Developers Team Blog.
The Contest is over. We have three winners!
The RTC Contest Feb 1, 2026 full official results could be downlod at :
https://contestonlinescore.com/archive/rtc_contest_results_2026_02_01.pdf
Thank you to joining us! Se you in the next RTC Contest on May 24, 2006!
Welcome to the RTC Contest!
We believe the RTC Contest represents the future of ham radio contesting. We want you to enjoy participating in a relaxed and enjoyable manner, so we have prepared a few tips to help you avoid common mistakes.
The very first step is to configure your logger with the proper login credentials for the RTC server (HAMSCORE.com).
⚠️ Important:
The callsign entered in your logger must match the RTC log owner’s callsign exactly. Logs with mismatched callsigns will not be accepted.
2. Set up the correct exchange (very important)
The RTC exchange consists of two parts:
Example:
001 FN36
Please refer to your logger’s documentation to ensure the exchange is configured correctly.
For example, in N1MM+, it should be set up as follows for the RTC Contest:
Don’t forget to split the N1MM+ serial number macro # and your 4-character grid identifier.
For CWT:
The exchange should include your name and your CWOps number or your 2-character US state or Canadian province abbreviation, or your official DXCC identifier such as DL, I, PY, etc. Some operators may also use CWA.
Don’t forget to separate your name and the second exchange field with a space!
For MST:
The exchange should include your name and either your 2-character US state or Canadian province abbreviation, or your official DXCC identifier.
Don’t forget to separate your name and geographic ID with a space!
3. Verify your online reporting scoring URL
The online reporting URL in your logger should be configured with the “Score Distributor Server” or whatever it’s called in a logger.
For example at N1MM+ it looks like :
4. Verify your online log before the contest
A link to your RTC log is available on your Profile page.
5. Understand the scoreboard during the contest
Once the contest starts, the RTC adjudication module begins cross-checking logs within a few minutes.
This separation is intentional and helps prevent any form of online assistance during the contest.
This separation is intentional and helps prevent any form of online assistance during the contest.
6. If you see EXCH instead of numeric score
If the scoreboard displays EXCH instead of a number, it indicates an exchange error.
For example for N1MM+ :
Once a corrected log is received, the score will be recalculated and the EXCH indicator will disappear.
7. After the contest finishes
Final contest results are typically published 10–12 minutes after the contest ends.
From your Profile page, you can:
After the contest concludes, all online logs will be published and visible to every logged-in user.
8. Test your logger in weekly mini contests
To be 100% sure in your logger setup we recomend you to join our weekly recurrent online services :
Monday:
K1USN Slow Speed 00z -01z
ICWC-MST 1 13z – 14z
ICWC-MST 2 19z – 20z
Tuesday:
ICWC-MST 3 03z – 04z
Wednesday:
CWOps Mini-CWT 1 13z – 14z
CWOps Mini-CWT 2 19z – 20z
Thursday:
CWOps Mini-CWT 3 03z – 04z
CWOps Mini-CWT 4 07z – 08z
Friday:
Weekly RTTY1 01:45z – 02:15z
K1USN Slow Speed 20z -21z
Thank you for joining us! We belive the RTC is the HAM Radio Contesting future!
1. General
The Real Time Contest (RTC) is a global amateur radio event built for exciting, live, and fully interactive competition. Everyone is welcome to join the action! To ensure real-time scoring and official results, participants must stay connected to the official RTC server https://hamscore.com for the entire duration of the contest.
The contest will be in a mixed mode format (CW and SSB). Each station may be worked only once per band, regardless of mode — CW or SSB.
Bands: 40m, 20m, 15m, 10m.
The recommended frequencies:
CW mode:
first 50 kHz of CW band
SSB mode:
40 – 7.125 – 7.200
20 – 14.200 – 14.300
15 – 21.250 – 21.350
10 – 28.400 – 28.500
Cabrillo name: RTC
2. Contest Duration
Total duration: 4 hours
The next provisional schedule: Sunday, May 24 2026 at 16:00 UTC – 20:00 UTC *
* We are planning to hold the RTC contest twice a year – once in the winter/spring period and once in the fall. The contest duration may also be adjusted in the future. Our goal is to eventually adopt a full 24-hour format, depending on the level of participation and overall contest activity
3. Exchange
Each QSO must include the following exchange:
– QSO serial number, starting with 001
– 4-character grid locator
Signal reports (59 / 599) or any other reports should also be present but they are not be checked as a part of exchange.
Example: 599 001 FN36 or 59 001 FN36
4. Scoring
QSO Points (distance-based):
1 point — up to 1,999.99 km
2 points from 2,000.00 up to 3,999.99 km
3 points — from 4,000.00 up to 7,999.99 km
4 points — from 8,000.00 km and over **
** Distance is calculated between centers of 4-character Maidenhead locator ( major square ) by using the Haversine formula. For example: The distance between FN36 and DM18 is: 3664.72 km
Multipliers:
The number of unique 4-character grid locators worked per band.
Final scores:
– Will be calcualated: Total score = QSO points X Multiplier
– Final scores will be available online at https://hamscore.com/ approximately 10 minutes after the contest ends, following the correction period.
Valid QSOs:
A QSO is considered valid if:
– All QSO data matches after cross-checking with the corresponding station’s online log, or
– The QSO was made with an offline station, and the callsign appears in at least one other online log (OFFCALL).
A QSO is not valid for scoring (0 points and no multiplier) if:
– The QSO is with a UNIQUE callsign
– The callsign is busted
– The received exchange is incorrect
– The QSO time difference between logs exceeds 2 minutes
– The QSO is logged on the wrong band
– The QSO is logged with one or both Exchange fields empty
– The QSO is logged with sent or reseived QSO serial number 0
A callsign is considered UNIQUE if the station was offline during the contest, and the callsign does not appear in any other online log
Penalties:
There are no additional penalties for:
– QSOs with busted callsigns
– QSOs with incorrect exchanges
Invalid QSOs simply receive zero points and no multiplier.
