Comparison

FIBA iRef Pre vs RefHQ

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

FIBA iRef Pre

This app assists basketball referees with pre-game preparation. It offers a comprehensive set of tools including videos, a glossary, checklists, technical manuals, and rulebooks. Users can also draw plays and save custom situations.

Highlights
  • Pre-game checklist
  • Basketball officiating glossary
  • Technical manuals
  • FIBA basketball rules
  • Drawing tool for plays
  • Save custom play-situations
Features
Read full description

Specialised APP for pre-game preparation of the basketball referees developed by FIBA. Includes videos, basketball officiating glossary, pre-game checklist with designated groups for officiating, technical manuals, FIBA basketball rules and official interpretations (OBRI), full & half court with referees, players, coverage area symbols, drawing tool, able to save your own play-situations. It is everything what basketball referee needs for pre-game preparation.

About

RefHQ

Master sports rules with interactive quizzes and study materials. Compete with others, access pregame content, and take notes for game-specific preparation. Supports basketball and lacrosse, with more sports coming soon.

Highlights
  • Rulebook and casebook quizzes
  • Multiple choice and T/F questions
  • New content added monthly
  • Study specific rules or shuffle mode
  • Compete for best question streak
  • Access IAABO pregame content
  • Pregame notepad for notes
Features
Read full description

“As sports officials, we cannot just know the rules – we must master the rules.” – Al Battista (NBA Eastern Regional Officials Scout) RefHQ is your headquarters for studying, quizzing and mastering the rules – so you can have the answer in the heat of the moment. Features: - Quiz on multiple choice and T/F questions regarding rulebook and casebook topics. The question bank includes hundreds of quiz questions with new content added every month. - Study specific rules, individual special topics (rule changes, etc.), or study all questions in shuffle mode Compete with other users for the best streak of consecutive correctly answered questions - Access IAABO pregame content to have on-hand for pregame conferences and preparation Pregame notepad to store game-specific journals and notes ***RefHQ now supports the following sports and rule codes: - Basketball (powered by IAABO) - NFHS - NCAA-M - NCAA-W - FIBA - Lacrosse - NFHS Coming Soon: - Soccer - Baseball - Lacrosse (NCAA) - and more! SUBSCRIPTION: - IAABO pregame content is free for all users - A paid monthly subscription is required to access the quizzing features of RefHQ - Try all features of RefHQ free for 7 days - Cancel subscription anytime free of charge - Continue membership on a month-by-month basis at one of the following package rates: Single Ruleset: $3.99/month Single Sport: $5.99/month All-Access: $9.99/month - Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period - Account will be charged within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period - Auto-renew may be turned off by visiting the App Store Account Settings Follow this link to read the RefHQ End User Licensing Agreement: https://sites.google.com/view/refhq-eula/home Contact us at refhqsports@gmail.com with any questions.

Screenshots

FIBA iRef Pre4 screens
RefHQ4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: FIBA iRef Pre at none against RefHQ's 4. FIBA iRef Pre also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 67%). RefHQ's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 3 months) and rating (4.5 vs 4.3). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. RefHQ sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. FIBA iRef Pre asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

RefHQ holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 11 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 100% of FIBA iRef Pre's written reviews are positive against 67% of RefHQ's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

FIBA iRef Pre ships an update every 3 months, RefHQ every 2 weeks. Both last shipped on November 2, 2026.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
FIBA iRef Pre versus RefHQ: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFIBA iRef PreRefHQ
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (3 ratings)4.5 (11 ratings) — better
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews — better66.7% of reviews
Number of ratings311 — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS1511.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size15 MB52 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperFIBAJoseph Switzer

Customer experience

FIBA iRef Pre

All ratings3 ratings
Positive66.7%
Neutral33.3%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews4 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

RefHQ

All ratings11 ratings
Positive81.8%
Neutral9.1%
Negative9.1%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%

In-app purchases

None

FIBA iRef Pre

No in-app purchases

4 purchases

RefHQ

Subscriptions4
  • RefHQ Monthly Subscription7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Single RuleSet Subscription7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Monthly Single Sport7 Days trial$5.991 Month
Show 1 more
  • RefHQ Monthly All Subscription7 Days trial$9.991 Month

Questions

Is FIBA iRef Pre free?
FIBA iRef Pre is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is RefHQ free?
RefHQ is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, FIBA iRef Pre or RefHQ?
RefHQ is rated higher. FIBA iRef Pre averages 4.3 out of 5 from 3 ratings, while RefHQ averages 4.5 from 11 ratings.
Do FIBA iRef Pre or RefHQ have ads?
Neither FIBA iRef Pre nor RefHQ shows ads.
Which is updated more often, FIBA iRef Pre or RefHQ?
FIBA iRef Pre ships an update every 3 months, and RefHQ every 2 weeks. Most recently, FIBA iRef Pre was updated on November 2, 2026 and RefHQ on November 2, 2026.

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