7 Sites like Ticketmaster to Buy Concert and Sports Tickets
It’s no secret that Ticketmaster is one of the leading brokers of event ticket sales worldwide. But what you may not know is that there are other options out there on the Internet, from auction sites to ticket resale websites. Some can even get you tickets at a bargain price! This article will go over some of the other ways you can go about purchasing event tickets online besides going straight to Ticketmaster.
Ticketmaster is infamous for charging high service fees on top of the face values of tickets. So, while it may be reliable, it may not be your most cost-effective option. If you’re willing to do a bit of research and exercise a bit of vigilance, though, there are other websites where you can score tickets that might be higher-priced – or even sold out – on Ticketmaster. There are also some tricks you can try when shopping for tickets online. Have a look at our recommendations at the bottom of the article!
7 best ticket site alternatives to Ticketmaster
1. TicketLiquidator
TicketLiquidator is one of the most often-mentioned outlets for getting cheaper tickets than Ticketmaster. It employs mostly professional independent ticket brokers who undergo a strict vetting and ranking process, so it’s fairly reliable, too. In fact, it guarantees that your tickets will be valid, of equal or greater value to what you ordered, and protected if an event is cancelled… or your money back!
2. StubHub
Now owned by e-commerce giant eBay, StubHub is another popular Ticketmaster alternative for things like its rewards program and the ability to donate ticket sales to charity. It’s easier to become a seller on StubHub than TicketLiquidador, but that also means selling isn’t quite as heavily regulated. So you may have to spend more time shopping around to find tickets at a good price.
If you’d like to see how StubHub works in detail, head over to our StubHub course!
3. VividSeats
Another common alternative to Ticketmaster, VividSeats is popular for its security, legitimacy, prices, and money-back guarantees. What stands out about it, though, is its commitment to customer service. If something doesn’t go quite right with your ticket order, VividSeats will do all that they can to make sure you attend your event completely satisfied!
4. SeatGeek
SeatGeek is to tickets what Trivago and Kayak are to travel accommodations. It searches other ticket sites for tickets on sale and puts them in one convenient place, so you don’t have to hop around from site to site. It also analyzes and ranks the tickets it finds with its “DealScore” system, so you’ll know how justified their prices are in relation to their seating location quality and popularity.
5. RazorGator
If you’re new to the secondary ticket market (that is, buying from people who are reselling tickets), give RazorGator a try. It’s very upfront and honest about how it operates, and gives you some insight into how the ticket resale market itself works. With industry-leading secure checkout, high privacy standards, and comprehensive money back guarantees, RazorGator has received rave reviews from the Better Business Bureau and many news publications.
6. TicketCity
TicketCity is one of the most experienced ticket resale sites, having been around since 1990. Like RazorGator, they have been featured at the Better Business Bureau and many news publications as a leading ticket resale outlet. They’re especially good if you’re into college sports.
7. Coast to Coast Tickets
Founded in 2001, Coast to Coast Tickets’ motto is “great tickets from nice people. ” They offer secure transactions, great prices, and a guarantee that your tickets will be valid, what you ordered, and on time for an event. Most of their providers will get your tickets to you within 24 hours of ordering them!
8 tips for buying tickets online
1. Go straight to the source.
An easy way to get tickets cheaper than Ticketmaster is to go directly to the website for the venue that’s hosting the event or the act that you want to see. They will often point you to places where you can get tickets at a decent price without as much mark-up. Also, if you join their fan clubs or mailing lists, you’ll often get notifications for when tickets go on sale, or even special bonus promotions.
2. Research and plan ahead.
As we just mentioned, knowing when tickets go on sale is important for scoring them. Do an Internet search for when tickets will start being sold for the event you want to go to. Also, be sure to already have an account with up-to-date payment information set up on your ticket purchasing site of choice, and log into it ahead of time (before tickets go on sale). Having to set up an account before you actually get to buying tickets will cost you precious time that prepared shoppers will use to snatch up seats!
3. Go somewhere with a fast Internet connection.
Don’t be afraid to get out of the house if your home Internet connection is a little slow. Take your laptop, tablet, or smart phone to a place with public Wi-Fi, and see if you get a better connection there. Or, if that isn’t an option for you, try finding a local Internet café and use a computer there.
