Buyer's guide

How to choose club software for a racquet sports club.

Ten things to check, a demo checklist and a scorecard. Use it with any vendor, including us.

Jump to the Scorecard Demo Checklist
Written by the IQRally team. Updated October 2026.

The short answer

Choose software that passes these seven tests, and test it with your own sessions, not slides.

  1. It builds your real sessions, including custom ones, during a live demo.
  2. It fits your actual price list: members, guests, peak and off-peak.
  3. Payments reconcile automatically, and payouts, refunds and chargebacks live in one place.
  4. Players can book easily from a phone.
  5. It shows you what is working, not just a total.
  6. The vendor moves your data, and you can start small.
  7. You get one all-in price, in writing.

A note on bias. We make IQRally, so after each question we show how we handle it. Judge us by the same questions you ask everyone else.

01

Map how your club actually runs

Software should fit your club, not the other way around. Before you look at a single vendor, write down what you run today. That list becomes your test in every demo.

Ask any vendor

  • Which sports do you run, and do any courts switch between sports?
  • Which session types do you offer: open play, lessons, leagues, tournaments, events?
  • How do you price today: by membership level, member versus guest, peak versus off-peak, per player?
  • How do players book today: phone, front desk, spreadsheet, an app?
  • What do you wish you could see in a report that you cannot see now?
What good looks like. A one-page list you can hand to every vendor. If a vendor cannot build your real sessions and prices during a demo, keep looking.
02

Scheduling and session types

Scheduling is the heart of club software. Many clubs start with court booking and quickly add open play, lessons, leagues and events.

Ask any vendor

  • Can I create every session type I run, including ones that do not fit a standard list?
  • Can one court serve two sports without double booking?
  • What happens when a session is full? Is there a waitlist?
  • Can players be matched to sessions by skill level and preferred times?
What good looks like. You describe a session and it works, with no workaround and no support ticket.
How IQRally handles it. IQRally supports open play and social events, group and private lessons, leagues, and tournaments with brackets or round robin, plus fully custom sessions. A court can be named anything, like "Tennis / Pickleball", and the schedule prevents overlapping bookings. MatchMaker invites players by skill level and their time-of-day and day-of-week preferences. See Solutions.
03

Pricing and memberships

Your price list is part of your business. The software should fit it, instead of forcing you to simplify it.

Ask any vendor

  • Can I set different prices for members, premium members and guests?
  • Can I set peak and off-peak prices on the same court?
  • Can I charge per player as well as per court?
  • For a private court, can one person pay, or can the cost be split between players?
What good looks like. Your real price list fits as it is.
How IQRally handles it. Prices can differ by membership level, between members and guests, and between peak and off-peak times. Private court bookings can be paid per person, or by one person, much like booking a ride for a group.
04

Payments, payouts and reconciliation

Payments are where bookkeeping gets tedious if the software is not built for it. Ask who sets it up, what happens after a payment comes in, and where you handle payouts, refunds and disputes.

Ask any vendor

  • Who sets up payments, and what does the club have to do?
  • Do payments reconcile with bookings automatically, or do I match them by hand?
  • Can players keep a card on file for fast booking?
  • Can I see my next payout, and exactly what is in each one?
  • Do I handle refunds and chargebacks inside the software, or in a separate payment portal?
  • Can my bookkeeper import my numbers instead of retyping them?
  • If I run more than one location, can I see them together or one at a time?
  • Is everything about payments clear in writing before I sign?
What good looks like. Money in, matched to the booking, with no spreadsheet in between. Payouts, refunds and chargebacks sit in the same place, not in a separate portal.
How IQRally handles it. IQRally includes payments with automatic reconciliation, and the Finance Hub brings revenue, payouts, refunds and chargebacks into one place, with no separate payment portal to log into. You see your next payout and what is in each one, handle refunds and chargebacks inside IQRally, and export month-end numbers your bookkeeper can import. If you run several locations, you can see them together or one at a time. Our team connects payments with the club during onboarding, and players can keep a card on file for fast booking.
05

The player experience

Players judge a club by how easy it is to book. If it takes effort, they book somewhere else.

