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Time to iron your favorite jersey, slap some war paint on and dust off that foam finger: March Madness is about to begin! Whether you're an NCAA Basketball superfan or a casual bystander, everyone can get swept up in the magic and drama of the Big Dance. Of course, one of the best parts of the March Madness excitement is participating in a bracket challenge — by yourself or with a group of your friends or coworkers. And with Selection Sunday just around the corner, it's time to rustle up your pool and get in on the action.

Here's a round-up of some of the most popular bracket systems online right now. Some of them are ideal for different kinds of groups, so we're breaking each down by prize package and who would get the most out of each pool. The best part? All of them are absolutely 100% free to use for you and your friends, which means that more money can go into your home-grown pool if you're looking to high-roll. Some even allow multiple bracket sheets to be filled out at no extra fee — so you can develop an underdog-friendly strategy if you're hoping for an upset.

Is there a particular bracketing system you prefer to use? Let us know in the comments below.

1. ESPN Tournament Challenge

If you're looking for a large-scale, cross-platform bracket system that integrates smoothly with your social media, you really can't go wrong with ESPN's bracket challenge. Fill out up to ten different bracket sheets, invite your friends, and compete for the chance to win a $10,000 Best Buy gift card on top of it all. Even if you don't plan to be in the house much during March Madness (or are forced to keep your bracketing a clandestine secret), you can install ESPN's BracketBound app for both iPhone and Android, which not only tracks brackets but also gives handy updates and highlights of the games.

However, when you go big, you can't expect it to stay small. You can invite your friends to play Bracket Challenge, but the scale of ESPN's operation can be a bit daunting to those who just want to play with 10 other people. If you get involved, you're involved with the whole program.

2. CBS Sports Bracket Manager

For those who enjoy a much more hands-on approach to brackets, the CBS Sports Bracket Manager is one of two NCAA-supported apps — and it's the one with the most homegrown feelings. Rather than submitting your picks to a larger pool, CBS Sports Bracket Manager is a platform that helps conduct local pools without the extra layered distraction of the overall game. Simply set up a bracket hub, invite your friends and fill out your own. You can customize your group's page with a personalized name and abbreviation, and inviting people is as simple as giving them the group password to access the bracket page.

CBS goes the extra mile too. In case any sort of hiccup or malfunction happens in your system, you can call their customer service for guidance.

The downside, of course, is the extra bells and whistles. There's no larger prize at stake, and no social media integration for those who are looking to announce their winnings to friends.

3. NBC Sports Bracket Madness

The catch-all middle path of the bracket games offered up this year, the NBC Sports Bracket integrates a little bit of everything to attract all kinds of March Madness players. It offers the direct and simple pool management system for private group playing, complete with password protection and simple standings. Solitary bracket players will also be interested in submitting solo — especially since there's a handy feature that shows how you rank among all of the other registered pools in the game. It's also pretty beginner-friendly, with a cheat sheet right on the game's main page. So you can play for the big prize and organize a little prize for your pool as well.

Best Bracket Ideas

This jack-of-all trades game just doesn't have any extra pop. Compared to ESPN's prize money, NBC's $2,000 grand prize seems a little paltry. There's also no way to manage brackets from a mobile device.

4. NCAA Bracket Challenge

The second official bracket system backed by the NCAA, this game is really the baby of the organization. Simply create your entries and join or create your own group to keep track of the action. With a layered system much closer to ESPN's Tournament Challenge, you can actually join any public group available with your entries. One notable group among them is the CNN Bracket Challenge, where all of the news network personalities are making their picks for the Big Dance. The added value of the official Bracket Challenge is its sanctioned integration into the streaming package available in the partnership with CBS. Not only can you access your brackets via the online streaming platform available for games, but also for iPhone, iPad, and Android.

But like its companion program, NCAA Bracket Challenge also has no overall prize for best bracket. This may turn off some solo players.

5. Yahoo Tourney Pick'em

Fully integrated with the overall Yahoo Fantasy Sports section, Yahoo's Tourney Pick'em allows for both private groups and public pools. If you're already in possession of a Yahoo account, joining is seamless and easy. Social media is also cleverly integrated through the 'Like' system — just like your bracket and receive tailored updates throughout the tournament relating to your picks in your feed. You can make up to five brackets for submission to the grand-daddy of March Madness Prizes: Perfect Bracket gets a cool $5 million, and the best bracket wins $10,000. And if for some reason all of your brackets are toasted by round two, you can register on March 15 for the 'Second Chance Game' — a chance to pick up $5,000.

Yahoo's shortcomings are rooted in its Fantasy system — while the prizes are excellent, it's simply better to be in a group where there's a dedicated commissioner rather than going solo. There's a free mobile app available, but it's not as slick or sexy as others.

6. Fox Sports Bracket Challenge

The Fox Sports Bracket Challenge really gives a solo participant an edge. The game only allows each user to enter a total of three brackets. However, those same three brackets can be submitted to five different groups in the system. The result is that any user can be involved in up to 15 different pools during the tournament — fit for a March Madness superfan.

Another great feature is the bracket simulator, which gives players a statistically-driven playthrough of the tournament to analyze chances of winning. And winning is key: A perfect bracket comes with a purse of $1 million and first place is a flat-screen TV.

But for a major bracket challenge, it seems fairly isolated. There's no meaningful social integration and no mobile app to speak of. If you're looking for cut-and-dry fantasy competition, this is the place to go.

Yahoo Best Bracket Challenge

BONUS: 16 Must-Follow Twitter Accounts for March Madness

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