March Madness

What Is a March Madness Bracket Pool?

A March Madness bracket pool is the classic NCAA Tournament game. Participants pick the winner of all 63 games, from the Round of 64 through the national championship, before the tournament starts. As games are played, a leaderboard updates based on correct picks. Organizers can set custom round scoring (e.g., more points for later rounds) and tiebreakers (like the total score of the championship game). Bracket pools are ideal for office competitions, friend groups, and anyone who wants to test their college basketball knowledge over the three weeks of March Madness.

How Scoring Works

Most bracket pools use by-round scoring: you earn points for each correct pick, with more points for later rounds. For example, 1 point for the First Round, 2 for the Second Round, 4 for the Sweet 16, 8 for the Elite Eight, 16 for the Final Four, and 32 for the championship game. When two or more players are tied, a tiebreaker decides the winner, usually the predicted total combined score of the championship game. Pick My Square lets you customize round weights and set your own tiebreaker.

How to Run One

Office or large group: Create your pool, name it (e.g., “Office Bracket 2026”), then share the link by email or chat. Everyone fills out their bracket before the first game. You can remind people to submit by Selection Sunday or the day before the First Four.

Friends and family: Same steps: create the pool, then share the link. Everyone picks from their phone or computer. The live leaderboard and “Results vs My Picks” view keep the tournament fun for the whole group.

Best Practices for Bracket Pool Organizers

A March Madness bracket pool runs itself once the games tip, but the few days before Selection Sunday are where good organizers separate themselves. A little setup goes a long way toward a pool that nobody argues about.

  • Open the pool early. Create it the week before Selection Sunday and get the link circulating. People need a reminder or two, and the field always fills up at the last minute. Starting early just means fewer texts on Sunday night asking if it's too late.
  • Share it everywhere your group already is. Email, the work Slack, the family group chat, wherever. The bigger the field, the better the leaderboard race, so make it easy to forward and easy to join. One link does the whole job.
  • Lock the rules before the first game. Decide your round scoring and your tiebreaker up front, then put them in writing. Whether you weight later rounds heavily or keep it flat, settling that before anyone fills out a bracket keeps the standings clean when the Final Four arrives.
  • Set a hard deadline at the first tip. Every bracket has to be in before the opening game of the Round of 64. Announce the cutoff, send one reminder the morning of, and don't reopen it for stragglers. A late bracket that already knows a couple of results isn't a fair entry.
  • Name it so people know what they joined. Something like "Third Floor Bracket Battle" beats "My Pool" when someone opens the email three days later. A clear name, plus a quick line about the buy-in or that it's just for bragging rights, cuts down on confusion.

Once picks are locked, your job is basically done. The leaderboard updates on its own as games finish, so you get to watch the tournament instead of tallying scores by hand.

Features

  • Full 63-game bracket
  • Custom round scoring
  • Live leaderboard
  • Results vs My Picks
  • Tiebreakers (e.g., championship total score)
  • Real-time updates as games finish

Create Your Bracket Pool

Free. Share a link; players join from any device.

Create Bracket Pool

Compare: Bracket Pool vs March Madness Squares

Want a simpler, game-by-game option? March Madness squares uses a 10×10 grid where one square wins per tournament game. Great for watch parties or when you’re starting mid-tournament. Learn about March Madness squares.

FAQ

A March Madness bracket pool is where participants pick the winner of all 63 NCAA Tournament games before the tournament starts. As games are played, a leaderboard updates based on correct picks. Custom scoring (e.g., more points for later rounds) and tiebreakers are supported.

Common scoring gives points per correct pick, often more points for later rounds (e.g., 1 for First Round up to 32 for the championship). The organizer sets round weights. Ties are broken by a tiebreaker, such as total score of the championship game.

Picks must be in before the first tournament game. Many groups set a deadline on Selection Sunday evening or the day before the First Four.

Yes. Create the pool and share the link. Everyone fills out their bracket; the live leaderboard updates as games finish. No app required, and players use any browser.

The total combined score of the championship game is a common tiebreaker. The player whose predicted total is closest to the actual total wins. Pick My Square supports custom tiebreakers.

Yes. Share the pool link; players can open it on their phone, tablet, or computer. No app to download.

No. Create a free account on Pick My Square, create your bracket pool, and share the link. Players join from their browser. You can run everything from a phone or laptop.

A bracket pool has everyone pick the winner of all 63 games before the tournament; a leaderboard updates as games complete. March Madness squares uses a 10×10 grid where one square wins per game based on score digits. Bracket pools are best for full-tournament competition; squares are great for watch parties and game-by-game excitement.
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