Comparison

Swipe Play Clock vs RefClock Timer

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

Head to head
About

Swipe Play Clock

This Apple Watch app provides customizable play clock timers for sports like football and lacrosse. It features intuitive swipe controls to start timers and includes a separate game clock with alerts and programmable settings.

Highlights
  • Customizable play clock lengths
  • Swipe up/down to start timers
  • Independent game clock
  • Programmable settings
  • Alerts for time remaining
  • Workout mode for screen primary
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Apple Watch App Only: Update for problems the swipe to start the play clock on the new 46mm Series 10 Apple Watch. Similar to the last update, start games in settings menu to start the game since previous method no longer worked. Still working to add previous features, but currently works when swiping up and down on the watch face. Crown rotation does not currently start the play clocks, hope to fix in future versions. Still programmable play clock lengths. This allows you to use the app for both (American) football and lacrosse! Easily swipe up to start the 40 second clock and swipe down to start the 25 second clock on the face of your Apple Watch so you can concentrate on the field. These play clock timers are now programmable so they can be used for other sports, such as lacrosse. Watch Tutorial at: backjudgesolutions.com For football officials using college and high school (NFHS) rules. A game clock is included as well, which runs independent from the play clock (double tap the watch face to start/stop). Instructions (w/ watch face is active/on): 1. Settings Button - Menu Screen includes: a. Start Game - This turns on workout mode for the watch which is required to run timers. b. End Game - When the game is completed, exit workout mode. c. Adjust game clock time d. Settings window 2. Swipe Up on watch face - Starts the swipe up play clock timer 3. Swipe Down on watch face - Starts the swipe down play clock timer 4. Double Touch watch face - Starts/Stops game clock Settings Window: Period Length - This is the time that the Game Clock will reset once it expires (00:00:00). If you do not have game clock responsibilities, you can set this to be your Time Out timer. 2-Minute Warning - Watch will alert you with 2 minutes left on the Game Clock Swipe Up Timer - Sets the length of the Play Clock when the clock face is swiped up (or crown rotate up), such as the 40 second play clock Swipe Down Timer - Sets the length of the Play Clock when the clock face is swiped down (or crown rotate down), such as the 25 second play clock 5 second countdown - Sends an alert every second from 5 seconds until time expires on the Play Clock 10 second alert - Sends an alert with 10 seconds left on the Play Clock 15 second alert - Sends an alert with 15 seconds left on the Play Clock 25 second alert - Sends an alert with 25 seconds left on the Play Clock While the game is running, your watch is in workout mode to keep the screen primary, I do not record any health data.

About

RefClock Timer

This app provides a dedicated timer and event tracker for soccer referees on Apple Watch. It allows for recording goals, cards, and substitutions, with a companion iPhone app for managing match history and generating shareable PDF reports.

Highlights
  • Apple Watch timer
  • Stoppage time tracking
  • Event recording (goals, cards, subs)
  • Vibration alerts
  • Match history on iPhone
  • Shareable PDF reports
Features
Read full description

RefClock is a soccer referee timer for Apple Watch, with an iPhone companion for match history and reports. ON APPLE WATCH • Count up or down and track stoppage time. • Set half lengths, breaks and extra time. • Record goals, yellow and red cards, and substitutions. • Choose which events to track and turn vibration alerts on or off. ON IPHONE • View the score, clock and events from your paired watch. • Search saved games by team name or date. • Edit team names, colors and match events. • Add match notes and incident statements. • Preview and share PDF reports with the score, timeline and notes. • Adjust timer and event settings. The watch runs the match timer. Live updates need a watch connection; phone edits wait for the watch to confirm them. Completed games remain available on iPhone. RefClock can record a workout with your permission. The iPhone Games screen includes a banner ad.

Screenshots

Swipe Play Clock1 screens
RefClock Timer4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: RefClock Timer at 100% against Swipe Play Clock's 39%. RefClock Timer also leads on price (Free vs $5.99) and rating (4.7 vs 2.8). Swipe Play Clock's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and chart position (#85 vs unranked). On in-app purchases 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

RefClock Timer is free to download; Swipe Play Clock costs $5.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

RefClock Timer holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 2.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Swipe Play Clock has 27 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 39% of Swipe Play Clock's written reviews are positive against 100% of RefClock Timer's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Swipe Play Clock ships an update every 12 months, RefClock Timer every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 4, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard9 real differences · 2 level
Swipe Play Clock versus RefClock Timer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSwipe Play ClockRefClock Timer
Price$5.99Free — better
Rating2.8 (27 ratings)4.7 (3 ratings) — better
Positive reviews38.9% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings27 — better3
Update frequencyEvery 12 monthsEvery 5 weeks — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidAd-supported — better
Best chart rank#85 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPod, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, Apple Watch
Requires iOS12.2 — better17.2
Further details — not scored
Size10 MB9 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBack Judge Solutions LLCHooshmand Enterprises LLC

Customer experience

Swipe Play Clock

All ratings26 ratings
Positive42.3%
Neutral7.7%
Negative50.0%
Written reviews18 reviews
Positive38.9%
Neutral11.1%
Negative50.0%

RefClock Timer

All ratings3 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Swipe Play Clock

No in-app purchases

None

RefClock Timer

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Swipe Play Clock free?
Swipe Play Clock costs $5.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is RefClock Timer free?
RefClock Timer is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Swipe Play Clock or RefClock Timer?
RefClock Timer is rated higher. Swipe Play Clock averages 2.8 out of 5 from 27 ratings, while RefClock Timer averages 4.7 from 3 ratings.
Do Swipe Play Clock or RefClock Timer have ads?
RefClock Timer shows ads; Swipe Play Clock does not.
Which is updated more often, Swipe Play Clock or RefClock Timer?
Swipe Play Clock ships an update every 12 months, and RefClock Timer every 5 weeks. Most recently, Swipe Play Clock was updated on November 6, 2026 and RefClock Timer on November 4, 2026.

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