What is the best event management software for nonprofits in 2026?
Nonprofit event software comes down to one number: how much of the ticket money reaches your mission.
You run a gala, a walk, a trivia night or a member meetup. RSVPs come in by email, payments by Venmo, and the night before nobody knows the headcount. Event management software fixes that: a registration page, online payment, an e-ticket, a live guest list and a phone that scans at the door.
The short answer. Zeffy is the best pick for most US and Canadian nonprofits: $0 in fees, funded by optional tips. Givebutter is best for fundraising events, with 0 % fees when tips are on or a flat 3 % when they are off. Humanitix has the lowest charity ticket rate among paid platforms, at 1 % + $0.99. WildApricot fits membership groups, from $59.40 a month. Eventbrite brings the biggest audience, at 3.7 % + $1.79 per ticket plus processing.
What other lists skip: most of them are written by vendors ranking themselves, and none compares fees on the same sale. This one does.
The ranking is editorial: a sponsored spot is always labeled on its card, and no affiliate link changes a score.
The best pick for your nonprofit
5 nonprofit event management tools compared
The ranking targets a US nonprofit running 2 to 20 events a year, from a 50-person dinner to a 2,000-runner 5K, mostly with volunteers.
| Best for | What sets it apart | Free plan | Team size | Visit | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zeffy | Best overall | Keeps 100 % of ticket revenue | 4.6/5 | $0, optional tip from the buyer | ✓ | Any size, US and Canada | Visit → |
| 2 | Givebutter | Best for fundraising events | Choose between tips and a flat fee | 4.4/5 | 0 % with tips; 3 % + processing without | ✓ | Small to mid-size nonprofits | Visit → |
| 3 | Humanitix | Lowest ticket fee for charities | Charity rate, and profits go to charity | 4.2/5 | 1 % + $0.99 per paid ticket (charities) | ✓ | Ticketed events of any size | Visit → |
| 4 | WildApricot | Events plus membership | Event registration tied to member records | 3.9/5 | From $59.40/month (100 contacts, annual) | — | Membership groups of 50 to 2,000 | Visit → |
| 5 | Eventbrite | Biggest audience | Buyers can find your event on the marketplace | 3.6/5 | 3.7 % + $1.79 per ticket + 2.9 % processing | ✓ | Public events that need new attendees | Visit → |
Scores on five weighted criteria, detailed in the method. Prices read in 2026 on official vendor pages, in US dollars.
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How we compared and scored
This page is for the executive director, development lead or volunteer who has to pick the tool for registrations and tickets. It is not a guide for a 10,000-person conference buying an enterprise platform.
We read every vendor's official pricing, then went through user reviews, negatives first. Two complaints come back everywhere: tip prompts that supporters did not expect, and per-ticket fees that eat small-ticket events.
To compare cost, we used one case: 200 tickets at $25, bought one by one, $5,000 in revenue, fees absorbed by the nonprofit. Real cost weighs 25 % of the score, ticketing 30 %, donors and members 20 %, event day 15 %, ease of use 10 %.
Not ranked, and why. Bloomerang, GiveSmart and Neon One sell events inside larger suites without public event pricing. We could not confirm Ticket Tailor's dollar fee on its own page. They have a card below, without a score.
- Ticketing and registrationTicket tiers, promo codes, capacity limits, custom registration questions, e-tickets by email.30 %
- Real cost to the nonprofitWhat you keep on 200 tickets at $25, per-ticket minimums, subscriptions, and who covers fees: you or the buyer.25 %
- Donors and membersDonation add-ons, member pricing, donor records that outlive the event.20 %
- Event dayFree check-in app, on-site payments, guest lists, waitlists.15 %
- Ease of useTime to publish a first event, clarity for a volunteer who has never sold a ticket.10 %
No affiliate link changes a score or a rank.
Ticketing fees change often. Get the updates
Zeffy
Zeffy answers the question most nonprofit treasurers ask first: can you sell tickets without giving a cut to the platform? Yes. Zeffy charges $0, covers card processing, and tells you the nonprofit receives 100 % of what buyers pay. It funds itself through an optional tip shown at checkout. According to Zeffy, roughly 2 in 3 donors leave one.
