Guide
Hackathon checklist: roles, accounts and costs, with proof for each step
Most hackathon checklists tell you what to do. This one also says who does it and how the team knows it is done. Print it, name an owner on each line, and tick a line only when the proof exists.
Not legal, tax or financial advice. Ownership, prizes, sponsor credits and allowed tools are set by each event's own rules. This checklist does not know your event's rules, so it asks you to write them down. Check anything that matters with the organizers.
How to use it
Every line has three parts: an owner (one name, not "everyone"), a step, and a proof. The proof is something you can show in ten seconds: a screenshot of the member list, a successful login from a second laptop, a line in the cost list.
If you want the quick tick-box version, use the hackathon kit. This page is the longer one for teams that want to be sure.
Write down the event's rules first
Before anything else, copy these from the organizers' page or email. Do not rely on memory or on what a teammate says the rules are.
| Item | What the organizers say | Where you read it (link and date) |
|---|---|---|
| Submission deadline and time zone | ||
| What counts as a valid submission | ||
| Who owns what you build | ||
| Prizes: who receives them, and how | ||
| Tools, AI services or existing code you may use | ||
| Sponsor credits or API terms that apply |
Anything left blank is a question to send to the organizers, not a gap to fill with a guess.
Before the event
| Owner | Step | Proof it is done |
|---|---|---|
| [name] | Create one project email that is not anyone's personal inbox. | Two people can open it. |
| [name] | Create the code repository under a shared organization or team space, not a personal account. | Every teammate appears in the member list. |
| [name] | Give a second person admin on the repository. | Screenshot of the second admin in the settings. |
| [name] | Write a one-line role for each person: build, design, demo, admin. | The list is pasted in the team chat. |
| [name] | Agree who pays for shared costs and how you settle up. | One sentence in the chat that everyone has replied to. |
| [name] | Start a shared cost list. | Link opens for every teammate. Use the ledger sheet if you have none. |
At kickoff
| Owner | Step | Proof it is done |
|---|---|---|
| [name] | Read the rules table above out loud to the whole team. | Every row is filled or marked "ask organizers". |
| [name] | Agree what happens to the project after the event: stop, open source it, or one person keeps going. | One line, with a date to revisit it (for example one week after the event). |
| [name] | Agree how prize money would be shared, before you know whether you win. | One line in the chat that everyone has replied to. |
| [name] | Decide who may spend money without asking. Set a number, for example 20. | The number is written in the chat. |
| [name] | Put keys and tokens in the host's secret settings, not in the repository. | A search of the repository for the key finds nothing. |
During the event
| Owner | Step | Proof it is done |
|---|---|---|
| [name] | Log every paid item when you buy it: domain, hosting, credits. | Each purchase has who paid, what and how much in the cost list. |
| [name] | Put hosting and the domain under the project email, with a second admin. | The second admin can log in from their own device. |
| [name] | Note each account's owner, payer and recovery email in one place. The access audit is a ready table. | Every account has all three filled in. |
Before you submit
Do this at least an hour before the deadline you wrote down above, in the time zone you wrote down.
| Owner | Step | Proof it is done |
|---|---|---|
| [name] | Open the demo from a device and network that is not the builder's. | A teammate loads it and completes the main flow. |
| [name] | Check the submission form against the organizers' list of required items. | Each required item has a link or file attached. |
| [name] | Confirm everything you used is allowed by the event rules, including any existing code or AI tool. | The "tools you may use" row of the rules table is filled in. |
| [name] | Record a short backup demo in case the live one fails. | The file plays on a second laptop. |
| [name] | Submit, then re-open the submission page. | Screenshot of the confirmation. |
After the event
| Owner | Step | Proof it is done |
|---|---|---|
| [name] | Settle costs using the cost list. Add it up, divide, pay. | Every row is marked paid or settled. |
| [name] | Hold the decision meeting on the date you set. | The outcome is one sentence in the chat. |
| [name] | If one person keeps the project, move the domain, repository and hosting to them, and run the handover checklist. | The new owner logs in on their own device. |
| [name] | If you stop, cancel paid plans and turn off auto-renewal so nobody keeps paying. | Billing page shows no active plan, or a cancellation notice. |
| [name] | Check whether the event's rules or your sponsor terms say anything about what you must keep, delete or disclose. | The relevant rows of the rules table are acted on. |
A cost line, worked through (illustrative)
This is a made-up example to show the arithmetic. It is not a real team or a real bill.
Three people agree to split shared costs equally. They buy a domain for 12 and pay 18 for hosting for the weekend. Another teammate buys 30 of API credits. The total is 12 + 18 + 30 = 60, so each person's share is 20. Whoever paid more than 20 is owed the difference by whoever paid less. One person paid 12, one 18 and one 30, so the first two owe 8 and 2, and the third is owed 10. The cost list makes that a one-minute job on Monday instead of an argument.
Frequently asked questions
What should a hackathon team do first?
Write down the event's rules for ownership, prizes, tools and the submission deadline, then agree who owns the repository and who pays for shared costs. Those are the points teams most often disagree about later.
Who should own the accounts for a hackathon project?
A project email or shared organization, with at least two people able to administer each account. Your event's rules may say more, so check them.
When should we test our submission?
At least an hour before the deadline, on a device and network that is not the builder's. Use the deadline and time zone from the organizers' page.
How do we split costs after a hackathon?
Agree the rule before the event, log each purchase when it happens, then add up the total and divide by the agreed shares. The worked example above shows the arithmetic.
What happens to the project after the event?
Whatever you agreed before the result was known. If you agreed nothing, decide within a week who keeps the code and domain, and settle the costs.
Related
- Hackathon kit, the quick tick-box version
- Side project with a partner and no company
- Founders agreement template
- Access audit
- Cost split calculator
- Team charter template
- All co-founder guides and free tools
Running a hackathon team?