Running a tournament on Pickleball Tournaments (PT) involves three types of charges: a one-time $25 setup fee, per-player service fees collected at registration, and optional add-ons like the texting service. For tournaments opening on or after August 3, 2026, the Amateur Player Service Fee is $5 + 7.99% of the total registration checkout — collected directly from each player at checkout when Stripe is connected, keeping costs off your tournament budget.
Every new tournament requires a one-time $25 USD setup fee. The fee must be paid before your tournament can go live. If it isn't paid within 5 business days of creating the tournament, the listing is automatically deleted.
If your tournament is deleted due to a missed setup payment, email support@pickleball.com to have it reinstated. Daily email reminders are sent until the setup fee is paid.
The non-refundable Amateur Player Service Fee is calculated on the player's total registration checkout — the base registration fee plus any event fees. When Stripe is connected, it is added to each player's checkout total and collected directly from them at registration (see the next section).
| Registration fee | Events entered | Total checkout | Amateur service fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| $50 | 1 event @ $25 | $75 | $10.99 ($5 + 7.99% of $75) |
| $50 | 2 events @ $25 each | $100 | $12.99 ($5 + 7.99% of $100) |
The Amateur Player Service Fee is calculated on the base registration fee and event fees only — it does not apply to additional items like merchandise, tickets, or association memberships added during registration.
| Registration fee | Events entered | Total checkout | Pro service fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| $50 | 1 event @ $25 | $75 | $25 |
| $50 | 2 events @ $25 each | $100 | $50 |
| $50 | 3 events @ $25 each | $125 | $75 |
The Amateur Player Service Fee applies to tournaments that opened for registration on August 3, 2026 or later. Tournaments already open for registration before that date remain on the legacy fee plan ($5 per event, capped at $10 per player per tournament). See Legacy Tournament Fee Plan in PT for details.
When Stripe is connected as your tournament's payment method, PT automatically adds the service fee to each player's checkout total at registration. The fee comes out of the player's payment rather than your tournament's budget.
A few situations leave the service fee uncollected at registration, which means you'll need to log in to the tournament dashboard to pay any remaining balance:
If you anticipate any of these situations — free comps, partner registrations, manual adds — plan ahead so you're not surprised by the end-of-tournament card charge. Your dashboard's billing section shows your running balance throughout registration.
If your tournament cannot accept online payments through Stripe, the Player Service Fee Escrow Service is available at $5.00 per registration. Rather than collecting the service fee from players at checkout, PT bills the organizer a flat $5 per registered player. Contact support@pickleball.com to arrange this option for your tournament.
To advertise your tournament on PT without using PT's registration features, the ad-only listing fee is $500 USD.
ImportantAd-only tournaments cannot use competing registration software. If they do, the tournament will be deleted without notice and the $500 fee is non-refundable.
Tournaments can add player text notifications as an optional service. When enabled, registered players can receive SMS updates about schedule changes and court assignments. Texting is billed to the tournament's card on file and cannot be passed through to players.
Yes. When Stripe is connected, the Amateur Player Service Fee ($5 + 7.99% of the total registration checkout) is added to each player's checkout total automatically. The Pro Player Service Fee ($25 per event) works the same way for pro bracket tournaments. See Passing service fees through to players above for full details on how it works and when you'll still owe a balance.
By default, no — the Amateur Player Service Fee only applies to the base registration fee and event fees.
Your tournament listing is automatically deleted. You can have it reinstated by emailing support@pickleball.com.
No. Texting is billed to the tournament organizer regardless of payment setup.
Texting is $0.35 per player in the U.S. International rates vary by the location of the tournament — contact support@pickleball.com for a quote.
No. The $25 setup fee is non-refundable once paid.
Yes. Manual registrations don't run through Stripe checkout, so the service fee isn't collected from the player at registration. That fee gets charged to your tournament's card on file at the end of the event. The same applies to players given a 100% discount code.
No. The fee is not locked in and will fluctuate if the amount a player owes increases later — for example, if you raise an event fee after registration opens. Because the fee is non-refundable, it can only move up, never down: if a charge is later reduced, you won't see the service fee refunded.
Before. The Amateur Player Service Fee is calculated on the full registration and event fee total before any discounts — including Club Discounts applied at registration. If a discount lowers what the player actually pays, the fee itself doesn't shrink to match; any portion not collected from the player becomes part of your tournament's remaining balance. See "When you'll still owe service fees" above.
It depends on which fee. Raising an event fee updates the total for everyone already registered for that event, so they — and the service fee calculated on their total — will owe more. Raising your base registration fee does not affect players who already registered; it only applies to new registrations going forward.
The Player Service Fee Escrow Service is for tournament organizers who are unable to accept online payments through Stripe. Instead of the service fee being added to each player's checkout automatically, PT bills the organizer a flat $5.00 per registration. To set this up for your tournament, contact support@pickleball.com.
Questions about tournament pricing or billing? Email support@pickleball.com.