Help & Reference Guide
Everything you need to set up a competition, import climbers, and run scoring day. Don't worry about getting it perfect the first time — every setting can be edited later.
Setting Up a Competition
The setup wizard walks you through creating a competition in 10 steps. Your competition is only visible to you until it's approved. Once configured, go to the Admin Dashboard and tap "Request Approval" — approval can take up to 3 business days.
New to the app? Feel free to create a test competition to explore how everything works. If you do, please delete it when you're done. Everything can be edited after creation, so don't worry about getting it perfect on the first pass.
Community guidelines: Your competition will be visible to all app users once approved. Use title case for your competition name, use real gym or team names, and keep everything professional. These details are checked during the approval process.
Looking for a shorter overview? Check the Quick Start Guide.
Competition Information
Basic details about your competition and gym. This is what climbers see on the home screen when browsing competitions.
Displayed on the home screen. Use title case (e.g., "Spring Send-Off"). Max 60 characters.
Shown below the name on the home screen. Useful for series names, session info, or gym location. Max 60 characters.
The name of the hosting gym or venue.
Select from the dropdown.
2-12 characters. Letters, numbers, and hyphens only.
The date displayed on the home screen. Use the date picker.
A URL for your registration page, event info, or gym website. Appears as a tappable link on the competition's home screen.
Passwords & Contact Info
Set up access control and your contact details. Climbers may reach out with questions, so make sure the contact info is someone who can help.
Name of the person managing the comp.
Displayed to climbers who need help.
Helpful for day-of communication.
Min 6 characters, confirmed. Grants access to the Admin Dashboard where you import climbers, edit settings, lock scores, and manage the competition. Keep this private.
Share this with all climbers so they can self-register in the app. Keep it simple and easy to announce (e.g., "climb2026").
Choose who enters scores:
- Self-entry — Climbers enter their own scores on their phones. No judge password needed.
- Judges — Dedicated judges enter scores. You'll set a separate Judge Password. Share it only with judges.
The admin password is private to you. The competition password is shared with all participants. If using judges, make the judge password different from the competition password.
Category 1 (suggested: Gender)
Your first category filter. This is typically used for gender, but you can name the options anything you like.
Choose 1 to 10 options.
Name each option. Defaults: Female, Male, Non-binary. These names appear in the app and correspond to the "Filter1" column in CSV imports.
Filter values are case-sensitive. Whatever you type here is exactly what must appear in your CSV import. "Female" and "female" are treated as different values.
You can use these categories for anything — gender is just a suggestion. If you only need one group for a particular filter, set it to 1 option and name it something like your gym name or a tagline. The text will appear as a button but won't filter anyone out.
Category 2 (suggested: Age)
Your second category filter. Typically used for age groups.
Choose 1 to 20 options.
Name each option. Defaults: U13, U15, U17, U19, U30, U40, U50, 50+. Corresponds to "Filter2" in CSV imports.
Category 3 (optional, suggested: Level)
An optional third category filter. Set to 0 options to skip it entirely.
Choose 0 to 10 options. Set to 0 to disable this category.
Defaults: Beg, Int, Adv. Corresponds to "Filter3" in CSV imports.
Categories create combinations. For example, 3 genders × 8 ages × 3 levels = 72 category combinations, each with its own leaderboard. Only create the categories you actually need.
Configure Scoring
Choose how your competition is scored. This is the most important step — the scoring format determines how the entire comp runs.
The maximum number of attempts a climber gets per boulder. Range: 1 to 40.
Redpoint Scoring
Toggle the Redpoint Scoring switch to choose your format:
Redpoint ON
Every boulder has a point value equal to its boulder number — boulder 30 is worth 30 points, boulder 1 is worth 1 point. Boulders should be numbered in increasing difficulty. All climbers can attempt any boulder. Failed attempts cost 0.1 points (only subtracted if the boulder is topped). Only tops are scored — no points for zones. Each climber's best N scores count toward their total.
