Comparison

Contested vs Bracket Pad

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

Head to head
About

Contested

Features
Read full description

Run any tournament, any sport, any format — Contested handles knockout brackets, double elimination, round robins, leagues, group stages, and Swiss pairings, with built-in timers that show live on your Lock Screen, Dynamic Island, and Apple Watch. WHY CONTESTED Most tournament apps make you choose between a proper bracket tool and a working timer — or charge you per tournament for the privilege. Contested does both, with no per-tournament limits: start a match, and the countdown follows you to your Lock Screen, your Dynamic Island, and your wrist, without needing to keep the app open. TOURNAMENT FORMATS • Knockout — automatic seeding with byes correctly assigned to your top seeds, a clean bracket at every round, and an optional 3rd Place match. • Double Knockout — losers drop into a Losers Bracket instead of being eliminated outright; the Grand Final is set once both the Winners and Losers Bracket finalists are decided. • Round Robin & League — every team plays every other team across as many cycles as you choose, with a live standings table, tie-breakers, and bonus points you can award directly. • World Cup Style (Groups + Knockout) — a group stage feeds a projected knockout bracket that updates as group results come in, so you can see likely matchups before the group stage even finishes. • Swiss — each round pairs players by current standings while avoiding repeat matchups where possible, ideal when a full round robin isn't practical. RUN IT TOGETHER, WATCH IT LIVE • Share a running tournament with an Admin Code or a Spectator Code. • Spectators watch scores and standings update live — completely free, no account, no purchase, ever. • Bring in a co-organizer with an Admin Code and they can enter scores from their own phone too, covered by your subscription. • No one to send a code to? Scan the built-in QR code and get straight to the download. BUILT-IN TIMERS, EVERYWHERE YOU LOOK • Sequential mode gives each match its own start/pause timer; Simultaneous mode runs one shared timer for an entire round of matches at once. • Every running timer appears live on your iPhone's Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island — check the clock without unlocking your phone. • A dedicated Apple Watch app mirrors your tournaments and timers in real time, plus a watch face complication for a countdown at a glance. • Your phone (and watch) buzzes when time's up, even locked. RUN IT YOUR WAY • Team or individual competitions, with seeding, photos, and custom tags. • Forfeits and walkovers award a result and advance the winner automatically. • Import participants straight from a CSV file instead of typing every name. • Export finished brackets and standings as a PDF or CSV — perfect for printing or keeping records. • Schedule matches directly into Apple Calendar. • Archive completed tournaments and search across everything, including archived events. Whether you're running a Saturday morning club competition, a multi-week league season, or a full weekend knockout tournament, Contested keeps the bracket, the clock, and the standings all in sync — on your phone, your Lock Screen, and your Apple Watch. Try Contested free for 7 days. No account, no sign-up required. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Bracket Pad

Features
Read full description

Bracket Pad is a fast, private tournament manager for creating brackets, recording scores, and keeping every round on track. Choose a format, add players or teams, and start playing. Tap any match to enter the score - Bracket Pad updates the results and keeps the tournament moving. CHOOSE YOUR FORMAT • Single elimination - one loss and you are out • Double elimination - a losers bracket, so nobody goes home after one bad match • Round robin - everyone plays everyone, with a live standings table • Groups + playoffs - group stage first, then a knockout bracket for the ones who made it A bracket that holds up: byes are handed out evenly at any number of participants, seeding is respected, and the double elimination bracket avoids early rematches. Got a result wrong? Undo it, and only the matches that depended on it are cleared. RUN IT YOUR WAY • Create brackets for 2 to 256 participants • Add names one at a time or paste the full list • Shuffle participants into teams • Zoom in, zoom out, or fit the whole bracket on screen • Keep all your tournaments in one place • Export any bracket as an image or PDF • Save and share a backup file • Works on iPhone and iPad PRIVATE BY DESIGN No account. No ads. No internet required. Everything works offline, and nothing you create reaches a server of ours - your tournaments live on your device, with a private copy in your own iCloud so the library survives reinstalling the app. YOUR FIRST TOURNAMENT IS FREE The first tournament is the whole app: every format, any size up to 256 participants, image and PDF export, and it stays yours forever. Creating more tournaments takes Bracket Pad Pro. From sports and esports to board games, school events, and friendly competitions, Bracket Pad makes tournaments simple - from the first match to the champion. Terms of Use: https://bracketpad.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://bracketpad.com/privacy

Screenshots

Contested4 screens
Bracket Pad4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Contested at every 3 days against Bracket Pad's every 8 days. Bracket Pad's advantage is iOS requirement (18.2 vs 26.2). On price, ads, 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

Both are free to download. Contested sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month and Bracket Pad sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $14.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Contested ships an update every 3 days, Bracket Pad every 8 days. The most recent releases landed on September 17, 2026 and September 21, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 4 level
Contested versus Bracket Pad: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterContestedBracket Pad
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 3 days — betterEvery 8 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS26.218.2 — better
Further details — not scored
Size5 MB53 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperPawel Pyrz-BrownYvgen Troshchiy

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Contested

Subscriptions2
  • Contested Pro Monthly$5.991 Month
  • Contested Pro Yearly$49.991 Year
One-time1
  • Contested Lifetime Unlock$99.99
3 purchases

Bracket Pad

Subscriptions1
  • Yearly$14.991 Year
One-time2
  • Tournament Pass$4.99
  • Lifetime$24.99

Questions

Is Contested free?
Contested is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Bracket Pad free?
Bracket Pad is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Contested or Bracket Pad have ads?
Neither Contested nor Bracket Pad shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Contested or Bracket Pad?
Contested ships an update every 3 days, and Bracket Pad every 8 days. Most recently, Contested was updated on September 17, 2026 and Bracket Pad on September 21, 2026.

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