Pricing Comparison of Event Ticketing Platforms
Choosing the right ticketing platform in New Zealand is not only about features. It is also about how much money you keep after fees, how much the buyer sees at checkout, and whether the pricing model helps or hurts conversions.
Many platforms market themselves as simple or low cost, but the real difference only appears when you break down service fees, processing charges, fixed ticket fees, and whether those fees apply per ticket or across the total booking.
TL;DR
- My E-Tickets charges a service fee of 1% of the total booking price plus $0.20, capped at $5 per booking, with transaction fees based on payment method.
- For i-banking, the transaction fee is 1% capped at $3. For card payments, it is 2.65% plus $0.30.
- Organizers can choose to absorb fees or pass them to the customer.
- Platforms such as Eventbrite, Eventfinda, TryBooking, iTicket, and Humanitix commonly include per-ticket pricing elements that scale up as more tickets are added.
- The most useful comparison is total buyer-facing cost, not just the headline fee shown in marketing.
Why pricing comparisons can be misleading
A platform can look affordable until the checkout total tells a different story. Organizers need to look at the full pricing stack: service fee, transaction fee, fixed charges, setup costs, and any effect on payout timing or event-day admin.
Even when the host absorbs fees, the cost still exists. It just comes out of margin instead of being shown to the buyer. That is why comparing fee structure matters as much as comparing fee percentage.
How the main platforms compare
My E-Tickets
Service fee is 1% of the total booking plus $0.20, capped at $5 per booking, with no per-ticket fee. Transaction fee is 1% capped at $3 for i-banking or 2.65% plus $0.30 for cards, and fees can be absorbed or passed on.
Eventbrite
Global platform with layered pricing, where service fees, processing charges, and fixed ticket fees can stack up per ticket.
Eventfinda
NZ-focused but still uses multiple fee layers, including promoter fees, booking fees, and processing charges.
Ticketmaster / Ticketek
Common for major venues and concerts, but pricing is usually more variable, bundled, or only fully visible later in checkout.
Humanitix
Standard pricing of 5% plus $0.49 per ticket keeps the structure simple, but it still scales up with every extra ticket in the order.
2026 fee comparison snapshot
| Platform | Service Fee | Transaction Fee | Fixed Charges | Fee Basis | Typical Cost on 4x$25 Tickets | Key Impact |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| My E-Tickets | 1% of booking + $0.20, max $5 | Card: 2.65% + $0.30, I-banking: 1% capped at $3 | No per-ticket fee | Per booking | Card: ~$4.26 total fees, I-banking: ~$2.73 total fees | Lower cost for multi-ticket bookings. High Transparency. |
| Eventbrite | 3.7% + $1.79 per ticket on paid tickets | 2.9% per order | Per-ticket service fee | Per ticket | ~$13.76 total | Costs scale with each ticket |
| Eventfinda | Included in booking fee | ~2.5% | ~$1 to $1.75 promoter fee plus ~$3 booking fee | Per ticket | ~$18.50 to $21.50+ total | Multiple fee layers |
| Ticketmaster | Included or variable | Included or variable | Per-order and delivery fees may apply | Mixed | Varies widely | Lower transparency |
| Ticketek | Included or variable | Included or variable | Service and handling fees | Mixed | Varies widely | Fees added at checkout |
| TryBooking | Included in booking fee | 2.5% | $0.50 per ticket | Per ticket | ~$4.50 total | Low cost but still stacks per ticket |
| iTicket | ~$2.50 per ticket | ~1.8% to 2.5% cards, up to ~6% Afterpay | Cap per order applies | Mixed | ~$11.80 to $12.50+ total | Predictable but still layered |
| Humanitix | 5% | Included in standard charge or platform pricing mix | $0.49 per ticket | Per ticket | ~$6.96 total | Fees stack with each ticket |
- My E-Tickets -> ~$0.68 by i-banking or ~$1.06 by card
- Eventbrite -> ~$3.44
- Eventfinda -> ~$4.63 to ~$5.38+
- Ticketmaster -> varies widely
- Ticketek -> varies widely
- TryBooking -> ~$1.13
- iTicket -> ~$2.95 to ~$3.13+
- Humanitix -> ~$1.74
What these numbers actually mean
- Service fee is the platform commission.
- Transaction fee covers payment processing such as Visa or Mastercard charges.
- Fixed charges are usually per-ticket or per-order additions that push checkout totals higher.
Most platforms combine two or three of these cost layers. That makes the final price less obvious and often more expensive than it first appears.
Humanitix is simpler than some layered models, but because it uses a 5% plus $0.49 per-ticket structure, costs still rise directly with cart size in the same way other per-ticket platforms do.
My E-Tickets fee examples
On a booking of 4x$25 tickets, the ticket value is $100.00 and the My E-Tickets service fee is $1.20. When all fees are passed to the customer, the organizer still nets $100.00 from the booking and the booking price to the customer becomes $102.73 for i-banking or $104.26 for card payments.
When the event host absorbs all fees instead, the booking price to the customer stays at $100.00, while the organizer nets $97.30 after an i-banking transaction or $95.85 after a card transaction. This structure gives organizers flexibility. They can either keep checkout pricing lower by absorbing fees, or pass the fees on when they want to protect margin. The service fee also caps at $5 per booking, which helps keep larger orders from escalating indefinitely.
Why per-ticket fees hurt multi-ticket sales
Platforms that charge per ticket become more expensive as soon as a customer buys more than one ticket. That matters for family events, group bookings, festivals, community events, and any event where multiple tickets are commonly bought in one order.
Example: if a buyer purchases four $25 tickets, a per-ticket model stacks fees four times. Under a booking-based model, the fee is calculated on the total booking value instead. That can make a noticeable difference to the final checkout price.
Why lower checkout cost improves conversions
Even if the organizer chooses to absorb fees, the platform still affects profit. If the buyer pays fees, the checkout total rises. In both cases, the pricing model changes results.
- Higher checkout totals can reduce conversions.
- Layered fees can increase abandoned carts.
- Lower total fees can improve buyer experience and organizer margin at the same time.
Final view
Based on this comparison, My E-Tickets stands out on pricing simplicity and on the advantage of charging on the total booking rather than penalising every extra ticket in the cart. That structure is especially relevant for New Zealand organizers who want to protect conversion rates and keep more revenue from group bookings.
Other platforms may still fit different event types or venue requirements, but if pricing efficiency is the main goal, the fee model matters just as much as the fee percentage.
FAQ
The biggest difference is per-ticket pricing versus per-booking pricing. My E-Tickets uses a 1% plus $0.20 service fee on the total booking, capped at $5 per booking, with transaction fees then varying by payment method.
Because the buyer-facing cost is what affects conversion. If the final checkout price climbs with layered fees, more buyers may abandon the purchase.
Eventbrite, Eventfinda, TryBooking, iTicket, and Humanitix all include pricing elements that can scale per ticket, which makes them more expensive as cart size grows.
See all blog posts, the pricing page, the platform overview, or contact us for more details.