Eventzilla vs Explara (2026): which should you pick?

Pick Eventzilla if

• Fits if you run conferences that need agendas, speakers and badges
• Works for training providers and associations taking paid registrations

Look elsewhere if

• Pricey if you sell low-priced tickets, as the $1.50 per registration doesn't shrink with the price
• Tight if you stay on Basic, which allows only one paid ticket type
• Watch out: agendas and conditional logic on free events need an add-on from $49 a month, and webinars cost $11.99 a month
• Not for you if you want a flat price without fees, as Scale has no published price and is quoted by sales
• Skip it if you want to pass processing fees to buyers without moving to Plus and Eventzilla Payments

Pick Explara if

• Fits if you run about one event a month
• Makes sense if you want a paid membership group next to your events

Look elsewhere if

• Tight if you run more than 1 event a month on Starter
• Pricey if you expect upgrading to cut fees, since the 4% fee stays on Growth and Pro
• Watch out: the 4% fee is stated as domestic only, and Stripe adds 1% a transaction
• Watch out: there is no annual billing option on the page

Eventzilla

• Paid registrations cost $1.50 on Basic, 1.9% + $1.50 on Pro and 2.9% + $1.50 on Plus, plus processing; organizers can pass the fee to attendees.
• Basic allows only one paid ticket type, and passing processing fees to buyers needs Plus and Eventzilla Payments.
• Premium features for free events, such as agendas and conditional logic, need an add-on from $49 a month; webinars are an add-on from $11.99 a month.
• The Scale plan has no published price; it is billed annually and quoted by sales.

Explara

• The 4% fee applies on every plan, so the monthly plans only raise limits on events and groups.
• The 4% fee is stated as domestic only, and a further 1% applies per Stripe transaction.
• Starter allows 1 event a month; extra capacity needs Growth or Pro.
• Prices are shown in US dollars with no annual billing option on the page.

Eventzilla

Registration and ticketing

Free and paid ticket types, recurring and private events, donations, merchandise add-ons, group and targeted discounts, invoices, offline payments and partial or recurring payments.

Agendas, speakers and sponsors

A schedule builder with sessions and tracks, session check-in and capacity, speaker self-service, abstract submissions with review panels, and room block management.

Event website builder

A drag-and-drop event website builder with custom confirmation emails, white-labeled registration and your own domain on the higher plans.

Check-in and badges

Check in and sell on site with the organizer mobile app, design and print name badges on Zebra or Epson printers, and run self-service kiosk check-in.

Virtual and hybrid events

EventHub for web and mobile hosts virtual and hybrid events with live streaming, polls, Q&A and surveys, plus links to outside webinar and streaming tools.

Integrations and reports

Real-time dashboards, scheduled custom reports, Google Analytics, native HubSpot and Mailchimp integrations, Zapier, webhooks and an API.

Explara

Branded event pages

Organizers can go live with a branded ticketing page and accept payments in multiple gateways and currencies.

Membership groups

Attendees can be turned into members of a group or club; the vendor says membership software is free for 1 group and 50 members.

Check-in and badges

QR-based or manual check-in, badge scanning and walk-in registration are listed for event day.

Add-ons and forms

Merchandise, stay options and custom data forms can be added to registration.

Surveys and reports

Post-event surveys, attendee data export and reports are built in, plus automated email sequences.

Eventzilla

• Basic$0

  $1.50 per paid registration plus processing; one paid ticket type, email invitations, a widget for your site and check-in in the organizer app.

• Pro$0

  1.9% + $1.50 per paid registration; unlimited paid ticket types, seating plans, discount codes, agendas, room blocks, badges and reminders.

• Plus$0

  2.9% + $1.50 per paid registration; can pass processing fees on too, plus white label, email campaigns, virtual events, several users and Zapier.

• ScaleCustom

  No per-registration fees, custom registration, app and email credits, on-site badge printing and an account manager; billed annually and sold through sales.

Explara

• Starter$0

  per month

  1 event per month and 1 membership group. 4% fee on ticket value (domestic only); 1% extra per transaction on Stripe.

• Growth$9

  per month

  5 events per month and 2 membership chat groups. Same 4% ticket fee, with 3 admins.

• Pro$25

  per month

  10 events per month and 5 membership groups. Same 4% ticket fee.