What is a pay-to-rank board?

A list you buy your way up, versus a wall where you buy a spot.

A pay-to-rank board (also king-of-the-hill board) sells position in a ranked list rather than a spot on a map: whoever has paid the most — as a single payment or cumulatively, depending on the site — holds #1 until someone pays more. There is no cell to own; there is only your rank. Square Town (square.pov.town) is the opposite model — spatial ownership of a $1 square you can point at — with exactly one pay-to-rank element, the Throne.

TL;DR: pay-to-rank = a queue you outbid your way up. Favicon wall = a place you hold until evicted for double.

How it works on the boards#

1. Milliboard (2026) — pay any amount; the highest single payment holds #1 and can be outbid by 1¢. Rank plus name, logo and link. Has a "Daily Throne" and a top-3 hall of fame, and freezes forever when it reaches $1,337,690 — it ends on purpose. Compared in full at Square Town vs Milliboard: spatial wall or pay-to-rank list?.
2. The Pixel Orbit (2026) — a canvas where the highest total payer holds the exact centre and everything re-sorts around them; 5×5 = $2.50; can be outbid; leaderboard. Closest to Square Town's Throne, but rank is by cumulative spend. See Square Town vs The Pixel Orbit: fixed squares or a re-sorting canvas?.
3. FlexList (2026) — bid via Stripe; the highest bidder ranks #1 per city; bids are non-refundable.
4. frontpage.sh (2026) — eight ad squares under perpetual auction, outbid to take one, previous owner refunded plus a share; USDC on-chain.
5. King of the Ether Throne (2016, dead) — the ancestor: claim the throne for 0.5 ETH plus 33 % per claim; the monarch "dies" after 14 days and the price resets. The King of the Internet (dethrone for $1 more) is also dead as of August 2026.

How Square Town differs#

On Square Town you buy a place, not a rank: $1 for a 1×1 cell wherever you click in the live area, kept until someone evicts you for double. The Throne — the 4×4 centre, $100, doubling with every eviction — is the one king-of-the-hill slot, and even there the rule is a fixed 2×, not +1¢ or +33 %. Square Town's leaderboards rank by clicks and kisses, not money, so nobody can buy their way up them. The argument for one model over the other: Pay-to-rank vs spatial ownership: two ways to sell attention on one page.

Example#

On Milliboard, paying $50 puts you at #1 until someone pays $50.01. On Square Town, paying $1 puts your favicon at (500, 512) until someone pays $2 for that exact cell — and everyone else's squares are untouched. One is a race for a single position; the other is a million positions with local fights.

FAQ#

What is a king-of-the-hill board?#

A ranked list where the top spot belongs to whoever paid most, held until outbid. Milliboard is the current example; King of the Ether Throne (2016) is the ancestor.

Is Square Town a pay-to-rank site?#

No. Square Town sells spatial squares at a flat $1. Only the Throne is bought by out-paying the last holder, and its price doubles rather than rising by a cent.

Do pay-to-rank boards refund you when you're outbid?#

Usually not — Milliboard payments stand, FlexList bids are non-refundable; frontpage.sh is the exception, refunding the previous owner. Square Town never refunds an evicted owner either.

Which is better for visibility?#

A board shows the top few names to everyone; a wall shows everyone a little and lets clicks and location decide the rest. Depends whether you want #1 or a spot of your own.