Eventbrite Review 2025

Is This Event Management Platform Right for You?

Eventbrite has become synonymous with event ticketing, serving over 180,000 businesses worldwide and facilitating millions of events each year. Its comprehensive platform and vast marketplace have made it the default choice for many event organizers, from small workshop hosts to large festival producers. The platform's interface and established brand trust make event creation accessible to anyone, regardless of technical expertise.

To create this Eventbrite review, I've analyzed the platform extensively. I believe it's the ideal choice if:

• You see value in Eventbrite’s marketplace discovery as part of your overall attendance strategy
• You prioritize a familiar interface and quick event setup with a minimal learning curve
• You need a trusted, established platform with strong brand recognition
• You want a lot of  integrations in a single platform
• You're comfortable with higher pricing for the convenience offered

However, Eventbrite might not be the best choice if:

• You want to maximize profit margins by minimizing ticketing fees
• You need specialized viral marketing tools built into your ticketing platform
• You prefer your event page to focus exclusively on your event without showing competitors
• You want sophisticated ambassador program management
• You're looking for different marketing approaches than traditional email and social media advertising

In this case, you should consider PromoTix: a comprehensive event management platform that started as marketing software before adding ticketing capabilities, built by event creators specifically to deliver the marketing tools that other platforms only promise. With its option for 0% ticketing fees and integrated viral marketing suite, PromoTix helps event creators keep more revenue while providing powerful tools to drive ticket sales.

Because of that, I've included a detailed look at PromoTix later in this Eventbrite review, as the best alternative for creators prioritizing profitability and marketing control. If you're ready to explore a more profitable approach to event ticketing, you can start with PromoTix free here.

Table of contents:

• What is Eventbrite?
• Eventbrite Pros & Cons
• Eventbrite Review: How it Works & Key Features
• Where Eventbrite Falls Short
• Top Eventbrite Alternative for Maximum Profitability: PromoTix
• Eventbrite or PromoTix: Comparison Summary
• Final Verdict

What is Eventbrite?

Eventbrite was founded in 2006 by Kevin Hartz, Julia Hartz, and Renaud Visage with the goal of bringing the world together through live experiences and democratizing access to event publishing and promotion. 

The founders wanted to make it possible for anyone to create, promote, and sell tickets to events of all sizes, eliminating the need for traditional box office services. The company has evolved from a simple ticketing solution into a comprehensive event technology platform. Today, Eventbrite operates as a global marketplace connecting event organizers with potential attendees. The platform went public in 2018 and continues to expand its reach across multiple countries and event categories.

Eventbrite's marketplace approach is central to its value proposition. In 2022, the platform reported a network of 90 million active ticket buyers, providing some built-in discovery beyond an organizer’s existing audience. For many organizers, this discovery works best as a supplement to their own promotion rather than a primary driver of attendance, especially since Eventbrite also highlights competing events. 

The platform serves everything from music festivals and conferences to workshops and community gatherings. The ideal Eventbrite user is an event creator who values a familiar, straightforward setup process, reach, and reliability. This includes conference organizers who need professional features, community groups hosting local events, workshop facilitators seeking easy registration management, and festival producers requiring robust attendee management tools. 

The platform particularly appeals to those who appreciate having all their event management needs met in one trusted location.

Eventbrite Pros & Cons

Eventbrite Review: How it Works & Key Features

Event Creation and Publishing

Eventbrite's event creation process starts with a streamlined setup wizard.

Organizers input basic information including event title, event type and category, tags for improved searchability, and venue location or online event details. The platform offers AI-powered assistance that can automatically generate event descriptions and summaries based on basic inputs, helping overcome writer's block.

Eventbrite's event creation process starts with a streamlined setup wizard.

The system supports multiple event formats: single events for one-time occurrences, recurring events for regular schedules, and online events with integrated streaming options. Organizers can enhance their event pages with multiple images, embedded videos, detailed agendas, and speaker lineups.

Once published, events receive a customizable URL and appear in Eventbrite's marketplace. The platform's high domain authority means event pages often rank well in search results, providing additional organic discovery beyond the marketplace itself.

Ticketing and Payment Processing

Eventbrite's ticketing system accommodates various pricing strategies and ticket types. 

Organizers can create paid tickets with fixed pricing, free tickets for complimentary events, and donation-based tickets where attendees choose their contribution. The platform supports multiple ticket tiers within a single event, such as early bird, general admission, and VIP options.

Advanced ticketing features include the ability to schedule tickets to go on sale at specific times, create hidden tickets accessible only via password, set maximum and minimum purchase quantities, and enable waitlists for sold-out events. 

For venues with assigned seating, Eventbrite offers a reserved seating feature where attendees can select specific seats from an interactive map.

