How can we help you?
Find answers to common questions about participating, judging, and organizing hackathons.
Participants & Builders
How do I register for a hackathon?
Navigate to any public hackathon page, click 'Register now', and accept the organizer rules. If you're not logged in, you'll be prompted to sign in or create a profile.
How does team formation work?
You can indicate that you're 'Looking for team' on your profile or the hackathon's participants tab. You can then invite teammates directly to your project submission.
Can I submit pre-existing code?
All hackathons enforce code freshness policies. You may build on existing open source libraries and APIs, but the core functionality and application code must be authored during the hackathon window.
Organizers & Hosts
How long does it take to launch a hackathon?
Using our guided hackathon creator wizard, organizers can configure tracks, rules, schedule, and judging rubrics in under 30 minutes.
How do judges evaluate projects?
Organizers assign judges who receive a dedicated judging portal with randomized or targeted submission queues and weighted scoring criteria.
How are cash prizes distributed?
Organizers can disburse cash prizes directly through Hackerzone's payout integration or wire funds directly to verified winners.
Security & Verification
Who owns the intellectual property?
Participants retain 100% ownership of everything they create during public hackathons, unless explicitly specified in an enterprise sponsor challenge agreement.
How does Hackerzone prevent plagiarism?
We run automated git commit timestamps verification, diff analysis, and open source similarity checks on all project repositories.
Still have questions?
Our support team is available 7 days a week to help with questions, technical issues, or rule clarifications.