Yes, several poker apps teach you while you play. PocketCherries runs a $1/$2 game in your browser with a coach on every decision. We make Poker Skill: in its Practice vs AI games you play AI opponents while a coach, Coach Max, talks you through each decision. PokerBrain suggests a move before you act and grades each action after it.
If you want other players across the table, GTO Wizard’s PokerArena matches you heads-up against another player and analyzes each match. Ollin adds duels and games with friends to its bot tables, and PokerBrain’s Competition Mode seats you at ranked tables. GTO Wizard’s own trainer grades every decision against solver strategy.
Which app fits the way you want to be coached
- GTO Wizard. A browser trainer that grades each decision against solver strategy, plus the free PokerArena app for heads-up matches against other players. Pick this if you already study GTO and want the solver’s verdict on every move.
- Ollin. A free Android game where the coach sums up each decision in one sentence. Pick this if you want bots, friends and duels in the same app.
- PocketCherries. A free $1/$2 cash game in your browser, with a coach on every decision and a beginner course. Pick this if you’d rather not install anything.
- Poker Skill. Full hands against AI opponents in Practice vs AI, with short lessons and the Daily Puzzle in the same app. Pick this if you want coached heads-up and three-player games on iPhone, iPad or Android.
- PokerBrain. A coach who suggests your move before you make it against bots, plus ranked play against other players in Competition Mode. Pick this if you want a recommendation and a grade on every action.
Training apps in general, beyond the ones that coach during a hand, are compared in best poker training apps. The AI poker coach apps comparison covers four AI coaches, two of which also review hands from your own games.
Apps that teach you while you play, compared at a glance
| App | When the coach speaks | Who you play against | Free version | Runs on |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GTO Wizard | Right after each decision in the trainer, after the match in PokerArena | A solver-built trainer, or other players in PokerArena, heads-up or at a private table of up to nine | 10 trainer hands a day, plus PokerArena matches and analysis | Web browser, with PokerArena on iPhone and web |
| Ollin | One sentence after each decision | Bots, friends or a duel opponent | The whole app | Android, and iPhone as a beta |
| PocketCherries | On every decision, plus a review after the hand | Up to five AI opponents | Everything | Any web browser |
| Poker Skill | At each decision, with a grade on every one | AI opponents, heads-up or three-player | One Practice vs AI game a day, plus the Daily Puzzle and every lesson | iPhone, iPad, Android |
| PokerBrain | Before each decision, then a grade after it | Bots at six to nine seats, or heads-up and short-handed with Premium, plus other players in Competition Mode | 5 to 10 training hands a day, plus seven lesson categories | iPhone, Android |
Prices and features checked September 2026.
The five apps in detail
GTO Wizard
A solver trainer, plus PokerArena for matches
Free Starter cash plan $49 a month
Best for Players who already study GTO and want each decision checked against a solver, or heads-up matches against other players with an analysis afterward.
Skip if You want plain-language coaching while a hand is live. The trainer answers in GTO frequencies and EV.
Free version 10 trainer hands, 100 preflop solutions and 1 postflop solution a day, plus PokerArena's matches and analysis.
Where it runs The trainer in a web browser, PokerArena on iPhone and in a browser
GTO Wizard's trainer deals spots from preflop to the river and gives GTO and EV feedback on each decision the moment you make it. Its PokerArena app matches you with another player heads-up, ranked or casual, and every match ends with a free analysis from GTO Wizard. In a browser, PokerArena also seats you and your friends at a private table of up to nine.
Compared with Poker Skill: GTO Wizard is the better pick if you already study GTO, with solver feedback on each trainer decision and PokerArena matches against other players, while Poker Skill's coach talks through your decisions in plain words.
Ollin
A coached game against bots, friends or a duel opponent
Free no in-app purchases listed
Best for Android players who want one plain sentence after each decision, and games against people as well as bots.
Skip if You play on iPhone and want an App Store app. Ollin is on Google Play, and on iPhone only through Apple's TestFlight beta.
Free version The whole app is free.
Where it runs Android, and iPhone through a TestFlight beta
In Ollin, a coach named Ollie tells you in one sentence what each decision won or cost and what to do next time, and sets a two-minute drill for a habit it spots. You can play four bot practice partners with their own styles, a private table with friends or a duel, where another player is dealt the same cards you are.
Compared with Poker Skill: Ollin adds friends and duel opponents to its coached bot games but reaches iPhone only through a TestFlight beta, while Poker Skill's coached games seat only AI opponents, on iPhone, iPad and Android.
