DebateClock works on iPhone, Android, and any browser. It supports Lincoln-Douglas, Policy, and Public Forum with correct shared prep pool tracking. DebateClock runs in most modern browsers — iPhone included — and handles shared prep pools natively.
Debatekeeper is a well-built open-source app and it's been the default debate timer on Android for years. If you're on Android and judging international formats like British Parliamentary or Australs, it does the job. But two issues come up often enough in debate communities that they're worth naming:
1. There is no iOS version. Judges with iPhones can't install it. The project is maintained for Android only, and there's no public roadmap for iOS. This isn't a criticism of the maintainer — it's just how it is. iPhone judges need a browser-based alternative.
2. It explicitly does not support Lincoln-Douglas, Policy, or Public Forum. This one surprises US judges. The project's own documentation states it doesn't handle those formats because prep time in them is distributed at the teams' election — a shared pool each side draws from across the round, rather than a per-speech countdown.
That leaves Android users in the US running Policy or LD with the timer in a fallback mode and tracking prep on paper, or using a separate stopwatch for the pool.
Beyond iOS and US formats, there is a third format Debatekeeper explicitly does not support: British Parliamentary High School. BP High School uses 5-minute speeches and a different POI window (0:30–4:30) compared to the standard 7-minute university format. Debatekeeper's documentation notes this variant is not supported.
DebateClock has a dedicated BP High School preset with the correct 5-minute speech times and POI window, loaded automatically when you select the format.
This table is based on Debatekeeper's public documentation and GitHub repository. Last verified April 2026.
| Feature | DebateClock | Debatekeeper |
|---|---|---|
| Platform | Any browser (iPhone, Android, laptop, tablet) | Android only |
| iPhone / iOS support | ✓ Yes | ✗ No |
| No install required | ✓ Yes — open link in browser | ✗ Requires APK install |
| Lincoln-Douglas (LD) | ✓ Full prep pool support | ✗ Not supported |
| Policy (CX) | ✓ Full prep pool support | ✗ Not supported |
| Public Forum (PF) | ✓ Full prep pool support | ✗ Not supported |
| Parliamentary (APDA) | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| British Parliamentary (University) | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| British Parliamentary (High School) | ✓ Yes — 5 min speeches, correct POI window | ✗ Not supported per documentation |
| World Schools (WSDC) | ✓ Automatic POI signal min 1–7 | ✓ Yes |
| Asian Parliamentary | ✓ Automatic POI signal min 1–6 | ✓ Yes |
| Canadian Parliamentary (CUSID) | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Shared prep time pool (LD/Policy/PF) | ✓ Cumulative pool, carries forward | ✗ Not supported |
| Two-device sync (judge + debater display) | ✓ Real-time, any two devices | ✗ Single device only |
| POI window signal on debater display | ✓ Automatic amber badge | ✗ No debater display |
| Debater display (full-screen countdown) | ✓ Separate screen, read-only | ✗ No |
| QR code room join | ✓ Yes | ✗ No |
| No signup or account required | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Free | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Custom format builder | Coming soon | ✓ XML format files |
| Offline operation | Partial (timer works, sync needs connection) | ✓ Fully offline |
| Motion generator | ✓ 150+ real motions, filter by format | ✗ No |
| Practice tools | ✓ Extemp prep room, round logger, flow timer | ✗ No |
Last verified April 2026. Debatekeeper's format support is described in its official documentation.
No migration needed. There's nothing to export or import — Debatekeeper stores settings locally on your Android device, and DebateClock has no account system at all. Each round is an ephemeral session.
Practical setup takes under a minute:
If you want the debater to have their own display device, tap COPY in the top-right to send them the room link, or have them scan the QR code shown in the sidebar. Their screen shows a large countdown that matches whatever you do on the judge side.
Full prep pool support for LD, Policy, and PF. Works on most phones, tablets, and laptops with a modern browser.