Choosing an event registration tool is one of the first and most essential considerations of the event planning process. After all, it’s difficult to imagine executing a successful event without guests!
Luckily, there’s no shortage of tools available to help event planners with this crucial first step — in fact, there are more than 300 event registration and ticketing software solutions listed on G2. It’s great to have so many options, but how do you choose the right one for your event?
Before diving headfirst into the product pool, it’s important to consider which features you require in an event registration or ticketing solution. If you organize a lot of (or even a few) events, you understand that no two events are alike. Each event is unique, and as such, the registration solution you choose will largely depend on the type of event you’re planning. While many ticketing products can be used for a variety of events, organizing a huge, industry-wide trade show will likely require a different registration system than planning an intimate awards gala.
How to choose an event registration solution
As we highlighted in our recent round-up of event industry statistics, 51% of event professionals measure their event ROI based on the number of registrations. To that end, an event registration tool can make or break an event: A clunky, inconvenient or unreliable software can surely lead to fewer registrations and a lower ROI.
If you’re in the market for a new event registration or ticketing service, there is a lot to consider before making a decision. The kind of event you’re planning, the number of people you expect to attend, whether you need to sell tickets onsite: all these factors and more can help determine the best registration solution for you. Let’s explore some of the elements you should keep in mind when comparing event registration software.
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Event scale
The size and type of event you’re planning can have a big impact on the best registration solution for you. Are you planning a trade show for thousands of attendees? A conference with multiple speaker sessions? An awards gala with assigned seating? Some event registration systems allow for multiple registration types or multi-session registration, which can be ideal for trade shows and conferences. Likewise, some ticketing tools provide seating charts and reserved seating, which are suitable for dinners, concerts and other live events.
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In addition, think about how frequently your organization hosts events. If your events tend to be smaller, or you only run a couple events per year, you’ll likely need a relatively simple registration software. On the other hand, if you plan multiple large events every year, you may wish to seek out a more comprehensive solution that can provide features such as attendee list management, event marketing and in-depth reporting.
Registration or ticketing process
Are you selling tickets or simply collecting RSVPs to a private event? Luckily, many registration products handle both scenarios, and they are often free to use to collect registrations for free events. If you want to sell tickets, most event registration products offer some form of payment processing to collect payments from guests. While these products will charge you a fee per ticket sold, a majority of them will allow you to either absorb the fees or pass them on to the ticket buyers.
In addition, think about how your guests will want to receive their ticket. Since attendees will be registering online, the most common form of delivery is by email. Keep in mind that if you need to deliver any tickets by mail, your options may be limited.
Payment methods
Event registration and ticketing products provide secure payment processing to facilitate online ticket sales. Some products use their own built-in payment processing, while others integrate with popular payment gateways like PayPal and Stripe. Certain products will also allow you to connect your own merchant account to receive payments directly. Remember that different products will deliver payments at different frequencies, and in some cases you may not receive funds until the event is over. If you need funds sooner to facilitate refunds or balance your budget, look for a registration tool that can deliver payments immediately, or at least once a day.
How will you check attendees into the event when they arrive? Will you be accepting onsite registrations? Some event registration products offer mobile apps you can download to scan tickets and easily check in guests the day of the event. There are also some tools that allow event organizers to register attendees and receive payments onsite.
Pricing
You’ve probably already thought of this one, but cost is important to consider when choosing any kind of software. The price of an event registration and ticketing solution can vary greatly depending on a number of factors, including the product’s features, the number of events you organize and the size of the event. Some products charge a fee per ticket sold, while others charge a monthly fee. Although a monthly fee may seem unreasonable for someone who plans one or two events a year, it may be more cost-effective for an organization that hosts dozens of them.
Registration tools that provide additional event management features such as mobile event app software or advanced event analytics will end up costing more. If you don’t need more sophisticated event management solutions, seek out a straightforward ticketing solution that meets your needs.
Best event registration & ticketing solutions
The following products are the 10 highest rated event ticketing and registration solutions on G2. They are ranked in order based on their Satisfaction scores from real user reviews* as of July 12, 2019. For each product, we provide the following information:
- G2 star rating
- Number of reviews
- A product overview and pricing information, when available
- Reviews highlighting what users like and dislike
10 best tools for event registration & ticketing in 2019
- Eventbrite
- Ticket Tailor
- Townscript
- Eventzilla
- Greenvelope
- Cvent
- Evite
- Ticketbud
- Brown Paper Tickets
- DoubleDutch
Keep in mind that event ticketing platforms will charge an additional payment processing fee, which can vary based on both the payment gateway and the card type used in the transaction.
1. Eventbrite
Product name: Eventbrite
G2 star rating: 4.3 out of 5.0
Reviews: 399
Overview
Eventbrite offers features such as branded event pages, event marketing, analytics, and mobile check-in, making it a versatile solution for a wide range of industries and event types.
Pricing
- Essentials: 2% + $0.79 per paid ticket
- Professional: 3.5% + $1.59 per paid ticket
- Premium: Custom fee per paid ticket
- Free tickets: no cost
What users like
“The aspects of the Eventbrite platform I like best are the tracking links, which enable you to track the source of registrations, and the app’s event check-in feature, which allows you to check in event attendees from your cell phone.”
