Calisto Pro vs RunSignUp & Active.com
RunSignUp handles registration. Active.com handles registration. Neither manages your race-day operations, volunteer coordination, or post-event marketing. Calisto does: timing, corrals, aid stations, volunteer management, and 19 native products from registration to results.
Registration tools vs. a complete race OS
Feature by feature
Feature-by-feature comparison with leading alternatives
| Feature | Calisto Pro | RunSignUp | Active.com |
|---|---|---|---|
| Online Registration & Ticketing | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Tiered Pricing (Early Bird, Day-Of) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Team & Group Registration | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Waiver & Consent Collection | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Results Posting & Search | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Race-Day Check-In & Bib Assignment | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Native Timing Dashboard | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Corral Management (Capacity, Wave Starts) | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Aid Station Operations (Supply, Staffing) | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Volunteer Coordination (Roster, Shifts, Check-In) | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Interactive Course Map with Markers | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Dynamic Pricing (7-Factor Algorithm) | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| 40+ Payment Gateways (Your Choice) | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Self-Service Runner Portal (Navigator) | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Omnichannel Messaging (WhatsApp, SMS, Email) | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Marketing Automation & Campaigns (Studio) | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Referral & Affiliate Program (Circle) | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| TV Display System (Leaderboards, Course Status) | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Digital Contracts & E-Signatures (Sign) | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| On-Site POS (Merch, Food, Expo) | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Staff Training LMS (University) | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Native VoIP Calling | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Compliance & Safety Inspections (Assure) | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Accounting Sync (QB, Xero, Alegra) | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| CRM with Universal Contact Record | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| No Monthly Fee (Pay Only on Sales) | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| 0% Platform Fee on Donations | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Live Predictive Tracking for Spectators | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Walk-Up Registration Kiosk | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Certificate Template Builder with Merge Tags | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| P2P Fundraising with Milestone Badges | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| BQ Indicator & PR Badge on Results | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Finish Photo & Video on Result Page | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Social Sharing of Individual Results | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Race Expo Floor Plan Designer | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Hotel Room Blocks & PMS Integration | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Video Conferencing for Virtual Briefings | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
Choose your processor. Not theirs.
RunSignUp takes a percentage of every registration. Active.com charges per-registrant processing fees. Calisto connects to 55+ payment gateways across 9 global regions. Your merchant account. Your rates. Keep more of every registration dollar.
Race-day operations. Included.
RunSignUp and Active.com stop at registration. Running a marathon requires timing, corrals, aid stations, volunteers, and course management that neither platform offers.
Race-Day Operations: Included
Registration platforms hand you a spreadsheet on race day. Calisto gives you a full operations dashboard with real-time timing, corral capacity tracking, wave start management, and live runner progress. Aid stations report supply levels. Course marshals check in via mobile. Everything connects to the same runner record.
- ✓Real-time timing dashboard with split tracking
- ✓Corral capacity management with wave start scheduling
- ✓Aid station supply tracking and staff assignment
- ✓Course map with live runner progress markers
Volunteer Management: Included
A 5,000-runner marathon needs 500+ volunteers. RunSignUp has basic volunteer signup. Active.com has none. Calisto provides full volunteer rostering with shift management, station assignment, mobile check-in, and automated communications. Volunteers get their own portal with shift details, maps, and messaging.
- ✓Volunteer roster with shift and station assignment
- ✓Mobile check-in for day-of attendance tracking
- ✓Automated communications and reminders
- ✓Volunteer portal with maps and shift details
Post-Race Marketing: Included
RunSignUp sends a results email. That is the end of their marketing. Calisto Studio gives you full marketing automation: post-race surveys, photo gallery notifications, early-bird campaigns for next year, referral programs for runners to invite friends, and segmented campaigns by finish time, age group, or distance. Turn every finisher into a returning runner.
- ✓Post-race surveys and photo gallery notifications
- ✓Early-bird registration campaigns for next year
- ✓Referral program for runners to invite friends
- ✓Segmented campaigns by finish time and distance
2% of revenue. Everything included.
RunSignUp charges processing fees per registration. Active.com takes a per-registrant technology fee plus processing. Calisto charges 2% of revenue with all 15 products included from day one. No per-registrant fees, no technology fees. You pay when you earn.
Switching questions
Yes. Calisto supports integration with major chip timing providers. The native timing dashboard displays real-time splits, handles DNF/DNS tracking, and publishes results automatically. You can use your existing timing hardware while gaining full race-day operations management.
Yes. The endurance vertical supports both solo events and multi-event series. Series standings aggregate automatically across events. Runners see their series progress in the Navigator portal. Series-wide marketing campaigns target participants across all events.
Calisto POS handles expo vendor sales, merchandise, and food concessions at race events. Revenue from expo booths, merch tents, and food vendors all flows into the same event financial summary. No separate POS system needed.
Each event in a series is priced individually. A 12-race series pays per event. Off-season months cost nothing. This aligns our pricing with your revenue calendar. And every event includes all 15 products: registration, timing, operations, POS, marketing, portals, and more.
Yes. Start for free with full access to all 15 products. No credit card required, no time limit, and no feature restrictions. You only pay the 2% revenue share once you begin processing transactions.
Because it makes us partners, not just a vendor. A fixed subscription means your software company gets paid whether you have a record month or an empty lobby. A revenue share means we are financially invested in building tools that actually grow your business. If you have a slow month or a seasonal closure, your bill scales down with you.