Karate score counter · Free · No sign-up
Karate Score Counter
A karate score counter adds each athlete’s yuko (1), waza-ari (2) and ippon (3) on a kumite bout clock. This one follows the 2026 WKF rules: it gives senshu to the first unopposed score, ends the bout at an 8-point lead, takes senshu away for avoiding combat in the last 15 seconds, and decides a level bout in the rules’ order.
Free, no sign-up, works offline, and nothing leaves this browser.
Aka 0 – 0 Ao
Tap Hajime at shobu hajime. The first unopposed score takes senshu, and a lead of 8 points ends the bout.
If time ran out now: hantei, a vote of the judges.
Bout of 3 min, elimination; lead of 8 ends it; WKF rules 2026
| Athlete | Points | Ippon | Waza-ari | Yuko | Warning |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aka | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | None |
| Ao | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | None |
| Clock | Athlete | What |
|---|---|---|
| Nothing yet: scores, senshu and warnings appear here with the bout time. | ||
Tap Hajime at the referee’s call and Yame when the referee stops the bout; the clock counts down and stops by itself at every score, as it does when two judges signal one. Tap a score or a warning under the athlete it is given to. Avoiding combat is the warning for jogai, running away, clinching, grabbing, wrestling, pushing or standing chest to chest: in the last 15 seconds it costs senshu. If both athletes scored in one exchange, or a video review finds the other scored too, tap both scores, then Senshu torimasen. Ctrl+Z undoes.
This keeps the scoreboard; it does not referee. It cannot see whether a technique met the six scoring criteria, judge control or contact, or review a call on video: the score and the warning are whatever you tap. It does not model kiken, shikkaku, the judges’ flags one by one, medical time, a double disqualification, or the fixed results that disqualification gives in team and round-robin bouts (8–0 and 4–0). Built for kumite under the WKF Kumite Competition Rules of 2026; other karate bodies score differently (shobu ippon, knockdown), and kata is judged by votes, not points. It is not an official scoreboard.
Adding up is the easy part. A kumite scoreboard has to know who has senshu, when it is taken away and when no one can have it, that a level bout with no senshu goes to the athlete with more ippon and then more waza-ari before the judges vote, and that an 8-point lead ends it. This counter does.
Kumite is the sparring discipline of karate, in which two athletes, aka (red) and ao (blue), score controlled punches, strikes and kicks under the rules of the World Karate Federation. A bout lasts three minutes for seniors and is won on points, by an 8-point lead, on senshu, or by hantei.
- No sign-up
- No ads
- Counts never leave your browser
- Works offline
- Unlimited counters
Key facts
| Detail | Answer |
|---|---|
| Price | Free, no sign-up, no ads |
| Rules | WKF Kumite Competition Rules, version 2026.01 |
| Bout clock | 3:00, 2:00 or 1:30, counting down; stops at yame and at every score |
| Scores | Yuko 1, waza-ari 2, ippon 3, each counted as well as the total |
| 8-point lead | Ends the bout the moment it is reached |
| Senshu | To the first unopposed score, by itself; withdrawn with one key |
| Last 15 seconds | Avoiding combat is hansoku chui at least and costs senshu |
| Level at time up | Senshu, then more ippon, then more waza-ari, then hantei or hikiwake |
| Warnings | Chui 1 to 3, hansoku chui, hansoku: one ladder |
| Passivity | Shown as off in the first and last 15 s and for the athlete ahead |
| Where data goes | Nowhere. Local storage in this browser only |
| Official record | No. It records what you tap and does not referee |
How to keep score in karate kumite with the counter
Set the bout up once, then tap what the referee gives.
Set the bout up
Bout time for the age group, elimination or round robin, and the names of aka and ao.
Tap Hajime
At shobu hajime. The clock counts down; tap Yame when the referee stops the bout.
Tap each score
Yuko, Waza-ari or Ippon under the athlete who scored. The clock stops, and the first unanswered score takes senshu.
