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Pool Payday Game Review [2024]: Keep Your Eye on the Ball To Win Money

If you enjoy playing pool in real life and are savvy with mobile games, you might enjoy Pool Payday from Skillz. Play for free or for cash payouts.

By Ben Walker, CEPF, CFEI®
and Kate Underwood

Edited by Michael Kurko

Updated July 23, 2024

We receive compensation from the products and services mentioned in this story, but the opinions are the author's own. Compensation may impact where offers appear. We have not included all available products or offers. Learn more about how we make money and our editorial policies.

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4.3

Pool Payday

OUR VIEW

Pool Payday is a fun way to play pool any time you like. And, like playing pool in real life, you could even win some cash. But you don’t need to pay to play. You can also play with in-app currency called Z coins. You earn tickets that you can redeem toward prizes, but it can take a long time to earn those prizes.

Overall, Pool Payday is a unique mobile game, and a nice change of pace from bingo or Soliaire. It won’t make you rich, but it’s a good time. And you could walk away with a little cash depending on your skills.

Jump to full review

Pros

Free matches to practice your onling pool skills

Play pro matches to potentially win cash prizes

Excitement of real-time competition

Cons

Must spend money to make money

Not a great plan for making steady income

Cash games aren’t available in all states

How we evaluate products

What is Pool Payday?

Pool Payday: 8 Ball Billiards is an app available on the App Store and Galaxy Store that transforms your in-person pool hall experience into a virtual, online version. It was created by Hidden Pixel Games, LLC, a company that Mike Marr and Brian Goble co-founded. Hidden Pixel was launched in 2017, and Pool Payday was released soon after.

With Pool Payday, you can turn leisure time into cash by competing in virtual tournaments. Your real-life pool skills might come in handy in the app version, whether you want to play just for fun or put a little cash on the line.

Pool Payday runs on the Skillz games platform, a popular mobile games platform that connects online players through social competition. Skillz hosts billions of online tournaments for millions of players worldwide and offers millions in prizes each month. Other popular games that use Skillz include Dominoes Gold, Blackout Bingo, and Solitaire Cube.

Pool Payday has over 90,000 ratings and reviews on the App Store and an overall rating of 4.6 out of 5 stars. It’s also ranked #60 among Casino games in the App Store. The app is also available in the Galaxy Store with over 1,800 reviews and an overall rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars. Reviews describe Pool Payday as a “great app” and “great game.”

Tip

There’s a similar-sounding game called Pool-Payday Real Money Guia on the Google Play Store. It also has over 4 stars, but a glance at the reviews reveals a number of players irritated by the number of ads. So be aware that this review refers to Pool Payday: 8 Ball Billiards or 8 Ball Pool Game!

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How does Pool Payday work?

Once you’ve created a Pool Payday account, you can play games using Z coins (the in-game currency) or your cash balance. You automatically start with a certain number of Z coins, and you can earn more by winning games, earning trophies, and claiming daily rewards. You can unlock unlimited play if you earn enough and keep winning.

Scoring higher than your opponent is the typical route to winning Pool Payday. The scoring generally follows normal rules of pool, like hitting the correct balls into the pockets, though there are variations in scoring methods depending on the game mode you’re playing.

Want to earn bonus points? Learn to use some of the game’s key features, such as trick shots, pocket calling (naming the pocket before your shot), expert ball positioning, and higher speed. If you fail to pocket a ball or scratch (pocket the cue ball), you lose one of your three starting cue balls. Once you run out of cue balls, pocket all the balls, or the time runs out, the game ends.

Playing games with Z coins won’t directly earn you real money, but you can win tickets, which you can trade for prizes through the Skillz Rewards store. Prizes include bonus cash, gift cards, electronics, and apparel. Trading your tickets for bonus cash puts money in your cash balance. You can participate in cash games to win real money if your balance is high enough.

Types of game modes in Pool Payday

Real-time or turn-based

You can choose to play in real-time pool game mode, which means, well, you’re taking turns in real time against an opponent. Your goal is to score the most points.

Offline mode

The other choice is to play in Offline mode, which means you don’t need to wait for your opponent. You’re simply trying to get the highest score possible, without pausing to let the other person play. Again, the highest score wins.

Practice

You can play against one player of a comparable skill level. Z coins get you in to play practice games to get the hang of the app.

Head-to-head

This version pits you against another player, but there’s a cash entry requirement. You could win cash, tickets, or league medals.

Brackets

In bracket gameplay, you go against multiple players. A cash entry is required, and again you can win cash or tickets or league medals.

Events

Looking for something even more competitive? Try a bigger multiplayer event in Pool Payday. Again, there’s a cash entry requirement. Events are usually timed, and you may be able to enter more than once to try to improve your score. The total prize pool is divided among top-scoring participants and typically includes cash and tickets.

Real-time matches

In a live, turn-based match, you can see how your billiards skills stack up against another competitor. You can choose between 8-ball pool or trick shot pool. You also get to select either Z coin or cash entry requirements.

Leagues

If you get enough game-playing experience in Pool Payday, you can be entered into Leagues, a timed prize pool. Win games to earn medals; the more medals won, the higher your League ranking (and the higher your potential payout).