Ask any vendor

  • Can players book from their phone without downloading anything?
  • Is there an app, and is it free for players?
  • How does a player find their club in it?
  • Can players join a waitlist, book a lesson and invite a friend?
What good looks like. A player can go from "I want to play Thursday" to booked in a few taps.
How IQRally handles it. The IQRally player app is free, players find their club by name or location, and they can reserve a private court, book instruction, browse and join sessions, get MatchMaker invites, join waitlists and share a session with a friend. See IQRally for players.
06

Coaching and instructors

If your club runs lessons and clinics, instructor pay is part of the system, not a side job for a spreadsheet.

Ask any vendor

  • Can I set a rate per instructor and a default club rate?
  • Does the system calculate the instructor share, or do I?
  • Can players book a private lesson with a specific instructor?
  • Can I see what each instructor brings in?
What good looks like. Instructor revenue share is calculated for you, and players book the person they want.
How IQRally handles it. Set a custom rate per instructor or one club rate. The club sees instructor revenue share calculated, and players can book a private lesson with a specific instructor.
07 Where IQRally is strongest

Reporting

You cannot improve what you cannot see. Good reporting tells you what to run more of, which members are drifting away, and what you owe your instructors, without a spreadsheet in the middle.

Ask any vendor

  • Can I see revenue by session type, not just one total?
  • Can I see how full each session and each court is?
  • Can I see which members are going quiet before they leave?
  • Can I see how each instructor is performing and what I owe them?
  • Can I see how invitations and waitlists turn into booked spots?
  • Can I get answers inside the system, and export any table when I want it?
What good looks like. Answers to "what is working?" in a few clicks, and a warning before a member leaves.
How IQRally handles it. Reporting is where IQRally is strongest. Club Insights has eight analytics views that turn every booking, payment and invite into answers:
  • Revenue. Total revenue and growth against the prior period, a monthly trend, revenue by session type, revenue per active member and your payment collection rate.
  • Member Health. Active members, net growth and churn by membership plan, with disengaged members flagged automatically by algorithmic Member Health Scores. Moving between plans counts as growth, not churn.
  • Events. Fill rates by session type, sessions at capacity, waitlist conversion, and fill and revenue for each event.
  • MatchMaker. Invitation accept rates, fill rates, attendance, no-shows and revenue from MatchMaker sessions.
  • Instructors. Sessions led, attendees, repeat clients, fill rate, gross and club revenue, and instructor share owed, calculated for you.
  • Overview, Courts and Memberships. The rest of the picture, including real-time court utilization.
Tables export to CSV. On the money side, payments are reconciled automatically with next-day payouts, and the pro shop includes stock valuation reporting. See Club Insights on Solutions.
08

Communications

Reminders, announcements and cancellations all depend on reaching players quickly. Check how, and what it costs.

Ask any vendor

  • Can I email and text members from the same system?
  • How do consent and opt-outs work for text messages?
  • Is messaging included, or billed separately?
What good looks like. You can reach the right players in one place, with consent handled properly.
How IQRally handles it. Member communications are built in. Email and SMS messaging are usage-based and billed separately if you use them. See our SMS Communications Policy.
09

Switching and support

The system you choose matters less if getting there is painful. Ask exactly who does the work, and what happens when something goes wrong.

Ask any vendor

  • Who moves my data: me or the vendor?
  • Can I start with one event, instead of switching everything at once?
  • Can I export my data if I leave?
  • Who answers when something goes wrong on a busy day?
What good looks like. A named person, a clear plan and no migration bill.
How IQRally handles it. Our customer support team moves your data and sets up payments with you, and your members get a simple new login. You can move everything at once, or start with a one-off event or weekend play. Migration and onboarding are included at no extra cost. See How It Works.
10

Total cost and contract

Compare the all-in price, not the headline. Some vendors price by the number of courts or instructors, so the bill grows as the club does.

