 buy-in tournaments featured the usual AUD 150 rake (turbo events had a slightly lower rake) whereas the flagship AUD 2,000 Championship Event had a rake portion of 250 (12.5%). High Rollers were charged rake portions between 8 and 10 percent.

Super High Roller Has Lowest Rake

The lowest rake of 5 percent could be found during the Main Tour stop in the AUD 20,000 Super High Roller and the AUD 10,000 WPT World Championship Warm Up. In the marquee WPT Championship, all participants had to fork up AUD 5,500 to enter of which AUD 500 was charged as rake (9.09% rake).

Mid-stakes tournaments generally charged 10 percent rake while the lowest stakes featured rake amounts between 11 and 14 percent.