10 Ticketing Platforms for Events, Shows, Conferences & More

The estimated compound annual growth rate of global ticket market size is expected to be 5% between 2020 to 2024. This is primarily driven by an increased number of events (both virtual and in-person) by businesses.

Companies have realized the importance of events for networking, interaction and engagement, brand awareness, lead generation, sales, and revenue – and this has changed the way most businesses interact with their target audience and customers.

If you are planning to be a part of the bandwagon and are interested in creating an event, the first thing you need is an online ticketing platform that helps you create an event, sell event tickets, manage attendees, and manage your entire event.

What event ticketing platform to choose is a big question and depending on your market and event type, you have a lot of options to choose from.

This article explores the top online ticketing services for niche markets and events to help you make an informed and correct decision.

Best Online Ticketing Platforms for Niche Markets and Events

Here is a list of the top event ticketing services and what type of market they serve the best:

1. TicketsCandy: Best for All Markets and Events

TicketsCandy is hands down the best online ticketing platform that’s suitable for all types of niche markets and events. You can use it to create unlimited events that include recurring events, single-day events, multi-day events, and timed entry for all types of markets and business types ranging from retail to entertainment to service sector to culture and more.

It supports online ticket sales, at doorstep, and POS payments. This makes it an ideal event ticketing platform that can be used for virtual, offline, and hybrid events.

TicketsCandy has a user-friendly interface that makes it ideal for both beginners and advanced event organizers. It doesn’t matter whether you are creating your first event or you have been doing it for years, TicketsCandy offers you all the features you need to run a successful event in any niche market.

TicketsCandy supports all types of markets and events. It is an all-purpose, all-in-one event ticketing suite for businesses of all sizes.

It is best for:

• Large events due to low fees
• Works for both B2B and B2C markets
• Virtual, offline, and hybrid events
• Paid and free events.

Pricing

The best thing about TicketsCandy is its price.

It is totally free for event organizers. Yes, that’s true. You don’t have to pay any monthly fee, no percentage fee for ticket sales, and no credit card payment processing fee. It is free without any ifs and buts.

This is what makes it top our list. Not only does it offer complete event ticketing management and sales solutions for all types of businesses, markets, and niches, but it doesn’t charge you a penny.

Sign up free of cost here.

2. Eventcube for Virtual Events

If you are planning to run a virtual event, the most suitable online event ticketing platform is Eventcube. It lets you create your own personalized virtual venue with full control. It works with all the leading video platforms including Zoom, Twilio, YouTube, and others with HD streaming and playback options.

You can customize your virtual event room with white label service from Eventcube which means there will be no Eventcube branding at any stage. This makes it best for B2B businesses who rely on webinars for client acquisition.

Other major features you get include real-time polls and voting, customized attendee access, the ability to create lobbies and stages, digital whiteboards, and much more.

It doesn’t just offer virtual event service but you can sell online tickets with Eventcube. It covers end-to-end event ticketing and management.

Eventcube is best for virtual events and webinars, especially for B2B. It can work for any type of business or individual that wants to run either a free or paid virtual event with full control and customization.

Pricing

Eventcube charges on per attendee basis for virtual events with a starting price of £1.25 per attendee. If you want to sell tickets online, you will need to get access to its ticketing platform as well which is available in 2 plans.

The free plan offers limited features and costs 5% of the transaction total whereas the premium plan costs £99 per month with 3% of the transaction total. You get access to all the features with the paid plan.

3. Cvent for Trade Shows

If you plan to run a trade fair and manage it end-to-end, a conventional ticketing platform might not work well. You need to offer businesses a way to generate leads and boost the ROI for exhibitors. This requires much more than selling tickets online.

Cvent offers a highly specialized ticketing platform that’s made for trade shows. It offers all the solutions that event organizers need to create and run a trade show successfully.

You get access to features like CRM and marketing automation and integration, customization of lead qualification process for businesses, lead retrieval system, appointments with pre-bookings, and the ability to track ROI.

For example, businesses get an app that they can use to scan the QR code of the visitors to generate leads and import them directly to their CRM via the app. This helps businesses who attend the trade show to generate instant value from the event.

Cvent is best for event organizers and businesses that want to create trade shows and exhibitions where businesses need a robust system to generate leads and market themselves to connect with their audience.

Pricing

Cvent offers custom pricing and for trade shows it is an annual package that’s specifically based on your needs. If you want to run a trade show, you have to go with the top-tier plan that’s called Total Program which gives you access to all types of events and trade shows.

Since you get full access to all the features and you get to manage your event with full branding, the cost is on the high side which might include per attendee cost, annual fee, setup fee, payment processing fee, hardware renting fee, and others.

It is quite expensive.

4. Bizzabo for B2B Conferences

Bizzabo is an event management software made specifically for B2B conferences and events of all types including in-person and virtual.

