How it works
Set goals. Check in. Be Accountable. Here's everything in plain English.
Getting started
Sign up with your email
No password. We email you a link or a code, and you add your name and phone once.
Join or start a group
Open the invite link someone sent you, or tap Join with a code on Your groups. Or tap Create a group and invite people.
Sign the rules
Read your group's rules and type your full name to agree. You do this once per group.
Set this week's goals
Add at least your group's minimum before the deadline. They lock in by themselves.
Check in every day
Mark goals done as you finish them. Your group sees your progress.
Settle up if your round has fees
Pay the treasurer, then tap I paid on the Dues tab.
Turn on text reminders
Settings › Text messages. Verify your number, then switch on reminders.
Every tab explained
Inside a group, the tabs sit at the bottom of your phone, or across the top on a computer.
Check-inThis week's goals and the countdown. It's where you'll spend most of your time.
- Add
- Adds a goal. Pick how often: once this week, every day, or 2 to 6 times this week.
- Mark done
- Ticks off a one-time goal. Tap it again to undo before the week locks.
- Day dots
- For daily and repeat goals, tap the day you did it. Future days open on the day itself.
- Copy last week
- Brings last week's goals forward so you don't retype them.
- Dispute / Request void
- Ask the overseer to fix a missed goal, or to cancel one for reasons outside your control.
- ← Round →
- Move between weeks, or open the round's overview and rules.
- Group check-ins
- Everyone's check-ins this week. React with an emoji or leave a comment.
- Everyone else
- Tap a name to see their goals and progress this week.
StandingsThe leaderboard for the round.
- Rank and % kept
- Ranked by the share of goals kept in closed weeks, then by this week's progress.
- This week bar
- How far each person is through this week's check-ins.
- Streak
- Days in a row with at least one check-in.
- Strike dots
- Strikes so far out of the group's limit.
- Fees / owes
- What each person has been charged, and what's still unpaid (paid rounds only).
DuesShows in rounds played for money, in place of the Round tab. Every charge and payment, itemised.
- Venmo / Cash App / Zelle
- Tap-to-pay links to the treasurer's handles.
- I paid
- Tell the treasurer you sent it. It shows as pending until they confirm.
- Withdraw
- Takes back an I paid you tapped by mistake.
- Received / Not received
- For the treasurer or an admin: confirm or reject someone's I paid.
- Record payment, Adjust, Strike
- Treasurer and admin tools (overseers can strike too).
RoundThe round's weeks and rules. It's a tab in no-fee rounds; in paid rounds, open it with the Round button on Check-in.
- Weeks
- Every week of the round. Now marks the current one.
- Rules
- Your group's deadline, minimum goals, fees, buy-in and strike limit.
- Sit out / Join this round
- Skip a round before it starts, or change your mind.
- Forfeit this round
- Stop competing once a round has started. See the FAQ first.
- Edit round, Nudge, Start round
- For admins and round leaders.
GroupYour people, your rounds and the invite.
- Avatars
- A green dot means they've checked in today.
- Set goals / Check in
- Jumps straight to this week.
- Activity
- Recent check-ins and group news. React or comment on any check-in.
- Share invite
- Sends a ready-made message with the link and code. Tap the link to copy it.
- Members › Manage
- Admins give roles or remove someone.
- Allow back
- Admins let a removed member rejoin.
- + Round
- Starts a new round (admins and round leaders).
- Leave group
- At the bottom of the page.
Your avatar (top right)Your account menu. The ? next to it brings you here.
- Settings
- Your name, phone, payment handles, and light or dark mode.
- Your groups
- Switch groups, create one, or join with a code.
- How it works
- This page.
- Sign out
- Signs out this device only.
Questions
When are my goals due?
At your group's deadline time on the day before each week starts. They lock in by themselves; there's no submit button. Until then you can add or change them. Check the Rules on the Round page for your group's exact time and any grace minutes.
What if I don't have enough goals by the deadline?
That week counts as a late submission, and in a paid round the late-submission fee is charged. You can still add the rest afterwards.
