Hosting a Pool
Start Free
To create a pool, go to mysurvivorpool.com/start and walk through the setup steps. You can start free with up to 10 entries, then upgrade as your pool grows.
Upgrades increase your pool size. If you upgrade later, the available upgrade options are based on the difference between your current pool size and the new one.
Pricing & Pool Size
Your pool size is the total number of entries allowed across the whole pool, not the number of people who can join. One person may have more than one entry if your pool rules allow it.
| Pool size | Price |
|---|---|
| Up to 10 entries | Free |
| Up to 25 entries | $29 |
| Up to 50 entries | $49 |
| Up to 100 entries | $79 |
| Up to 250 entries | $149 |
| Up to 500 entries | $249 |
| Unlimited entries | $399 |
If your pool is full, entrants will not be able to add more entries until you increase the pool size from your settings.
Basic Setup
During setup, you'll be asked to configure a few basic settings:
- Pool Name – How your pool will appear to entrants
- Pool Size – The total number of entries allowed across the pool
- Start Week – The NFL week when your pool begins
- Max Entries per User – How many entries each person can have
You can edit the pool name, increase the pool size, adjust rules, update the welcome message, and manage join settings later from your pool's Settings page.
Pool Rules
Pool rules control when your pool starts, how many entries each person can create, when picks lock, how missed picks are handled, and what happens after losses or ties.
If you set a Pick Deadline, picks lock at that deadline for the week. If you leave the deadline unset, picks lock as each selected team's game kicks off. That gives entrants until the final available game of the week to make a pick, as long as they choose a team that has not already started.
Hosts can also configure automatic mulligans, auto picking, ties, and multi-pick weeks. Multi-pick weeks require entrants to make more than one pick in selected weeks, and every required pick must win for the entry to survive.
For more detail, see Pool Settings.
Inviting Participants
Once your pool is created, you can invite others with your Join Link, optional pool password, built-in email invitations, or the Invite Past Entrants tool.
Join Link
Every pool has a unique Join Link that you can share however you'd like — email, text, social media, or group chats. Anyone who clicks the link will be guided through creating an account and joining your pool.
You'll find your pool's Join Link in the Join Link section of your pool settings. Click the link to copy it, then share it with your group.
If you reset the pool code, the old Join Link stops working and a new Join Link is created.
Pool Password
If you'd like to restrict who can join your pool, you can set an optional pool password. When set, users must enter the password after clicking your Join Link.
This is especially useful if you want tighter control over who can enter your pool or prefer to keep it limited to a private group.
You can add, change, or remove the password from the Join Link section of your pool settings.
Email Invitations
You can invite people by email from the Invitations tab in your pool settings. Enter one email address per line, then click Send Invitation.
The invited person will receive an email with a unique link to join your pool. This link is pre-authorized, so when they click it, they'll be taken straight into the join process — no need to enter a pool code or password.
Any invitations you've sent but haven't been accepted yet will appear in the Pending Invitations section below. If needed, you can revoke or cancel an unaccepted invitation at any time.
Invite Past Entrants
If you hosted a pool last season, you can quickly re-invite those participants to your new pool using the Select Past Entrants tool.
After creating your new pool:
- Go to your pool's Settings
- Click the Invitations tab
- Click Select Past Entrants
- Select who you'd like to invite
They'll receive a personalized email invitation to join your pool. This feature also works with free pools.
Managing Your Pool
Hosts have full control over the pool after it starts. You can manage entries, add private notes, export the entry list, send private messages, grant mulligans, remove entries, and set or update picks on behalf of entrants when needed.
For detailed host tools, see Managing Entries. For dashboard features, reminders, grading, leaderboards, and discussion tools, see Pool Features.