It offers a complete suite of apps and tools to run and manage professional conferences. You get an event platform, audience engagement, lead generation, event registration software, mobile app, onsite software, and wearables.

One of the major concerns of B2B events is that businesses have a need to generate leads from the event and they need to prove ROI. This is not usually the case with B2C events where you generate money from ticket sales.

Bizzabo excels at helping businesses achieve their goals and improve metrics such as ROI. It integrates with third-party tools such as CRM and lead-scoring apps. It offers smart badges that make it easy for businesses to generate leads instantly with a single click.

Besides, it helps you create and manage your events along with the ability to sell event tickets. You get all the features you need to run a successful B2B conference.

Pricing

Bizzabo has custom pricing that’s based on what features and services you need. It has annual subscription-based pricing. The starting price is $15,000 per year and it is usage-based which means you might have to pay more if you are a high-user customer.

This comes down to $1,250 per month and it is quite expensive.

You can request a demo and see how the platform works before moving ahead with an annual contract.

5. Accelevents for Academics

Academic conferences are different from B2B conferences and, therefore, have different needs and requirements. Accelevents is an ideal event management platform for academic conferences.

It supports virtual, in-person, and hybrid events with a customized registration process. You can create custom workflows for attendees, speakers, and sponsors to ensure a personalized experience. Attendees can print badges themselves and they can self-check in through the kiosk. There are different mobile apps for conference organizers, attendees, and exhibitors.

Academic conferences require a detailed agenda which can be created and managed by the organizers. Event agenda management is a built-in feature that’s quite handy.

Accelevents offers other major ticketing and event management features that include online ticket sales and registration, white label events, advanced analytics to prove ROI, unlimited ticket types, integration, lead capture for exhibitors, event management, event page builder, attendee management, and more.

Pricing

Accelevents is expensive for two reasons.

First, the starting price is $5,000 and there are other additional costs such as a mobile app for attendees which is not included in any plans.

Second, it has tiered pricing which means you have to switch to a top tier plan to get access to all the features. The basic plan works for a single event and supports up to 500 registrants.

The price is a dealbreaker.

6. AnyRoad for Food and Beverage Businesses

If you want to create an event for a CPG retailer preferably in the food and beverage market, AnyRoad is the best event ticketing platform. It is made for retailers to improve the experience of their events and customer interactions with a focus on improving brand loyalty.

A key feature is that AnyRoad promises to increase revenue by converting visitors and attendees into life-long customers. It has an Insight Engine that uses first-party data to help you track guests and measure the performance of the event. This is what makes AnyRoad a perfect event management and ticketing tool for food and beverage retailers.

Other features you get include website integration, checkout process, online and in-person events, online ticket sales, and more.

So, it works like an online ticketing platform but it offers additional resources and tools that help online retailers in food and beverage markets to interact with the attendees and track them throughout the event. This helps you monitor ROI while experience improves brand loyalty.

Pricing

AnyRoad has not disclosed its pricing structure. You can book a demo to see how the platform works. The price depends on usage and is customized based on your requirements. It also charges a setup fee.

Since it markets itself as an experiential marketing platform – and not only as an event ticketing or selling platform – it charges a much higher fee than event management platforms.

You need to contact AnyRoad with your event needs to get a custom quote for your events.

7. Blackbaud Altru for Fundraising

Blackbaud is a multipurpose software suite for fundraisers and nonprofit organizations and it offers several tools and apps including an event ticketing and management platform for fundraisers which is known as Altru.

Fundraising events are tough because your motive isn’t to sell tickets or brand awareness, rather you want to raise funds through the event and meet your organization’s fundraising goals. Most fundraising events have a set donation limit that they want to achieve.

This is what Blackbaud Altru focuses on – boosting conversion rate by converting attendees into lifelong donors.

It offers a 360-degree view of the attendees that shows history, membership activity, donations, and more. This helps you segment donors and target the ones who are more likely to donate. On top of it, you can use strategic messaging by Altru to boost donations by up to 14%.

Other features like event ticket sales, attendee management, POS, integrations, etc., are all part of the platform. You get all the core online ticketing platform features and specific features for fundraising and making your event a success.

Pricing

Blackbaud Altru has custom pricing which is based on features you want. The estimated starting price is $399 and costs you more based on your needs.

You can request a demo to check out the platform and figure out how effective it is for fundraising events.

When you compare its price with other ticketing platforms, Blackbaud Altru is indeed expensive but it is still a cost-effective option than Accelevents and Bizzabo.

8. TicketManager for Sports

TicketManager is an ideal event ticketing service for sports niches and creating sports events. It offers event management, event ticketing, loyalty programs, Salesforce integration, and other event management features for the sports niche.

You can issue credentials for attendees, staff, volunteers, sponsors, media, and other guests exclusively. It has a mobile app that makes it extremely easy to manage attendees on the event day.