— Eventbrite review by Pete P.
What users dislike
“Prices have crept up over the years making me take a second look. I also hate that you cannot completely white-label your event, even when employing the widget. Everyone knows you’re using Eventbrite. It’s also not a complete solution. It’s fine for ticketing, but if you want to set up a simple event website you have to go elsewhere. The reporting features are also somewhat limited.”
— Eventbrite review by Dina J.
2. Ticket Tailor
Product name: Ticket Tailor
G2 star rating: 4.9 out of 5.0
Reviews: 60
Overview
Ticket Tailor is a low-cost event ticketing platform that supports events of all sizes. Features include multiple ticket types, a customizable online box office, and mobile check-in. Event organizers can choose to receive their payments directly through Stripe or PayPal.
Pricing
- Pay as you go: $0.65 per paid ticket
- Monthly plans:
- Small: $25/month, up to 50 ticket sales per month
- Medium: $45/month, up to 100 ticket sales per month
- Large: $99/month, up to 250 ticket sales per month
- XL: $175/month, up to 500 ticket sales per month
- XXL: For larger plans, contact Ticket Tailor for a quote
- Free tickets: no cost
What users like
“With Ticket Tailor, registration portals for events are effortless to create and look very professional. The customers’ payment portal is user-friendly with an optional 'donation' feature that we love, and the Tazotix smartphone app makes it a breeze for us to check in our attendees by scanning their barcode or finding them on the door list. We highly recommend Ticket Tailor for any small business or not-for-profit who wish to keep their running costs low. It is simply the best we have found!”
— Ticket Tailor review by Lisa S.
What users dislike
“I enjoyed the ease in which to set up with PayPal, but not the fees. Would like to use my own business account which accepts credit card payments through my bank. The only options of payment are Stripe and PayPal. Not a deal-breaker, though.”
— Ticket Tailor review by Eric T.
3. Townscript
Product name: Townscript
G2 star rating: 4.8 out of 5.0
Reviews: 44
Overview
Townscript is a global self-serve event ticketing platform. Townscript’s offerings include multiple ticket types, a customized event page and a widget that can be added directly to an organization’s website. Event organizers can choose to accept payments through debit, credit or online banking.
Pricing
- For paid events: 1.99% + $2 per ticket
- There are no ticket fees for free events
What users like
“The best thing about this platform is that it provides all the full access of managing the event registrations to the organizer itself. I am able to modify, cancel, and edit the registrations and make refunds accordingly on my own. The reports section of the dashboard also allows me to track the registrations and helps in aligning my marketing efforts accordingly.”
— Townscript review by Anjali K.
What users dislike
“The drop-out notifications are currently received by email and need to be copied/pasted to Excel — a lot of waste of time. This data is extremely important and so we are willing to waste this time, but a CSV download option would make things much more efficient.”
— Townscript review by Aashna J.
4. Eventzilla
Product name: Eventzilla
G2 star rating: 4.5 out of 5.0
Reviews: 121
Overview
Eventzilla is an event ticketing and management platform that supports a variety of event types, from classes to large conferences. Notable features include custom registration flows, reserved seating, attendee self-service and mobile apps for both organizers and attendees.
Pricing
- Basic: $1.25 per paid ticket
- Pro: 1.9% + $0.99 per paid ticket
- Custom: Contact Eventzilla for a custom quote
- Free tickets: no cost
What users like
“Eventzilla offers lots of flexibility, allowing you to customize your ticket sales or registration to the exact nature of your organization and event. All options are completely customizable, unlike other sites we have tried in the past. Also, a variety of payment options are available and you can choose to receive your revenue directly by a method of your own choice.”
— Eventzilla review by Dan R.
What users dislike
“Folks sometimes have trouble making their purchase, which leads to frustration (for them) and incomplete orders (for me).”
— Eventzilla review by Liz A.
5. Greenvelope
Product name: Greenvelope
G2 star rating: 4.8 out of 5.0
Reviews: 28
Overview
Greenvelope is an email invitation service for businesses. In addition to elegant designs, it provides guest list management, RSVP tracking, ticketing and donation collection.
Pricing
- Single mailing: $99 – $199 depending on number of recipients
- Yearly memberships
- Bronze: $195/year
- Silver: $295/year
- Gold: $495/year
What users like
“The ability to customize virtually every aspect of the invitation design, the delivery method, the incorporation of music, photographs, links to outside sites make this the tool for quality client and prospect engagement. My recipients were commenting on the invitation throughout the event.”
— Greenvelope review by Wade P.
What users dislike
“I had one department that gave me all their employees’ responses on paper, so being able to batch input the responses of several people would have been nice. Instead I had to do it one person at a time.”
— Greenvelope review by an administrator
6. Cvent
Product name: Cvent
G2 star rating: 4.3 out of 5.0
Reviews: 962
Overview
Cvent is a powerful event management platform capable of organizing large, complex events. Its many features include a flexible online event registration system that allows for multi-session registration, approval workflows, a content library and wait lists.