4. A team effort usually gets better results.
If you have multiple Internet-capable devices in your home, use them all to your advantage! In addition to visiting your favourite ticket outlet’s website, download their mobile app (if they have one) for your tablet or smart phone and use that to search for tickets. At the very least, open multiple web browsers (or tabs in the same browser) and try getting different seats on each of them.
If you have friends or family who have accounts on ticket websites (and maybe even want to go to the event with you), you can ask them to scout for seats right along with you! The more sources looking for tickets for you, the better the chances of actually getting what you want.
5. Pick your date(s) carefully.
If an event is going to be held on multiple dates in your local area, try to avoid searching for tickets to the very first show. Those are the ones that will likely sell out fastest, and whose prices will go up fast – if not at primary ticket vendors, then definitely on resale sites. In addition, try to avoid shows on weekend dates, particularly Friday or Saturday, as they are also popular and will sell quickly. If you can make it to an event on a weekday, you’ll often be able to find better seats at cheaper prices.
6. Aim for single seats.
Especially for popular events, it can be difficult to find two or more good quality seats available next to each other. Even if you’ll be attending the event with friends or family members, it may be easier to just look for individual seats. That way, there’s less of a chance that you’ll have to re-pick your seats because someone already reserved one of the multiple ones you selected. As long as you’re close enough together, in the same section and cluster of rows, it shouldn’t make that much difference.
7. Stay focused and don’t panic.
Tickets often sell fast online, and some ticket websites even have timers that will kick you out of the queue if you don’t complete your transaction within a specific time limit. Despite that, trying to rush through the ordering process is a bad idea. Having to go back and change your seats or payment information, or repeatedly having to retry the security puzzles that keep automated programs from buying tickets, will cost you far more time than simply taking things slow and doing them right the first time.
8. If all else fails, shop around.
Even if Ticketmaster or your favourite ticket outlet says that an event is sold out, that doesn’t necessarily mean that it is. Someone else on another ticket site may have tickets that they’re willing to sell, so shop around and see what you can find. Try all of the sites we mentioned, or try other trusted online marketplaces like or Amazon. Of course, take some precautions and do some research on where you shop to make sure you don’t walk into a fake ticket deal that’s too good to be true.
There you have it: 7 websites that you can try if you don’t want to go through Ticketmaster for your event tickets, and 8 tips for shopping for tickets online! Be sure to review our safe online shopping tips for a secure and hassle-free ticket-buying experience. Have fun getting up close and personal with the best in live entertainment!
5 Strong Alternatives to Ticketmaster for Buying Event Tickets
If you’ve ever attended live music, comedy, or theater, there’s a good chance you bought your tickets through Ticketmaster. The site is one of the most prominent ticket sales companies in the world. In 2008, it became part of Live Nation Entertainment, one of the largest entertainment businesses.
However, their market dominance means they aren’t always the best place to buy tickets. Unfair pricing strategies have hurt fans and artists alike. They also operate a ticket resale site, which was the cause of controversy in mid-2019 when it was discovered Ticketmaster helped artists sell their tickets directly to the resale market at inflated prices.
If you’re looking for sites like Ticketmaster for your online ticketing needs, we can help. Here are the five best Ticketmaster alternatives available right now.
1.
Ticketmaster is often associated with live music, but the site covers a wide variety of events. is the most comprehensive alternative to Ticketmaster. It includes a similarly extensive range of activities and shows but is mainly focused on live entertainment. This isn’t is owned by Major League Baseball Advanced Media (MLBAM).
Aside from MLB games, the site also offers tickets to live wrestling and other sports events. In 2010, it was chosen as the ticketing partner for the Vancouver Olympic Games. It’s an excellent choice for sports fans, but the site has a wide userbase, too. Before heading to the site, you may want to use these mobile apps to discover events happening in your area.
has many partnerships with venues across the US. This makes it a breeze to search the site either for a specific event or to see what’s on at your favorite venue. Like Ticketmaster, the site does charge a service fee on top of the ticket’s face value. Although this can vary by venue and event, it seems that this charge is usually $2. 50 per ticket.
