In-Site OR Online Hackathon? Which is better? Why?

Of course if you read my last article you want to finally participate in a Hackathon but thinking "Do I participate in a in-site or online Hackathon?", that's in general.

In-Site Hackathon

The on-site Hackathon invites participants to an actual physical site where team members sit together through the entire span of the event to come up with solutions and discussions. Needless to say, onsite Hackathon challenge require the most amount of planning and logistics among all other modes of engagement. Right from booking a spacious place to arranging food for all participants, onsite hackathons need months of planning and spotless execution to create an atmosphere that encourages ideation and innovation, so might be a little work to get it ready, but's it's so much fun!

Online Hackathons

Online Hackathons are digital events that use the World Wide Web to engage participants across the globe, without any travel barriers. Most organizations use a partner platform to conduct an online Hackathon. Virtual Hackathon platforms allow a certain degree of automation in the process, making it less burdensome for the organizers.

Online Hackathon give organizations the freedom to spend more on marketing and prizes as the event travel costs are not very high. They also enjoy the prerogative to run for a longer duration and hence may result in better quality solutions.

Okay, what about the "Hybrid" Hackathon?

As the name suggests, hybrid Hackathons are a mix of part in-site and part online Hackathons. Most organizations choose to conduct the first few stages in the online mode, and then the final presentations of the product prototype are on-site at a chosen venue.

While both on-site and online Hackathons have their pros and cons, a hybrid Hackathon allows organizations to achieve their objectives through the right mode, with the right intensity.

Usually of longer duration than both on-site and online Hackathons, hybrid Hackathons are less capital intensive than on-site Hackathons as only a few chosen teams are hosted at the venue. They pack all the advantages of both kinds of Hackathons.