Pricing
- Contact Cvent for pricing information
What users like
“Love the customization available during the registration process and ability for attendees (and sponsoring companies) to upload documents (e.g., company logo) within their registration.”
— Cvent review by Jennifer C.
What users dislike
“Unlike the registration questions that allow me to make changes to affect all the registration paths, I have to manually update verbiage on the different registration pages. It would be nice to also make changes that affect all these paths.”
— Cvent review by Karen C.
7. Evite
Product name: Evite
G2 star rating: 4.0 out of 5.0
Reviews: 47
Overview
Evite provides event organizers with hundreds of stylish invitation designs that can be sent via text, email or a shareable link. Evite’s premium and pro plans offer additional features, including an ad-free experience for guests, custom branding and performance analytics. Evite’s predesigned invitations and RSVP management features make it a good choice for events like corporate parties, open houses and fundraisers.
Pricing
- Premium: $12.99–$49.99 per event
- Pro: $249.99/year
What users like
“I love how easy and useful Evite is! As a marketing assistant I am in charge of organizing events, not only for employees, but for our industry partners as well. Evite makes it easy to get the word out about upcoming events while also managing the guest list directly from the site!”
— Evite review by Caela M.
What users dislike
“Once you choose a template, there is limited customization to the formatting. I would have liked to have more sorting functionality. You couldn’t sort the guests based on responses on the website — you had to download an Excel spreadsheet to do advanced sorting.”
— Evite review by Alison S.
8. Ticketbud
Product name: Ticketbud
G2 star rating: 4.5 out of 5.0
Reviews: 21
Overview
Ticketbud is another affordable option for managing, promoting and selling tickets for an event. Its features include link tracking, audience segmentation and an offline POS solution for selling tickets onsite.
Pricing
- 2% + $0.99 per paid ticket
- Free tickets: no cost
What users like
“Ticketbud was such an easy process, even if I thought it wasn't going to be. I was nervous at first, but everything was laid out in a great format and smooth to fill in. It was also wonderful to have direct contact with the company throughout the process. I always felt that I could turn to them if I had any questions.”
— Ticketbud review by Lisa M.
What users dislike
“I wasn't able to make the website changes with the app. That would be good.”
— Ticketbud review by Scott E.
9. Brown Paper Tickets
Product name: Brown Paper Tickets
G2 star rating: 4.1 out of 5.0
Reviews: 29
Overview
Brown Paper Tickets is a well-established ticketing service primarily used for live events in the entertainment industry. Notable features include mobile ticketing, ticket printing, a mobile check-in app, assigned seating and onsite ticket sales.
Pricing
- Ticket buyers pay 5% + $0.99 per paid ticket
- There is no cost for free events
What users like
“Their physical ticket option is what keeps us coming back to them. We have plenty of people who love to use the mobile app or even print-at-home options, but we have quite a few traditional event goers who want a physical ticket in hand.”
— Brown Paper Tickets review by Beth Ann D.
What users dislike
“Brown Paper Tickets is a little messy visually. I realize it’s a back end made for utility, but it can be a bit confusing the first time you try to enter information. They’re a bit of a smaller company, and while customer service is great, making a ton of changes on the fly is not ideal. Best for more mature events, especially if you’re printing the tickets.”
— Brown Paper Tickets review by a user in retail
10. DoubleDutch
Product name: DoubleDutch
G2 star rating: 4.3 out of 5.0
Reviews: 34
Overview
DoubleDutch is an all-in-one event management platform that provides an event content management system and a mobile event app in addition to their event registration and ticketing solution.
Pricing
- Contact DoubleDutch for pricing information
What users like
“The customer service at DoubleDutch is one of the best customer service experiences I’ve had at any company across the board. They are quick and reliable and determined to help you find an answer.”
— DoubleDutch review by Ashley S.
What users dislike
“There's not much to dislike. My only request would be to add a CSV export of registered companies, though the search functionality in the app is great.”
— DoubleDutch review by Andy T.
Next steps for event registration and ticketing
Choosing a solution for event registration is one of the first steps in the event planning process, and it can also be one of the most important decisions you make early on. The registration tool you select will influence many other aspects of your plan, including how your guests experience the ticketing process and how you will contact and interact with your attendees. Once a decision has been made, it won’t be easy to go back — so choose wisely!
Need some ideas for promoting your event? Check out 13 Ways to Get More Attendees.
*Reviews edited for spelling, grammar, punctuation and clarity.
Stephanie Graham
Stephanie is a Market Research Manager and Senior Research Analyst at G2 concentrating on marketing and digital advertising software. Prior to joining G2, Stephanie spent four years in B2B marketing and event management at an independent publishing company. This experience nurtured her passion for understanding how technology can help solve the unique challenges small businesses face today. Stephanie’s areas of interest include brand perception, customer experience, SEO, and local marketing. She received her BA in journalism and Spanish from Marquette University and in her spare time enjoys reading, gaming, and trying new vegetarian restaurants.
