Run It Once vs Upswing Poker: Which Poker Training Site Is Right for You in 2026?
If you’ve spent more than ten minutes researching poker training sites, you’ve run into both of them: Run It Once and Upswing Poker. They’re the two biggest names in serious No-Limit Hold’em and PLO education, they’re both founded by world-class pros, and they’ve both been refining their offering for over a decade.
But they are not the same product. One is a vast video library you graze across at your own pace. The other is a structured course you work through from start to finish. Picking the wrong one for your situation costs you money, time, and — more importantly — momentum.
This guide breaks down everything that actually matters: pricing, coaches, content depth, learning structure, community, and who each site is genuinely built for.
Quick Verdict
- Choose Run It Once if you’re an intermediate-to-advanced player who learns by exposure, wants access to the biggest names in high-stakes poker, and plays multiple formats (NLHE, PLO, MTT, mixed games).
- Choose Upswing Poker if you’re a beginner-to-intermediate player who wants a clear, guided study path with a placement quiz, structured modules, and a defined finish line.
If you only want a single answer: Upswing Lab 2.0 is the better starting point for most players under mid-stakes; Run It Once Elite is the better long-term home for serious grinders aiming at mid-to-high stakes.
Run It Once: The High-Stakes Library
Background
Run It Once was launched in December 2012 by Phil Galfond and his business partner Dan Quinn. Galfond is one of the most respected high-stakes players and instructors in the game, and from the start the platform’s positioning was clear: the “first-class cabin” of poker training.
More than a decade later, that’s still the brand. Run It Once now operates with a roster of over 170 coaches — a who’s who of modern poker that includes Phil Galfond himself, Jason Koon, Justin Bonomo, Dan Smith, Stephen Chidwick, Kevin Rabichow, and many others. Collectively the roster holds more than 40 WSOP bracelets and hundreds of millions in tournament earnings.
Content
This is where Run It Once is in a class of its own. The Elite tier gives access to roughly 9,500+ training videos, with two new videos uploaded every single day — a release cadence the site has maintained, almost without exception, since 2012. The Essential tier is more modest but still substantial, with 3,000+ videos and five new uploads per week.
Coverage is wide. You’ll find content on:
- No-Limit Hold’em (cash and tournaments)
- Pot-Limit Omaha (cash and tournaments)
- Mixed games and less-popular variants
- Mental game and coaching from specialists like Elliot Roe
- Heads-up play
- Stake-specific content from micros up to nosebleeds
Run It Once also bundles in its Vision GTO Trainer for PLO — a visual range trainer that works without a separate solver — plus Learning Paths that curate videos into structured study blocks. New videos ship with translated captions in eight languages, which matters if English isn’t your first language.
Pricing
- Basic — Free. Three Elite videos, forum and Discord access, video previews.
- Essential — Around $25/month. Full Essential video library, five new videos weekly.
- Elite — $199/month or $1,400/year. Everything in Essential plus the full Elite library, two new daily uploads, monthly Q&As with top coaches, private Discord channels, study groups, and monthly seminars.
The Elite tier is a serious commitment. It is priced for players who treat poker as a profession — or are seriously trying to.
Strengths
- Unmatched coaching roster
- Enormous, constantly growing library
- Genuine high-stakes content (most other sites peak at mid-stakes)
- Multi-format coverage (NLHE, PLO, mixed, MTT)
- Built-in PLO solver tool (Vision)
- Long-term home for a study habit — there’s always new content
Weaknesses
- The sheer volume can paralyze beginners
- No single “learn poker in order” path — you have to self-direct
- Elite pricing is steep for low-stakes players
- Quality varies across 170 coaches
Upswing Poker: The Structured Course
Background
Upswing Poker was founded in 2015 by Doug Polk, Ryan Fee, and Matt Colletta. It grew out of a strategy blog with free preflop charts into one of the largest poker training brands in the world. Doug Polk’s high-profile heads-up matches and YouTube channel made the brand instantly recognizable; the courses are what kept members paying.