Tap each warning
Chui, Hansoku chui, or Avoiding combat for jogai, running away or clinching. The fifth step is hansoku.
Withdraw senshu if needed
If both scored in one exchange, or a video review finds the other scored too, tap both scores, then Senshu torimasen.
Let time run out
The counter gives the result in the rules’ order, or asks for the hantei vote.
Where a karate score counter gets used
Any dojo, club competition or grading with no electronic scoreboard.
Club competitions
Points, senshu, warnings and the bout clock, kept on a phone or tablet at the side of the tatami.
Coaches
Who holds senshu, how many warnings each athlete carries, and whether a level bout goes to ippon, waza-ari or the vote.
Kumite practice
Three-minute rounds scored to competition rules, so athletes learn what the last 15 seconds cost.
Referees and judges in training
A second board to check the senshu calls and the decision order against.
Watching on streams
Why a level bout went to one athlete with no vote, and why senshu disappeared with seconds left.
Parents at junior events
Two-minute and 1.5-minute bouts, with the result explained as it happens.
How a karate kumite bout is decided: the 8-point lead, senshu, then ippon
Kumite scores in three values, by the technique and where it lands (Article 8.6). A score needs at least two of the four judges to signal it, and the clock stops when they do.
| Score | Points | Awarded for |
|---|---|---|
| Yuko | 1 | Tsuki (a straight punch) or uchi (a strike) to a scoring area |
| Waza-ari | 2 | A chudan kick: to the body |
| Ippon | 3 | A jodan kick (to the head or neck), or any hand technique on an opponent with any part of the body other than the feet on the mat |
Adding those up is the part every scoreboard does. What decides the bout is a fixed order, and it has more steps than “most points, then the judges”:
| Step | Rule | Article |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | A lead of 8 points or more ends the bout at once | 7.7 |
| 2 | Hansoku, kiken or shikkaku against one athlete: the other wins, whatever the score | 12.2.1 |
| 3 | At time up, more points wins | 7.8 |
| 4 | Points level: senshu, the first unopposed score, wins | 12.2.1 |
| 5 | No senshu: more ippon wins, then more waza-ari | 12.2.3 |
| 6 | Still level: hantei, a majority vote of the four judges and the referee; in round-robin and team bouts, hikiwake (a draw) | 12.2.4 |
Step 5 is the one most answers leave out. A level bout with no senshu does not go straight to the judges’ flags: one ippon outweighs three yuko on the same score, and the vote comes only when the ippon and waza-ari are level as well. The counter’s “If time ran out now” line applies the whole order as you tap.
| Aka | Ao | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 4 (yuko first) | 3 | Aka on points |
| 3, senshu | 3 | Aka on senshu |
| 3 (one ippon) | 3 (three yuko) | No senshu (withdrawn): Aka on ippon |
| 4 (two waza-ari) | 4 (one waza-ari, two yuko) | No senshu: Aka on waza-ari |
| 2 (two yuko) | 2 (two yuko) | No senshu: hantei |
| 9 | 1 | Aka by an 8-point lead, the moment the ninth point is scored |
What changed in 2026
The WKF’s December 2025 rules bulletin calls the most important kumite change this one: “only hand techniques will be allowed towards a downed opponent. Kicking a downed opponent will thus be a foul.” So the ippon on a downed opponent is a hand technique now, and an answer that gives ippon for “any scoring technique to a grounded opponent” describes the old rule. The bulletin also allows skin touch to the head in every kumite category, enforces the rule that an athlete who turns away or falls after a technique does not score, simplifies jogai (no jogai for an athlete who scores and then steps out, or who is scored on while out), and has the coach press a button for 1, 2 or 3 points when asking for a video review.
