GuestlistOnline
vs Eventbrite
Two different tools for two different jobs. See how they compare on features, pricing, and which is right for your event.
Eventbrite is the better tool when you want strangers to find and buy: a marketplace with around 89 million monthly users, a checkout people already trust, and an Organizer app that keeps checking guests in when the signal drops. The Netherlands and Germany are not on its new plans — they still sell on the legacy packages, €0.99 per ticket under €10.01 or 4% + €0.99 above it in the Netherlands, 5.5% + €0.99 on German Professional, with no separate processing line published. GuestlistOnline is the better tool for invite-only events: a real guest list with dietary tracking, offline QR check-in, promoter tracking with commissions and branding that is yours. We charge nothing on free events and 5% + €0.25 per paid ticket with payment processing included.
Feature comparison
An honest look at how the two platforms compare.
| Feature | GuestlistOnline | Eventbrite |
|---|---|---|
| Guest list & RSVP | ||
| Guest list management | Full management with import, filters, tags, and dietary tracking | Attendee list with custom registration forms, multiple ticket types, add-ons and promo codes; capacity and dietary needs are handled through custom questions |
| RSVP collection | Free, no account needed for guests | Requires Eventbrite account or checkout flow |
| Promoter tracking | Built-in with commission management | Not published — no organiser-run commission tracking |
| Waitlist and capacity | Capacity limit that closes registration when full, plus guest approval | Waitlists, multiple ticket types, add-ons and promo codes; capacity questions are handled in the registration form |
| Approval for free RSVPs | Registrations can require approval before a ticket is issued | Not published — custom questions, automated reminders and promo codes are documented, a native approval gate for free RSVPs is not |
| Check-in & door | ||
| QR code check-in | Built-in with offline mode | Free Eventbrite Organizer app on iOS and Android: QR scanning, manual check-in, real-time attendance and multi-device sync, and it keeps checking guests in offline and syncs once back online |
| Payments at the door | Not offered — tickets are sold online and the scanner only checks people in | At-the-door payments in the Organizer app: $1 per ticket plus 2.9% in the US, £0.50 plus 1.6% per order in the UK |
| Badge printing | Not offered | Not published |
| Costs & payouts | ||
| Payment processing | Stripe direct — you control payouts | Eventbrite Payment Processing through regional subsidiaries, with pre-event payouts and a paid instant-payout option; standard payout timing is not published |
| Platform fees | No fees on free events; paid tickets 5% + €0.25 incl. processing | A service fee on every paid ticket, charged to the buyer by default or absorbed by the organiser; the rate depends on the country and the package |
| Pricing | Free up to 50 guests; €19.99/event or €29/month | Free events are free with unlimited guests; paid tickets in the Netherlands cost €0.99 each under €10.01, or 4% + €0.99 above it, on the legacy Professional package |
| Netherlands fee package (legacy) | 5% + €0.25 per paid ticket in the ticket currency, payment processing included, the same everywhere we sell | Essentials €0.49 per ticket under €10.01 or 2% + €0.49 above it; Professional €0.99 or 4% + €0.99. The Netherlands is not on the new plans and no separate processing line is published |
| Germany fee package (legacy) | Same 5% + €0.25 in Germany as everywhere else, processing included | Essentials 5.5% per ticket; Professional 5.5% + €0.99 per ticket. Germany is also off the new plans and no separate processing line is published |
| Subscription | Free plan, €19.99 for a single event, €29/month or €249/year on Pro, bought with a card | Premium at $69/month in the US (about $708/year), £59 in the UK, €59 in Ireland, CA$89, A$99 or NZ$99 — sold only in the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK and Ireland, so Dutch and German organisers cannot buy it. Enterprise is a custom quote |
| Fee rates in the new-pricing markets | One rate worldwide: 5% + 0.25 in the ticket currency, processing included | US 3.7% + $1.79 plus 2.9% processing; Canada 3.5% + C$1.29 plus 2.9%; UK 6.95% + £0.59 and Ireland 5.9% + €0.79 with processing bundled; Australia 5.35% + A$1.19; New Zealand 4.2% + NZ$0.55 plus 2.4% |
| Branding & communication | ||
| Custom branding | Custom branding from Per Event (€19.99); full white-label on Enterprise | Custom event pages, but every event is listed on the marketplace and no white-label or badge removal is advertised |
| Email and marketing | Email invitations, reminders and templates in 7 languages — no SMS blasts | Email campaigns (2,000 a day on Premium, 10,000 a day on the closed legacy Pro add-on), Meta and Instagram ad tools, Eventbrite Ads and "Smart audiences"; SMS, WhatsApp and push are not published |
| Platform | ||
| Gift fund | Built-in for weddings and celebrations | Not available |
| Marketplace listing | Private — your event, your data | Public marketplace (discoverable by anyone) |
| Best for | Private events, weddings, clubs, invite-only | Public ticketed events, large concerts |
| Languages | 7 languages across the dashboard, the emails and the guest pages | Localised sites in about 19 markets |
| Data location and certifications | Hosted in the EU, GDPR-compliant | Not published — regional payment entities are named (EU payments run through Eventbrite Operations (IE) Ltd), but the privacy page did not resolve on 17 September 2026 and no hosting region or certification is stated |
| Team access | 6 roles, up to 5 team members on Per Event and 50 on Pro | Organisation team members; granular roles are not published |
| API and integrations | REST API and webhooks on Enterprise | A public developer API, Facebook and Instagram tools and reporting integrations |
| Export | CSV export of guests, RSVPs, answers and check-in status | CSV and XLS exports of attendees, orders, check-ins, promo codes and custom-question answers |
Facts verified on 2026-09-17. Sources are listed at the bottom of this page.
