How It Works

Our goal is to make Bracketology as streamlined and easy to use as possible. Reading this page will make you a Bracketology pro! For more info, read our FAQ page.

Scan the QR code to download the Bracketology app!

First Things First...

Download the App

New in 2024 – Bracketology now has a mobile application! Download the app in the iOS App or Google Play Store. (Please note: the web application will be under maintenance for feature updates for a few weeks)

Sign In, Or Create an Account

In order to play fantasy on Bracketology, you’ll need to sign in with an existing account or create a new one. Start by going to the Sign Up page on the website or following the Sign Up or Log In flow in the mobile app. If you’ve played on the Bracketology website before, use your same credentials when logging into the app.

Choosing Your Show(s)

New Users

If you’re new, welcome! After logging in for the first time, you will be prompted to select your first show – you can add more later! Choose the show you want to start with & click the ‘Play’ button.





 

To add more shows, simply follow the Returning Users instructions to the right. 


Returning Users

Navigate to the show you want to create a league for by clicking the Shows dropdown in the upper left corner of your app. Here, you should see a list of shows you’ve already added. 

 

Not seeing what you’re looking for? Scroll right & click the “+” button to add a new show to your profile.

 

Once you have an account, you can switch between other shows’ fantasy games as you please! No more needing to keep a note on your iPhone with all of your passwords for your many different fantasy platforms: Bracketology is your one-stop shop for all reality TV fantasy gaming.

 

Setting Up Your Profile

Make Sure Your Notifications are Turned On

To give yourself the best chance at coming away with a victory at the end of the season, we recommend staying subscribed to emails and allowing push notifications to stay up to date with Bracketology news as well as receive Pick Reminders and Scoring Recap emails weekly.


Upload a Profile Picture

Within your profile, you can upload a profile pic so users can see your beautiful face at the top of their league scoreboards.

 

Let's Talk About Leagues

The Basics

To get started on Bracketology, you’ll need to either create or join a league. To create a league, simply give your league a name, write a snazzy description (optional), upload a logo that represents your group (also optional), and link any social accounts you choose (could be a league Facebook group, your favorite Bach/Big Bro/Survivor memes Instagram account, etc).

 

 

 

Private vs. Public Leagues

Private leagues are just that – private. A private league requires a special invitation link to join, while a public league can be joined by anyone and is displayed in the Join Leagues directory for each show. If you’re creating the league, you get to choose its privacy level, so decide how exclusive you’re feeling and go for it.

 

Inviting Your Friends

The longer the scoreboard, the more competitive the gameplay. Once you’ve created your league – it’s time to invite your friends! Invite others to join by…

 

1) Clicking the “Invite” button within the league and sending the invite link via normal phone methods (copy link, text, email, or social, etc.)

 

OR

 

2) Telling friends the league name & having them use the Search function on the Join Leagues tab (Keep in mind, this will only work for leagues with a public privacy setting).

 

 

Joining Leagues

Users can accept a league invite or can navigate the Join Leagues tab within each show. Leagues are listed with their names and game type icons below, designating what game types are enabled within the league.

 

When creating a league, you are able to choose up to 3 game types (for most shows) for your league to play. Only want to play in our Advanced game? No problem – you only need to select and make picks for that game type. Want to flex on the fandom of your favorite show by playing up to 3? Easy. Just set picks for each game type by following the instructions below.

 

 

Game Types We Offer

Pick Frequency: Weekly

The game type that put Bracketology on the map! Our original fantasy game type, where you select a team of contestants each week and win (or lose!) points based on what they do and say in the episode (like fantasy football for reality TV). You will make picks weekly for every episode, regardless of whether there is an elimination ceremony. Picks will lock for each episode when the episode starts in Eastern Time.

Pick Frequency: Once

This is your March Madness bracket for reality TV. For First Impression leagues, all picks for the full season are made prior to the first elimination episode (or second episode if there is a scheduled elimination in the premiere). You will get to watch the first episode(s) of the season, gather your first impressions of the contestants, and then select who you believe will advance through each elimination ceremony, all the way to the final winner. You will only set picks once for this game type. Picks lock for the season when the first (or second) elimination episode starts.

Pick Frequency: Weekly

For the Week to Week game type, you will choose contestants who you believe will be advancing in the upcoming elimination ceremony. Those who you drop from your lineup are the ones you do not believe will advance. You will make picks weekly for each ceremony in this game type, and correct choices will receive a uniform number of points, equal to the respective ceremony number (ex: all correct picks in Ceremony 1 get 1 point, Ceremony 2 gets 2 points, etc.). Picks will lock for each ceremony when each episode starts in Eastern Time.

Pick Frequency: Weekly

The Confidence Pool game type is our newest game type, similar to Week to Week but with an extra twist. In addition to selecting who you think will advance (using the Selected Zone) at each elimination ceremony, you also assign contestants to point values based on how confident you are that they will advance. The higher the point value assigned, the more confident you are that they will advance. Move contestants that you think won’t survive elimination to the bottom Elimination Zone using the drag and drop feature. For each correct pick in the Selected Zone, the assigned number of confidence points will be earned. You will make picks weekly for each ceremony in this game type. Picks will lock for each ceremony when each episode starts in Eastern Time.

Setting Your Lineup

Once you’ve joined your league(s), it’s time for the most important part of reality TV fantasy gaming – making your picks. You can make your picks in two ways: from within a league or on the general Picks page for each show.

For the Advanced game type, you will choose a team of contestants each week, and for Week to Week/Confidence Pool game types, you will choose who you think will advance to the next week by dropping contestants from your lineup that you think will get eliminated. Lineups can be applied to 1 or multiple leagues at a time, so there’s no reason to not compete against multiple different groups of people!

Scoring

We score each episode as it airs. Scores are typically posted a few hours after the episode airs on the West Coast. 

 

The “Total Scoreboard” within a league displays scores as a sum of a user’s scores from each game type. If your league is competing in more than 1 game type, it would be beneficial to make picks for all game types each week for the best chance to see yourself at the top of that League Leaderboard. However, there are also unique scoreboards within each game type so you can see how you fair in each individual contest.