Ticketing sits next to donations, auctions, raffles and memberships in one account. So the gala ticket buyer becomes a donor record you can thank, and numbered raffle tickets come with it.
Run the numbers on 200 tickets at $25: $5,000 sold, $5,000 deposited. Eventbrite on the same sale, fees absorbed, keeps about $688.
The limit: that tip prompt. Some supporters notice it late and feel nudged. Say it plainly in your invite email: the tip goes to Zeffy, not to your cause, and they can set it to zero. Zeffy also only serves North American nonprofits, and the checkout carries Zeffy branding.
- $0 platform and processing fees
- Tickets, donations and raffles in one account
- No paid tier to unlock features
- ✓The only tool here that costs your nonprofit nothing
- ✓Ticket buyers become donor records
- ✓No contract, no per-user price
- ✗Tip prompt can feel pushy to some buyers
- ✗North America only
- ✗Checkout carries Zeffy branding
The default pick for a US or Canadian nonprofit. Explain the tip in your invitation and you remove the only real complaint.
Givebutter
Givebutter looks like Zeffy at first glance: with tips enabled, you pay 0 % in platform and processing fees. The difference is the switch. Turn tips off and you pay a flat 3 % platform fee, plus card processing at 2.9 % + 30¢. Some boards prefer that: nobody gets asked for anything extra.
On 200 tickets at $25 with tips off, you pay $150 in platform fees and about $205 in processing, roughly $355. With tips on, $0.
Its strength is the fundraising layer around the event. Ticket pages carry donation add-ons, campaigns can run peer-to-peer, and Givebutter Plus ($29 a month billed annually, $348 a year for up to 250 contacts, 30-day trial) adds CRM features on top of the free plan.
The limit: Plus is priced by contact tier, so a big list pushes you up the grid. And on-site tools are lighter than a dedicated ticketing platform.
- Tips on: 0 % fees
- Tips off: flat 3 % platform fee
- Donation add-ons on ticket pages
- ✓You decide whether buyers see a tip prompt
- ✓Strong fundraising tools around the event
- ✓Free plan covers ticketing
- ✗Without tips, fees reach about 7 % on a $25 ticket
- ✗Plus priced by contact tier
- ✗Lighter event-day tooling
Pick it when the event exists to raise money. If you just need tickets at zero cost, Zeffy is simpler.
Humanitix
Humanitix is a ticketing platform that sends 100 % of its profits to charity, and it gives charities and schools their own rate: 1 % + $0.99 per paid ticket, against 2.1 % + $0.99 for everyone else. Free events cost nothing.
On 200 tickets at $25, the booking fee comes to about $248. Processing is listed separately at 2.9 % + $0.30, so budget around $200 more if you absorb it. That sits between Givebutter with tips off and Eventbrite.
What you get for it: no tip prompt, a clean checkout, and a platform built for ticketed events rather than donations. Buyers see a fee they understand.
The limit: Humanitix is a ticketing tool, not a donor database. Member pricing and donor history live elsewhere, and the $0.99 per ticket weighs heavily on a $5 ticket.
- Charity rate of 1 % + $0.99
- Free events cost $0
- Profits go to charity
- ✓No tip prompt at checkout
- ✓Built for ticketed events
- ✓Clear, published charity rate
- ✗Processing on top of the booking fee
- ✗$0.99 floor hurts cheap tickets
- ✗No donor or member records
The cleanest paid option for a ticketed charity event. Use Zeffy instead if every dollar of fees matters more than the checkout experience.
WildApricot
WildApricot is membership software first. Events come built in: registration forms, waitlists, guest registration, member-only pricing, discount codes, automated reminders and an admin app for check-in. Every tier has every feature.
You pay by contact count. At 100 contacts it is $66 a month billed monthly, or $59.40 a month on a one-year prepay, roughly $713 a year. WildApricot takes no cut per transaction if you use its own Personify Payments, but the card processor still charges its rate. Plug in PayPal, Stripe or Authorize.net instead and US and Canadian accounts pay a servicing fee of 20 % of the plan at renewal.
That makes the maths different from the rest of this list. On a single $5,000 event, a subscription looks expensive. On twelve monthly meetups for 150 members plus annual renewals, it replaces three tools.