The best feature is that TicketManager helps in the management of venues and this helps you improve ROI. It integrates with your CRM tool making it easier to generate leads and grow your sports business.

The platform offers all the features a sports business needs to run an event successfully. And the good thing is that these features aren’t just limited to selling and managing event tickets, but they are more geared towards sports events. This helps you manage your sports events with ease all from a single dashboard.

Pricing

TicketManager has custom pricing which is based on the features and tools you want. If you need access to event management only, you will have a different pricing plan as opposed to someone who needs access to all the features and tools.

There are, unfortunately, no details about the pricing so it’s hard to compare it with other online ticketing platforms. Since it is a specialized event management app, it is expected to be pricier than other all-purpose ticketing services.

9. Afton Tickets for Music

Afton Tickets is both a marketplace for music events and a platform for selling event tickets. It specializes in music niche and is ideal for music-related events.

The major feature is its live streaming which helps artists reach a wider audience and monetize their events in multiple ways including virtual tours, video on demand, pre-recorded content, and more. You get a dedicated account manager and onsite rep at no additional cost to make your music event a success.

Afton Tickets offers you equipment that includes laser scanners, box office, mobile parking system, and others. This helps you in managing attendees on the event day.

It offers a white-label service that allows you to create highly customized events without any Afton Tickets branding. You can either do it yourself or ask Afton Tickets to help you create and manage your music event.

Other ticketing features include a mobile-optimized checkout process, marketing tools including email marketing and text messaging, pixel tracking for ROI, payment processor integration, real-time analytics, and more.

And of course, your event will be promoted on the Afton Tickets marketplace.

Pricing

Afton Tickets offers 3 pricing plans:

1. Basic Starter Package offers basic features and limited functionalities. It costs $0.79 + 2% fee per ticket sale.
2. Professional Package is more suitable as it offers better features including unlimited ticket types, unlimited discount codes, unlimited users, and several other features. It costs $1.29 + 3% fee per ticket sale.
3. Custom Elite Package is where you get more features and equipment including mobile POS. If you want to run a successful music event, you should be on this plan. It has custom pricing which includes equipment rental, security deposit, and other types of fees.

When compared with other ticketing platforms, Afton Tickets is expensive as it has high fees per ticket sales. Even if you are on the basic plan, the price is still higher than other services like TicketsCandy that’s totally free.

10. Webex for Health Businesses

Telehealth businesses rely on virtual consultations, online training, and collaboration across hospitals and practitioners. It also includes health events such as awareness events and medical conferences. Webex by Cisco offers a complete event management solution that’s ideal for health businesses.

It supports virtual, in-person, and hybrid events for health professionals and the health sector including telehealth services. For example, Webex for Healthcare is a dedicated platform that helps healthcare professionals meet patients virtually.

One of the core features of Webex Events is communities that help hospitals build virtual communities where they can engage with the attendees in topic-based discussions and share exclusive content.

When you have to create an exclusive health event, you can sell tickets by creating a customized registration checkout process. The attendees get access to a mobile app where they can manage everything about the event. The app interface is customizable which means you can control what access to give to the attendees.

It also offers on-site solutions for check-in and badge printing including lead generation which makes Webex Events an ideal ticketing platform for B2B health events. The sponsorship tools help sponsors maximize their ROI and optimize booths.

These exclusive benefits make Webex Events a perfect ticketing app for healthcare businesses and events.

Pricing

Webex Events has an annual subscription pricing model that is based on the number of attendees per year. It offers 3 plans:

1. Free plan offers up to 100 attendees per year with one event, one admin, and two ticket types. This is an ideal option for those who want to test the platform.
2. Pro plan starts from $83 per month for up to 100 attendees per year and it offers unlimited events, admins, and ticket types.
3. Enterprise plan starts from $292 per month for up to 100 attendees per year and it offers all the exclusive features such as white label event app.

This is a bit pricey as the number of attendees is barred. If you need to have 10K attendees per year, it will cost you $2,917 per month for the Pro plan and $3,125 per month for the Enterprise plan. It gets too expensive as your event size grows.

Final Thoughts

Online ticketing platforms offer more or less similar features irrespective of what niche market or event type they are targeting. You get multiple event types, ticket types, event pages, website integration, analytics, attendee management, mobile apps, payment processing, and other much-needed features from almost all the ticketing and event management apps.

The key difference is price which decides how much you will earn from the event.

If you are running a B2B event, you still need to keep pricing low as high event ticketing and management price means a high cost to generate leads which will significantly increase customer acquisition cost. An increase in CAC reduces profit margins.

In any case, you have to make sure that the event ticketing app you are using is cost-effective so that you can create and run your event at a low cost.

This makes TicketsCandy the best deal. It is absolutely free for event organizers and supports all types of markets, niches, and events. It helps you keep pricing low, helping you increase your profit margin leading to higher revenue.

The right choice makes a huge impact on event success. Choose your ticketing app carefully.