In 2026, the flagship product is Lab 2.0, headed by coach Uri Peleg — a high-stakes crusher and founder of the staking firm Guerrilla Poker. The roster also includes Nick Petrangelo (tournaments), Doug Polk (his End Boss System), Gary Blackwood, Dylan Weisman, Jake Abdalla, and Fabian Adler.
Content
Upswing’s approach is fundamentally different from Run It Once. Rather than a sprawling library, Lab 2.0 is a guided course. New members take a placement quiz so they start exactly where their game needs work, and progress through a structured learning path that adapts as they advance. The Lab is built around defined tracks:
- Online Cash
- Live Cash
- Tournaments
- Mastery Path
- Max Exploit Academy (exploitative adjustments)
- Strategy Specials
- Levels (a recent series by Uri Peleg starting at low stakes and working up)
Outside the Lab, Upswing sells standalone premium courses. The big one is Doug Polk’s End Boss System (a $499+ deep dive into preflop strategy and exploitative adjustments for NL200 and above). Nick Petrangelo has a tournament series. Other courses cover PLO, mixed games, heads-up, and short deck — typically in the $499–$999 range.
The Lab also includes 400+ preflop charts, regular live Q&As, weekly webinars, and a private Discord with coaches actively answering questions.
Pricing
- Lab 2.0 — $99/month, $399 for 6 months, or $699/year.
- Standalone courses — One-time payments from $7 (the Postflop Playbook) up to $999 (Mixed Games Mastery).
- Guarantee — 30-day money-back guarantee for new Lab members. No free trial.
Strengths
- Clear, structured learning path with a defined start and finish
- Adaptive placement quiz so beginners don’t waste time on material they know
- Coaches actively engage in the Discord — questions get answered
- Premium standalone courses for specific weaknesses
- 30-day money-back guarantee
- Strong preflop chart library
Weaknesses
- Much narrower coaching roster than Run It Once
- Library is smaller — once you finish the Lab, the well runs shallower
- Less high-stakes-specific content (Lab caps out around mid-stakes for most players)
- Premium courses get expensive quickly
- No free trial — you commit before you see the inside
Head-to-Head Comparison
| Feature | Run It Once | Upswing Poker |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 2012 (Phil Galfond) | 2015 (Doug Polk, Ryan Fee, Matt Colletta) |
| Lead coach (2026) | Phil Galfond + 170-coach roster | Uri Peleg (Lab 2.0) |
| Content model | Open video library | Structured, adaptive course |
| Video count | 9,500+ (Elite) / 3,000+ (Essential) | Lab modules + standalone courses |
| New content | 2 new videos/day | Regular Lab updates + live Q&As |
| Formats covered | NLHE, PLO, MTT, mixed, heads-up | Primarily NLHE; PLO/MTT/mixed via standalone courses |
| Entry tier | $25/month (Essential) | $99/month (Lab 2.0) |
| Premium tier | $199/month or $1,400/year (Elite) | $699/year (Lab) + premium courses $499–$999 |
| Free option | Yes — Basic membership | No, but 30-day money-back guarantee |
| Best for | Intermediate-to-pro, multi-format | Beginner-to-intermediate NLHE |
| Community | Forums + private Discord | Private Discord + member blogs |
| Solver/GTO tools | Vision GTO Trainer (PLO) | Preflop chart app, Supremus AI (End Boss) |
Which One Wins on… ?
Coaching Roster
Winner: Run It Once. This isn’t close. Run It Once’s roster is the deepest in poker — three of the all-time top-five tournament earners contribute videos. Upswing has top-tier names (Polk, Peleg, Petrangelo) but a fraction of the depth.
Structure for Beginners
Winner: Upswing Poker. Lab 2.0’s placement quiz and adaptive path is the single most beginner-friendly feature in serious poker training. Run It Once has Learning Paths, but you still have to self-direct.
Value for Low-Stakes Players
Winner: Run It Once Essential. At $25/month for 3,000+ videos, it’s the best entry-level deal in poker education. Upswing Lab at $99/month is harder to justify if you’re playing $0.05/$0.10 NLHE.
Value for Mid-to-High Stakes Players
Winner: Run It Once Elite. The Elite tier is the only training subscription on the market that consistently teaches actual high-stakes content from people currently playing it. Upswing’s End Boss System is excellent but narrower in scope.
