Race photo tagging software: why sport-specific wins
Race photo tagging software finds which participant is in each photo, so every runner, rider, swimmer or skier can find their own pictures by bib number or by selfie. Many tools can tag a photo. Fewer are built around what a sports event needs: numbers worn on a chest, a handlebar plate or a swim cap, faces behind helmets and goggles, many photographers uploading to one event, and participants who look for their photos on the event's own website.
First 5,000 photos free, all features, no card.
Four kinds of alternatives, and what each cannot do for a sports organizer
This page sets out the four kinds of alternatives a sports organizer meets, what each one cannot do for a race, and how a platform built only around sports events works.
Sports platforms without public prices
Full-service providers, with no self-service
Self-service, but hard to use
Generalist platforms
Why sport-specific wins
Recognition tuned for each sport
When you create an event, you pick its sport: running, cycling, swimming, triathlon, fitness, winter sports or motorsport. The event type tunes bib and face recognition for that sport, and it cannot be changed after the event is created.
Each sport has its own detection rules. In running, a number counts when it is pinned to a runner's chest, waist or back, not when it is on a sign, a timing board or a distance marker. In cycling, it can be on the jersey, the bike frame or the handlebar plate. In swimming, on the swim cap or written on the skin. In triathlon, in any leg of the race and in transition. Motorsport uses separate recognition, built for numbers on riders and their machines. Face matching is stricter in cycling, triathlon and winter sports, where helmets and goggles hide part of the face.
Built by sports event organizers
MyRun started as a tool for our own races. Its founder is a software architect and a race organizer: he built it so that the media team spent less time sorting photos and runners got their photos faster. Other organizers asked to use it, and it was rebuilt from the ground up as a platform for every sports event. It is the platform we wished we had.
Organized around events, not around photo studios
Everything in MyRun starts from an event: its sport, its albums, an upload link for every photographer, a Coming soon page that collects participants' emails before the photos are out, private access, watermarks and, if you decide to sell photos, prices. Photographers do not need an account: they upload through a link, by camera FTP or from a cloud folder. We are not a photo studio tool and we do not want to become one.
- Running
- Chest, waist or back. Not signs, timing boards or km markers.
- Cycling
- Jersey, bike frame, handlebar plate.
- Swimming
- Swim cap or written on the skin. Not lane numbers or buoys.
- Triathlon
- Any leg of the race and in transition.
- Motorsport
- Riders and machines, with recognition built for motorsport.
- Face match
- Stricter in cycling, triathlon and winter sports.
The four kinds compared with MyRun
| Sports platforms without public prices | Full-service providers | Self-service, hard to use | Generalist platforms | MyRun | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public price | No, by quote after a sales call | No, by contract | Usually public: licence or credit packs | Usually public, often a monthly plan | Yes, per photo on the pricing page; no subscription, no setup fee |
| Free tier | Not published | Not applicable: a contracted service | Often a trial or free credits | Usually a free plan with limits | First 5,000 photos free, all features, no card |
| Bib number reading | Usually yes | Yes, inside the provider's own workflow | Yes, results written to the files or a list | Varies: often not offered, or an add-on | Read from the photo, no special codes on the bib; detection rules for each sport; optional list of valid bib numbers |
| Selfie search | Varies | Varies, at some events | Rarely | Often, built for guest photos | Yes, switchable per album; stricter matching where helmets and goggles hide the face |
| Gallery on your own website | Varies | Usually no: the gallery is on the provider's site | No: you build delivery yourself | Varies: often a hosted page or your own domain | Two-line embed code for any website, gallery language per event; or a share link |
| Private events | Varies | Set by the provider | Not applicable: no participant gallery | Usually a password or an access code | Bib and date of birth, email, access code or selfie login; CSV import; VIP and restricted access |
| Photo sales and commission | Varies, terms by contract | The provider sells to participants; your share by contract | Not included | Usually a commission or a service fee on each sale | Optional, through your own Stripe account; 0% commission, only Stripe's fee |
| GDPR and data | Ask for the DPA and the data location | Photos and participant data are held by the provider | Files stay on your computer; delivery and its data are yours to handle | Varies by provider and data location | Event data stored and processed in EU regions only; DPA for every organizer; face templates deleted together with the photos |
| Who uploads | Your photographers or the provider's, varies | The provider's photographers | The photographer, on their own computer | Usually the photographer or the studio | Your team; external photographers through an upload link, no account needed; camera FTP; cloud folders |
- Sports platforms without public prices
- No, by quote after a sales call
- Full-service providers
- No, by contract
- Self-service, hard to use
- Usually public: licence or credit packs
- Generalist platforms
- Usually public, often a monthly plan
- Sports platforms without public prices
- Not published
- Full-service providers
- Not applicable: a contracted service
- Self-service, hard to use
- Often a trial or free credits
- Generalist platforms
- Usually a free plan with limits
- Sports platforms without public prices
- Usually yes