How do I check in?
On the Check-in tab, tap Mark done for a one-time goal, or tap the day's dot for a daily or repeat goal. Tap again to undo. Future days open on the day itself.
When does a week end, and what counts as missed?
Each week locks at the deadline on its last day. Any goal not done by then counts as missed, and in a paid round each missed goal adds your group's missed-goal fee.
I did it but forgot to mark it. Can I fix that?
Yes, for 24 hours after the week closes. Tap Dispute on the missed goal and say what happened. The week's overseer or an admin decides, and an approved dispute removes the fee. Nobody decides their own.
How do reactions and comments work?
Every check-in shows up in Activity on the Group page and under Group check-ins on the Check-in tab. Tap the smiley to react with 🔥 💪 👏 👍 😂 or ❤️, and tap a reaction again to take yours back. Hold a reaction, or tap the names next to it, to see who reacted. Tap Comment to write up to 280 characters. You can edit or delete your own comments, and admins can delete any comment. Only current members of your group can see them, and there are no texts or alerts for them. If someone undoes a check-in, its reactions and comments go with it.
How do streaks work?
Your streak is the number of days in a row you've checked in at least one goal. Today counts as soon as you check in; a day with no check-ins starts it over.
What are strikes?
An admin or overseer can give a strike, with a reason. Your group sets the limit when it creates the round. Reach it and you're out of the round, as the rules say. Strikes show on Standings.
What fees are there?
Your group chooses them before the round starts: a fee per missed goal, a fee for late goals, a daily fee for dues still unpaid after the due day (from week 2), and a one-time buy-in when the round starts. They lock once it starts. Some rounds are played with no fees at all.
How do I pay?
On the Dues tab, use the treasurer's Venmo, Cash App or Zelle link (or hand over cash), then tap I paid. It shows as pending until it's confirmed. The app never holds or moves money. How payments work
Who confirms my payment?
The treasurer, or an admin, taps Received. Nobody can confirm their own payment, so if the treasurer pays, another admin or treasurer confirms it.
How do I join a group?
Open the invite link, or tap Join with a code on Your groups and enter the 8-character code. Sign in, read the rules and type your name to agree. If an admin removed you, they need to tap Allow back first.
What do the roles do?
- Admin: Everything below, plus renaming the group, roles, removing members, and restarting, ending or deleting rounds.
- Treasurer: Confirms “I paid”, records payments and adds dues adjustments.
- Overseer: Decides disputes for any week and issues strikes.
- Round leader: Creates rounds, edits their rules, starts them and sends check-in reminders.
- Each week also has its own overseer, who takes turns through the group and decides that week's disputes.
Can I sit out a round, or quit one?
Before a round starts, tap Sit out on the Round page: no buy-in, no goals, not in the standings, and you can rejoin until it starts. After it starts, Forfeit this round takes you out. The buy-in isn't refunded, fees already charged stay due, and nothing new is charged. Leaving the group or being removed mid-round counts as a forfeit.
How do text reminders work?
In Settings › Text messages, verify your number with the 6-digit code, then switch on Text me reminders. You'll get a heads-up before the deadline, your result when a week closes, a reminder on dues day, and a note when you're asked to decide a dispute. Reply STOP to any text to opt out.
How do I change my name, phone or payment handles?
Settings. Edit and tap Save. If you change your phone number, verify the new one under Text messages to keep getting texts.
Is there a dark mode?
Yes. Settings › Appearance: System (follows your phone), Light or Dark.
How do I add it to my home screen?
- iPhone: open accountabilitygames.com in Safari or Chrome, tap Share, then Add to Home Screen. (Chrome needs iOS 16.4 or newer.)
- The Google app can't do it. Use its menu to open the page in Safari first.
- Android: in Chrome, tap ⋮ then Add to Home screen (or Install app).
Do I have to sign in every time?
No. You stay signed in on each device for months at a time. Sign out only signs out the device you're on. To sign in, use the link or code we email you, or a code texted to your verified number.
Still stuck? Ask your group's admin. More: How payments work · Terms