The limit: there is no free plan, the trial deletes your account if you do not upgrade after 60 days, and the price climbs with your contact list. In the US and Canada, using a payment system other than Personify Payments adds 20 % to the plan at renewal.
- Member-only event pricing
- Waitlists and guest registration
- 60-day trial without a card
- ✓Events, dues and website in one tool
- ✓No per-transaction fee with Personify Payments
- ✓Check-in app included
- ✗No free plan
- ✗Price rises with contacts
- ✗20 % servicing fee with PayPal or Stripe (US, Canada)
Worth it when events serve a membership. For one or two fundraisers a year, a free tool wins.
Eventbrite
Eventbrite is the name everyone knows, and that is its real advantage: a marketplace where people browse local events. For a public 5K or a benefit concert, that discovery can fill seats your mailing list never would.
It is also the most expensive tool here. Paid tickets carry a 3.7 % + $1.79 service fee, plus 2.9 % processing per order. On 200 tickets at $25, absorbing fees costs about $688, nearly 14 % of revenue. Pass fees to buyers and a $25 ticket costs them about $28.50.
Free events stay free, and the event-day app is solid.
The limit: no donor records worth the name, and the $1.79 per ticket makes small-ticket events painful. Many nonprofits list on Eventbrite for reach, then sell through a cheaper tool.
- Discovery marketplace
- Free events cost $0
- Mature check-in app
- ✓Reaches people outside your network
- ✓Familiar checkout for buyers
- ✓Easy to set up
- ✗About 14 % of revenue on a $25 ticket, fees absorbed
- ✗No real donor management
- ✗$1.79 per ticket on cheap tickets
Use it for reach, not for margin. If your audience already knows you, every other tool here keeps more of the money.
What event software really costs on 200 tickets at $25
Headline percentages look alike. Fixed per-ticket fees and processing make the difference. Here is what each tool keeps on $5,000 of ticket sales, if each ticket is bought alone and your nonprofit absorbs the fees.
$0 in fees
Zeffy: $0, buyers may tip. Givebutter with tips on: $0. In both cases the supporter funds the platform, if they choose to.
$350 to $460
Givebutter with tips off: about $355 (3 % platform plus 2.9 % + 30¢ processing). Humanitix at the charity rate: about $248 in booking fees, plus processing listed at 2.9 % + $0.30, around $453 in total if you absorb both.
The per-ticket trap
Eventbrite: about $688, because $1.79 per ticket adds up fast. WildApricot charges no transaction fee with Personify Payments but costs $59.40 a month on a yearly prepay, so judge it on your whole year, not one event.
- Are fees taken from your revenue or added to the buyer's price?
- Is there a fixed fee per ticket, and how heavy is it on your average ticket?
- Is processing included or charged on top?
- Can you switch off the tip prompt?
- Is the check-in app free?
- Can members get their price without a public promo code?
Other tools you will come across
These tools come up in nonprofit event searches. We do not score them: no public event pricing, or a different job.
Ticket Tailor: half price for registered charities
Flat-fee ticketingTicket Tailor charges a flat fee per ticket with no percentage, and gives registered charities 50 % off. Its pricing page sets the fee in the currency you pick, so read the dollar amount there before you compare. Stripe processing in the US adds 2.9 % + $0.30.
- Charity discount
- 50 % off fees
- Free tickets
- No fee, up to a yearly cap
Bloomerang: events inside a donor CRM
Donor CRMBloomerang is a donor management system with event features. It makes sense if you already run your donors there. Event pricing is not published on its own.
- For whom
- Teams already on Bloomerang
GiveSmart: auctions and galas
Gala platformGiveSmart is built for galas with silent auctions and mobile bidding. Pricing comes on a quote, so it does not fit a team that needs to compare in an afternoon.
- Pricing
- On quote
Neon One: the full suite
SuiteNeon One bundles CRM, events and memberships for larger nonprofits. It overlaps with WildApricot at a higher level of complexity.
- For whom
- Nonprofits with a development team
A form and a card reader
DIYPlenty of nonprofits start with an online form and pay-at-the-door. It holds up to 30 or 40 guests. Past that, duplicates and no-shows cost more volunteer time than any free tool.
