Plays Manager vs. LineUp Max: When Free Is Enough and When It Isn't
LineUp Max's free boards cover a single game day with no account. Here is where that is enough and where a $9.99 Plays Manager membership wins.
Last updated October 29, 2026
By Jeremy Phillips, Youth Sports Coach and League Director
If you coach youth sports, you've probably found LineUp Max. It makes free lineup boards for football, soccer, baseball/softball and volleyball, and its Pro plan costs $9.99 a month — the same as Plays Manager. So the fair question is: when is free enough, and when is a paid membership worth it?
The short answer
LineUp Max's free boards are enough when you're planning one game day, on one device, and you only need a fair lineup and a printed card. Plays Manager is worth $9.99 when you also want to draw plays, keep a playbook, print wristbands, coach basketball, or keep a whole season of plans in your account.
What does LineUp Max do well?
LineUp Max is honest about what it is. Each sport has its own board: Huddleboard (football), Pitchboard (soccer), Dugoutboard (baseball and softball) and Rallyboard (volleyball). You don't sign up. Nothing installs. Your roster stays on your device and the board works offline.
Each board tracks playing time while you drag players into spots. Football tracks snaps per quarter by unit. Baseball tracks innings, infield time and bench streaks. Soccer tracks minutes per player. When you're done, you print one card for the clipboard or the dugout fence.
Free covers every board and every core feature. Pro is $9.99/month or $99/year and adds cloud sync across devices, full-season history and templates, a season playing-time dashboard, and sharing live plans with assistants.
When is the free board enough?
Free is enough when:
- You're planning a single game day and don't need last week's plan.
- You plan on one phone or laptop and don't mind the roster living only there.
- You need a fair lineup or rotation and a printed card — nothing else.
- You don't want to make an account at all.
If that's you, use the free board. You don't need to pay anyone to give every kid fair playing time for one Saturday.
Where does a Plays Manager membership win?
The membership earns its keep when you need more than a game-day lineup.
| What you need | LineUp Max Free | LineUp Max Pro | Plays Manager |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $0 | $9.99/mo or $99/yr | $9.99/mo or $99/yr, 14-day trial, no card |
| Fair lineups and rotations | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Minimum-play warnings while you plan | Playing-time tracking | Playing-time tracking | Yes, flags anyone short of your league's minimum before you print |
| Printable game-day sheets | Game card | Game card | Rotation sheets, spotter sheets, lineup cards |
| Saved seasons across devices | No (device only) | Yes | Yes, saved to your account |
| Play designer | No | No | Yes: routes, blocks, animation, flip/mirror |
| Playbooks and wristbands | No | No | Yes |
| Basketball | No | No | Yes |
| Volleyball | Yes | Yes | No |
Play designer and playbooks
LineUp Max plans who plays. It doesn't draw what they run. Plays Manager includes a play designer for football, basketball and soccer. You draw routes and blocks, animate the play, flip it to the other side, and save it in a playbook. Football coaches can print wristband inserts with a numbered call sheet.
Saved seasons
On LineUp Max's free boards, your plan lives on one device. Plays Manager saves every team, roster and plan to your account, so the plan you made at home opens on your phone at the field.
Minimum-play enforcement while you plan
Both tools track playing time. Plays Manager checks it against your league's number. In football it counts plays per half for every kid, series by series, and highlights anyone under the minimum (four plays per half by default) before you print. In baseball it tracks infield innings against rules like two infield innings per player.
Printable sheets
Plays Manager prints rotation sheets and spotter sheets for football, and lineup, field-rotation and bench cards for baseball and softball, with your team logo and coach name.
Where does LineUp Max win?
- It's free for game day, with no account.
- It works offline and keeps the roster on your device.
- It covers volleyball, which Plays Manager doesn't.
Which should you pick?
Pick LineUp Max's free board if you only need a fair lineup for one game and a card to print. Pick Plays Manager if you also draw plays, run a playbook or wristbands, coach basketball, or want the whole season saved to your account with minimum-play warnings as you plan. Plays Manager has a 14-day free trial with no credit card, so you can try both in the same week.
FAQ
Is LineUp Max free?
Yes. LineUp Max's boards are free for game-day planning with no account. Its Pro plan is $9.99/month or $99/year and adds cloud sync and season history.
When is LineUp Max's free board enough?
When you're planning one game day, on one device, and you only need a fair lineup or rotation and a printed card. No account is needed.
What does Plays Manager have that LineUp Max doesn't?
A play designer and saved playbooks with animation, route trees and wristband prints, plus basketball. Plays Manager also saves your seasons to your account and warns you about minimum-play shortfalls while you plan.
Do both cost the same?
Yes, both paid plans are $9.99/month or $99/year. Plays Manager has a 14-day free trial with no credit card.
Sources
- LineUp Max home page and pricing (checked October 29, 2026)
- Plays Manager pricing
Try it for your team
Plays Manager plans your rotation before kickoff so every kid gets their minutes.