PLO and Mixed Games
Winner: Run It Once. No serious contest. Run It Once was built on Galfond’s PLO expertise, Vision is a genuinely useful PLO tool, and the mixed-game content is broader. Upswing offers good PLO and mixed game courses, but they’re standalone purchases.
Coach Interaction
Winner: Upswing Poker. Uri Peleg and the Lab 2.0 team are actively engaged in the Discord, answering hand-history questions directly. Run It Once has Q&As, but its scale makes one-on-one interaction rarer.
Community
Tie. Both have active Discord servers and forums. Run It Once’s is larger; Upswing’s is more focused.
Who Should Choose Run It Once
- You’re playing 50NL or higher (online) or $2/$5 live and above
- You play multiple formats and want one subscription that covers them all
- You learn well from watching pros think out loud, even without a strict curriculum
- You want exposure to the absolute top of the game
- PLO, MTTs, or mixed games are part of your game
- You’re committed to a long-term study habit and need a deep well
Who Should Choose Upswing Poker
- You’re a beginner or intermediate NLHE cash player
- You want a clear, guided path with milestones
- Preflop ranges and structured charts matter to you
- You learn better from a focused course than from browsing a library
- You want direct access to coaches in a smaller community
- You’re considering a specific premium course (End Boss, a Petrangelo MTT series, etc.)
Can You Use Both?
Honestly — many serious players do, just not at the same time. A common path:
- Start with Upswing Lab 2.0 for six months to build foundations and fix obvious leaks.
- Cancel and move to Run It Once Essential or Elite once you’ve outgrown the structured curriculum and need depth, variety, and high-stakes content.
- Add specific Upswing premium courses (End Boss, PLO Mastery) when you identify a clear weakness.
This sequence respects how players actually develop: structure first, depth later.
Final Verdict
There’s no objectively “better” site here. There’s only the right site for where you are right now.
Upswing Poker is the better on-ramp. The Lab is the most thoughtfully structured product in poker training, and for a player who needs a roadmap, it pays for itself fast.
Run It Once is the better long-term home. The roster, the library, and the multi-format coverage make it the default destination for players whose goal is to play poker for a living, or at least to take it that seriously.
If you’re playing micro to small stakes and feel lost, start with Upswing. If you’re already a winning small-stakes player aiming higher, go straight to Run It Once. Either way, the bigger leak in your game is probably not which site you pick — it’s how disciplined you are about actually studying.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Run It Once still owned by Phil Galfond? The Run It Once training site is still operated under Galfond’s direction. The separate Run It Once Poker room was integrated into BetRivers Poker some time ago, but the training platform — the subject of this comparison — continues as Galfond’s project.
Does Upswing Poker have a free trial? No free trial, but Lab 2.0 comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee for first-time members.
Which site is better for tournament players? Both are strong here. Run It Once has more tournament coaches at the elite level (Koon, Bonomo, Chidwick, Smith). Upswing has Nick Petrangelo and a focused tournament track inside the Lab. If you play live MTTs at high buy-ins, Run It Once wins. If you’re grinding online MTTs and want a curriculum, Upswing is excellent.
Is the Run It Once Elite tier worth $199/month? For a full-time poker professional or a committed serious amateur playing mid-stakes or higher: yes, easily. For someone playing recreational low-stakes: no — Essential at $25/month gives you 90% of what you actually need.
Can a complete beginner use Run It Once? Yes, especially via the “From the Ground Up” course and Learning Paths. But Upswing Lab 2.0 is genuinely better designed for beginners because of the adaptive placement.
How often is content updated? Run It Once releases two new videos per day on Elite and five per week on Essential. Upswing updates the Lab regularly and adds live Q&As, but doesn’t operate on a daily-release schedule.
Do either offer 1-on-1 coaching? Both offer access to private coaching through their coaches outside the subscriptions, typically arranged directly with individual pros. Neither subscription itself includes scheduled 1-on-1 sessions — though Upswing’s Lab coach interaction in Discord gets close.
Whichever you choose, the same advice applies: build a study routine, review your own hands, and apply what you learn at the tables the same week you study it. The site is the tool — the discipline is the edge.