Game play in Leagues may be in either Practice or Pro categories, and there’s also a division based on whether you want to play using actual cash or Z coins.

Who can use Pool Payday?

Pool Payday isn’t for everyone. Because it allows users to deposit real money, Pool Payday is rated for individuals 17 or older by the App Store. Plus, Skillz requires players to be 18 or older to compete.

The app is available on iOS devices, including iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch devices running iOS 12.0 or later. Users with certain Android devices can also download the game through the Galaxy Store. If using Apple Vision, you’ll need visionOS 1.0 at minimum.

Competing in online cash tournaments isn’t legal everywhere. If you live in one of the following states, you’re ineligible for cash play but can play free versions of Pool Payday:

Arizona
Arkansas
Connecticut
Delaware
Illinois
Indiana
Louisiana
Maine
Montana
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee

Pool Payday is free to play, but it offers real-money options if you want to participate quickly in cash games and try to win real cash.

However, if you enjoy playing pool and have time to spare, Pool Payday could be a fun way to win real money. Keep in mind that even though it’s a virtual pool game, actual pool skills and knowledge might come in handy.

How much can you earn with Pool Payday?

Like other game apps, Pool Payday rewards you if you can win your matches against other players, refer other players, or use a promo code. As with any form of gaming with real money, there’s always a risk you might actually lose any money you put up. So be sure you only risk what you can afford to lose; other than that factor, make sure you’re having fun.

You won't risk losing any money if you only play the free game mode using Z coins rather than cash. However, it will take longer to earn enough tickets you can trade for bonus cash that will allow you to participate in cash games.

For example, you might earn two tickets for winning a Z coin game that takes you three minutes to play. You will then need 20,000 tickets to trade for $1 of bonus cash. That’s 10,000 games you’d have to win to earn enough tickets for that trade and around 30,000 minutes (500 hours) of play time. Wow.

Alternatively, you could deposit some of your own money and immediately start playing in cash games. It typically requires about 60 cents to play in the least expensive cash mode, and the winning prize is typically $1.

You could try more expensive game modes — such as paying $3 for the possibility of winning $8 — or entering an event for $1 where the prize pool might be $700 or more, and the player with the highest score could win more than $150.

Real-time matches also give you the opportunity to select between different entry requirements and prize pool amounts. If you earn enough Leagues medals by winning games, you could also win a bonus payout.

How to withdraw your money

To withdraw your cash balance, simply select the “Withdraw” option from the in-game menu. This option only shows up once you’ve registered your account as a new player.

If you’ve deposited any money into your account, withdrawing money automatically reverts to the payment method you used for your deposit, including a credit card or PayPal. After that amount, U.S. players will be issued a paper check, whereas players in other locations will receive payment by PayPal.

If Pool Payday doesn’t seem like it would be the right fit for you, you might find other leisure-like activities that make money on our list of the best side hustles.

FAQs

Is Pool Payday legit?

Pool Payday is a legit gaming app. The ratings from users speak for its quality: more than 90,000 ratings on the App Store and 4.6 stars out of 5, and over 1,800 ratings on Galaxy Store with an overall rating of 4.5 stars out of 5. You can start playing for free and even win real money if you move up to certain levels.

Is Pool Payday real money?

Pool Payday offers ways to compete for and earn real money by playing virtual pool against other online players. It’s free to play, but it could take some time to play in cash games if you don’t deposit any of your own money.

If you don’t want to deposit real money, you can only earn in-game currency by playing non-cash games and trading that currency for bonus cash. You could then use that bonus cash to play in cash games to win real money.

How do you cash out on Pool Payday?

Once you create a Pool Payday account, you’ll see a “Withdraw” option in the game menu. Select how much you want to withdraw, and it will be credited back through the payment method you originally used, including PayPal or a credit card.

Any withdrawn amount over your original deposit amount will be sent to any U.S. player in the form of a paper check.

How to get started with Pool Payday

1. Download Pool Payday from the App Store or Galaxy Store

2. Open the app and select “Play”

3. Choose an avatar and enter a username

4. Play a few practice games in the tutorial

5. Once you’re able to navigate the menu, select “Account” and then “Save Account” to create your account

6. Enter your date of birth and other information to register your account

7. Select a game mode to start playing the game

Other apps to consider

Are you intrigued by the mobile gaming idea but not so much by Pool Payday itself? There are other gaming apps to choose from if you want to learn how to make money in your spare time.

For a different type of game, consider Bingo Clash. This app takes the popular bingo game and makes a virtual version of it, allowing you to compete against other online players nationwide for real money. It’s ranked #10 in Casino (compared to #60 for Pool Payday).

Check out our Bingo Clash review to learn more.

For another bingo app, try Blackout Bingo. This game also allows you to play bingo online for free and compete for real money. The faster and more accurate you are, the more likely you are to win.

Read our Blackout Bingo review for more details.

Perhaps you prefer card games — then you might consider Solitaire Cash. This game includes elements from classic game types that Solitaire enthusiasts are sure to be familiar with. It’s also one of the top Card apps in the App Store and offers opportunities to win real money.

Learn more in our Solitaire Cash review.