Senshu: when it is awarded, and when it is taken away
“By first unopposed score advantage (SENSHU), it is understood that one Athlete has achieved the first instance of scoring on the opponent without having the opponent also score before the signal” (Article 12.2.2). It decides a bout level on points at time up, before anything else. Senshu is not permanent, though, and the rules for losing it are where a scoreboard that just shows a lamp goes wrong.
| Situation | Senshu | Article |
|---|---|---|
| The first score of the bout, unanswered | To the scorer | 12.2.2 |
| Both score in the same exchange | No one; both can still take it later | 12.2.2 |
| A video review finds the opponent also scored | Withdrawn (torimasen) | 12.2.9 |
| The holder is warned for avoiding combat with under 15 seconds left | Lost automatically, and the warning is hansoku chui at least | 12.2.8, 10.4.16 |
| Senshu withdrawn with under 15 seconds left | No one can be awarded it for the rest of the bout | 12.2.10 |
| Withdrawn earlier in the bout | The next unopposed score takes it | 12.2.10 |
“Avoiding combat” here means the list in Article 12.2.8: jogai, running away, clinching, grabbing, wrestling, pushing or standing chest to chest. That is why the last 15 seconds are announced. The timekeeper gives one short buzz at “15 seconds to go” (ato shibaraku) and two at time up, and from the first buzz an athlete protecting senshu by stepping out or holding on gives it away.
The counter does each row by itself. The first unanswered score takes senshu; Senshu torimasen withdraws it for a double score or a video review; Avoiding combat in the last 15 seconds raises the warning to hansoku chui and takes senshu from its holder; and once senshu goes in the last 15 seconds, both panels read “Senshu closed” and no later score takes it.
Passivity is not the same thing
Passivity, not attempting to fight, is a different warning. It cannot be given in the first 15 seconds of a bout or the last 15, or to an athlete ahead on points or senshu (Article 9.1.1), and the referee must first call tsuzukete as an informal warning. The counter’s lead line says when passivity is off, and for whom.
What the other scoreboards do
TaekwondoKing’s browser karate scoreboard, checked on 2026-10-10, has +1, +2 and +3 keys, a penalty key and a timer for each side; it has no senshu control, and its FAQ says a tied bout with no points goes to hantei. Colosseum Data’s WKF kumite board shows senshu and warning boxes, and its page does not say how either is set. Neither says anything about losing senshu in the last 15 seconds or deciding a level bout on ippon and waza-ari.
Warnings and penalties: one ladder from chui to hansoku
The 2026 rules have two official warnings and two penalties, on one ladder (Article 10). There are no separate categories.
| Step | Sheet | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Chui (1st, 2nd, 3rd) | 1C, 2C, 3C | A warning, up to three times, for smaller infractions. No points to the opponent |
| Hansoku chui | HC | Warning of disqualification: for a more serious infraction, or any infraction after three chui |
| Hansoku | H | Disqualification from the bout: a very serious infraction, or any after hansoku chui. The opponent wins |
| Shikkaku | S | Disqualification from the whole tournament, for disobeying the referee, malice, or harming the prestige of karate |
Many explanations still describe two categories, C1 for excessive contact and C2 for prohibited behaviour, each with its own ladder. That is how the rules used to work, and some scoreboard apps still keep a C1 and a C2 row. The 2026 text has one ladder and the scoresheet symbols 1C, 2C, 3C, HC, H and S (Article 12.6). A referee may also go straight to hansoku chui or hansoku for something serious enough, which is what the counter’s Hansoku chui key is for: it jumps to hansoku chui, or to hansoku if hansoku chui was already given.
| Category | Bout time |
|---|---|
| Seniors, men and women | 3 minutes |
| Under 21 | 3 minutes |
| Cadets and juniors | 2 minutes |
| Under 14 | 1.5 minutes |
That is effective time: the clock stops at every yame and every score, so a three-minute bout takes longer on a wall clock. At open tournaments the organiser may shorten elimination bouts from 3 minutes to 2 and from 2 to 1.5, if it is announced to coaches and officials beforehand (Article 5.2). Each athlete is entitled to a rest between bouts as long as a bout.
