Comparison

Spotlight vs Sideline Pass

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

Head to head
About

Spotlight

Connect with college recruiters and showcase your athletic talent. Student-athletes can create profiles, upload video clips, and manage their information. Verified recruiters can browse athletes, view profiles, and initiate contact.

Highlights
  • Athlete profile creation
  • Video clip upload
  • Recruiter browsing
  • Athlete contact initiation
  • User reporting
  • Account deletion
Features
Read full description

Spotlight is a recruiting platform connecting student-athletes (age 13+) with verified college recruiters. The app has two account types — please test BOTH. ATHLETE ACCOUNT (provided in Sign-In section above): Email: jose.freire1988+spotlight.athlete@gmail.com Password: SpotlightRev2026! - Sign in to view the Athlete Home page - This account has a complete profile (Marcus Johnson, age 16, basketball, Florida) with approved video clips - Athletes can upload new clips, edit their profile, manage Settings, and delete their account RECRUITER ACCOUNT: Email: jose.freire1988+spotlight.recruiter@gmail.com Password: SpotlightRev2026! - Sign in to view the Recruiter Discover page - This account has been pre-verified by our admin team - Recruiters can browse athletes, save athletes, view athlete profiles with clips, and contact athletes (contact opens device email client with pre-filled message — athletes under 18 are contacted via parent email per safety policy) - Recruiters can also report athletes via the "Report" link on athlete detail pages KEY FEATURES TO TEST: 1. Sign-up and profile creation (both roles) 2. Video clip upload (athlete role) 3. Browse and view athletes (recruiter role) 4. Report User feature (any role can report — required by Apple/Google for UGC apps) 5. Account deletion (Settings > Delete Account — see also https://spotlight-recruit.web.app/delete-account) KNOWN COSMETIC ISSUE: On Recruiter Discover page, sport filter chip text may render with reduced visibility on certain devices. Functional behavior is unaffected (filters still work). This will be addressed in a future update. For any review issues, contact support@spotlightrecruit.com.

About

Sideline Pass

Features
Read full description

Sideline Pass was created with one mission: to help athletes get recruited in a safe, professional environment. Today’s athletes often rely on traditional social media platforms to share highlights and connect with coaches. Unfortunately, those platforms are filled with distractions, spam, inappropriate content, fake accounts, and unrelated posts that have nothing to do with recruiting. Sideline Pass is different. Our platform is built specifically for athletes, coaches, and the recruiting process. Athletes can share film, highlights, accomplishments, and recruiting updates while connecting with verified coaches and legitimate recruiting opportunities. Safety is at the core of everything we do. Sideline Pass is committed to providing a family-friendly environment free from pornography, graphic content, harassment, spam, and fake recruiting profiles. We believe parents should feel confident allowing their athletes to build their recruiting presence online. Our goal is simple: create a trusted platform where athletes can be discovered, coaches can find talent, and families can focus on opportunities - not distractions. Real Film. Real Coaches. Real Opportunity.

Screenshots

Spotlight4 screens
Sideline Pass4 screens

Verdict

The call

Spotlight and Sideline Pass are too close to call on the numbers: across 5 compared parameters — price, ads, in-app purchases and device support among them — neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.

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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
Spotlight versus Sideline Pass: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSpotlightSideline Pass
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequency—Every 4 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.115.1
Further details — not scored
Size34 MB188 MB
Age rating12+12+
DeveloperJose FreireRyder Miller

In-app purchases

None

Spotlight

No in-app purchases

None

Sideline Pass

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Spotlight free?
Spotlight is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Sideline Pass free?
Sideline Pass is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Spotlight or Sideline Pass have ads?
Neither Spotlight nor Sideline Pass shows ads.

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