DIY Stubs vs Eventbrite

The main difference is the fee structure. Eventbrite charges a percentage plus a per-ticket fee. DIY Stubs charges a flat 3% per paid ticket, and buyers pay card processing as its own line. Eventbrite has long been the default answer for "how do I sell tickets online", and it works. It is priced for a different kind of organizer than the ones we built DIY Stubs for. This page lays out how the two differ, and links to Eventbrite's current pricing page for their figures.

Fee structure

The biggest difference is who pays which fee. Eventbrite's published model has historically had two distinct fees per ticket sale: a platform service fee and a payment processing fee, both typically added to the buyer's total at checkout. Their fee amounts and which tier of their plan you are on determine the size, and their pricing page is the canonical source for current values.

DIY Stubs has one platform fee, set at a flat rate:

• Platform fee: 3% of each paid ticket. No tiers. No per-event or per-scanner surcharges. Free RSVP tiers cost nothing.
• Card processing: Stripe's 2.9% + 30¢ per successful card payment, paid by the buyer as its own line at checkout. The money goes to Stripe and the card networks, not to us.
• Who covers the 3%: You choose per event. By default the organizer covers it and keeps 97%. If buyers cover it, it shows as a clearly labeled "Platform fee" line and the organizer keeps 100% of face value. Either way, we do not add a separate "service fee" or "convenience fee".

Worked example on a $20 ticket

Our payouts doc has the full DIY Stubs math. Here is the default case, where the organizer covers the platform fee:

• Ticket price: $20.00
• Buyer's total at checkout (ticket plus Stripe processing): about $20.91, plus tax where it applies
• DIY Stubs platform fee (3% of ticket): $0.60
• Net to the organizer: $19.40

For the equivalent Eventbrite total at checkout, plug your event's country, package, and ticket price into their pricing page or their in-product calculator. We would rather not quote a number that may be out of date by the time you read this.

Payouts

DIY Stubs pays out every week through Stripe Connect once your Stripe account is verified. The first payout follows Stripe's standard new-account hold of about 3 weeks. After that, payouts run weekly while tickets sell, so you do not have to request one or wait until after the event.

Eventbrite's payout cadence depends on your country and account history, and they document their policy in their help center. If pre-event cash flow matters to you (you need to pay the venue or deposits before doors open), read both policies before you pick a platform.

Feature differences worth knowing

• Door scanner. The DIY Stubs scanner runs in the browser on any phone with a camera. No app to install, no per-scanner fee, and no limit on door staff, who you invite by email for scanner-only access.
• Email blasts. Each event can send up to 5 blasts to buyers who opted in. Automatic updates when you change the venue, date, or doors do not count toward the cap.
• Embed widget. Drop a ticket selector into your own site or your band's site. See our developer docs for the snippet.
• One account, both sides. The same login handles organizing and buying tickets to other shows. A switcher in the nav flips between the two dashboards.

When Eventbrite probably fits better

Eventbrite is the right fit for some organizers. If you sell out large venues regularly and pay for one of their higher-tier plans, the per-ticket fee math can change. If your event needs deep listing distribution into the Eventbrite consumer search and marketplace, they have something we do not. If you are coordinating a large multi-day conference with badge tiers, breakouts, and waivers, they offer more features for that.

DIY Stubs tends to fit small to mid-sized independent events, where the organizer is also the promoter, every dollar of fees matters, and the door staff is a few friends with phones. That is the kind of show we built for.

Bottom line

Open Eventbrite's pricing page in one tab and this page in another. Take your typical ticket price and the size of a typical show. Multiply the fees out for both. The right answer is whichever leaves more in the organizer's pocket while showing the buyer every fee. Run the numbers for your show, not ours.