Create your account
Sign up in under 30 seconds. No password to remember.
Go to starttime.io and click "Get started free"
You land on the sign-in page.
"Continue with Google" or "Continue with Apple"
OAuth only — no email verification wait, no password to create.
First-time sign-in creates your account and takes you to profile setup
Returning users land on their home feed.
Set up your profile
Your profile is how other players and organizers know who they're playing with.
Add your display name
This is what other members see. Use your real name or a familiar nickname.
Upload a profile photo
Square crops work best.
Set your home location
City or metro level only — we never ask for your address. Used to show you local events.
Add a short bio (optional)
Tell other players something about your game and your schedule.
Add your sport profiles
You play multiple sports. Your profile reflects all of them — each with its own skill level.
From your profile, tap "Add a sport"
Choose from the sport list: Tennis, Pickleball, Basketball, Road Cycling, or Mountain Biking — with more sports on the way.
Set your skill level
For tennis: enter your NTRP rating (2.5–7.0). For pickleball: enter your DUPR rating. For other sports: choose Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, or Competitive.
Save. Repeat for each sport you play.
Create a group
A group is your community's home. A cycling club, a Tuesday tennis crew, a pickup basketball rotation — anything goes.
From your dashboard, tap "Create group"
Takes under 60 seconds. Free — creating groups and events never costs anything.
Give your group a name
Keep it descriptive: 'Riverside Pickleball Club', 'Saturday A-Ride', 'Thursday Pickup Run'.
Choose your sport
Set visibility
Public: anyone can find and join. Listed: findable, but joining requires approval. Hidden: invite-only, invisible to search.
Add a description and cover photo (optional)
Tap "Create" — you are automatically the Owner
Invite members
Two ways to get people in: a shareable link, or a direct email invite.
From your group page, tap "Invite members"
Option A — Share link
Copy the invite link and send it anywhere — WhatsApp, email, text.
Option B — Email invite
Enter email addresses directly. Each person receives a personalised invitation email.
Invitees without an account are prompted to sign up
Their membership is pre-connected to your group.
Member roles
Three levels of access. Most groups just need Member and one Owner.
Member
- •Sign up for events
- •Post in the group's community feed
- •See the group's member list and events
Admin
- •All Member permissions
- •Create and manage events
- •Approve join requests
- •Remove members
- •Manage group settings
Owner
- •All Admin permissions
- •Promote members to Admin
- •Delete the group
Create an event
Events are the heartbeat of Start Time. Create one in under two minutes — for your group, or standalone and open to anyone.
Open your group and tap "New event"
Or "Create event" from the dashboard for a standalone event anyone nearby can join.
Set the title, sport, date, and time
Set the location
Pick a venue or enter an address — events show up on the map and in nearby search.
Set capacity
Maximum number of participants. When the event fills, the waitlist takes over.
(Optional) Set a skill level range
Choose the skill system (e.g., NTRP) and set a min and max. Leave blank for open-to-all.
(Optional) Note the cost per person
Splitting a court or gym fee? Show the per-person share on the event so everyone knows before they sign up. Payment happens however your group already handles it.
(Optional) Set a signup window
Control exactly when signups open and close.
Tap "Publish" — the event is live immediately
Recurring events
Set it up once. Start Time creates each instance automatically.
When creating an event, toggle "Recurring"
Set the recurrence: weekly, biweekly, or monthly
Each occurrence is created as an individual event
Members sign up for each one separately, so the roster always reflects who's actually coming this week.
To skip a specific date: open that instance and cancel it
The series continues unaffected.
To end the series: open any instance → "End series"
No future instances are created; past instances are unchanged.
Skill requirements
Skill ranges keep your sessions at the right level — visible on every event card before anyone signs up.
When creating an event, choose a skill system
e.g., NTRP for a tennis event, DUPR for pickleball, or the generic Beginner–Competitive scale.
Set a minimum and maximum
e.g., NTRP 3.0 to 4.0. The range shows on the event card, so players self-sort into the right session.
Skill systems at launch
NTRP
Tennis. Numeric, 2.5 to 7.0 in 0.5 steps. The standard used by USTA leagues.
