Best ways to play Magic: The Gathering online

Local Game Stores are becoming increasingly difficult to find as the world shifts to digital storefronts. Luckily for those living in remote areas or whose favorite store closed down, Magic: The Gathering has a thriving online player base across many platforms.

Many popular platforms take the (excuse the pun) magic from the tabletop to the internet. Each accommodates a variety of game modes and features which makes some more appealing than others.

Player preferences are primarily formed around three criteria: 

• Game modes (Ex. Standard, Commander, Two-Headed Giant)
• Accessibility (Installation, setup, cost)
• User Experience (Interface, gameplay automation, matchmaking)

With those in mind, here are the best ways to play Magic: The Gathering (MTG) online:

The best Magic: The Gathering online games

Honorable mentions

Tabletop Simulator

While Tabletop Simulator can be used to play virtually any tabletop game, it doesn’t mean that it’s easy. MTG can be played in Tabletop Simulator but requires a tremendous amount of work for every player involved.

• Players will need to create or find a table suitable for MTG on the Steam Workshop.
• Decks must be created and imported into the game with assets for each card.
• The process of finding games is left up to the player, mostly an option suitable for games between friends
• Costs $19.99 for each player

XMage

When XMage works, it’s one of the best clients for playing MTG online. Unfortunately, XMage is rife with issues both in and out of the game. Players frequently mention being unable to download the client due to website errors or experiencing other game-breaking bugs.

• Modern interface, considered a successor to Cockatrice
• Completely free
• Infrequent updates – new sets are usually introduced within a month of release
• If bugs are present, it could be months before they’re addressed
• During a good patch, XMage is considered a go-to platform, but those patches are becoming increasingly rare

4. Cockatrice

Cockatrice launched in 2010 and was the community’s first attempt at digitizing Magic. Wizard of the Coast’s Magic: The Gathering Online was the primary platform for players who wanted to play Magic over the internet. But for many paper players, paying for an additional digital collection of cards simply wasn’t affordable.

Cockatrice launched with the promise of a completely free-to-play Magic experience online, a promise that has held up to this day.

Pros: 

• Complete card library
• Full control of the gameplay means it’s easy to undo or fix mistakes
• In-game chat for communication
• Can play every type of game mode
• Free to use and doesn’t require paying for cards

Cons:

• No automated actions – it’s important for all players to be well-versed in the rules and mechanics
• Arguments over how to resolve cards are common
• Complicated to set up, not a simple download and play process
• Barebones, the quality of the experience is left entirely to the players
• Smaller pool of players means games can be difficult to find

As time has passed, so too have the technology and capabilities of the internet. While Cockatrice still receives support and occasional updates, the interface is dated and the client feels like a chat room from the early 2000s. Setting up and playing on Cockatrice has gotten easier over the years, but can still be off-putting to some players. 

3. Magic: The Gathering Online

In 2002, Wizards of the Coast launched Magic: The Gathering Online, which could be considered a pioneer of online card gaming. While heavily criticized for its in-game economy and numerous bugs, MTGO has managed to stay alive despite facing many competitors over its two-decade lifespan. 

Unlike Cockatrice, MTGO provides gameplay automation, meaning instead of arguing with your opponents, you can blame the computer for everything (and you will). At any point in time, MTGO can be described as a buggy but complete experience. For those who don’t mind the costs associated with a digital collection, there isn’t a more comprehensive platform for playing Magic online. 

Pros:

• Complete card library
• Official Wizards of the Coast product
• Players own their cards as digital assets, can trade and sell them
• Can play every game mode
• Automated actions simplify the gameplay process and takes the burden off of players

Cons:

• Have to purchase or rent digital cards to use, can be very expensive
• Client tends to lag in later stages of games
• Many bugs with card interactions or with the client itself
• Client feels very outdated
• Only in English
• Only for Windows

Unfortunately, MTGO is only available in English and on Windows PCs. This severely harms the accessibility factor which lowers our overall rating for MTGO. 

2. Magic: The Gathering Arena

Since its launch in 2018, Magic: The Gathering Arena has been the reigning champ when it comes to the most streamlined MTG experience on the market. Arena is a vast improvement over Wizards of the Coast’s first child, MTGO. The UI has been modernized and the game rules engine was built from the ground up and is written in a way that allows for endless development. 

Pros:

• By far the most streamlined gameplay experience – all phases, spells and triggers are automated
• Free to play – cards can be earned with currency obtainable in-game, though can also be purchased with real money
• The most polished of all options
• Ranking system, matchmaking, automated events
• Official Wizards of the Coast product
• Translated into eight different languages
• Easy to download and jump right into games
• Tutorial and in-game guides

Cons:

• Doesn’t contain the complete card library, only around 10,000 cards out of the 26,000+ (since Ixalan) 
• Game modes such as Commander and Two-Headed Giant aren’t available
• Can’t trade or sell cards. Cards can only be obtained through purchasing packs or utilizing a Wildcard system.

Even though it has a smaller card library and only five game modes (four of which are similar to but not entirely identical to paper MTG game modes), Arena earns its place as #2. For people new to Magic, Arena is the place to be. While other options mostly cater to people already familiar with MTG, Arena provides a tutorial, helpful tooltips, and beginner decks to introduce beginners to various mechanics.

1. SpellTable

SpellTable is the new kid on the block (or at least on this list). During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the future of paper MTG was unclear. SpellTable, previously known as VirtualEDH, was quickly developed as a way to keep the Commander game mode alive (since Commander had limited online support at the time). 

Within months of its inception, SpellTable joined Wizards of the Coast and was able to expand support to all formats. SpellTable maintains the authentic paper MTG experience by utilizing a mobile phone or webcam and a good ol’ tabletop surface. Over time, the developers have enhanced the app with features that create a sort of “paper Magic 2.0” feeling. 

Pros:

• The most authentic paper Magic: The Gathering experience online
• Use all physical cards that you own (including proxies)
• Sort of an augmented reality experience since card images can be read by the client 
• Official Wizards of the Coast product
• Supports all game modes 
• Easy-to-use interface
• Free

Cons:

• Requires a webcam or phone and space to set up a suitable playing area
• No built-in matchmaking system. Finding games and play groups requires some work from the player
• Some of the popular Discord groups require a subscription in order to use their matchmaking services
• Gameplay done over a webcam can make it easier to cheat

Despite being created as a temporary solution for paper MTG due to social distancing, SpellTable has continued to be a popular choice for playing MTG online by players around the world. No other app captures the “dining room table with your buddies” aspect of Magic: The Gathering quite like SpellTable does.