Hackathon Judging Platform
Weighted judging criteria, a panel on phones, a live ranking, free
Hackathon judging in JudgeMate is a judge-scored category: each judge scores every team on criteria with weights, such as technical execution, innovation, impact and demo, from a phone during the pitches. The server averages the panel after every team and the ranking shows live on the stage screen or stays hidden until the head judge releases it. Free for organizers.
Which judging criteria does a hackathon need?
Four to five criteria with weights cover most hackathons. A 24-hour hackathon with 30 teams and a panel of six:
- Technical execution (0–10, weight 1.5) — does it work, how much was built in the time.
- Innovation (0–10, weight 1.0) — the idea and the approach.
- Impact (0–10, weight 1.0) — who it helps and how much.
- Demo and pitch (0–10, weight 0.5) — clarity of the three-minute presentation.
- Theme fit (0–5, weight 1.0) — for sponsored tracks with a brief.
In JudgeMate each criterion has a name, a description, a range and a weight from 0.1 to 10. The organizer decides whether the server sums the criteria or averages them. A sponsor track with its own prize runs as a separate category with its own criteria and its own judges, in the same event.
How does the panel score 30 pitches in an hour?
Each judge has the team list on a phone. When a team finishes its pitch, the judge taps five scores and sends; the server recalculates the panel average for that team at once. Six judges and 30 teams make 180 sheets, and nobody collects them.
- Sign-in. Judges sign in with a free account, with Google or an email link, in the phone browser. No app, no installation at the venue.
- Panel setup. The organizer adds each judge to the category; a head judge can be named for the release gate.
- Missing scores. The organizer sees which teams still lack a score from which judge before the winners are called.
- Corrections. A judge cannot edit a sent score; the organizer can, and the change is recorded in the audit log.
Teams that drop out are marked as not started instead of deleted, so the numbering on the pitch schedule holds.
When do the teams see the ranking?
Set per category:
- Live. Every sent score moves the public results page. Teams follow the ranking on their laptops through the link or the QR code on the stage screen, and the big-screen version of the page runs on the projector with large type and automatic scrolling.
- Head judge gate. Judges send, nothing is public until the head judge releases it. The organizers check the top five, settle any questions, and the winners appear on the screen at the closing ceremony.
A community vote for a crowd favourite runs as an audience poll, a separate feature next to the judges' ranking; participants vote from the results page and the poll does not change the judges' order. The event can also stay private to the organizers and be published later.
What is set up before and after the event?
- Event and categories. One event; a main category plus one per sponsor track. Each category has its own criteria, panel and ranking.
- Teams. Entered by the organizer by team name with no accounts needed, imported from the registration spreadsheet, or registered online through the event link. An entry limit with a waiting list is built in.
- Judges. Six on the main panel, two or three per sponsor track; each signs in on a phone.
- Rounds. A semi-final and a final run as two rounds of the same category; the organizer chooses whether only the best round counts, the rounds add up, or the average decides.
- Afterwards. PDF and Excel export with the per-judge breakdown, diplomas printed from the same results, and a results page that stays online for the write-up.
JudgeMate processes no payments and runs in English, Polish, German and Spanish. The organizer toolkit is on the features page.
Set up your event
Free for organizers. No athlete cap. No commission on registrations. See cheerleading features · Organizer guide
Other scenarios
Talent show
Judges score every act on your criteria from their phones, the ranking goes up on the big screen, and the head judge can hold it until the final. For schools, clubs and community stages.
Beauty pageant
Score sheets with weighted phases, five judges on phones, server-side tabulation and a head judge sign-off before the envelope moment.
Science fair
The judging rubric as criteria with points, three judges per project, rankings per category and a PDF with the breakdown for teachers.