Score Calculation

HackHQ uses a transparent scoring system so everyone can verify how results are calculated. The formula depends on which voting method you're using.

Score Criteria

With Score Criteria, the final score is a weighted average across all judges.

How it works

1. Each judge scores every criterion on the scale you configured (0-5 or 0-10)
2. Criteria weights are applied to calculate each judge's weighted score
3. The final score is the average of all judges' weighted scores

Example

For a submission scored by 3 judges with 4 criteria weighted at 25% each (on a 0-10 scale):

Judge A's weighted score: (9 x 0.25) + (8 x 0.25) + (7 x 0.25) + (8 x 0.25) = 8.00

Final score: (8.00 + 8.50 + 8.75) / 3 = 8.42 / 10

Unequal weights

With unequal weights, criteria contribute proportionally:

Missing scores

If a judge hasn't finished scoring a submission, their evaluation is excluded entirely. Only completed reviews count toward the final score. For example, if 5 judges are assigned but only 3 have finished, the final score is the average of those 3.

Top Picks

With Top Picks, scores are calculated using an Averaged Borda Count: a point-based ranking system that accounts for both how often a submission was picked and how highly it was ranked.

How it works

1. Each judge selects and ranks their top picks (e.g., 3 picks)
2. Points are awarded by rank: 1st pick gets the most points, last pick gets 1 point. With 3 picks: 1st = 3 points, 2nd = 2 points, 3rd = 1 point
3. The final score is the total points divided by the number of eligible voters (not just voters who picked that submission)

Dividing by all eligible voters (rather than just those who selected the submission) is what makes this an "averaged" Borda Count. It prevents a submission picked by 1 out of 10 judges from scoring the same as one picked by 1 out of 2 judges.

Example

With 5 judges and 3 picks each (1st = 3pts, 2nd = 2pts, 3rd = 1pt):

Project A: (3 x 3) + (1 x 2) + (0 x 1) = 11 points / 5 voters = 2.20

Notice that Project E received no picks, so its score is 0. The maximum possible score equals the number of picks (3 in this example), achieved only if every single voter placed the submission 1st.

Assignment modes and eligible voters

The "eligible voters" denominator adjusts based on your judge assignment mode:

• All judges: Every judge who submitted votes is eligible for every submission
• Per judge: Only judges assigned to a specific submission count as eligible for that submission
• Rooms: Only judges in the same room as a submission count as eligible

This ensures fair scoring when different submissions are reviewed by different numbers of judges.

Ranking and ties

Submissions are ranked by their final score (highest first). When two or more submissions have the same score, they share the same rank using Olympic-style numbering (1, 1, 3). Within a shared rank, submissions are sorted by vote count so the one with more reviews appears first on the leaderboard.