How many of a climber's best boulders count toward their total (e.g., top 5 out of 30 boulders).
Redpoint OFF (Standard)
Traditional scoring where climbers are assigned specific boulders by category.
Choose between:
- Points — Numeric score per achievement (customizable point values)
- Count of Tops & Zones — IFSC-style counting of tops/zones with attempts as tiebreakers
What checkpoints are tracked per boulder:
- Tops, Zones & Low Zones — Three scoring levels
- Tops & Zones — Two scoring levels
- Tops Only — Just whether they topped it
Advanced Options (Points mode only)
Set custom point values for Low Zone, Zone, and Top achievements. Defaults are typically 5, 10, 25.
Extra points awarded for topping a boulder on the first attempt.
Extra points for topping the same boulder again (used in some endurance-style comps).
Gym Configuration
Tell the app how many boulders are set in your gym.
The total number of boulders physically set in the gym. Range: 1 to 100.
How many boulders each competitor climbs. Can be less than the total if different categories climb different sets. Not shown for redpoint comps (climbers can attempt any boulder).
Assign Boulders to Categories
This step is skipped automatically if using Redpoint Scoring (since all climbers can attempt any boulder).
For standard scoring, you'll see a matrix showing every category combination and which boulder numbers they climb.
- Use the filter buttons at the top to narrow which categories you're viewing (by gender, age, or level).
- Change a boulder number for one column and it updates all currently visible (filtered) categories at once — handy for batch assignment.
- Each category must have unique boulder numbers (no repeats within a category).
If everyone climbs the same boulders, just leave the defaults. The matrix only matters when different categories climb different sets.
Teams
Optional. Toggle teams on if your comp includes team scoring alongside individual results.
Turn on to enable team features.
Choose 1 to 40 teams and name each one.
Teams can also be assigned during CSV import by including a "Team" column. After creation, teams are managed from Team Management in the Admin Dashboard, not the setup wizard.
Submit
Review and create your competition.
- Your competition is only visible to you until approved.
- Tap Submit to create the competition. This may take up to a minute while the server processes your setup.
- Your comp will appear on the home screen. It shows orange while pending approval and green (to you) once approved. Other users see it in the default style.
- Go to the Admin Dashboard and tap "Request Approval" to make it publicly visible. Approval typically takes 1-3 business days.
Importing Climbers
After creating your competition, you can bulk-import your pre-registered climbers from a CSV file. Go to your competition, open the menu, enter your admin password to access the Admin Dashboard, and tap "Import Climbers."
CSV Format
Your CSV must have these column headers (exact spelling, case-sensitive):
| Column | Required? | Description |
|---|---|---|
Name | Required | Climber's full name. Must be unique — no duplicates allowed. |
Filter1 | Required | Category 1 value (e.g., "Female"). Must exactly match what you set up. |
Filter2 | Required | Category 2 value (e.g., "U15"). Must exactly match what you set up. |
Filter3 | If 3 categories | Category 3 value (e.g., "Int"). Must exactly match. Only required if you set up 3 categories. |
PIN | Optional | A code the climber uses to log in for self-scoring. |
Start Time | Optional | For competitions with designated climbing windows. |
Team | If teams | Team name. Must exactly match a team you created in setup. |
Create Template
Instead of building your CSV from scratch, tap "Create Template" in the import screen. This generates a Google Sheet with:
- The correct headers for your competition
- Dropdown validation on filter columns (so you can't accidentally misspell a category)
- The right number of rows for your expected competitor count
Fill it out in Google Sheets, then download as CSV (File → Download → Comma-separated values) and import it.
Validation Rules
Filter values are case-sensitive and must match exactly. If you set up "female" in your competition, your CSV must say "female" — not "Female" or "F". Trailing spaces will also cause errors.
- Duplicate names within the CSV are rejected.
- If appending, duplicate names with existing climbers are rejected (use Replace instead, or rename in the CSV).
