Glossary
Venue capacity
Venue capacity is the maximum number of people allowed inside a venue at one time. It is set by local fire and building codes and posted at the entrance. Capacity is not the same as the number of tickets a promoter can sell, because the count includes staff, performers, and anyone else inside the room.
Legal capacity vs sellable capacity
The number on the wall is the legal maximum. The number you can sell tickets to is lower, because the legal count includes everyone in the room:
- The performing acts and their crew.
- Sound and lighting engineers.
- Door staff, security, and bar staff.
- Comp tickets you have already given out.
- Guest list spots for press, industry, or VIPs.
- Anyone the venue itself has on standby.
Add those up. Subtract from legal capacity. The remainder is what you have left to sell.
Why exceeding capacity is a serious problem
Exceeding posted capacity is a fire code violation and can result in the venue being shut down on the night, fined, or losing its occupancy permit. In the worst case it puts people in danger. Door staff and security generally have a hard counter and will stop letting people in regardless of whether they have valid tickets. Late arrivals stuck outside with paid tickets is a refund situation and a reputation hit.
How DIY Stubs enforces it
On DIY Stubs you set a capacity for each tier and an optional total event capacity. The platform will not sell more tickets than the configured caps, including during simultaneous checkout attempts. Inventory locks (called reservation holds) prevent two buyers from grabbing the same last ticket at the same time.
Comp tickets count against capacity on DIY Stubs, so a comp issued is a paid ticket you can no longer sell. Plan your comp budget early in the on-sale period rather than at the last minute.