Team and round-robin bouts
In a round-robin or team bout a level result with nothing to separate it is hikiwake, a draw, rather than hantei; set A level bout to round robin or team and the counter does that. Hantei is used in team competition only for an extra bout to break a tied match. A team match is won on bout victories, those won by senshu included, and then on points.
Sources: the World Karate Federation, Kumite Competition Rules, version 2026.01, valid from 1 January 2026 (read in the copy the Finnish Karate Federation hosts; Articles 5, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 12), and the WKF Competition Rules Bulletin of December 2025.
Online counter vs a clicker, an app, paper and a spreadsheet
Every counting method trades something away. This is what each one actually costs you.
| Feature | This online counter | Handheld clicker | Counter phone app | Pen and paper | Spreadsheet |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free | $5–$15 | Free with ads, or paid | Cost of paper | Subscription |
| Anything to install | No | Buy the device | App store download | No | Yes, or a web login |
| Several counts at once | Unlimited | One per device | Usually limited | Yes, messy | Yes |
| Fix a miscount | Undo and redo | Start over | Sometimes | Cross it out | Edit the cell |
| Counts by more than one | Any step size | One at a time | Sometimes | Manual maths | Yes |
| Below zero | Yes | No | Rarely | Yes | Yes |
| Keeps the count if you close it | Saves automatically | Until you reset the dial | Yes | If you keep the paper | Yes |
| Works with no signal | Yes, after first load | Yes | Yes | Yes | Often not |
| Keyboard and shortcuts | Full | None | None | None | Partial |
| Sends your data anywhere | Never | Never | Often, for accounts and ads | Never | Yes, to the cloud |
Other counter types
The same counter, set up and explained for a specific job. Your counters are shared across all of them.
Everyday6
The general-purpose counters: one number, many numbers, or counting on a timer.
Online counter
The all-purpose counter. Any step size, any number of counters, negative values allowed.
Open online counter →Tally counter
Tally marks in groups of five for surveys, stock takes and wildlife counts.
Open tally counter →Click counter
A browser clicker that replaces the handheld thumb counter for door headcounts.
Open click counter →Multi counter
Run as many counters as you like at once, side by side in a grid.
Open multi counter →Auto counter
Counts on its own from every 0.1 seconds to once an hour, and stops at your limit.
Open auto counter →Yes/No counter
Two options, a live percentage, and the sample size and caveats the percentage needs.
Open yes/no counter →
Sport & scores27
Scoreboards that know the rules of their game, not just two numbers that go up.
Score counter
A scoreboard for cards, darts and board games. One counter per player, negatives allowed.
Open score counter →Pitch counter
Count pitches, then get the rest days owed and the next eligible date.
Open pitch counter →Golf scorecard
Strokes per hole with the course handicap allocated by stroke index, net and Stableford.
Open golf scorecard →Badminton score counter
Rally scoring with the service court and doubles positions, for 3x21 and the 2027 3x15 system.
Open badminton score counter →Pickleball score counter
The 0-0-2 call with the right server and side, in side-out or 2026 rally scoring.
Open pickleball score counter →Squash score counter
Point-a-rally to 11 with the server, the service box, hand out and lets.
Open squash score counter →Penalty shootout counter
Five kicks each that stop the moment a team cannot catch up, then sudden death.
Open penalty shootout counter →Basketball score counter
Points by period with team fouls and the bonus as FIBA, NBA, NCAA or high school count them.
Open basketball score counter →Baseball score counter
Balls, strikes, outs and the line score, with foul bunts, dropped third strikes and walk-offs.
Open baseball score counter →Cricket score counter
Runs, wickets and overs by legal balls, with wides, no-balls, free hits and the chase.
Open cricket score counter →American football score counter
Touchdowns and the try at each level, with NFL, college and high school overtime rules.
Open american football score counter →Boxing score counter
Three judges' 10-point must cards and the verdict they give, split and majority draws included.