Ask any vendor

  • What does the price include, and what is extra?
  • Does the price change as I add courts, instructors or members?
  • Is it month to month, or a contract?
  • Are setup or migration charged separately?
  • Can I get the total for my club in writing?
What good looks like. One number that does not move as you grow, and nothing to lock you in.
How IQRally handles it. $149 per club per month, month to month, with every feature included and data migration and onboarding at no extra cost. Email and SMS messaging are usage-based and billed separately if you use them. See Pricing.
Demo

Demo checklist: ten things to ask a vendor to do live

A good demo is one-on-one and uses your club, not a sample. Insist on a personal demo, not a group session, then bring your list from step one and ask the vendor to do these.

  1. Ask them to build a session type you really run, live, in front of you.
  2. Set a member price and a guest price for the same session at peak and off-peak.
  3. Book a private court, then show both a split payment and a one-person payment.
  4. Fill a session and show what the waitlist does.
  5. Book a lesson with a specific instructor and show how their pay is calculated.
  6. Run a bracket or round robin tournament from start to finish.
  7. Pull a report of revenue by session type, then show your next payout and what is in it.
  8. Show you exactly what a player sees on a phone, from finding the club to booking.
  9. Walk through how your data would move and who does it.
  10. Ask for the total price for your club, in writing.
How IQRally handles it. You book a one-on-one video demo with our team, set up around your club, so there is no group session to join. See Book a Demo.
Watch for

Red flags

Any one of these is worth a follow-up question.

  • They do not offer a one-on-one demo, and you have to join a group demo.
  • They show slides but cannot show a live account.
  • The price changes noticeably as you add courts or instructors.
  • A long contract before you have seen it run.
  • Migration or setup is a separate bill.
  • You cannot clearly export your own member and booking data.
  • The player experience is only good on a desktop.
  • Payments setup is vague.
  • Payouts, refunds or chargebacks live in a separate portal you have to log into.
  • Every answer starts with "we can build that for you later".
Compare

Scorecard

Score each vendor from 1 to 5 on each area, then add it up. Print this page to take it to your demos.

AreaWhat to confirmVendor AVendor BVendor C
SchedulingBuilds all my session types, supports multi-sport courts, has waitlists
PricingMember, guest, peak and off-peak, per player, split or single payer
PaymentsReconciles automatically, clear setup, card on file, payouts, refunds and chargebacks in one place
Player experienceEasy on a phone, free for players, easy to find the club
CoachingRates per instructor, revenue share calculated, specific instructor booking
ReportingRevenue by session type, fill rates, churn and member health, instructor results, CSV export
CommunicationsEmail and text, consent handled, cost is clear
SwitchingVendor moves the data, can start small, data is exportable
SupportA named person, and a plan for busy days
Total costAll-in price in writing, no growth penalty, no lock-in
TotalAdd up the scores
FAQ

Questions

What is club management software?
It is the system a club uses to run its business: scheduling courts and sessions, memberships and pricing, payments, communications, lessons and tournaments, reporting, and the player experience. For racquet sports, it also handles things like open play, leagues, waitlists and instructor pay.
How much does club management software cost?
It varies by vendor, and some prices scale with the number of courts or instructors. Always ask for the all-in price for your club, in writing. IQRally is $149 per club per month, month to month, with every feature included. See pricing.
Do my players need an app?
Not necessarily. Players can book from a phone browser, and an app is a bonus. IQRally has a free player app, and it also works on mobile web. See the player page.
How do I switch without disrupting members?
Ask the vendor to move your data and set up payments for you, and consider starting with one event or weekend play before moving everything. See how switching works with IQRally.
Can one system handle pickleball, tennis and padel?
It can if courts can serve more than one sport and session types are flexible. With IQRally, a court can be named anything, such as "Tennis / Pickleball", and the schedule prevents overlapping bookings.
What should I ask in a demo?
Bring your real sessions and prices and ask the vendor to build them live. The demo checklist on this page has ten tasks to test.

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