PokerStars and poker bots: what the documents say
PokerStars bans bots in two documents. Its General Terms list "Prohibited Tools and Services" and promise to withhold balances and close accounts, and a separate tools policy sorts every third-party tool into one of three tiers, with bots in the one that is banned at all times. The room has published a few numbers about its integrity team, all from 2018 to 2020, and no recent bot counts. A detection system called "BotBuster" is quoted in some bot-industry material, and I could not find that name in any primary source. I did not run my bench on PokerStars, so there are no win rates here. This is the written record as I read it on 13 October 2026.
What I read, and how
Every PokerStars domain I tried from my network sent me straight to a FanDuel page, so the General Terms below come from an archived copy of the UK edition dated 14 January 2026. Other editions are issued by other entities and may word things differently. The tools policy is a PDF on PokerStars' own CDN, titled a reference guide and marked "Last Updated: 2019-03-04". That date is old, and the room may have revised the policy since. I have not found a newer public version.
My own tests were on PPPoker, as the methodology page explains. PokerStars' client and its checks are a different system, so nothing in my results transfers.
The three tiers
The reference guide states that third-party tools "fall into one of three categories": permitted at all times, prohibited only while the client is open, and prohibited at all times. The table uses the policy's own examples.
| Tier | What falls in it, per the guide | When it applies |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Permitted | Tools that report basic game state such as pot odds or absolute hand strength; static starting-hand charts for unopened pots; in-game stats built only from your own play, with limits; macros and hotkeys where the player decides the action and the exact bet size. | Always |
| 2. Not while the client is open | Reference material beyond basic charts; tools built to ease referral to it; "advanced equity calculations, such as range vs range simulators, ICM or Nash Equilibrium-based programs". | Whenever the PokerStars client is running |
| 3. Prohibited | Anything that "plays without human intervention (a 'bot') or reduces the requirement of a human to make decisions"; real-time advice from reading the game state; tools that delay a decision by a set or random time; tools that share hole-card data; hand datamining; opponent-manipulation tools for formats where you cannot pick the table; table-selection tools driven by opponent stats. | At all times |
One footnote in the guide explains tier 2. The room says its "detection methods do not distinguish whether an account is actively playing or not", so the rule depends on client usage, not active play. That suggests the checks key on the client being open and not on play at the table. It does not state what raises a flag.
Where the guide draws fine lines
The guide gives matched pairs of examples.
- Hotkeys. "A hotkey that bets half the pot is permitted. A hotkey that bets a randomised amount between half and three quarters of the pot is prohibited."
- Auto-folding. "Auto-folders" are named as prohibited, and the scripts section lists one that "folds a player's cards if dealt a starting hand in the bottom 10% of starting hands".
- Timing. A script that "makes the requested action after a specified time or within a specified time period" is listed as prohibited, and tier 3 item 3 bans anything that delays a decision by "a specific or randomised amount of time".
- Seating. Scripts that join a fixed number of tables regardless of opponents are permitted. Scripts that pick tables by opponent statistics or note labels are not.
Randomised bet sizes and randomised delays are what some vendors sell as "human-like" behaviour. Both appear by name on the prohibited list. A feature that vendors present as protection is, under this policy, a second violation on top of the first. I would not count it as a point in a product's favour for this room.
What happens if the room decides you used one
The General Terms (UK edition, snapshot of 14 January 2026) lay out the consequences in several places.
| Clause | What it says |
|---|---|
| 12.1.3 and 12.1.4 | You must not "use any Prohibited Tools and Services" or take part in Prohibited Player Assistance Practices. The definition names "artificial intelligence, 'bots' and other computer programs and software", and also lists auto clickers and tools that simulate keyboard input. |
| 14.2 | If the room determines "(acting reasonably)" that you were involved in a Prohibited Event, it will void the transactions and "withhold all or part of any balance" on the account, plus winnings and rewards tied to the event. If asked, you must repay anything already withdrawn. |
| 15.1 | The room may take steps to detect and prevent these tools, and you must not try to bypass or block those steps. Doing so is itself a "serious breach". |
| 15.2 | The room may close an account "at any time for any reason in our discretion (which we don't have to tell you)". |
| 17.1 to 17.3 | Accounts are restricted or suspended on reason to believe, and permanently closed if the investigation concludes involvement. Other companies in the same group may be told, and the room will "if appropriate" report you to the authorities. |
The text says "all or part" of the balance, so confiscation is discretionary in size and the document gives no scale. I searched the Terms for any clause giving the room a right to scan a device and found none. The nearest thing is the 15.1 right to "take steps to detect and prevent" the tools. That absence says nothing about what the client does technically.