DUPR
Pickleball. Numeric, 2.0 to 8.0. The fastest-growing rating system in recreational sports.
Generic
All sports. Categorical: Beginner / Intermediate / Advanced / Competitive. Available for every sport as a fallback.
Sign up for an event
For members, signing up is one tap. Your spot is on the roster instantly.
See the event in your feed, or get notified
New events in your groups appear on your home feed and as a notification.
Tap the event to view details
Capacity, skill level, cost, location, current roster.
Tap "Count me in" — your name appears on the roster immediately
Join a waitlist
When an event is full, the waitlist is your queue. It runs itself.
Open a full event and tap to join the waitlist
You're added immediately, in order.
When a spot opens, the first person in line is promoted automatically
You're notified the moment it happens — nothing to claim, no race.
What organizers see
The roster shows confirmed attendees and the waitlist separately
Promotion is automatic when someone cancels
You can also manually promote anyone from the waitlist, or free up a spot yourself.
Cancel a spot
Life happens. Cancelling is easy — and it immediately frees your spot for the person behind you.
Open the event from your upcoming events
Tap "Cancel my spot"
Your spot is released and the first person on the waitlist is promoted
They're notified automatically — the organizer doesn't have to do anything.
Email RSVP — no app needed
Your members never need to download Start Time. One click from their inbox is all it takes.
An event is created in their group — invited members receive a clean, mobile-friendly email
The email shows the event name, date, time, and location
One click to RSVP — no login, no account, no app store
Email RSVPs land on the roster like any other signup
They count toward capacity, and if that person later creates an account with the same email, their history comes with them.
Discover events & groups near you
New to a city, or just looking for a game? The Discover tab shows open events and public groups near you — as a list or on a map.
Open the "Discover" tab
Shows upcoming open events and groups near your home location.
Filter by sport and browse the map
Every event is pinned at its real location.
Tap an event to see details and sign up
Open events don't require group membership — just count yourself in.
Found a group you like? Tap "Join" or "Request to join"
Public groups add you immediately; listed groups notify an admin to approve you.
Venues
Courts, parks, trailheads, and clubs are first-class places on Start Time. Follow the ones you play at.
Find your venue
Browse venues on Discover, or scan a Start Time QR code posted at the venue itself.
Tap "Follow"
You'll see the venue's upcoming events, photos, hours, and amenities.
Create events at the venue
Events created at a venue appear on its page — so everyone who follows it can find a game.
Send updates to attendees
Trail flooded. Court moved. Start time shifted 15 minutes. Reach everyone who is signed up in seconds — no group chat needed.
Open the event and post an announcement
Visible to organizers and group admins.
Everyone signed up is notified
The announcement stays pinned on the event page
Anyone who opens the event later sees the latest update, even if they missed the notification.
Record results & track points
After an event, organizers can log per-player results. Cumulative points roll up into a group leaderboard — perfect for ladders and season-long competition.
Open the past event and tap "Add results"
Organizers and admins only.
Enter per-player scores or points
View the group leaderboard
Aggregates results across the group's events, so the season race is always visible.
Community posts & messages
Every group has a community feed, and any two players can message each other directly.
Post to your group's Community tab
Questions, ride reports, photos from the weekend — the group conversation lives with the group.
Message players directly
Coordinate a carpool or find a doubles partner in DMs. All your conversations live in one inbox.
Stay in control
You can report or block anyone from their profile. Reports are reviewed within 24 hours.
Set availability windows
Tell Start Time when you're free to play, so the events that reach you are ones you can actually make.
Go to Profile → Availability
Tap "Add time block" — choose day of week, start time, end time
Save
Your typical windows show on your profile, so organizers know when you play.
Notification preferences
Sparse and meaningful. Every notification has a reason — and every type can be turned off.
Go to Settings → Notifications
Toggle each type independently
New events in your groups, waitlist promotions, event reminders, announcements, messages.
Preferences sync across web and mobile
Ready to get started?
Free to create a group. Your members never need to download anything.
Create your group — free