Payment processing happens through Eventbrite Payment Processing, which accepts major credit and debit cards. The standard payout schedule releases funds three days after the event, though organizers can set up scheduled payouts for earlier access. 

The platform handles all PCI compliance and security requirements, with transaction fees of 2.9% per order in the United States, in addition to the ticketing service fees.

Marketing and Discovery Features

Eventbrite's marketing capabilities center around its marketplace discovery engine combined with integrated promotional tools. 

Events gain visibility through personalized recommendations in users' discovery feeds, category browsing, and search results, automated notifications to followers, and integration with social media platforms. The platform includes email marketing tools with automation and segmentation capabilities, though free accounts are limited to 250 emails per day and can only be used to reach past attendees rather than new prospects.

Promotional features include the ability to create discount codes with percentage or fixed-amount reductions, tracking links to monitor different marketing channels, and social media integration for easy sharing. 

Organizers can add events directly to Facebook, where attendees can purchase tickets without leaving the social platform. The platform also supports integration with Meta and Google tracking pixels for measuring advertising effectiveness.

Eventbrite Boost, an optional paid add-on service, provides enhanced advertising capabilities. 

This includes simplified ad creation for Facebook and Instagram, automated audience targeting, and personalized campaign recommendations. These enhanced marketing features come at additional cost beyond the standard ticketing fees.

Attendee Management and Analytics

The Eventbrite Organizer mobile app serves as the primary tool for on-site event management. 

Features include QR code scanning for quick check-in, manual attendee lookup by name or email, real-time attendance tracking, and at-the-door ticket sales with credit card processing. The app works offline, syncing data when connection is restored.

Source: Eventbrite

Reporting capabilities provide insights through various dashboards and reports. 

The Attendee Summary shows complete registration lists with contact information. Sales reports break down revenue by ticket type and channel. Traffic and conversion analysis reveals which marketing efforts drive sales. Real-time dashboards display current sales and check-in status. 

All reports can be exported as CSV files for further analysis.

Post-event, organizers can send follow-up communications and access detailed analytics on attendee demographics and behavior. While the platform once offered native SurveyMonkey integration, feedback collection now typically requires third-party tools. 

The platform maintains attendee data for future marketing efforts, though organizers must manage their own CRM or email marketing systems for sophisticated nurture campaigns beyond Eventbrite's built-in capabilities.

Where Eventbrite Falls Short

While Eventbrite excels at providing a comprehensive platform that includes marketplace discovery as a supporting feature, several limitations become apparent for cost-conscious and marketing-focused organizers. 

These constraints reveal deliberate optimization for broad accessibility over organizer profitability.

High Fee Structure Impact: The combined service fees and payment processing charges can significantly impact event profitability. 

For a $50 ticket, fees total approximately $5.09 per ticket. For an event selling 1,000 such tickets, that represents over $5,000 in fees. This pricing model, while standard in the industry, can be particularly challenging for events with thin margins or those trying to keep ticket prices accessible. 

Organizers must either absorb these costs, reducing their profit, or pass them to attendees, potentially affecting sales.

Source: Eventbrite

Marketplace Competition Display: Eventbrite's marketplace model means your event page may display other events as suggestions. 

While this benefits the platform's ecosystem, it can divert potential attendees to competing events. An organizer investing in driving traffic to their event page might inadvertently be promoting competitors. 

This design choice prioritizes the marketplace over individual event success, and sometimes takes a potential customer away from your event page that you may have paid advertising dollars to capture.

Limited Viral Marketing Capabilities: While Eventbrite offers email marketing with automation and segmentation through Eventbrite Boost, the platform lacks certain specialized promotional tools. 

There's no native ambassador program management and no built-in viral contest capabilities. Organizers seeking these specific marketing strategies must integrate external tools, adding complexity and cost.

Escalating Costs with Growth: As events grow, Eventbrite becomes increasingly expensive. 

The percentage-based fee structure means costs scale linearly with success. An organizer who grows from 100 to 1,000 attendees sees a tenfold increase in fees, even though the platform overhead remains similar. This model can discourage growth or force organizers to seek alternatives as they scale.

These limitations aren't failures but natural consequences of Eventbrite's focus on being a broad, accessible marketplace. However, they create clear opportunities for platforms that prioritize organizer profitability and specialized marketing features.

Top Eventbrite Alternative for Maximum Profitability: PromoTix

PromoTix emerged from a fundamental frustration with the event ticketing industry. 

Founded by Will Royall, who spent 16 years producing a national music festival, owned an advertising agency, and even used Eventbrite in the past, the platform was built to address the excessive fees and weak marketing promises that plague most ticketing services. 

Having been an Eventbrite Spectrum partner offering marketing tools to Eventbrite customers through a precursor product called PromoJuice, Royall understood exactly what event organizers needed but weren't getting. This unique journey from marketing software to full ticketing platform has shaped PromoTix's development approach.

