A simpler Refr Sports alternative

Refr brings scheduling, messaging and paying officials into one app-based platform, priced per game. Ref Grid is the plain version of the first part: assign the games, text or email the officials, and see who has confirmed — for one flat price.

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

About Refr Sports

What Refr Sports is built to do

Refr Sports — usually just “Refr” in its own copy — says it “brings your scheduling, communication, and payment needs into one platform.” It is built for assignors, sports organizations, tournament organizers and officials, and lists more than 50 sports. Assignors can bulk-assign whole tournaments and import schedules from CSV or Excel files, or paste them in any format for its AI tool to structure.

Officials work from its mobile app: they keep calendar-based availability with blackout dates and travel preferences, accept or decline in the app, and request open slots. Refr Pay pays officials through Stripe, with weekly deposits or instant cash-out and W-9 and 1099 handling, and Refr tracks certifications, with background checks available as an add-on.

Where they overlap

Both take a schedule in from a spreadsheet, put officials on games in bulk, notify them, and record who accepted and who declined.

Where they differ

Refr’s official experience runs through its app: officials maintain a dated availability calendar there, request open games, get paid and receive their messages in it. Ref Grid asks nothing of officials beyond answering a text or an email, which is the whole of its bet — and the reason it has no marketplace for open games, no payouts and no certification tracking. Refr charges per game; Ref Grid charges one flat price however many games you run.

Side by side

Ref Grid and Refr Sports, compared

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

Ref Grid and Refr Sports compared, by capability
Capability	Ref Grid	Refr Sports
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.	Refr SportsIncluded Bulk-assign officials to whole tournaments; an AI tool formats pasted schedules into games.
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.	Refr SportsIncluded Calendar-based availability with blackout dates and travel preferences.
Assignment notifications	Ref GridIncluded Text and email in one send, on the channel each official prefers. Delivery reported per assignment.	Refr SportsIncluded Push notifications and in-app messaging. Check with Refr about text and email.
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.	Refr SportsIncluded Officials accept or decline in the app, and can request open slots.
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.	Refr SportsVerify with provider Not described on the pages we reviewed.
Calendar support	Ref GridBasic An add-to-calendar (.ics) file for each accepted game. No subscribable calendar feed.	Refr SportsVerify with provider Calendar-based availability is documented; ask Refr about calendar sync.
Pay reports and export	Ref GridIncluded CSV of what each official is owed, per game or per official, plus a QuickBooks Online bills format.	Refr SportsVerify with provider Pay runs through Refr Pay (below). Ask Refr about exports.
Paying officials and tax forms	Ref GridNot offered Ref Grid prepares pay reports; it does not pay officials, collect W-9s or issue 1099s.	Refr SportsIncluded Refr Pay pays officials through Stripe — weekly, or instant for a transfer fee — with W-9 and 1099 handling.
Evaluations, eligibility and self-assign	Ref GridNot offered No evaluations, certification or eligibility rules, and no self-assign. The assignor decides who works.	Refr SportsIncluded Certification tracking; background checks as an add-on; officials request open slots.
Intended scope	Ref Grid Deliberately narrow: games, officials, assignments, messages, replies and reminders. Not a league or officiating-management platform.	Refr Sports Scheduling, communication and payments in one platform, for organizations, assignors and tournament organizers across 50+ sports.
Pricing structure	Ref Grid One plan: $129/year or $15/month after a 14-day free trial. 2,000 SMS segments a year included.	Refr Sports Per game, billed annually: from $1.25 a game with 200 games ($250/year), then $0.75 at 1,000 and $0.50 at 5,000 games. Free trial covering 20 games.

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

Based on: refrsports.com, Refr for assignors, Refr for officials, Refr Pay, Refr pricing.

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? Refr Sports may be the better choice.

Ref Grid is probably a good fit if…

Your officials will not all install an app, and you need the ones who do not to be reachable too.
Your season has enough games that a flat annual price is simpler to budget than a per-game one.
You already pay officials another way and only need a report of who is owed what.
You want to assign the games yourself rather than open them up for requests.

Refr Sports may suit you better if…

You want officials paid weekly, with W-9s and 1099s handled, inside the platform.
You run tournaments and want officials requesting open slots.
You need dated availability with blackout dates, or certification and background-check tracking.
You want an AI tool to format messy schedules, or the website building and hosting listed on its pricing page.

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

Refr Sports and Ref Grid: common questions

What are the alternatives to Refr Sports?: They split into two groups. Broader platforms that also pay officials and handle tax forms are the closest like-for-like. Simpler assigning tools such as Ref Grid leave payments out and focus on getting games assigned, notified and confirmed. Which is right depends on whether you want payouts in the same system.
Do officials need an app to use Ref Grid?: No. Officials receive each assignment by text or email, whichever they prefer, and accept or decline from a link. There is no app and no account for them to create. Refr’s official experience is built around its mobile app.
How does Ref Grid’s pricing differ from Refr’s?: Refr prices per game, billed annually, starting at $1.25 a game for 200 games. Ref Grid is $129 a year or $15 a month however many games you schedule. Which costs less depends on your game count, and both vendors’ prices change — check the current pages.
Does Ref Grid handle referee payments?: No. Ref Grid produces a pay report — what each official is owed, per game or in total, or as QuickBooks Online bills. Paying them, and W-9s and 1099s, stay with you. Refr Pay is designed to do that part.
Can officials pick up open games in Ref Grid?: No. The assignor makes every assignment and officials respond to what they are offered. If you want officials browsing and requesting open slots, that is a Refr feature Ref Grid does not have.

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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