All fees are the publicly listed rates on each provider's pricing page, verified April 2026 (vendor pricing comparison, 2026; Luma vs Eventbrite). Always confirm current rates on each provider's site.
How Different Event Types Are Priced
Event pricing varies dramatically by format — multi-day conferences command premium tiered tickets while community meetups are mostly free with optional donations. The pricing model tracks commitment: the more an attendee pays, the more reliably they show up, which is why even a small deposit changes attendance behaviour.
| Event Type | Typical Pricing Model | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Multi-day Conference | Premium ticketed, often tiered (standard / VIP / enterprise) | Highest prices of any format; enterprise tiers skew high |
| Professional Workshop (half-day) | Ticketed, skill-specific premium | Priced on the value of the skill taught |
| Corporate Training Session | Ticketed or invoiced | Often employer-paid |
| Fitness Class (drop-in) | Drop-in fee or class pack | Class packs lower the per-session price |
| Networking Event | Free or low-cost, sometimes premium tiers | Many free with a paid tier on top |
| Community Meetup | Mostly free, optional donation | Cost-share and donation models are common |
| Social Gathering | Free or cost-share | Splitting venue/food costs is the norm |
| Webinar / Virtual Event | Free tier dominant | Paid virtual tickets are the exception |
Platform Fee Comparison
Platform fees vary significantly in structure, not just size: some platforms charge monthly subscriptions regardless of event volume, others take per-ticket fees. The total cost of ownership depends on your event frequency and ticket price — a fixed per-ticket component hits cheap tickets hardest.
| Platform | Free Events | Paid Event Fee | Monthly Fee | Payout | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Who's In | Free forever | 2.7% flat | $0/mo (Pro free) | Instant to your Stripe | No hidden fees, free for most organizers |
| Eventbrite | Free | 3.7% + $1.79/ticket | $0–$499/mo | 5 business days | Higher fees, more discovery traffic |
| Meetup | $0 (attendees pay) | N/A (organizer subscription) | $16.99–$34.99/mo | Via Stripe | Organizer pays even for free events |
| Luma | Free | 3% + Stripe fees | $0–$59/mo | Via Stripe | Clean UI, limited free tier |
| Splash | Contact sales | Custom | Enterprise pricing | Custom | Enterprise-focused, no self-serve |
| Ticket Tailor | Free | $0.26/ticket (flat) | $0–$249/mo | Via Stripe/PayPal | Low flat fee, popular with small orgs |
Note: All fees shown are as of April 2026 and are subject to change. Stripe processing fees (typically 2.9% + $0.30) apply in addition to platform fees for most providers. Prices shown in US dollars.
Platform fees are taken from each provider's public pricing page (Eventbrite 3.7% + $1.79 per US paid ticket; Luma 5% on the free plan; Ticket Tailor flat per-ticket fee) and verified April 2026 (vendor pricing comparison; Luma vs Eventbrite). Always confirm current rates on each provider's site.
Free vs Paid Events
A financial stake is the single strongest predictor of attendance: someone who has paid — even a small amount — has already made the decision to attend, while a free RSVP is still an open question on the day. Published attendance benchmarks bear the direction out (see our No-Show Rates by Industry report for the cited figures). Free events still matter — they are the top-of-funnel acquisition channel for community building — but organizers should expect softer turnout and plan reminders accordingly.
Pricing Strategies That Work
Dynamic pricing strategies — particularly early bird discounts and tiered pricing — consistently help both revenue and attendance, because they pull the commitment decision forward and let the most enthusiastic attendees pay more. The most common effective combination is early bird pricing plus group discounts.
| Strategy | What It Does | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Early bird discount (20–30% off) | Pulls registrations forward and locks in commitment early | Creates urgency; the standard first lever |
| Tiered pricing (Standard / VIP) | Raises revenue per event without raising the base price | A minority of attendees reliably choose the premium tier |
| Group discounts (3+ tickets) | Grows group bookings and adds social proof | People who come together show up together |
| Free + premium upsell | Large top-of-funnel, lower per-unit revenue | Works when the free tier feeds a paid community |
| Sliding scale / pay-what-you-can | Increases access with a modest yield trade-off | Most payers cluster near the suggested price |
| Last-minute surge pricing | Extracts extra yield on final sales | Works for genuinely high-demand events only |
Frequently Asked Questions
How do event platform fees compare?
Who's In charges a flat 2.7% on paid events with no monthly fee, versus Eventbrite's 3.7% + $1.79 per ticket, Luma's 3% + Stripe fees, Meetup's $16.99–$34.99/month organizer subscription, and Ticket Tailor's flat $0.26 per ticket. Stripe processing fees (typically 2.9% + $0.30) apply on top of platform fees for most providers. All fees are from public vendor pricing pages, verified April 2026.
What is the cheapest way to sell event tickets?
For low-priced tickets, flat per-ticket fees (like Ticket Tailor's $0.26) or a low flat percentage (like Who's In's 2.7%) beat percentage-plus-fixed-fee structures. Eventbrite's $1.79 fixed component hits cheap tickets hardest — on a $10 ticket it is nearly 18% before the percentage is added. Always compute the total take on YOUR ticket price rather than comparing headline percentages.
How should different event types be priced?
Pricing models track the value and commitment of the format: multi-day conferences run premium tiered tickets, workshops price on the skill taught, fitness classes use drop-in fees or class packs, and community meetups are mostly free with optional donations. The right model matters more than the exact number — a financial stake of any size measurably improves attendance.
Do paid events have better attendance than free events?
Yes — a financial stake is the single strongest predictor of showing up. Published benchmarks put average in-person attendance at 68% of registrations (Nunify), and paid, pre-committed formats sit at the top of that range while free social and virtual events sit at the bottom. See our No-Show Rates by Industry report for the cited detail.
Which pricing strategy increases event attendance the most?
Early bird discounts are the strongest single lever because they pull the commitment decision forward — someone who paid early has already decided to attend. Tiered pricing raises revenue per event without raising the entry price, and group discounts grow attendance through the people who bring friends.
What hidden costs should organizers watch for when comparing platforms?
Three things: monthly subscription floors that apply even in slow months (Meetup charges organizers even for free events), fixed per-ticket components that punish low-priced tickets, and payout delays (Eventbrite pays out around 5 business days after the event, versus instant Stripe payouts on platforms that route payments directly to your own Stripe account).
Related research
Who's In charges a flat 2.7% on paid events with no monthly fee — the lowest published rate in the comparison above, with instant payouts to your own Stripe account. See how it works →
Methodology
Platform fees are sourced from each provider's publicly listed fee schedule (cited inline) and verified April 2026. Who's In's own 2.7% flat fee is our published rate. Pricing-model and strategy guidance is qualitative. This report contains no first-party platform measurements — an earlier version presented uncited ticket-price and engagement figures, and those have been removed. All prices in US dollars.
Sources & references: Ticket Tailor — Luma/Eventbrite fee comparison; Luma — Luma vs Eventbrite pricing; SaaSworthy — Luma pricing. Platform fees verified April 2026. Last Updated: July 2026.
