A simpler HorizonWebRef alternative

HorizonWebRef is built to run an entire officiating operation, with eligibility rules, evaluations, auto-assign and payments you can switch on. If your operation is mostly getting a weekend of games covered, Ref Grid is the short version: import the games, assign, send, and see who confirmed.

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14-day free trial, then $129/year or $15/month.

About HorizonWebRef

What HorizonWebRef is built to do

HorizonWebRef has served the officiating community since 2005 and invites organizations to “run your entire officiating operation in one place.” It supports around twenty sports and thirteen languages. Assignors assign manually or automatically, with conflict checks, and apply certifications, age rules, blocks and position rules to decide who is eligible. Officials manage their own availability, accept or decline, and can ask for open games.

Much of it is configurable. Ratings, observer comments, rankings, game reports and incident reports can be turned on; schedules come in from spreadsheets or SportsEngine; games sync to Google Calendar or an iCal feed; and US organizations can pay officials by ACH through its Payment Center. Email, push and text reminders are included, with iOS and Android apps.

Where they overlap

Both cover the same core: officials’ availability, assigning with conflict checks, email and text notifications, accept and decline, reminders, and spreadsheet import.

Where they differ

HorizonWebRef’s strength is how much of an officiating operation it can be set up to govern — who is eligible for which game, how officials are evaluated, how they are paid. Ref Grid has none of those settings, which is the point: there is less to configure before the first weekend goes out, and nothing to maintain once it has. If your organization needs those rules, that is a reason to choose HorizonWebRef.

Side by side

Ref Grid and HorizonWebRef, compared

Not a scorecard. Ref Grid is narrower on purpose, and several rows below are things it does not do.

Ref Grid and HorizonWebRef compared, by capability
Capability	Ref Grid	HorizonWebRef
Core assigning	Ref GridIncluded A board with one cell per position. Fill a weekend as drafts, review, then send once. Warns about double-booking; does not assign anyone for you.	HorizonWebRefIncluded Manual or automatic assigning, with conflict checks.
Official availability	Ref GridBasic Officials keep their usual days, times of day and divisions current from a link. A general picture, not a per-date calendar.	HorizonWebRefIncluded Officials manage availability; assignors apply blocks and conflict checks.
Assignment notifications	Ref GridIncluded Text and email in one send, on the channel each official prefers. Delivery reported per assignment.	HorizonWebRefIncluded Email and push included; text reminders included, with Premium SMS as an add-on.
Accept and decline	Ref GridIncluded Officials accept or decline from a link, with no account, password or app. Replies given by phone can be recorded by hand.	HorizonWebRefIncluded Officials accept or decline, and can ask for open games.
Reminders	Ref GridIncluded Up to three pre-game reminders to officials who have accepted, from 1 hour to 30 days out, by text, email or both. No automatic chase of officials who have not replied.	HorizonWebRefIncluded Email, push and text reminders come with a subscription.
Calendar support	Ref GridBasic An add-to-calendar (.ics) file for each accepted game. No subscribable calendar feed.	HorizonWebRefIncluded Sync games to Google Calendar or an iCal feed.
Pay reports and export	Ref GridIncluded CSV of what each official is owed, per game or per official, plus a QuickBooks Online bills format.	HorizonWebRefIncluded Fee structures, deductions, mileage and payroll reports included; 1099 support listed.
Paying officials and tax forms	Ref GridNot offered Ref Grid prepares pay reports; it does not pay officials, collect W-9s or issue 1099s.	HorizonWebRefAdd-on or separate product ACH payments for US organizations through its Payment Center, with published processing fees. Ask how tax forms are handled.
Evaluations, eligibility and self-assign	Ref GridNot offered No evaluations, certification or eligibility rules, and no self-assign. The assignor decides who works.	HorizonWebRefIncluded Certifications, age, block and position rules; ratings, observer comments, rankings, game and incident reports; open-game requests.
Intended scope	Ref Grid Deliberately narrow: games, officials, assignments, messages, replies and reminders. Not a league or officiating-management platform.	HorizonWebRef An entire officiating operation in one place, across about 20 sports and 13 languages.
Pricing structure	Ref Grid One plan: $129/year or $15/month after a 14-day free trial. 2,000 SMS segments a year included.	HorizonWebRef Annual packages by license count (officials and assignors each take one), from $241.50/year for 30. Premium SMS, API and extended archiving are add-ons (prices not published).

Features and pricing change. Verify current capabilities directly with each provider before deciding.

