Eventbrite vs Hi.Events (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, we pick Eventbrite: it is second in our ranking of event ticketing platforms, and it grades higher too, 3.0 against 2.8.
Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Eventbrite grades higher on features and ease of use. Hi.Events grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Eventbrite
Ticketing and event marketplace, with fees usually paid by buyers
Hi.Events
Open-source event ticketing with a hosted or self-run option
Which one is for you
Pick Eventbrite if
- Fits if you want people browsing a marketplace to find your event
- Works for free community events, which pay no fees at all
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if your buyers balk at fees, as 3.7% + $1.79 a ticket plus 2.9% processing is the most here
- Not for you if you email a big list, since free sends stop at 250 a day and Pro starts at $15 a month
- Skip it if you're outside the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK or Ireland, where its plans aren't offered
- Watch out: ad spend on Eventbrite Ads, Facebook and Instagram is extra, and Ads run only in select markets
- Watch out: phone support needs a sales partnership, and 24/7 chat covers paid events only
Pick Hi.Events if
- Fits if you sell few tickets and want no monthly bill
- Makes sense if you can run your own server and want the open-source edition
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you want your own branding, as removing the label costs $33.99 a month
- Skip it if you need reserved seating today, since it is early access
- Watch out: payouts go through your own Stripe account and Stripe's fees are charged on top
- Watch out: self-hosting is free, but seating, box office and SSO on your own server need a licence
How we grade them
| 3.0GPAEventbriteVery good | 2.8GPAHi.EventsGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CBuyers pay by default, so you keep the ticket price, but the fee is the dearest here: 3.7% + $1.79 a ticket is $506 on 200 $20 tickets, with 2.9% processing per order on top that we haven't counted. Absorb it and it's yours. More than 250 emails a day needs Pro from $15 a month. | BNo monthly fee, but each paid ticket costs 1.25% + $0.60, Stripe's processing fees come on top, and removing branding is $33.99 a month. |
| Free plan and trial | BFree to publish as many events as you like, and free events carry no fees at all. The free account sends 250 marketing emails a day, and more needs Pro from $15 a month. A small series could run on it for good. | AThe hosted account has every feature with no monthly fee, and free events cost nothing. A self-hosted edition is free too. |
| Features | BMarketplace listing, ticket types, add-ons, waitlists, reserved seating, timed entry, email campaigns, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok promotion, a check-in app with Tap to Pay, and payouts before the event. It covers the whole job. | CTicketing, QR check-in, team access and an API. Reserved seating and the box office are marked early access. |
| Ease of use | A4.79 from 32,637 App Store ratings, and that's for the Eventbrite Organizer app, the one you use to run the door. Making an event is guided, with AI help to write it up. | CNo store rating on record. You connect your own Stripe account to get paid. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with Mailchimp, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and a public API. No desktop app, which an A needs, and its pricing plans are offered only in the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK and Ireland. | BWeb, with Stripe, an API, and connections to Claude and ChatGPT. |
| Best for | getting found by buyers on a big marketplace | open-source ticketing with a hosted option |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Eventbrite and Hi.Events. How we grade
Price against what you get
Eventbrite starts at $15 a month and scores 3.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Hi.Events starts at $28 a month when paid by the year and scores 2.3.
Eventbrite scores higher and starts $13 a month lower. Of the other event ticketing platforms on the chart, none scores higher than Eventbrite for less, and 9 score higher than Hi.Events for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Hi.Events is open source and self-hostable, according to its own site.
- Eventbrite also covers reports and email campaigns.
At a glance
| Eventbrite | Hi.Events | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $15 per month and up, for Eventbrite Pro email sends | $33.99 per month to remove branding, or $335.99 per year |
| Free plan | Free to publish unlimited events. Free tickets carry no fees; paid tickets carry a 3.7% + $1.79 service fee and 2.9% processing per order, paid by buyers by default. Up to 250 marketing emails a day. | Hosted account at no monthly fee with every feature; paid tickets cost 1.25% + $0.60 each, and free events cost nothing. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Eventbrite, Inc. | Hi.Events Ltd. |
| Price read from | eventbrite.com | hi.events |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Eventbrite
- Paid tickets carry a 3.7% + $1.79 service fee and 2.9% processing per order; buyers pay them by default, or the organizer can absorb them.
- The free account sends up to 250 marketing emails a day; more needs Pro from $15 a month, and ad spend for Eventbrite Ads, Facebook and Instagram is extra.
