A simpler Stack Officials alternative

Stack Officials, from Stack Sports, schedules, manages and pays officials, and syncs game schedules from Sports Connect. If you need officials assigned and confirmed without adopting a platform, Ref Grid works on its own, from a spreadsheet of your games.

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

About Stack Officials

What Stack Officials is built to do

Stack Officials is Stack Sports’ officials product — “everything you need to schedule, manage, and pay officials, all in one place” — for leagues and tournaments, assignors and officials. Assignors create and manage assignments, communicate through built-in alerts, review post-game reports and run payroll, with integrated payments.

It is closely tied to Stack Sports’ league tools: game schedules sync from Sports Connect, and it lists in-app training and a “US Soccer LC integration.” Officials use its iOS and Android app to receive and accept assignments, manage their availability and pick up self-assignment games.

Where they overlap

Both are aimed at leagues, and both cover assigning officials, telling them, collecting their answers and reporting what they are owed.

Where they differ

Stack Officials is built to connect to Stack Sports’ league tools: schedules sync from Sports Connect and payments run through its own processing. Ref Grid connects to no league platform: games come in from a CSV or are added by hand. That is more manual when your schedule changes, and it means Ref Grid works the same whether your league runs on Sports Connect, something else or a spreadsheet. Officials need no app — they answer by text or email.

Side by side

Ref Grid and Stack Officials, compared

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

Ref Grid and Stack Officials compared, by capability
Capability	Ref Grid	Stack Officials
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.	Stack OfficialsIncluded Create and manage assignments, with schedules synced from Sports Connect.
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.	Stack OfficialsIncluded Officials manage their availability in the app.
Assignment notifications	Ref GridIncluded Text and email in one send, on the channel each official prefers. Delivery reported per assignment.	Stack OfficialsIncluded Built-in communication and alerts, including in-app notifications. Ask 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.	Stack OfficialsIncluded Officials receive and accept assignments in the app.
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.	Stack OfficialsVerify 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.	Stack OfficialsVerify with provider Not described on the pages we reviewed.
Pay reports and export	Ref GridIncluded CSV of what each official is owed, per game or per official, plus a QuickBooks Online bills format.	Stack OfficialsIncluded Payroll handled in the product.
Paying officials and tax forms	Ref GridNot offered Ref Grid prepares pay reports; it does not pay officials, collect W-9s or issue 1099s.	Stack OfficialsIncluded Integrated payments, with 1099-NEC forms generated from payment data and W-9s collected in the app.
Evaluations, eligibility and self-assign	Ref GridNot offered No evaluations, certification or eligibility rules, and no self-assign. The assignor decides who works.	Stack OfficialsIncluded Post-game reports, in-app training and self-assignment games.
Intended scope	Ref Grid Deliberately narrow: games, officials, assignments, messages, replies and reminders. Not a league or officiating-management platform.	Stack Officials Scheduling, managing and paying officials, integrated with Stack Sports’ Sports Connect league platform.
Pricing structure	Ref Grid One plan: $129/year or $15/month after a 14-day free trial. 2,000 SMS segments a year included.	Stack OfficialsVerify with provider Not published on its website; ask Stack Sports.

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

Based on: stackofficials.com, Stack Officials features, Stack Sports: Stack Officials, Stack Sports 1099 FAQ, Stack Officials on the App Store.

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? Stack Officials may be the better choice.

Ref Grid is probably a good fit if…

Your league does not run on Sports Connect, or your schedule lives in a spreadsheet.
Officials should be able to respond without downloading an app.
You want a published price you can budget without a demo.
You pay officials outside the software and only need to know what each is owed.

Stack Officials may suit you better if…

Your league already runs on Sports Connect and you want schedules to sync rather than be re-imported.
You want officials paid electronically from the same system.
You want post-game reports and in-app training for officials.
Officials should be able to pick up self-assignment games.

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

Stack Officials and Ref Grid: common questions

What is Stack Officials?: Stack Officials is the officials product from Stack Sports. It schedules, manages and pays officials, syncs game schedules from Sports Connect, and has a mobile app officials use to accept assignments and manage their availability.
Do I need Sports Connect to use Ref Grid?: No. Ref Grid is not connected to any league platform. You import games from a CSV exported from wherever your schedule lives, or add them by hand. The trade-off is that a schedule change in your league system does not flow into Ref Grid on its own.
Does Ref Grid have an app for officials?: No, deliberately. Officials get each assignment by text or email and accept or decline from a link that works on any phone. There is nothing to install and no account to create.
Does Ref Grid handle referee payments and 1099s?: No. It exports what each official is owed — per game, per official, or as QuickBooks Online bills — and you pay them your usual way. Stack Officials includes payments if you want that in one system.
How much does Ref Grid cost?: $129 a year or $15 a month, after a 14-day free trial — the same plan for everyone. Stack Officials does not publish prices on its website.

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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