- Every row is validated against your competition's configured categories. Invalid rows are reported with the row number and which filter failed.
Append vs. Replace
When you upload, you'll be asked to choose:
Append
Adds these climbers to the existing list. Use this for late registrations or additional waves.
Replace
Deletes all existing climbers and replaces them with the CSV contents. Use this for your first upload or to start fresh.
Replace deletes all existing climbers and their scores. This cannot be undone. Make sure you have a backup if you're replacing mid-competition.
How Self-Scoring Works
In self-entry mode, competitors enter their own scores on their phone. Here's how the experience works from both the organizer's and the climber's perspective.
Viewer-only access: Competitions with pre-loaded rosters and judges are viewer-only — anyone can open the app and watch the leaderboard without signing in or creating a profile.
For the Organizer
- In Step 2 of setup, set Entry Mode to "Self-entry".
- Share the Competition Password with your climbers — announce it, post it at the gym, print it on a sign.
- Climbers do not need accounts to view results. Anyone can open the app and see the leaderboard. Accounts and the competition password are only needed for self-registration and self-scoring.
- For late registrations or walk-ins, it's easiest to let them self-register through the app rather than adding them to a CSV. Unless you have a batch of late adds, one at a time in the app is faster.
For the Climber: Step-by-Step
Find the competition
Open the app. Your competition appears on the home screen (once approved). Tap it to see the leaderboard.
Register (Comp Login)
Tap the menu icon and select "Comp Login."
- Enter the competition password (provided by the organizer).
- Enter your name and a 4-digit PIN.
- Select your categories (gender, age, level — whatever the organizer configured).
- Select your team (if applicable).
- Tap Register.
If your name was pre-loaded by the organizer (via CSV import), type your name exactly as it appears — same spelling, same capitalization. If you type it differently, it creates a duplicate profile.
Your PIN protects your scores. You'll need it if you log out and log back in. If your name was imported with a PIN already set, use that PIN.
Enter Scores
Tap the menu icon again — you'll now see a "Scoring" option. Tap it to open the scoring screen. Shortcut: long-press the menu icon to jump straight to scoring.
- Your name is pre-selected.
- Select a boulder from the dropdown (B1, B2, etc.).
- Mark each attempt — tap to cycle through results:
| Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|
- | No attempt used |
0 | Attempted but didn't reach any zone |
L | Reached the low zone (if enabled) |
Z | Reached the zone |
T | Topped the boulder |
Tap Submit when done with that boulder.
V-Grade Rating (optional)
If you topped a boulder, you'll be asked to rate its difficulty. Select a V-grade (V0 through V17) and a softness (soft, solid, or hard for the grade). This data helps organizers understand their setting.
Correcting Mistakes
The newest submission overwrites all previous attempts for that boulder. If you made a mistake, just go back to that boulder and submit again with the correct attempts.
Score Lockdown
After the competition ends, the organizer can lock scoring from the Admin Dashboard. Once locked, no one can submit or change scores. Make sure all your scores are correct before you leave the comp!
Admin Dashboard Quick Reference
From within your competition, open the menu and enter your admin password to access the dashboard.
| Action | Description |
|---|---|
| Edit Competition | Re-opens the setup wizard to change any setting. |
| Request Approval | Submits your comp for review so it becomes publicly visible (up to 3 business days). |
| Import Climbers | Bulk upload from CSV. See Importing Climbers above. |
| Edit Climbers | Manually add, edit, or remove individual climbers. |
| Team Management | Add/remove teams and assign climbers to teams. |
| Close Scoring | Locks out all scoring — use after the comp ends. |
| Delete Data | Clears all climbers and scores (keeps settings). Use to clean up test data before going live. |
| Delete Competition | Permanently removes the entire competition. |
| Customer Support | Contact support@boulderscoring.com |
Delete Data and Delete Competition cannot be undone. Double-check before using these.
Resources & Downloads
Printable materials to help your climbers find and download the app on competition day.