Open boxing score counter →Hockey score counter
Ice hockey goals and shots by period, with each league's overtime, shootout and standings points.
Open hockey score counter →Pool score counter
Straight pool with the breaking foul and three-foul penalties, and 8-ball, 9-ball and 10-ball races.
Open pool score counter →Rugby score counter
Union, sevens and league points, conversions tied to tries, golden point and bonus points.
Open rugby score counter →Soccer score counter
Goals by minute, five subs in three windows, second yellows, extra time and aggregate.
Open soccer score counter →Table tennis score counter
Games to 11 with the server named, doubles order, the swap at 5 and the expedite system.
Open table tennis score counter →Tennis score counter
Love to game with the server's court, every change of ends, tie-breaks and doubles order.
Open tennis score counter →Padel score counter
The 2026 Star Point, golden point or advantage, who serves and receives, and every change of sides.
Open padel score counter →Volleyball score counter
Rally scoring with the six-position rotation, the next server, time-outs, subs and beach mode.
Open volleyball score counter →Americano padel score counter
Rotating partners for 4 to 16 players, matches to a points total, and every player's running total.
Open americano padel score counter →Field hockey score counter
Goals by minute, a clock that stops, card timers in playing time, the 2026 card rules and shoot-outs.
Open field hockey score counter →Free throw counter
Make or miss, the percentage with its likely range, runs of makes, sets and make-50 goals.
Open free throw counter →Futsal score counter
Accumulated fouls per half with the 10 m kick, timeouts, a stopped clock and the red card timer.
Open futsal score counter →Handball score counter
2-minute suspensions a goal does not end, the third a red card, three warnings and team time-outs.
Open handball score counter →Judo score counter
The 2026 IJF rules: yuko back, a hold timer that scores itself, shido that never decide, golden score.
Open judo score counter →Kabaddi score counter
Players on court kept for you: revival in order, all outs, the bonus line, super tackle, do-or-die.
Open kabaddi score counter →
Fitness & health6
Reps, laps, breaths and daily habits, where the count is part of the activity.
Lap counter
Count pool lengths, track laps and treadmill intervals without losing your place.
Open lap counter →Rep counter
Track reps and sets during a lifting session, with a step size for supersets.
Open rep counter →Click speed test
Measure your clicks per second over 1 to 60 seconds, with your personal best kept on-device.
Open click speed test →Habit counter
Count toward a daily target and keep the streak, with a day boundary you choose.
Open habit counter →Breath counter
Count breaths one to ten for meditation, with lost count recorded, or time breaths per minute.
Open breath counter →Craving tracker
Time each urge, rate it 1 to 10, and log whether you rode it out or acted on it.
Open craving tracker →
Work & field5
Counting that produces a record someone else relies on: stock, occupancy, lab work.
Differential counter
Six keys for a manual white cell differential, with an auto-stop and live percentages.
Open differential counter →People counter
In and out at a door, with live occupancy against a capacity and a fix for drift.
Open people counter →Bird counter
A row per species recording the high count, so a circling flock is not counted twice.
Open bird counter →Inventory counter
A count sheet holding the book quantity beside the counted one, with the variance per line.
Open inventory counter →Knitting counter
Rows, pattern repeats and a shaping schedule that names the increase rows and then ends.
Open knitting counter →
Faith2
Counts with their own rules about when a day turns over and what completes a set.
Frequently asked questions
What is senshu in karate?
Senshu is the first unopposed score advantage: the athlete who scores first, without the opponent also scoring in the same exchange, holds it. If the scores are level at time up, senshu wins the bout. It is withdrawn if a video review finds the opponent scored too, and lost by a holder warned for avoiding combat in the last 15 seconds.
How is a tie decided in karate kumite?
If the points are level at time up, senshu decides it. With no senshu, the athlete with more ippon wins, then the one with more waza-ari (WKF Article 12.2.3). Only if those are level too does it go to hantei, a majority vote of the four judges and the referee. In round-robin and team bouts the result is then hikiwake, a draw.
