How Envelope works
Envelope runs an award-show pool in three steps: create a pool for a ceremony, share a join code with friends, and watch a live leaderboard update as each winner is announced. It’s free, works in any browser, and nobody needs an account.
Updated July 2026
Three steps, zero friction
The whole flow was designed around one rule: if it takes longer than a commercial break, it’s too long.
Create your pool
Pick a ceremony on the start page, name your pool, and choose a scoring preset: flat points or weighted so the marquee envelopes count more. That’s the whole setup. No account creation, no email verification, no onboarding carousel explaining what an award show is. It’s faster than a cold open.
Share one code
Your pool gets a short join code and a link. Drop it in the group chat and friends are in within seconds: phone, laptop, or the tablet someone’s aunt refuses to update. Everyone picks a name and an emoji, fills out their ballot, and picks lock at showtime. Sealed like the real envelopes: no take-backs, no “I meant to change that.”
Watch the leaderboard live
As each winner is confirmed during the broadcast, every ballot is scored automatically and the leaderboard reshuffles in real time. Lead changes hit different when they happen on a second screen mid-speech. It turns the deep craft categories into playoff moments. When the last envelope opens, the pool crowns a champion and hands out superlatives. Winner picks the next movie night.
What the host controls
The pool creator is the showrunner: they pick the scoring preset, can adjust it any time before ballots seal, and confirms winners as the envelopes open (with big-screen mode for parties that put the leaderboard on the TV). Everyone else just picks and heckles. Which, let’s be honest, is the role most of us were born to play.
Quick questions
Do my friends need accounts?
No. They tap your link or enter the code, pick a display name and emoji, and they’re in. The whole point is that joining takes less time than the red-carpet small talk.
Is it actually free?
Yes. Pools, ballots, leaderboards, and all the printable tools are free. Envelope never collects, holds, or moves money either. It’s a scoreboard, not a cashier. What your pool plays for is entirely up to you and your friends.
What if someone joins after the show starts?
Ballots seal at the host’s cutoff (usually showtime) so latecomers can watch the leaderboard and trash-talk, but can’t submit picks. Fair is fair: nobody gets to predict a winner who’s already holding the trophy.
Which ceremonies does it support?
The major televised award shows across TV, film, and music. See the season calendar for dates and current nominee status.
Roll the opening titles
Your first pool takes about two minutes to set up, less time than it takes a winner to get from their seat to the stage.