Playing poker online can be a lot of fun, but if you have any desire to play real money poker games then you’ll have to put in a little work on the business side as well. Keeping records of your poker games is important, whether you are playing free poker or real money games, if you want to improve your skills and maximize your earnings when you start playing for real money.

What should you be keeping records of? Most importantly you should be keeping records of how much money you are spending from your bankroll and how much you are earning. Keep track on an hourly basis so that you know how much money you are able to make playing poker online for an hour, on average. This is good because it helps you to figure out at which stakes you are able to make the most money. Keep in mind that you might make more money per hour playing at lower stakes games then you are able to make in a high stakes game, as higher stake generally mean more difficult competition.

Even if you are playing free poker, but thinking about playing for real money at some point, it would behoove you to keep records to measure your progress. Keep track of how much you are spending of your “virtual” bankroll and how much you are earning. In time you should see your earnings grow, and then you’ll know you are ready for a real money game.