What event ticketing platforms charge
Updated · 5 minute read
Most ticketing platforms take a share of every ticket you sell. Some add a fixed amount per ticket. A few charge one flat fee instead. Card processing comes on top of all of them. Here is how each model works and how to compare them for your own event.
The three ways platforms charge
- A percentage of the ticket price. Luma's free plan takes 5% of paid ticket sales. The fee grows with both your price and your attendance.
- A percentage plus a fixed amount per ticket. Eventbrite charges 3.7% + $1.79 per paid ticket in the US. The fixed part hurts most on low-priced tickets.
- A flat fee per event or a subscription. Penguest charges $39 for an event of up to 250 attendees. Luma Plus removes Luma's 5% fee for $59 a month, billed annually.
What that means on real events
Platform fees on three sample events, before card processing:
| Event | Eventbrite | Luma, free plan | Penguest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Evening workshop50 tickets at $40 | $164 | $100 | $39Starter |
| Training day200 tickets at $50 | $728 | $500 | $39Starter |
| Regional conference500 tickets at $150 | $3,670 | $3,750 | $79Growth |
Percentage fees scale with revenue. A flat fee does not. The gap grows fastest on events with higher ticket prices. Try your own numbers in the fee calculator.
Who pays: you or your buyer
Some platforms add their fee to the buyer's total by default. Eventbrite does this, and lets you absorb the fee instead. Luma takes its fee out of your ticket price and has no option to pass it on.
Passing the fee to buyers does not make it free. Your attendees see a higher total at checkout. For a $50 ticket on Eventbrite, that is $3.64 in service fees before processing. Compare platforms on the total your attendee pays and the amount you keep.
Card processing is separate
Every platform pays a card processor, and that cost reaches you one way or another. Stripe's standard US rate is 2.9% + 30¢ per successful card payment, with 1.5% more for international cards and 1% more when currency is converted.
Example: 200 tickets at $50, each bought in its own order, costs about $350 in Stripe processing ($290 in percentage fees plus 200 × 30¢). Group orders lower the fixed part.
Some platforms process payments themselves and charge their own rate. Others connect to your own Stripe or PayPal account. With your own account, the processing fee is the one your provider already charges you.
Questions to ask before you choose
- What is the platform fee on my expected attendance and price, not on one ticket?
- Does the buyer or do I pay it by default, and can I change that?
- Who processes the payment, and at what rate?
- When does ticket money reach my account: as tickets sell, or after the event?
- Is there a subscription, and what happens to my events if I cancel it?
Prices in this guide come from each platform's published pricing in October 2026. Platforms change their pricing, so check the source before you decide. Side-by-side details are in Penguest vs Eventbrite and Penguest vs Luma.