The licence line printed in the Terms names TSG Interactive Plc (Malta) and Stars Mobile Limited (Isle of Man) as the operators, and UK Gambling Commission licence 39108, granted to Stars Interactive Ltd on 1 November 2014. I did not check it against the regulator's register.
What PokerStars has said it catches
In March 2020, PokerStrategy reported on a new Game Integrity page. The room described a team of 60 specialists, "ex-professional poker players, qualified data scientists and statistical analysts", using custom-built software to catch multi-accounters, colluders and banned software users. It said 95% of cheating cases were found by internal processes, and that cases go to a second agent who investigates independently, with a third agent breaking any tie. PokerStrategy also reported that the 2018 WCOOP Main Event winner "wann2play" was disqualified and $1,352,967.97 of winnings was redistributed to the other cashers.
I read that article directly. The live Game Integrity page was behind the same redirect, so I have not seen the room's own current wording. The 95% is a share of cases the room itself counted, and no total is given, so it cannot be turned into a catch rate. "Cheating" covers multi-accounting and collusion, so it is not a bot figure.
I found no PokerStars statement from 2026 giving a count of bot accounts closed, and no regulator action naming bots on the site. In January 2026, GamblingNews quoted PokerStars (US) repeating the 60-specialist description in a story about bot farms on other networks, as I noted on the Ignition page. That restates the 2020 team size and adds no new figure.
The "BotBuster" question
Some bot-industry material says PokerStars detects bots with a machine-learning system called BotBuster. I searched the General Terms, the tools policy, the PokerStrategy article and the Game Integrity description for that name on 13 October 2026. It appears in none. What the room says about itself is a Game Integrity team with custom-built software. Maybe the name exists in a source I did not reach, but I would not repeat it as fact. Any bot vendor who tells you the exact detection model PokerStars uses is repeating hearsay.
What outsiders cannot see
- How many bot accounts PokerStars closes in a year, and how many of those closures it reverses.
- What the client checks while it is open, beyond the footnote saying detection does not depend on active play.
- Whether the 2019 tools policy is still the current text.
- How balances are treated in practice, since the Terms say "all or part" and publish no scale.
What this means for bot evaluation
- Price a ban at the balance. Clause 14.2 lets the room withhold funds and demand repayment of withdrawn winnings. Do not model a loss as the next buy-in.
- Treat "humanization" as a negative. Randomised sizing and timing are named as prohibited in the tools policy.
- Ask a vendor for a dated PokerStars build. My criteria page lists what I ask for. A room name on a feature list is not evidence of support.
- Distrust claims about the detection stack. Nothing public describes it; claims to know how it works are marketing.
FAQ
Does PokerStars allow bots? No. The General Terms prohibit tools that play without human intervention, and the tools policy lists bots under the tier banned at all times.
Is a HUD allowed? Per the 2019 policy, in-game stats are allowed if they use only your own accumulated play and meet the feature limits. Datamining hands is prohibited.
What happens to my balance if I am caught? Clause 14.2 of the UK edition says the room will withhold "all or part" of the balance and may demand repayment of what you withdrew.
Does PokerStars use BotBuster? I found no primary source using that name. The room describes a Game Integrity team with custom-built software.
Did you test a bot on PokerStars? No. My bench is PPPoker. This page reviews published rules and statements.
Sources
- PokerStars, Third Party Tools and Services Policy reference guide (PDF), "Last Updated: 2019-03-04", read 13 October 2026.
- PokerStars General Terms of Service, UK edition, archived copy dated 14 January 2026, clauses 12.1, 14.2, 15.1, 15.2 and 17, read 13 October 2026.
- PokerStrategy, "How PokerStars are dealing with AI and Bots", 10 March 2020.
More: the full comparison is on the homepage; the ACR equivalent is in the ACR record; a US-facing room whose bot clause forfeits deposits is on the Bovada page.