PocketCherries
A coached $1/$2 cash game in your browser
Free no sign-up needed
Best for Beginners at a computer or phone browser who want feedback on every decision at a six-seat table, plus a short course on the basics.
Skip if You want an app to install. PocketCherries runs only in a web browser.
Free version Everything: the game, the coaching and the 11-chapter course.
Where it runs Any web browser, on a computer or a phone
PocketCherries deals No-Limit Hold'em at $1/$2 blinds against up to five AI opponents, each with its own tendencies. Its coach gives feedback on every decision, in plain words with hand ratings from Great to Weak in beginner mode, or with pot odds and GTO ideas in intermediate mode. After a hand you can ask for a Coach's Review of the session.
Compared with Poker Skill: PocketCherries runs free in any web browser with nothing to install and seats you at a six-max table, while Poker Skill is an app for iPhone, iPad and Android with heads-up and three-player tables.
Poker Skill
Coached hands against AI opponents
Free forever.
Best for Players who want coaching in the middle of their own hands, on a phone or tablet.
Skip if You want other people across the table. Poker Skill's coaching is built into its games against AI opponents, and Ollin, PokerBrain and GTO Wizard's PokerArena seat other players.
Free version One Practice vs AI game a day, plus the Daily Puzzle and every lesson. An optional Plus subscription adds more games.
Where it runs iPhone, iPad and Android
We make this one. Practice vs AI seats you at a heads-up or three-player table with Coach Max beside you. In the puzzles, a coach's hint above the action buttons weighs the spot before you choose, and it can point you toward a play.
PokerBrain
Advice before every move against bots, plus ranked tables
Free Premium $7.99 a month
Best for Players who want a suggested action before each decision and a grade after it, against bots at six to nine seats, or heads-up and short-handed with Premium.
Skip if You want to find the play yourself first. PokerBrain's coach recommends an action, with a confidence level, before you act.
Free version 20 training hands to start, then 5 to 10 a day, plus seven lesson categories.
Where it runs iPhone and Android
PokerBrain's coach gives advice with a confidence level before each decision, grades each action from Great to Major Mistake and reviews every hand with a letter grade. You can pick one of three coaching styles and six coach voices, and you play dozens of AI bots built on ten player types. Its Competition Mode seats you at ranked tables with other players, and a Play With Friends mode lets you play people you invite.
Compared with Poker Skill: PokerBrain coaches and grades your play against AI opponents as Poker Skill does, and it is the better pick for a recommended move before each decision or ranked tables against other players.
What coaching during a hand should give you
Coaching during a hand is worth having when it makes you think before you act and then judges the decision itself, whatever the cards did next. A call can be right and still lose the pot, so a grade that follows the result teaches the wrong lesson. In Poker Skill’s Practice vs AI, which runs on Showdown AI, Coach Max grades your decisions against the engine’s strategy for the spot, so a good call that loses the pot still grades well. The coach should also give you the numbers the decision turns on, such as the pot odds when you face a bet.
Run this test yourself
How we compared
The five were compared on when the coach speaks during a hand, who you play against, what the free version includes and the devices each one runs on. Facts about Poker Skill come from its store listings, this site and the app itself. Facts about the other four come from their own store listings, websites and plan pages. Desktop solvers are left out: they work out strategy for a spot you set up, and trainer vs solver covers where each one fits. Anything that could not be confirmed at its source is left off.
Frequently asked questions
Can you learn poker by playing against AI?
Yes, when the game tells you why each decision was right or wrong. Hands against bots with no feedback give you repetition without correction, and a mistake nobody points out gets repeated. Poker Skill lists your finished Practice vs AI games, and you can open one for an analysis of how you played. PocketCherries and PokerBrain review hands too: PocketCherries writes a Coach's Review of your session when you ask for one, and PokerBrain gives every hand a letter grade.
Is real-time assistance allowed in online poker?
No. Online poker rooms treat an app or tool that advises you during a live hand as cheating and can close the account for good. GTO Wizard's PokerArena, where your opponent is another player, saves its analysis for after the match.
Is there a poker app that tells you what to do?
Yes. PokerBrain's coach recommends an action, with a confidence level, before each decision. When you face a bet in Poker Skill's Practice vs AI, Coach Max can tell you the pot odds you're getting. PocketCherries' coach leans toward a play in its intermediate mode, with the win chance and pot odds beside it.
Is playing hands against a GTO trainer a good way to learn?
It can be, if you also learn why the solver's play is right. A solver trainer grades every decision as EV loss and action frequencies, and knowing the reason behind a play is what lets you adapt when the spot changes. GTO Wizard's free plan gives 10 trainer hands a day, enough to try its grading.