What each one costs
GuestlistOnline
- Free — €01 event, 50 guests, guest list, RSVP page, manual check-in
- Per Event — €19.99 one-offUnlimited guests for one event, QR check-in, templates, branding, gift fund, 5 team members
- Pro — €29/month or €249/yearUnlimited events and guests, analytics, organisation settings, 50 team members, 7-day trial
- Enterprise — CustomWhite-label, API and webhooks, dedicated support and SLA
Free events: no fees. Paid tickets: 5% + 0.25 per ticket in the ticket currency, payment processing included.
Eventbrite
- Free events — $0 / €0No Eventbrite charge when every ticket is free, with unlimited guests
- Netherlands (legacy packages) — Essentials €0.49 or 2% + €0.49; Professional €0.99 or 4% + €0.99The flat fee applies under €10.01 and the percentage above it; no separate processing line is published
- Germany (legacy packages) — Essentials 5.5%; Professional 5.5% + €0.99 per ticketGermany is not on the new plans either; no separate processing line is published
- New-pricing markets — US 3.7% + $1.79 + 2.9% processing; UK 6.95% + £0.59Also Canada 3.5% + C$1.29 + 2.9%, Ireland 5.9% + €0.79, Australia 5.35% + A$1.19, New Zealand 4.2% + NZ$0.55 + 2.4%
- Premium subscription — $69/month US, £59 UK, €59 Ireland, CA$89, A$99, NZ$99US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, UK and Ireland only: paid social promotion, Premium badge, $20/month ads credit, 2,000 emails a day, priority chat, 50% off instant payouts
- Enterprise — CustomQuoted by Eventbrite; the legacy Pro email add-on from $15/month is closed to new organisers
From eventbrite.com/organizer/pricing and the organiser cost help article, checked 17 Sep 2026. Germany and the Netherlands sit on the legacy Essentials and Professional packages, and about 28 more countries use legacy fee packages too. Buyers pay the fee by default; the organiser can absorb it.
What you pay on 200 × €25 tickets (€5,000 gross)
Netherlands legacy Professional package: 4% + €0.99 per ticket above €10.01, and a flat €0.99 on tickets under €10.01. Eventbrite does not publish a separate processing line for the Netherlands, so the real total may be higher again. Free events are free on Eventbrite too.
Assumes one ticket per order and no VAT differences. Both platforms charge nothing on free tickets.
What sets them apart
The details that matter when choosing between the two.
Your data, your brand
GuestlistOnline pages carry your branding from the €19.99 Per Event plan and go fully white-label on Enterprise, and nothing is listed publicly. Eventbrite gives you a custom event page but always puts the event in its marketplace, and advertises no white-label or badge removal — useful for some, a problem for private events.
Fees on every ticket
GuestlistOnline charges nothing on free events and 5% + €0.25 per paid ticket with payment processing included, at the same rate in every country we sell in. Eventbrite takes a cut of every paid ticket, and in the Netherlands and Germany that cut still comes from the legacy packages: €0.99 a ticket under €10.01 or 4% + €0.99 above it in the Netherlands, 5.5% + €0.99 on German Professional — with no separate processing line published, so you cannot see the whole bill in advance.
Built for guest lists
GuestlistOnline focuses on guest management: RSVPs, dietary tracking, approval before a ticket is issued, check-in and promoter links with commissions. Eventbrite focuses on public ticket sales, and publishes no promoter commission tracking and no approval gate for free RSVPs. Different tools for different jobs.
Marketplace exposure and a door kit
Eventbrite's marketplace puts your event in front of roughly 89 million monthly users who are already browsing for something to do, and its Organizer app is a mature door kit: QR scanning, multi-device sync, offline check-in that syncs when the signal returns and card payments at the door. If you want discovery, that is worth paying for. If you want control over your guest experience, your branding and your data, GuestlistOnline is the better fit.
When Eventbrite is the better choice
If you want public discovery and marketplace exposure, Eventbrite's marketplace is a genuine advantage.
- You sell a public concert, festival or show to people who do not know you yet
- You run a public workshop or community meetup and want new faces to find it
- You want buyers to discover the event through Eventbrite search and recommendations
- You take card payments at the door and want them inside the same app
- You want a checkout attendees already recognise and trust
Switching from Eventbrite
Eventbrite exports to CSV and XLS from the dashboard under Orders > Export, including attendees, orders, check-ins, promo codes and the answers to your custom questions. Import that file into GuestlistOnline and map the columns you want to keep.
What carries over
- Guest names and email addresses
- Ticket type and order details if you map the columns on import
- Custom-question answers as guest fields
- Check-in history, as the exported record of who arrived
What doesn't
- Your Eventbrite marketplace listing and the traffic it brought
- Eventbrite Payment Processing payout history and settings
- Email campaign audiences, Eventbrite Ads and the Meta and Instagram ad tools
- Eventbrite-issued ticket QR codes — GuestlistOnline issues new ones
Common questions
Frequently asked questions about GuestlistOnline vs Eventbrite.
All comparisons
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Sources
- Eventbrite organiser pricing
- Eventbrite help — how much does it cost for organizers
- Eventbrite help — Eventbrite's new pricing plans
- Eventbrite blog — onsite operations tools
- Eventbrite terms of service
Verified on 2026-09-17. Spotted something out of date? Email go@guestlistonline.com and we will correct it.