Eventbrite is the pick if you want to be found by people browsing events and you'd like built-in ads and promotion. Ticket Tailor is the pick if you'll bring your own audience and want a branded event site with reserved seating and a free check-in app. Both state a free plan, and neither shows a single overall winner.
Will strangers find your event, or are you bringing the crowd?
Every ticketing tool will sell a ticket. What separates these two is where the buyers come from. One runs a consumer discovery site where people go looking for things to do. The other gives you your own branded event site and leaves the audience to you. If you already have a mailing list, a venue following or a community, that changes everything about which one makes sense.
The big audience number has a date on it
The discovery platform leans hard on reach. Its own comparison table says other platforms reach fewer buyers, and it claims 90M unique ticket buyers. Read the small print and that audience number is described as unique ticket buyers in FY22, so it's an older number, not a live count.
It's also worth knowing where to look. Its home page is a consumer site for finding events, not a pitch to organisers, and its organiser sales material sits under separate organiser and sell-tickets sections. Elsewhere it reports 4.7M events in nearly 180 countries and 89M monthly average users.
The branded-site tool markets the opposite idea: your brand, your event site, your audience. It cites 73,000 event creators and 99.9% uptime, both in its own words.
At a glance
| Area | Eventbrite | Ticket Tailor |
|---|---|---|
| Audience | Consumer discovery site, claims 90M unique ticket buyers (an FY22 number) | Your own branded event site |
| Promotion | Built-in ads, email marketing tools and TikTok promotion | Promote tools, plus order emails linked to your marketing tools |
| Seating and entry | Reserved seating and timed entry ticketing | Reserved seating with seating charts, plus multi-checkout across events |
| Check-in | Ticket scanning and its own check-in app | Free check-in app for mobile or an external scanner |
| Free events | Says you can create events and sell tickets for free | Says if your event is free, so are they, with round-the-clock first-timer support |
| Scale quoted | 4.7M events in nearly 180 countries, 89M monthly average users | 73,000 event creators, 99.9% uptime |
Getting the word out
The discovery platform has its own ads product, email marketing tools and TikTok promotion, so you can push an event without leaving it. The branded-site tool has Promote tools to spread the word, and its order confirmation emails plug into the marketing tools you already use. If you've already got a newsletter, the second approach keeps buyers on your own list.
Seats, timed slots and the door
Both handle reserved seating. The discovery platform adds timed entry ticketing, which helps attractions and exhibitions that let people in by slot. The branded-site tool adds seating charts and multi-checkout, so a buyer can put tickets for several events in one cart. On the night, the discovery platform offers ticket scanning and its own check-in app, while the branded-site tool has a free check-in app that works on a phone or with an external scanner.
Running free events
Both are friendly to free events. The discovery platform says you can create events and sell tickets for free, and the branded-site tool says that if your event is free, so is it, with support for first-timers around the clock. If you're running a free community meet-up, either will do the job; the difference comes back to who you want finding it. For a ticketed event where every seat matters, think about the buyer journey too: on a discovery site your event sits next to other people's, while on your own branded site the only thing on the page is yours. Neither is wrong, it just depends on whether you need reach or focus more.
Five more ticketing platforms
There's a wider round-up of event ticketing platforms if you'd like to see more of the field.
Luma
Best for: Community events, with event pages and invitations for anything from run clubs to launch parties.
Humanitix
Best for: Ticketing with a charity angle, where the site says the profits from its booking side go towards real-world impact.
Tito
Best for: Technology, developer and B2B conferences, with a new version on the way and early access on offer.
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Eventzilla
Best for: Event management covering a website builder, registration, ticketing, agenda builder, call for speakers and exhibitor lead capture.
Universe
Best for: Selling tickets, creating events and helping people discover experiences, with Attractions and Clubs sections.
Our verdict on which to open first
If you need to be found by people browsing for something to do, and you'd like ads and promotion built in, start with Eventbrite. If you've got your own audience and want a branded ticket site with seating charts, multi-checkout and a free check-in app, start with Ticket Tailor. Either way, set up one real event on it before you move everything across.
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Frequently asked questions
Do both have a free plan?
Yes, both state a free plan, and both say free events can be run without charge to you.
Which one will bring me more attendees?
The discovery platform has a consumer site where people browse events and claims a large buyer audience, though that number dates from FY22. The branded-site tool expects you to bring your own audience.
Can I do reserved seating on both?
Yes. Both list reserved seating. The branded-site tool adds seating charts and multi-checkout, and the discovery platform adds timed entry.
Is there a check-in app?
Both have one. The branded-site tool's check-in app is free and works on a mobile or with an external scanner.
Which is better for charity events?
The branded-site tool names charities among its users. Humanitix is another option built around a charity angle.
