Platform comparison
Swimly vs TeamUnify
TeamUnify (now part of SportsEngine) is a powerful enterprise platform that partners with Swim England and Scottish Swimming. But enterprise power comes with enterprise complexity, and a price tag to match. Swimly takes a different approach entirely.
30 min
setup time
UK
first design
No
enterprise overhead
Why we're building Swimly
Most UK swim clubs aren't enterprises. They're volunteer-run organisations where a parent juggles membership admin between the school run and work. They don't need software designed for national governing bodies and professional sports organisations.
We're developers who volunteer at our local swim clubs. We've lived the pain of enterprise platforms that require dedicated onboarding teams, US-centric systems where age handling breaks for UK meets, and "contact us for pricing" that blows a volunteer club's budget. Swimly is the modern, UK-first alternative, built to ship fast, iterate quickly, and stay laser-focused on what volunteer-run clubs actually need.
Feature comparison
| Feature | Swimly | TeamUnify |
|---|---|---|
| Membership Management | Member database with family grouping & squads | Comprehensive member database & CRM |
| Payment Automation | Direct Debit via Stripe, fully automated | Automated payment requests via email |
| Attendance Tracking | Quick check-in/out system | Attendance with makeup credit system |
| Parent Portal | Mobile-first web portal, works poolside | Dashboard and mobile app |
| Swim England Integration | Membership sync Coming soon | Official Swim England partner |
| British Swimming Rankings | Rankings integration On roadmap | Limited UK rankings support |
| Meet Management | Gala entries, results and personal bests, with Hy-Tek and SportSystems import | Advanced meet entry & management |
| UK Age Handling | Built for UK age-at-date rules | US-centric age group system |
| Pricing | Transparent from £29/mo | Enterprise pricing (contact required) |
| Setup Time | 30 minutes, self-service | Enterprise onboarding required |
See what a modern platform looks like
Built for the way committees actually work: quick glances on phones between sessions, and proper admin on laptops when you have time.
Club dashboard
Everything your committee needs at a glance: member counts, upcoming sessions, billing status, and compliance alerts. No clicking through five menus to find what matters.
- Real-time member and payment stats
- Upcoming sessions and attendance
- Compliance and DBS expiry warnings
Automated billing
Direct Debit via Stripe means fees collect themselves. The Treasurer sees who has paid, who hasn't, and what failed, all without opening a spreadsheet.
- One-click Direct Debit setup
- Automatic retry on failed payments
- Clear payment status dashboard
Works poolside on your phone
Coaches take attendance on their phone at 6am. Parents check balances in the car park. Committee members approve things on the train. Swimly is designed for real life, not just office desks.
No app download needed
Works in any mobile browser. Add to home screen for an app-like experience.
Offline-friendly attendance
Mark attendance even with patchy poolside WiFi. Syncs when reconnected.
Why choose Swimly over TeamUnify?
Four reasons clubs are making the switch.
No enterprise overhead for volunteer clubs
TeamUnify is built for national governing bodies and professional organisations. Your 120-member club in Guildford doesn't need enterprise onboarding, a dedicated account manager, or "contact us for pricing". You need software that just works.
Built for the UK, not retrofitted
TeamUnify was built for American swimming. UK clubs hit friction with US-centric age group handling that doesn't match how British meets work, terminology that doesn't translate, and features designed around the American swim season structure.
Direct Debit, not payment requests
TeamUnify sends payment requests that parents can ignore. Swimly uses Bacs Direct Debit through Stripe. Set it up once and subscriptions are collected automatically. No more chasing payments.
We ship faster than legacy incumbents
Swimly is built on a modern tech stack by developers who move fast. While enterprise platforms take months to roll out features, we iterate weekly based on what UK clubs actually tell us they need.
What we're building
We ship fast. Here's what's on the roadmap.
Core platform
Member management, squad organisation, automated Direct Debit billing, session scheduling, attendance tracking, and mobile-first parent portal.
Swim England integration
Automated membership registration and renewal sync. No more manual data entry across two systems.
Meet management
Gala entries, event management, results and automatic personal bests, built around how UK meets actually work, not the American system. Import from Hy-Tek and SportSystems, and export as HY3 or CSV.
British Swimming rankings
Pull in rankings data automatically so coaches and parents can track progression without leaving Swimly.
When might TeamUnify be better?
We believe in being honest. TeamUnify may be the better choice if:
- • You depend on Lenex or SDIF meet files, or automated British Swimming rankings, which Swimly does not yet support (Swimly handles gala entries and results with Hy-Tek and SportSystems import)
- • Your club is large enough to justify enterprise onboarding and you want an official Swim England technology partner
- • You compete internationally and need multi-country support beyond the UK
Comparing other platforms?
See how Swimly compares to all the top UK swim club software options in one place.
View full comparison guide →Ready for swim club software that respects your time?
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