Based on: horizonwebref.com, HorizonWebRef features, HorizonWebRef pricing, HorizonWebRef help center.

Product names and trademarks belong to their respective owners. Comparison information is based on publicly available information and may change. Ref Grid is not affiliated with any product named on this page. Last reviewed: September 2026.

Choosing

Which one fits

Need straightforward assigning? Ref Grid may be a strong fit. Need a broader officiating-management system? HorizonWebRef may be the better choice.

Ref Grid is probably a good fit if…

You want to be sending assignments the day you sign up, not after configuring rules.
Who works which game is your judgement, not something eligibility settings need to enforce.
You have no evaluation or observer program to run.
You would rather have one price than a package sized by license count.

HorizonWebRef may suit you better if…

You need eligibility enforced — certifications, age rules, blocks or position rules.
You run evaluations, observer reports, rankings or incident reports.
You want automatic assigning as a starting point.
You need ACH payments to officials, SportsEngine import, an API, or languages other than English.

Why people consider Ref Grid

The core workflow, and not much else.

Set up from the spreadsheet you have

Import officials and games from CSV files, with a preview before anything is saved, or add them by hand. A short checklist gets the first assignment out.

Assign a weekend in one pass

Fill positions as drafts, see double-bookings flagged as you go, then review the batch and send it once.

Text and email in one send

Each official gets their games on the channel they prefer, and delivery is reported per assignment, so a failure is named.

Accept or decline from a link

No account, password or app for officials. Accepted games come with an add-to-calendar file.

Reminders you configure

Up to three reminders before each game — an hour to 30 days out — by text, email or both, to the officials who accepted it.

See what still needs attention

The dashboard counts unfilled positions, assignments awaiting a reply, and declines, and each links straight to those games.

A pay report, not a payments system

Export what each official is owed from accepted games — per game, per official, or as QuickBooks Online bills — and pay them your usual way.

Straightforward pricing

One plan with everything in it, several assignors included. Nothing to size, tier or add on.

The Ref Grid dashboard: counts of unfilled positions, assignments awaiting a reply, accepted and declined, each linking to the games behind it.

How it works

Five steps, every week.

Import games, add officials, assign, officials respond, Ref Grid reminds.

01
Import games
Upload your schedule as a CSV, or add games one at a time.
02
Add officials
Import a roster, add them yourself, or invite them to fill in their own details.
03
Assign
Fill positions as drafts with double-booking warnings, then review and send.
04
Officials respond
Each gets a text or email and accepts or declines from a link.
05
Ref Grid reminds
Your configured reminders go out before each accepted game.

Pricing

One plan, one price.

$129/year

or $15/month

Try Ref Grid free

14-day free trial

One plan. Everything included.

Unlimited games and assignments
Roster and contact management
Assignment management and scheduling
Accept and decline workflows
Email notifications
2,000 SMS segments/year
Multiple assignors

No tiers, no per-game fees and no add-ons to price out.

Questions

HorizonWebRef and Ref Grid: common questions

What is an alternative to HorizonWebRef?: If you use most of what HorizonWebRef can do — eligibility rules, evaluations, payments — look at other full officiating platforms. If you use it mainly to assign games and get confirmations, a narrower tool like Ref Grid does that with far less to configure.
How long does Ref Grid take to set up?: Most of it is importing two CSV files — your officials and your games — and checking the preview. A getting-started checklist walks through adding an official, a game and a first assignment. There are no eligibility or evaluation settings to configure, because Ref Grid does not have them.
Does Ref Grid check eligibility or certifications like HorizonWebRef?: No. It warns you when an official is already holding an overlapping game, and shows the days, times and divisions they usually work — but it does not enforce certifications, age rules or position rules. If your organization requires that, HorizonWebRef is designed for it.
How is Ref Grid priced compared with HorizonWebRef?: HorizonWebRef sells annual packages by license, where officials and assignors each take a license, starting at $241.50 a year for 30. Ref Grid has one plan at $129 a year or $15 a month, with any number of assignors. Check both vendors for current prices.
Does Ref Grid support SMS?: Yes. Each official is reached by text, email or both, whichever you have marked for them, and pre-game reminders can go by text too. The plan includes 2,000 SMS segments a year — a long text can use more than one — and when those run out, email keeps working.

Compare other referee assigning software

Assign next weekend in one sitting.

Import your games and officials, send the assignments by text and email, and see who has confirmed. Start with a 14-day free trial.

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