How does karate scoring work?
In WKF kumite a yuko, worth 1 point, is a punch or strike to a scoring area; a waza-ari, 2 points, is a kick to the body; an ippon, 3 points, is a kick to the head or neck, or a hand technique on an opponent who is down. At least two judges must signal a score. The athlete with more points at time up wins.
What is the 8 point rule in karate?
Under WKF kumite rules a bout ends at once when one athlete leads by 8 points or more (Article 7.7). It does not wait for time: the referee declares the winner as soon as the score that makes the gap is awarded. In team matches, a disqualified athlete’s opponent is given 8 points and the offender’s score is set to zero.
Can you lose senshu in karate?
Yes, in two ways. A holder warned for avoiding combat in the last 15 seconds, for jogai, running away, clinching, grabbing, wrestling, pushing or standing chest to chest, forfeits it automatically. And a video review that finds the opponent also scored withdraws it. If senshu is withdrawn with less than 15 seconds left, neither athlete can be awarded it again.
What are the penalties in karate kumite?
Under the 2026 WKF rules there is one ladder: chui up to three times, then hansoku chui, a warning of disqualification, then hansoku, disqualification from the bout, so the opponent wins. Shikkaku is disqualification from the whole tournament. Warnings give the opponent no points. The older split into category 1 and category 2 penalties is no longer in the rules.
Can you kick a downed opponent in karate?
Not any more. From 1 January 2026 the WKF allows only hand techniques towards a downed opponent, and kicking one is a foul. A hand technique on an opponent with any part of the body other than the feet on the mat scores ippon, 3 points (Article 8.6). The rule excepts hiza gamae: “one knee touching the mat while executing a technique”.
How long is a karate kumite match?
Three minutes of effective time for seniors and under-21s, two minutes for cadets and juniors, and one and a half for under-14s, under the 2026 WKF rules. The clock stops at every yame and every score, so a bout takes longer than that on a wall clock. Open tournaments may shorten elimination bouts if they announce it beforehand.
Is this an official karate scoreboard?
No. It is a score counter for clubs, coaches, referees in training and anyone following a bout. It keeps the points, senshu, warnings and clock in this browser and sends nothing anywhere. It cannot see the tatami or judge a technique, and it records whatever you tap, so the referee panel’s decision is always the one that counts.
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Longer answers to the questions behind the counting.
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Groups of five, the five-bar gate, and why the convention has survived for centuries.
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- Reference
Types of counters explained
Synchronous vs asynchronous, mod-N, ring and Johnson, plus mechanical and software counters.
- Build it
How to make a counter
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- Dhikr
One tasbeeh is equal to how many?
The same phrase means a count of a hundred, a bead loop, a single dhikr, or the set after salah. Which one is meant, and when.
- Haematology
How to do a manual differential count
Why the pattern matters, how many cells is enough, and the imprecision built into the method itself.
- Birding
How to count a flock of birds
Blocks, tens, and why the number to report is the most seen at one time.
- Knitting
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Every 4th row, alt rows, at each end, AT THE SAME TIME — translated, with the rows they land on.
- Golf
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Stroke index, strokes received, net score, points — in the order you actually need them.
- Surveys
How many people do you need to survey?
Why 385 answers a city and 45 answers a club, and the margin each sample size buys.
- Rules
Futsal rule changes 2025-26
Penalty-kick fouls stop counting, the dropped ball follows possession, and the 8-second rule is not futsal's.
- Rules
Handball timekeeper and scorekeeper
The clock, the suspension cards, the green card, the whistle that stops play, and the three attacks after an injury.
- Rules
Hockey rule changes from 1 November 2026
No second green or yellow, coaches' cards that cost a player, and what is not new since March.
- Training
Reps and sets explained
What 10 reps and 3x10 mean, where 3 sets of 10 came from, and what the 2026 ACSM review changed.