An honest car show software comparison
Car Show HQ next to Car Show Expert, Car Show Pro, Driven To Show, and Car Show Software: pricing models, where the money goes, voting, judging, and day-of tools.
Facts checked July 2026, from each vendor's public website.
Choosing car show software mostly comes down to four questions: what it costs, where the money goes, how spectators vote, and how much of show day it runs. We put Car Show HQ next to the four tools organizers ask us about most. Every fact below comes from each vendor’s own public website as of July 2026. If something is out of date, tell us and we’ll fix it.
The short version
- Money handling is the biggest hidden difference. Some platforms process entry fees themselves and pay you out; some connect to your own payment account. On Car Show HQ, entry fees, sponsor payments, and donations settle to your own Square account through a managed connection. We are never the merchant of record and never hold your funds.
- Pricing models vary wildly: per registration, per show, monthly, or one time. Run the math at your expected car count before choosing.
- Day-of coverage differs most. Registration is table stakes. Kiosk walk-ups, windshield cards, QR voting, live results, and sponsor tools are where platforms separate.
Feature comparison
| Capability | Car Show HQ | Car Show Expert | Car Show Pro | Driven To Show | Car Show Software |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free full product, no size caps; white-label $39 to $149 per show by size, or $199 per year unlimited | Free tier; $29 per Expert Show; $49 per month unlimited | From $2.39 per registration, plus 4.2% + $0.39 card processing | $199 per show | $50 one time |
| Online registration | Yes, with a recorded waiver | Yes | Yes | Yes | No (offline Excel tool) |
| Where the money lands | Your own Square account, managed connection; never merchant of record | Entry-fee processor not disclosed | Processed by the platform | Your own Stripe account, connected with copied API keys | No payments |
| Spectator voting | On-site QR by car number, duplicate protection, live leaderboard | QR voting on Expert Shows, live results | QR on dashcard, Best in Show or Best in Class | Digital ballots, one vote per person | Paper ballots keyed by hand |
| Judged scoring | Point judging with custom scoresheets; average or sum; every score edit kept; results hidden until finalized | Digital scorecards, automatic tally | Three formats, averaged multi-judge | Digital or paper scorecards | Yes, up to 10 judges in Excel |
| Judge experience | Phone browser and a six-digit code; no app, no account; live progress per class | Not stated in detail | Judges portal (details not stated) | Not stated | Excel on a laptop |
| Entrant data privacy | Per-organization records; one club’s entrant list is never another club’s, or ours | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated | Local file, yours entirely |
| Check-in and day-of | QR check-in plus kiosk walk-up registration | QR check-in with offline sync | On-site registration | Check-in mentioned, not detailed | None |
| Sponsors and fundraising | Sponsor tiers sold from the show page, donation tip jar, paid number picks | Not stated | Sponsor info display only | Donations as a payment type | None |
| Branding and domains | Custom subdomain or full custom domain with SSL | Logo and colors on Pro plan | Logo on dashcards; events live on their domain | Branded confirmations | None |
| Permanent show archive | Show page stays up forever; winners with vote counts or judged points, plus a photo gallery | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated | Local files only |
| Built-in page SEO | Canonical URLs that redirect year over year, social preview cards, event structured data, per-domain sitemaps | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated | None |
| Platform | Web app, nothing to install | Web app with offline check-in mode | Web app, connection required | Web app, mobile-first | Excel download for PC and Mac |
Sources: each vendor’s public website, July 2026. Blank or “not stated” means we could not verify the capability from the vendor’s own materials.
Notes on each option
Car Show Expert
The closest feature match to Car Show HQ: QR check-in and voting, digital judging, and a free tier for small shows. Both platforms now run digital judging; ours keeps every score edit in an audit trail and holds judged results hidden until the organizer finalizes them, which their materials do not address. The free Basic Shows cap at 50 entries and leave out judging, voting, and QR features. How entry-fee payments are processed, and what fee is added at checkout, is not published on their site, so ask before committing if the money flow matters to your club or charity.
Car Show Pro
A mature per-registration platform. The cost scales with your car count: the platform fee starts at $2.39 per registration and card processing is 4.2% plus 39 cents, which organizers can pass along to entrants. At larger shows the per-entry math adds up quickly, so price it against your expected field size.
Driven To Show
A flat $199 per show with concierge onboarding, and to their credit, money goes to your own Stripe account. The connection is made by copying Stripe API keys into their dashboard, which works but puts sensitive keys in one more place. Sponsor tiers, kiosk registration, and a live leaderboard are not part of the published feature set.
Car Show Software
A different category: a $50 one-time Excel tool for scoring a paper-run show. No registration, payments, or QR anything, but if your show is intentionally paper-based and you just want help with the tally, it’s the budget option and we respect it for what it is.
How to choose
- Running a fundraiser or charity show? Prioritize where the money lands and what sponsors can buy. This is the exact case Car Show HQ is built around: tiers, tip jar, and every dollar in the cause’s own account.
- Small paper show that just needs a tally? The Excel tool may genuinely be enough.
- Want white-glove setup and a flat fee? Driven To Show’s concierge model fits organizers who want a person on call.
- Large field and per-entry pricing? Multiply the per-registration fee by your expected cars before signing up for any per-entry platform.
- Not sure? Click through our live demo show, no signup, and see the whole flow from registration to results.
Comparing car show software, answered
How much does car show software cost?
As of July 2026 the market spans four models: per registration (from $2.39 per car plus card processing), per show ($29 to $199 depending on the platform), monthly subscriptions (around $49 for unlimited shows), and one-time purchases ($50 for an offline Excel tool). Multiply per-entry fees by your expected car count before comparing.
Who handles the money in car show software?
It varies by platform and it's worth checking before you commit. Some process entry fees themselves and pay organizers out afterward, and some connect to a payment account you own. On Car Show HQ, payments settle directly to your own Square account and we are never the merchant of record.
What should a charity or club look for in car show software?
Start with where the money lands: it should reach the organization's own account, with a clear fee structure. Then fundraising tools beyond entry fees, such as sponsor tiers and donations, and day-of tools simple enough for volunteers, like kiosk check-in and QR voting that tallies itself.
See it for yourself
The fastest comparison is clicking through a real show: registration, voting, sponsors, and results.
