Super Bowl Squares: The Classic 10×10 Grid, Online and Scored Live
Super Bowl squares is the one football pool everybody can play. There's no skill and no homework: you claim a square, the numbers get drawn, and if the last digits of the score match your square at the end of a quarter, you win that quarter.
Running squares on paper means collecting names, drawing numbers out of a hat, and checking the score at every quarter. Online, your group claims squares from one link, the numbers are drawn automatically at kickoff, and the winning square lights up as the game is played.
📅 When it opens: Super Bowl squares open here in January, before the Super Bowl matchup is set. Until then, run an NFL playoff pick'em with the same group.
Free up to 10 players · players join with a link, no app or account · we never touch the pot
How Super Bowl squares works
- 1
Claim squares on the grid
The grid is 10 rows by 10 columns, so 100 squares. Players claim open squares, often with a limit per person, until the grid fills up.
- 2
The numbers are drawn
At kickoff (or whenever the commissioner draws), each row and each column gets a random number from 0 to 9. Rows belong to one team, columns to the other.
- 3
Check the score each quarter
At the end of the first quarter, halftime, the third quarter and the final, take the last digit of each team's score. The square where those two numbers meet wins that period.
- 4
Pay out the winners
Most groups split the pot across the four periods. Common splits are 25% each, or a bigger share for the final score.
Common payout splits
Choose how the pot is divided before anyone claims a square.
25 / 25 / 25 / 25
An equal share for the first quarter, halftime, third quarter and final. The simplest and most popular split.
20 / 30 / 20 / 30
Halftime and the final pay more, since those are the scores everyone's watching.
10 / 20 / 10 / 60
Most of the pot rides on the final score, for groups that want one big winner.
Final score only
One winner takes the whole pot, decided by the last digits of the final score, overtime included.
Which numbers are best in Super Bowl squares?
Because the numbers are drawn at random, every square has the same chance before the draw. After the draw, some numbers are much better than others, because football scores cluster around touchdowns and field goals.
- •0, 7, 3 and 4 are the strongest last digits. Scores like 7, 10, 14, 17, 20, 24 and 27 come up again and again.
- •2, 5 and 9 are the weakest. They need a safety, a missed extra point or an unusual combination of scores.
- •The first quarter favors 0 and 0, 7 and 0, and 0 and 3, because scores are low early in the game.
- •None of this changes who wins. It just explains why some squares feel lucky the moment the numbers are drawn.
House rules to settle before the draw
Squares is simple, but write these down before the grid fills up:
- •How many squares can one person claim?
- •When are the numbers drawn: when the grid is full, or at kickoff?
- •Does overtime count toward the final? (Usually yes.)
- •What happens to a winning square nobody claimed: roll it to the next period, or split it?
Why run your squares here
One link to claim squares
Players tap open squares on their phone. No app, no account, and no shared spreadsheet to fight over.
Fair, automatic number draw
Numbers are drawn at random at kickoff, so nobody can pick squares after seeing the numbers.
Winners highlighted live
The current winning square glows during the game, and each quarter's winner is recorded as the score updates.
Commissioner tools
Put names on squares for anyone who pays you in person, set a per-player limit, and draw early if the grid fills.
Pot shown, never held
Set a price per square and the payout split. Players see the pot and each quarter's share; you collect and pay out.
Works for any big game
Run a grid on the Super Bowl, a playoff game, Thanksgiving, or a bowl game.
We never touch the pot
Most squares grids have a price per square, with the pot split across the quarters. You set the price and the split, collect it yourself by Venmo, Zelle, or cash, and pay the winners. Pick'em Builder shows the pot and each quarter's share, and never holds a dollar.
Pricing
Free for pools up to 10 players — every format, live scoring, full standings. Bigger group? Unlimited is $49/year (about $4 a month) or $5/month, for as many players and pools as you want. Players always join free.
Questions
- How does Super Bowl squares work?
- Players claim squares on a 10×10 grid. Then each row and column gets a random number from 0 to 9. At the end of each quarter, the square matching the last digit of each team's score wins that quarter.
- When are the numbers drawn?
- Automatically at kickoff, or earlier if the commissioner draws once the grid is full. Once numbers are drawn, squares can't change.
- Does overtime count?
- Yes. The final period uses the game's final score, including overtime.
- What if nobody claimed the winning square?
- That's the commissioner's call. The most common rules are rolling that payout to the next quarter or splitting it among the other winners.
- Is it free?
- Free for groups up to 10 players. Bigger office grids can go Unlimited for $49 a year or $5 a month. Players always join free.
Related guides
100 squares, four winners, zero spreadsheets.
Squares opens here in January. Start an NFL pick'em with your group now, and the grid is one tap away when the Super Bowl matchup is set.
See NFL playoff pools