Ticketing glossary

Chargeback

A chargeback is when a buyer disputes a charge with their bank instead of asking the merchant for a refund. Here is what it does to your payout and how to respond.

Comp ticket

A comp ticket is a complimentary ticket, usually for artists' guests, press, or industry. It still uses a capacity spot, so organizers cap them on purpose.

Convenience fee

A convenience fee is what large ticketing platforms charge buyers for the convenience of buying a ticket online. Here is where it came from and where the money goes.

Door split

A door split is how the night's ticket revenue gets divided between the promoter, the venue, and the artists. Common formats and what to watch for.

Gross vs net revenue

Gross is what buyers paid you. Net is what hits your bank after fees, refunds, and platform cuts. Mixing them up is how promoters lose money on a sold-out show.

Guarantee

A guarantee is a fixed payment owed to an artist regardless of how many tickets sold. Common in artist booking contracts. Here is how it interacts with door splits and ticket pricing.

On-sale window

The on-sale window is the period when tickets are available to buy. Start time, end time, and tier-by-tier scheduling. Here is how to use it without confusing buyers.

Payout

A payout moves ticket revenue from the platform's balance into your bank account. How timing and holds work, and how DIY Stubs pays out every week.

Reservation hold

A reservation hold locks ticket inventory while a buyer completes checkout, so two buyers cannot claim the last ticket. DIY Stubs holds tickets for 5 minutes.

Service fee

A service fee is what a ticketing platform adds on top of a ticket's face value. What it covers, how it differs from card processing, and what DIY Stubs charges.

Stripe Connect

Stripe Connect is the part of Stripe that lets a platform like DIY Stubs collect ticket payments and pay each organizer directly. Here is what it does and what it does not.

Venue capacity

Capacity is the legal maximum number of people allowed in a venue at one time, set by fire code. It is not the same as the number of tickets you can sell once you factor in staff and comps.

Will-call

Will-call is the old setup where buyers pick up tickets at the venue box office on the night of the show. Mostly replaced by QR tickets, but the term still comes up.