- Eventbrite says its pricing plans are offered in the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK and Ireland, and Eventbrite Ads only in select markets.
- 24/7 chat support covers paid events; phone support and a strategic advisor come with the sales partnership.
Hi.Events
- Paid-ticket payouts go through your own Stripe account, and Stripe's processing fees are charged on top.
- Reserved seating and the box office are marked early access, and company SSO is on request.
- Self-hosting is free, but reserved seating, box office and SSO on your own server need a licence.
- Removing the Powered by Hi.Events branding costs $33.99 a month or $335.99 a year.
Key features
Eventbrite
- Events marketplace
- Events are listed on Eventbrite's own discovery marketplace, where buyers browse local events, so organizers can reach people beyond their own following.
- Ticketing and registration
- Custom event pages, several ticket types, add-ons, custom registration forms, waitlists, promo codes, embedded checkout and AI-assisted event creation.
- Reserved seating and timed entry
- Seat maps that let buyers pick seats, and timed-entry ticketing for attractions and exhibitions that admit people in time slots.
- Marketing tools
- Email campaigns to segmented lists of past buyers, Facebook and Instagram ad tools, TikTok promotion and paid Eventbrite Ads placements on the marketplace.
- Organizer app and Tap to Pay
- The iOS and Android Organizer app scans QR-code tickets, tracks live attendance and sales, and takes payment for tickets and merchandise at the door.
- Payouts before the event
- Eventbrite Payment Processing pays out before the event, with Instant Payouts in minutes or a custom schedule, and sales and fee reports.
Hi.Events
- Ticketing and checkout
- Unlimited events and ticket types, an embeddable checkout widget, promo codes, affiliate tracking, and your own service fees and taxes.
- QR check-in
- Door staff check guests in with a link and no install, by camera scan, USB scanner or name search, with a live count per door list.
- Reserved seating
- Draw a venue once, price it by section, and let buyers choose their own seats. Marked early access on the pricing page.
- Box office
- Staff sell at the door from a browser, taking cash or cards on Stripe readers paid into your own Stripe account. Marked early access.
- AI assistant connection
- Connect Claude or ChatGPT to find attendees, resend tickets or pull sales figures by asking.
- Team access and API
- View-only and per-event team access, required two-factor sign-in, single sign-on on request, and a REST API.
Plans
Eventbrite
Free$0
No subscription. Each paid ticket carries 3.7% + $1.79 plus 2.9% processing per order, paid by the buyer unless the organizer absorbs it; free events cost nothing.
Pro$15
per month and up
A subscription add-on for marketing email that raises the daily limit from 250 sends to between 2,000 and 10,000. Ticket fees still apply.
Sales partnershipCustom
For large or complex events: a strategic advisor, Eventbrite-sponsored marketing, and priority phone and 24/7 chat support.
Hi.Events
Hosted$0
No monthly fee or contract. Fee of 1.25% + $0.60 per paid ticket, paid by the buyer by default or absorbed by you.
Branding removal$33.99
per month for the whole account ($335.99 billed yearly)
Removes the Powered by Hi.Events label from pages, checkout, widgets, tickets and emails. Plus tax where it applies.
Self-hosted (AGPL)$0
Open source edition you run on your own servers, with no platform fees.
Self-hosted licence€249
per year for the first €10k of ticket sales
Annual licence priced by ticket sales: €12 per €1,000 from €10k to €30k, falling to €5.50 above €1.5M.
Ways to pay less
Eventbrite
- Nonprofit
50% off Pro for qualifying nonprofits
Qualifying nonprofits get half off Eventbrite's Pro plans, and donation tickets carry discounted ticketing fees.
Hi.Events
- Annual discount
Branding removal cheaper when billed yearly
Removing the branding is $335.99 a year instead of $33.99 a month, the yearly price the pricing page lists.
- Nonprofit
Licence discounts for non-profits and education
The self-hosted licence page says discounts exist for non-profits, education, early-stage startups and PPP-eligible countries, on request.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Eventbrite or Hi.Events?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Eventbrite is cheaper to start with: $15 a month, against $28 a month when paid by the year for Hi.Events. Eventbrite starts at $15 per month and up, for Eventbrite Pro email sends, and Hi.Events starts at $33.99 per month to remove branding, or $335.99 per year.
Which has a free plan, Eventbrite or Hi.Events?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Eventbrite and Hi.Events have a free plan.
Which platforms do Eventbrite and Hi.Events run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Eventbrite lists iOS and Android apps. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.