- Full-service providers
- Yes, inside the provider's own workflow
- Self-service, hard to use
- Yes, results written to the files or a list
- Generalist platforms
- Varies: often not offered, or an add-on
- Sports platforms without public prices
- Varies
- Full-service providers
- Varies, at some events
- Self-service, hard to use
- Rarely
- Generalist platforms
- Often, built for guest photos
- Sports platforms without public prices
- Varies
- Full-service providers
- Usually no: the gallery is on the provider's site
- Self-service, hard to use
- No: you build delivery yourself
- Generalist platforms
- Varies: often a hosted page or your own domain
- Sports platforms without public prices
- Varies
- Full-service providers
- Set by the provider
- Self-service, hard to use
- Not applicable: no participant gallery
- Generalist platforms
- Usually a password or an access code
- Sports platforms without public prices
- Varies, terms by contract
- Full-service providers
- The provider sells to participants; your share by contract
- Self-service, hard to use
- Not included
- Generalist platforms
- Usually a commission or a service fee on each sale
- Sports platforms without public prices
- Ask for the DPA and the data location
- Full-service providers
- Photos and participant data are held by the provider
- Self-service, hard to use
- Files stay on your computer; delivery and its data are yours to handle
- Generalist platforms
- Varies by provider and data location
- Sports platforms without public prices
- Your photographers or the provider's, varies
- Full-service providers
- The provider's photographers
- Self-service, hard to use
- The photographer, on their own computer
- Generalist platforms
- Usually the photographer or the studio
The four columns describe each kind of product in general. A given provider can differ on a row, so check its own pages before you decide.
Pricing that fits your event
The price per photo is public, and it drops as your volume grows. On top of that, we run discounts in some periods of the year, and for larger or unusual events we agree terms that fit: write to us before you buy. We also set aside a yearly budget for events that support social causes, charity runs and community races, with considerable discounts and, in some cases, the platform for free. If your event raises money or awareness for a cause, tell us about it at support@myrun.eu.
0% commission, by conviction
We are software people, and we charge for software: recognition and hosting, per photo, at a price published on the pricing page. What photographers earn is the result of their work, and the prices they set are their business. If you decide to sell photos, payments go to your own Stripe account. MyRun takes 0% commission; the only deduction is Stripe's standard processing fee.
Events that are not sports
Corporate events, festivals and gatherings work too, with the event type Other: participants find their photos with a selfie, and the timeline places the photos by the time they were taken. The rules written for each sport do not apply there. Our focus stays on sport.
What comes next
On our roadmap, without dates:
- More detailed event analytics
- Video processing built for each sport
- Other features that only make sense in sport
We announce each one when it is ready.
Questions
What is race photo tagging software?
Software that finds which participant is in each photo, by reading the bib number from the image or by matching a selfie, so every participant can search for their own photos. Some tools only write the numbers into the photo files. A platform also publishes the gallery, controls private access and, if you decide to sell photos, handles the sale.
Why does the sport matter for bib recognition?
Numbers are worn differently in each sport: on the chest in running, on the jersey, the frame or the handlebar plate in cycling, on the swim cap or the skin in swimming, on riders and machines in motorsport. In MyRun the event type sets the detection rules for that sport, so numbers on signs, timing boards and distance markers are left out, and face matching is stricter where helmets and goggles hide the face.
Do participants need special bibs?
No. The number is read from the photo, with no special codes printed on the bib. You can add the list of valid bib numbers for the cleanest results.
How much does it cost?
The first 5,000 photos are free: recognition and 12 months of hosting, with all features and no card. After that you pay per photo, bought in steps of 5,000: EUR 0.030 up to 19,999 photos, EUR 0.025 from 20,000 and EUR 0.022 from 50,000, each purchase with 12 months of hosting. There is no subscription and no setup fee. Some countries are billed in their own currency, and the pricing page shows the list that applies to you, with a cost estimator. We also run seasonal discounts, agree terms for larger or special events, and support events for social causes with considerable discounts or a free platform: write to support@myrun.eu.
Can participants find their photos on my own website?
Yes. The gallery goes on your site with a two-line embed code that works in any website builder, in the gallery language you choose for the event. You can also share a link to the gallery hosted by MyRun.
Does MyRun take a commission on photo sales?
No. Selling is optional: an album is sold only if you switch it to Monetized. If you decide to sell photos, payments go to your own Stripe account, MyRun takes 0% commission, and the only deduction is Stripe's standard processing fee.
Does it work for events that are not sports?
Yes. With the event type Other, participants find their photos by selfie and can browse the timeline. The detection rules written for each sport do not apply to those events, and the platform's focus stays on sport.
Try it with your last event's photos
The first 5,000 photos are free, with all features and no card. Create an event, pick the sport, upload, and participants can search for their photos minutes after upload, on your own website or through a share link.