The operator is responsible for ensuring that the logger is configured correctly. The RTC server provides several clear indicators when the sent exchange is incorrect. If the log is not configured with the correct exchange before the contest finishes, the entire log will be considered invalid and will not be counted in the final results. In such cases, “EXCH” will be published in the score column instead of the claimed score.
In that case the corresponding QSO will still be considered valid without an exchange check, if the QSO time, band, and mode match.
5. Categories
Multy Two Operator High Power (M2 HP)
Multi Operator Low Power (M2 LP)
Single Operator High Power (SO HP)
Single Operator Low Power (SO LP)
Single Operator (SO QRP)
6. Transmitter Limitations
HP (High Power): Output power greater than 100 watts.
LP (Low Power): Output power of 100 watts or less.
QRP: Output power of 10 watts or less for CW or SSB.
Single Operator: Only one signal may be transmitted at any given time.
Multi-Operator: A maximum of two signals may be transmitted simultaneously, and only on different bands.
7. Band Changes and Other Conditions
Self-spotting is permitted for all participants.
There are no restrictions on band changes for either Single Operator or Multi-Operator categories.
Spotting assistance is permitted in all categories.
8. Trophies
Plaques will be awarded for:
Top Score Multi-Operator High Power (Any mode)
Top Score Multi-Operator Low Power (Any mode)
Top Score Single-Operator High Power (Any mode)
Top Score Single-Operator Low Power (Any mode)
Top Score Single-Operator QRP (Any mode)
Suggestions for sponsoring trophies are welcome!
We are planning to have more categories split by modes in future. We have also an idea to nominate the only continental winners and skip overall World winner. To be updated.
7. Eligibility:
Only stations actively reporting to the RTC server during the contest are eligible for trophies.
8. Logger setup suggestions:
For N1MM+ users:
Please get the RTC Contest UDC file at https://n1mmwp.hamdocs.com/mmfiles/rtc-udc-rev-2/
The RTC log should be set up with the following exchange settings: # <4-charcter grid location. Please don’t forget to put a space between # and the grid.
For example:
To add RST to your exchange in CW, setup your CW messages like on this example:
For DXlog users:
For those wanting to play with DXLog in the upcoming test, you should use devtest 2.6.26.4 at https://dxlog.net/sw/files/download/devtest/DXLog.net-DEVTEST-2.6.26.4.msi
To add RST to your exchange, reset your standard messages to default.
For SDC logger users:
Please download the latest. The RTC contest is supported started from the version 19.0505 . It could be downloaded at https://www.lw-sdc.com/?page_id=79
For QARTest logger users:
Please download the latest. The RTC contest is supported started from the version 16.1.1 . It needs also QAR2GetScores version 2.0.4 (the latest). It could be downloaded at https://www.ik3qar.it/software/qartest/en/download/
The chart clearly shows strong year-over-year growth in user engagement. Active users are up 16%, while total event interactions increased by 19.3%, indicating not only more visitors but also deeper engagement with the platform.
Throughout the year, traffic follows a predictable contest-driven pattern. Each major international contest produces a sharp spike in active users, confirming that online scoreboards are most heavily used during peak competitive events.
Early-year activity rises around ARRL DX and WPX SSB, followed by another noticeable increase during WPX CW. Mid-year engagement dips slightly, with a smaller but visible peak during IARU HF, which aligns with its more specialized audience.
The most dramatic growth appears in the final quarter of the year. CQ WW SSB and CQ WW CW generate the highest peaks on the graph, with CQ WW CW setting the overall annual maximum. Compared to the previous period, these late-year contests show nearly double the number of active viewers, highlighting both the popularity of these events and the growing reliance on real-time online scoreboards.
Overall, the graph confirms a strong upward trend in 2025, driven primarily by flagship CQ contests and supported by consistent engagement across all major events.
This trend is further reflected in scoreboard participation. The top three events by number of entries on a board are:
See you on the ContestOnlineScoreBoard next year!
73!
The first HAM Radio Contest online scoring web service www.getscores.org has been launched by Gerry, W1VE allmost 20 years ago at 2006!
We are happy to publish that the very first online scoring web site screenshot.
The image is provided by the https://web.archive.org/ service
We see some people find using scoreboards distractive due to a huge data shown on one page. We have prepared a few tips how to reduce that impact by using Filters and View options:
It only display the five scores above and five below your score. (Works only if your call is on the board!)
That how the board looks like once it activated:
2. Using “Top Ten” View option. It only display Top Ten highest scores in each category.
It could be very useful if you a leader:
That how the board looks like once it activated:
3. Using Category/Band/Power/Continent etc. Filter
You could customize your scoreboard content as you wish by using many parameter filters.
That’s what you have:
4. Cleaning up all Filter/View settings by one click.
If you have screwed up all the filters and view options the result will be an empty board. To refresh and get back to a default option (show everything) you need just one click on “Clear filter” option:
5. Try to use mobile template on your desktop.
Just click on that thumbnail:
It has a small footprint so could be easily be between your logger windows:
It’s easy to come back to a usual view. Just click on the three white strips at the right top and choose “Quite Mobile”.
The CQ WW contest always is the biggest one. We have prepared a usage reports.
The web usage report provided by Google Analytics:
It shows the maximum of simultaneously active users number is 2,250. We had totally 3,300 active users during the CQ WW CW weekend
We have also a number of users from top seven most active countries:
The number of CQ WW CW COSB users published at least one QSO was 1179.
Who were those over 2K people watching the scoreboard without active contribution? Just the HAM Radio fans? ))
