Bikoosh Pools · guide
How to split a squares pool payout (the common structures)
A squares pool pays per period, and the split is the one rule to write down before the first square is claimed. The common structures below are what offices actually use; the tool keeps the grid and names the winner of each period, and never holds or moves what the group agreed.
You can create the pool now and share the link when the game is set. The board stays empty until people join, nothing is charged, and the manage link is yours to keep.
The three usual splits
- Equal quarters: 25 / 25 / 25 / 25 percent of whatever the group agreed, one winner per period.
- Final-heavy: 20 / 20 / 20 / 40 percent, the final worth double, the most common office split.
- Half and final: 25 percent at the half, 75 percent at the final; simplest to run, fewer winners.
Variants worth writing down
- Reverse squares: a second, smaller prize for the mirrored square (away digit on the rows, home on the columns).
- Touching squares: the eight squares around the winner share a small consolation; popular when many squares stay empty.
- An empty winning square: say in advance whether it rolls over to the next period or to the final.
What the host does
- Enter the cumulative score at the end of each period; the board names the holder of the winning square at once.
- Bikoosh Pools never collects, holds or pays out money and never sets stakes: it keeps the grid, the picks and the standings for people who already know each other. Whether a pool carries any stake, and whether that is allowed where you are, is the host's responsibility.
Start a squares pool What Bikoosh Pools does
Quick answers
What is the most common squares payout split?
20 / 20 / 20 / 40 percent for the first quarter, the half, the third quarter and the final, with the final worth double; equal quarters (25 each) is the second most common.
What happens if the winning square is empty?
Whatever the pool's rules said before the lock: most pools roll an empty square's share over to the next period or to the final; write it down in the pool's notes.
Does the tool handle the payout?
Bikoosh Pools never collects, holds or pays out money and never sets stakes: it keeps the grid, the picks and the standings for people who already know each other. Whether a pool carries any stake, and whether that is allowed where you are, is the host's responsibility.
Other guides: How Super Bowl squares work (and how to run a grid at the office) · How a pick'em pool is scored (NFL playoffs, bowl games, any bracket) · How squares numbers are drawn, and why the draw comes after the lock · Which squares numbers win most often, and why it does not matter before the draw · Pick'em tiebreaker rules that actually settle a tie · Confidence pools and weighted pick'em: how to make later rounds count more · Survivor pool rules (last one standing), written down · March Madness office pool: bracket or pick'em, and how to run it by round · Is an office pool legal? What it depends on · Squares for any game: college football, the World Cup final, the Grey Cup, a cup final · How many people do you need for a squares pool · Running an office pool for a remote or hybrid team · Office pool rules: what to write down before the first game
Bikoosh Pools is an independent tool, not affiliated with any league, team or broadcaster; team and event names are used to describe the game being followed. Bikoosh Pools never collects, holds or pays out money and never sets stakes: it keeps the grid, the picks and the standings for people who already know each other. Whether a pool carries any stake, and whether that is allowed where you are, is the host's responsibility.