2. See Tickets
See Tickets is one of the most significant Ticketmaster alternatives. The site’s origins stretch back to a local record store in Nottingham, UK in the 1980s. After a merger, it began trading as See Tickets in 2004 and was then acquired by the French ticketing firm Vivendi SA in 2004. The site is most famous for being the ticket seller for the Glastonbury music festival, the UK equivalent of Coachella.
In November 2019, it was announced that See Tickets were expanding their US presence and opening new offices. Although the large ticketing sites maintain a near-monopoly on significant events in the US, See Tickets has found its own market.
According to their Global CEO, the company has found itself as the go-to ticketing website for indie music events and independent music festivals. It is also a popular destination for country music events and fans.
3. Eventbrite
Eventbrite is not a direct Ticketmaster alternative—you won’t find the same shows or artists on the site—but is an excellent alternative ticketing website. Eventbrite first launched in 2006 and has since gone on to acquire complementary businesses and cement its place as one of the best ticketing websites. Eventbrite’s primary use is for local events ticketing.
Before the internet, organizing a community event would mean going door-to-door or sending newsletters to generate interest. Now, you can put your event up on Eventbrite, and the site takes care of the rest.
Payments are made directly through the Eventbrite website, so you don’t have to register with over a dozen small sites and trust them with your financial data. Tickets are available as PDF email attachments, or as QR codes within the Eventbrite mobile app.
That said, Eventbrite isn’t just for community and local events. Businesses around the world use Eventbrite to organize all sorts of live and online events. If you’re looking for inspiration, you can browse the listings to find shows and events near you. You can filter these by date or category. You can also find business-focused events, music festivals, and educational courses available to book through the site.
Download: Eventbrite for Android | iOS (Free)
4. Twickets
Stubhub is one of the most well-known ticket resale sites. It is not affiliated with Ticketmaster, but has been accused of many similar manipulative business practices. For most of its operating life, Stubhub was a part of eBay.
In November 2019, it was announced that Viagogo, another resale company with a similarly controversial background, would acquire Stubhub. Despite these issues, it is still one of the best sites to get tickets, thanks to its large inventory of resale tickets.
Twickets is an ethical alternative to Stubhub, Viagogo, and Ticketmaster. The site, founded in the UK, allows you to resell your tickets, but only for the face value or less. This is to ensure that professional ticket resellers aren’t able to abuse the platform and make large profits from fans. Although it’s possible to sell your tickets at face value, there will often be tickets available at substantial discounts.
Resellers can adjust the price based on demand and whether the event is actually sold out. After all, why would someone want to pay face value for second-hand tickets when they could buy them directly, instead?
Twickets is available on the web and your smartphone through the official Android and iOS apps. The site has even been endorsed by high-profile artists like Ed Sheeran, the Spice Girls, and Andrew Lloyd-Webber.
Download: Twickets for Android | iOS (Free)
5. Dice
The ticketing website Dice is one of the best places to find concerts near you. The UK-based service launched in 2014 as a way to find local events to attend. Dice has since expanded into the American market. The site currently covers New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago, with plans to launch in other areas of the US.
Dice is unique in the ticket market. Although you can browse events on the website, tickets are only available on the Dice mobile app. This is done to prevent for-profit resellers from getting access to the tickets. If you’ve purchased a ticket, all you need to do is turn up at the venue and show the QR code on the Dice app.
It’s not a problem if you can’t attend either. You can quickly return the ticket to Dice, who will then release it on a first-come-first-served basis to those on the waitlist. Although it is relatively new in the US, it has been popular in the UK, with many independent and small to mid-size venues selling tickets exclusively through Dice.
Download: Dice for Android | iOS (Free)
The Best Alternative to Ticketmaster
Ticketmaster was one of the first companies to operate online ticket sales, and, in many ways, revolutionized the ticketing market. However, their market dominance means they often don’t have the fans’ best interests in mind. High prices, extraordinary fees, and manipulative practices mean that Ticketmaster isn’t always the best place to buy your tickets.
These Ticketmaster alternatives offer you choice. Many of them have arisen with the explicit intention of challenging Ticketmaster’s business practices, too. So, you should be able to find a fair and affordable price for the live event you want to attend.
