Choosing Camp Management Software: A 12-Point Checklist

The core four

Any platform worth evaluating covers four basics: a live roster (campers and staff, with groups and assignments), a schedule everyone can see on their phone, health and incident logging, and staff messaging. If a tool misses one of these, you'll end up running a second system alongside it, which is how camps drift back to spreadsheets.

The eight that separate the field

Beyond the basics, score candidates on: offline support (does the roster load at the waterfront?), role-based access (can a counselor see only their group?), PII protection for minors, transportation and vehicle logs, expense and receipt handling, photo workflows with consent controls, push notifications that actually arrive, and native mobile apps rather than a squeezed-down website.

Ask every vendor the same question: 'Show me what a counselor sees on a phone with one bar of signal.' The demo answers more than any feature list.

Questions for the vendor

How is data encrypted, and who can export it? What happens to our data when we leave? How fast is setup for a new season, hours or weeks? Is pricing per camper, per staff, or flat? A vendor who answers these plainly is telling you what support will feel like in July.