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 eBay.com 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!