Revolutionary Fee Structure

PromoTix's most distinctive feature is its approach to pricing. 

The platform offers two models that prioritize organizer profitability. The standard option charges 3% + $1.49 per ticket, but these fees can be passed entirely to attendees. More notably, the Professional Enterprise plan offers 0% ticketing fees with a customized annual subscription, allowing organizers to keep every dollar of their ticket revenue.

Source: PromoTix

This structure represents a fundamental shift in how ticketing platforms operate. 

Where others extract value from every transaction, PromoTix allows organizers to add their own service fees on top, turning ticketing from a cost center into a potential revenue stream. One notable client saved over $42,000 in ticketing fees while generating over $404,000 through the platform's marketing tools.

The platform provides instant daily payouts through Stripe integration, improving cash flow compared to platforms that hold funds until after events. This immediate access to revenue helps organizers manage event expenses and reinvest in promotion.

Integrated Viral Marketing Suite

PromoTix began as marketing software before adding ticketing, and this heritage shows in its patented promotional capabilities. 

The platform includes viral contest registration pages that build excitement before tickets go on sale. Participants earn points for actions like following social media profiles, sharing content, and referring friends.

The ambassador program management system automates influencer and street team coordination. Organizers can define online and offline tasks, track completion with GPS verification for physical promotions, set commission structures for ticket sales, and manage payments automatically via direct deposit. The platform provides access to over 8,000 existing ambassadors that organizers can recruit.

For music events, PromoTix offers Spotify Artist Insights. 

This feature analyzes what artists' ticket buyers and registrants are listening to, helping organizers make data-driven booking decisions. By understanding their audience's actual listening habits over the past 90 days, organizers can book acts that resonate rather than guessing based on general popularity.

Creator-Centric Design Philosophy

Every aspect of PromoTix reflects its founding principle: built for event creators, by event creators. 

The platform eliminates common frustrations through thoughtful design choices. Event pages focus exclusively on the organizer's event without showing competitors. Custom event branded attendee mobile apps can be created without coding knowledge.

The Box Office feature provides comprehensive on-site management through the PromoTix Organizer mobile app. 

Capabilities include QR code scanning for rapid check-in, point-of-sale for door sales accepting cash and cards, real-time sales and attendance reporting, and integration with Epson Receipt  Printers for physical receipts with ticket QR codes printed on them. The platform also offers RFID technology enabling cashless payments, access control, and sponsor activation capabilities.

Source: PromoTix

PromoTix supports sophisticated ticketing strategies through features like shared inventory across ticket types, tiered pricing with automated transitions, password-protected exclusive presales, and reserved seating with custom venue maps. 

The platform also operates a reseller marketplace where organizers control the secondary market for their tickets, validating authenticity and preventing fraud while earning additional service fees on resales.

Comprehensive Streaming Integration

PromoStream, the platform's integrated streaming solution, addresses virtual and hybrid event needs with a secure digital front gate. 

Unlike platforms requiring third-party streaming services, PromoTix provides ticketed streaming directly within the platform. Features include unique single-use URLs that prevent unauthorized sharing, ultra-low latency of approximately one second, support for HD and 4K broadcasting, and integration with professional broadcasting software via RTMP.

This capability proved particularly valuable during the shift to virtual events and continues to serve organizers offering hybrid experiences. The streaming fees are transparent, starting at $0.75 per viewer for the standard plan.

Eventbrite or PromoTix: Comparison Summary

Final Verdict

The choice between Eventbrite and PromoTix ultimately depends on your priorities as an event creator.

Choose Eventbrite if you value brand trust and see its marketplace discovery as a useful complement to your own attendance strategy. 

Its established platform provides immediate access to millions of potential attendees who actively browse for events. The comprehensive feature set and recognized brand make it ideal for organizers who value simplicity and reliability over fee optimization. 

Eventbrite works best for events that benefit from organic discovery, organizers new to event management, and those who prefer an all-in-one solution from a recognized brand.

Choose PromoTix if maximizing profitability and specialized marketing control that really boosts sales drives your decisions. 

Built by an event creator who owned an advertising agency and understood the industry's pain points from using other platforms, PromoTix provides the tools to keep more revenue while actively promoting your events through viral marketing and ambassador programs. 

The platform suits organizers managing recurring events or venues, those with established audiences who don't need marketplace discovery, and creators who view viral marketing and ambassador programs as integral to event success.

Both platforms serve legitimate needs in the event management ecosystem.

Eventbrite has earned its position through accessibility and reach. PromoTix offers a compelling alternative for those ready to trade marketplace exposure for greater profitability and specialized marketing tools that focus on viral growth and ambassador engagement. 

Your choice depends on whether you prioritize discovery or profit, marketplace or control, traditional marketing or viral growth strategies.