If you’re buying a ticket for a music festival, be sure that you’ve got the most essential tech gadgets for music festivals before you go.
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James Frew
(296 Articles Published)
James is an experienced freelance writer, specializing in technology, health, and fitness. He was previously MakeUseOf’s Buyer’s Guide editor and is driven to make technology accessible and safe for everyone. BEng in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Surrey. Also found at PoTS Jots writing about chronic illness.
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Ticketmaster Competitors | Comparably
Ticketmaster competitors include Eventbrite, Front Gate Tickets, Live Nation Entertainment, StubHub and Ticketfly. Ticketmaster ranks 1st in CEO Score on Comparably vs its competitors. See below how Ticketmaster compares to its competitors with CEO Rankings, Product & Services, NPS, Pricing, Customer Services, Overall Culture Score, eNPS, Gender and Diversity Scores. Ticketmaster Competitors at a GlanceProduct Quality Score ComparisonTicketmaster Ranks 3rd in Product Quality Score67 Customers rate Ticketmaster’s Product Quality Score a 2. 8/5, which ranks it 3rd against its competitors, below Live Nation Entertainment. Live Nation EntertainmentNPS ComparisonTicketmaster Ranks 3rd in Net Promoter Score64 Customers rate Ticketmaster’s Net Promoter Score a -22, which ranks it 3rd against its competitors, below Live Nation Entertainment. Net Promoter score tracks customers’ overall score to this question – “On a scale from 0-10, how likely are you to recommend Ticketmaster to a friend? ”. Live Nation EntertainmentPricing Score ComparisonTicketmaster Ranks 3rd in Pricing Score56 Customers rate Ticketmaster’s Pricing Score a 2. 4/5, which ranks it 3rd against its competitors, below Live Nation Entertainment. Live Nation EntertainmentCustomer Service ComparisonTicketmaster Ranks 3rd in Customer Service53 Customers rate Ticketmaster’s Customer Service a 2. 4/5, which ranks it 3rd against its competitors, below Eventbrite. Live Nation EntertainmentOverall Culture Score ComparisonTicketmaster Ranks 1st in Overall Culture Score54 Employees rate Ticketmaster’s Overall Culture a 71/100, which ranks it 1st against its competitors. Overall Culture scores are aggregated from all of the questions employees at a company answer on Comparably. Live Nation EntertainmenteNPS ComparisonTicketmaster Ranks 4th in Employee Net Promoter Score40 Employees rate Ticketmaster’s Employee Net Promoter Score a -6, which ranks it 4th against its competitors, below StubHub. Employee Net Promoter score tracks employees’ overall score to this question – “On a scale from 0-10, how likely are you to recommend working at Ticketmaster to a friend? ”. Live Nation EntertainmentGender Score ComparisonTicketmaster Ranks 1st in Gender Score18 Employees rate Ticketmaster’s Gender Score a 74/100, which ranks it 1st against its competitors. The Gender Score tracks how positively women rate their experience at Ticketmaster. Live Nation EntertainmentDiversity Score ComparisonTicketmaster Ranks 2nd in Diversity Score20 Employees rate Ticketmaster’s Diversity Score a 72/100, which ranks it 2nd against its competitors, below Live Nation Entertainment. The Diversity Score tracks how positively diverse employees rate their experience at Ticketmaster. Live Nation Entertainment
Frequently Asked Questions about sites like ticketmaster
Who are Ticketmaster competitors?
Ticketmaster competitors include Eventbrite, Front Gate Tickets, Live Nation Entertainment, StubHub and Ticketfly.
Is AXS like Ticketmaster?
AXS and Ticketmaster are separate companies. AXS is the official ticketing site of The O2. Ticketmaster will be the only place selling VIP Tickets though.May 30, 2018
What is the best place to buy tickets online?
Best concert ticket sites 2021StubHub: Best concert ticket site overall. … SeatGeek: Best website for booking. … Razorgator: Best value concert ticket site. … Ticketmaster: Best customer guaranteed concert ticket site. … TicketCity: Best concert ticket site for sellers. … VividSeats: Best rewards program for a concert ticket site.Jun 18, 2021