- Limit
- No tickets, no scan, no capacity cap
And your books?
Connect itTicket revenue still has to land in your accounting. If you are choosing that tool too, our ranking of accounting software for nonprofits compares the options.
- Read next
- Accounting for nonprofits
The traps that cost nonprofits money
These mistakes come back in reviews and nonprofit forums. None is printed large on a pricing page.
The unexplained tip prompt
Zeffy, GivebutterSupporters see a tip to the platform at checkout. If they miss it, they pay more than planned and tell you about it. Add one sentence to your invite: the tip goes to the platform, it is optional, and it can be set to zero.
Fixed fees on cheap tickets
Eventbrite, Humanitix$1.79 on a $10 ticket is 18 % before processing. Compute fees on your real average ticket, not on the example on the pricing page.
Processing on top
Read the lineSome platforms list processing separately, at 2.9 % + $0.30 per order. On $5,000, that is about $200 more than the headline fee.
Cancelling without a policy
CancellationWhen an event is cancelled, your nonprofit refunds buyers, not the platform. Write your refund terms on the ticket page from day one.
Running event day with volunteers
Software does half the job. The other half happens at the door, with two volunteers and a phone.
Set member pricing on day one
A member tier and a public tier on the same event beat a promo code that ends up on a public Facebook group. WildApricot ties it to member records with no code at all.
Cap capacity 5 % below the room
Keep a few seats for sponsors, volunteers and walk-ins. A cap that stops sales on its own saves you the night 230 people show up for 200 chairs.
Export the guest list the night before
Venues and gyms have bad signal. Print the list, keep it next to the scanning phone, and nobody waits when the app stalls.
Two phones, not one
Check-in apps are free. One phone per line halves the wait, and the second is your backup when a battery dies.
Ask for the donation at the door
Attendees are most generous on the night. Zeffy and Givebutter put donations and tickets in one account, so a QR code at the entrance feeds the same donor record.
Automate the follow-up
Send the thank-you and the membership ask the next morning. An automation can push every Eventbrite registrant into your spreadsheet or email tool with no retyping.
Want every registrant to land in your donor list on its own? Get our automation guides
Go further
These pages complete this one, on accounting and automation.
Your questions on nonprofit event software
Is Zeffy really free for nonprofits?
Yes. Zeffy charges $0 and covers card processing; it is funded by optional tips buyers can add at checkout. Zeffy says about 2 in 3 donors leave one, and the nonprofit receives 100 % either way.
What is the cheapest way for a nonprofit to sell event tickets?
At $0: Zeffy, or Givebutter with tips enabled. Without any tip prompt, Humanitix's charity rate of 1 % + $0.99 per ticket is the lowest published platform fee in this ranking, with processing listed separately.
Does Eventbrite offer a nonprofit discount?
Eventbrite's pricing page does not publish one. Free events cost $0, and paid tickets carry 3.7 % + $1.79 plus 2.9 % processing. Ask their sales team, and compare with Humanitix's published charity rate.
Should the nonprofit or the buyer pay ticket fees?
Passing fees to buyers keeps your revenue whole but raises the price they see. For a fundraiser, many nonprofits absorb fees and set the ticket price a little higher, so the checkout total is not a surprise.
How do I check guests in at the door?
With your platform's free check-in app on a phone. Eventbrite, WildApricot and Humanitix all have one. Print the guest list the night before in case the signal drops.
Do I need membership software or just ticketing?
If events serve members who pay dues, membership software like WildApricot saves time. For a few public fundraisers a year, a free ticketing tool is enough.
Can I run a silent auction with the same tool?
Yes, with Zeffy or Givebutter. Both list mobile bidding at no extra cost: bidders join from a link or QR code, and outbid alerts go out automatically. Eventbrite, Humanitix and WildApricot are not built for auctions.
Free tool or paid subscription?
Free tools win for a few public events a year. A subscription pays off when it replaces several tools at once, for example events, dues, website and email in WildApricot. Add processing and setup costs before you compare.
Can I collect donations with ticket sales?
Yes. Zeffy and Givebutter add donation options to the ticket page and keep both in the same donor record, so you can thank and re-engage attendees later.