NetterTech Events vs Eventbrite for small venues
We make a WordPress event plugin, so we have a stake in this comparison. We’ll name the trade-offs clearly: Eventbrite does some things better than a self-hosted solution, and pretending otherwise would waste your time.
The Core Difference
Eventbrite is a hosted platform. You create events on eventbrite.com, tickets sell through their checkout, and your data lives on their servers.
NetterTech Events is a WordPress plugin. Events live on your site, tickets sell through your WooCommerce checkout, and your data stays in your database.
Neither approach is universally better. The right choice depends on what you value most.
Where Eventbrite Wins
Zero setup. Create an account, create an event, start selling. No hosting, no WordPress, no plugin installation. If you don’t have a website and don’t want one, Eventbrite removes that barrier entirely.
Built-in discovery. Eventbrite is a marketplace. People browse eventbrite.com looking for things to do. Your event can be discovered by people who weren’t searching for your venue specifically. For public events targeting a general audience, this is a genuine advantage.
Mobile app for attendees. Eventbrite’s attendee app handles tickets, reminders, and discovery in one place. A self-hosted solution relies on email confirmations and mobile browser access.
Established trust. Attendees recognize Eventbrite. They’ve bought tickets there before. A checkout on yourvenue.org may feel unfamiliar to some buyers, especially for the first purchase.
Where NetterTech Events Wins
Fees. This is the biggest difference, and it compounds.
| Eventbrite | NetterTech Events + Stripe | |
|---|---|---|
| Service fee | 3.7% of ticket price | $0 |
| Per-ticket fee | $1.79 per ticket | $0 |
| Processing fee | 3.9% + $0.30 | ~2.9% + $0.30 |
| Annual license | $0 | Free plugin; Pro add-ons coming soon |
For a venue selling 5,000 tickets at $30 each, Eventbrite’s service and per-ticket fees total roughly $9,750/year. With NetterTech Events, the free plugin covers WooCommerce ticketing at zero commission - you pay only Stripe’s processing rate (~$4,650). No per-ticket surcharges.
Use our fee calculator to run your own numbers.
Data ownership. Your attendee list, ticket sales history, check-in records, and event data live in your WordPress database. You can export it anytime, back it up, analyze it, or migrate it. If Eventbrite changes terms, raises prices, or shuts down a feature, your data goes with you - not with them.
Your brand. Tickets sell from yourvenue.org, not eventbrite.com. Confirmation emails come from your domain. The checkout experience matches your site design. For venues building a brand relationship with their audience, this matters.
No platform dependency. Brown Paper Tickets is shutting down June 30, 2026. Eventbrite could change pricing, terms, or direction at any time. Your WordPress site is infrastructure you control.
Recurring events. Eventbrite handles basic repeating events. NetterTech Events uses RFC 5545 (the iCalendar standard) for real recurrence: “every second Tuesday,” “last Friday of the month,” exclusion dates. For venues running weekly classes or complex schedules, the difference is significant.
Check-in. NetterTech Events Pro includes QR code check-in with volunteer mode. Volunteers scan tickets on any device with a camera using a shareable URL - no app download, no login required. Eventbrite’s check-in requires the Eventbrite Organizer app.
Where They’re Comparable
Event creation. Both handle titles, descriptions, dates, venues, images, and categories. Both support multiple ticket types.
Payment processing. Both connect to Stripe. The processing rate is similar (~2.9-3.9%). The difference is Eventbrite’s additional service and per-ticket fees on top.
Email notifications. Both send confirmation and reminder emails. Eventbrite’s are more polished out of the box; NetterTech Events’ are customizable through WooCommerce email templates.
The Trade-Offs Table
| Factor | Eventbrite | NetterTech Events |
|---|---|---|
| Setup time | Minutes (per event, every time) | Hours (one time; WordPress + plugin) |
| Ongoing cost | Per-ticket fees | Flat annual license |
| Discovery | Eventbrite marketplace | Your own SEO/marketing |
| Data ownership | Platform-owned | 100% yours |
| Branding | eventbrite.com | yourvenue.org |
| Recurring events | Basic | RFC 5545 standard |
| Check-in | Eventbrite app required | Any device, no app |
| Hosting | Included | You manage (or your host does) |
| Customization | Limited | Unlimited (WordPress) |
| Exit strategy | Data export (limited) | Full database access |
Who Should Choose Eventbrite
- Organizations without a website who need to sell tickets this week
- Events targeting a general public audience where marketplace discovery matters
- One-off events where setup speed outweighs long-term cost
- Teams with no technical capacity to manage WordPress
Who Should Choose NetterTech Events
- Venues running 20+ events/year where per-ticket fees add up
- Nonprofits where every dollar to fees is a dollar not going to the mission
- Organizations that already have a WordPress website
- Venues with recurring events (weekly classes, monthly shows, seasonal series)
- Anyone who’s been burned by platform dependency (BPT, etc.)
A Note on Hybrid Approaches
Some venues use both: Eventbrite for public-facing discovery events and their own site for regular programming and member events. If your audience already knows where to find you, the discovery benefit of Eventbrite diminishes and the fee savings of self-hosted ticketing become the dominant factor.
Try the free plugin or run the fee calculator with your actual numbers.