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Looking forward to summer and all the fun things that go along with it? We sure are! Every year around this time, there are tons of fun summer concerts, events, and festivals going on, and sometimes it can be hard to get tickets to these kinds of things because they’re so popular. An even harder task is finding tickets at an affordable price. Luckily for you, we’re here to help!
In this article, we’ll tell you about:
- The 4 best ways to buy concert tickets
- Tips for buying tickets online
- Best websites to buy cheap (and real) concert tickets
- Tips after buying concert tickets
Let’s start with the best ways to get tickets to your favorite bands and artists this summer.
The 4 best ways to buy concert tickets
1. Online from a reputable ticket dealer with guaranteed, authentic tickets.
There are lots of places to buy tickets online that guarantee the tickets they sell are authentic. We’ll talk about websites you can buy tickets from later in this article, but some examples include Seatgeek.com, TicketNetwork.com, and Ticket Liquidator.com (jump down here to learn more about these sites).
2. In person at the concert venue before the show.
If you live close enough to the venue where the event you want to go to will be taking place, you can always try going in to purchase tickets from their box office. This way, you can guarantee that the tickets you’re purchasing are authentic (because they’re being sold by the venue), and you can avoid service fees that sometimes come along with purchasing tickets online.
3. Over the phone, directly from the venue before the show.
If you don’t live close enough to the venue, or don’t have the time to go there and buy your tickets, you can try calling the venue to purchase tickets over the phone. Not every venue will allow this, but some (especially smaller ones) likely will. You may be able to give your credit card information to them over the phone and pay for the tickets right away, or put tickets on hold and pick up and pay for them at a later time, including the night of the concert.
4. Online (re-sale) from someone who has tickets (and can no longer attend the event), using a classifieds website.
Has the event you want to attend sold out already? If so, don’t worry. There are ticket re-sale websites where you can find tickets for events that are sold out, as well as discounted tickets that people are selling simply because they are no longer able to attend an event they bought tickets for. Some popular ones are eBay, Craigslist, and StubHub.
Don’t live close to the venue hosting the event you’re looking to attend, or want to get tickets fast before they sell out? If so, buying tickets online could be the way for you to go. Here are our top tips for purchasing concert tickets online.
Tips for buying tickets online
1. Make sure to verify your tickets before purchasing them.
Be sure that you’re purchasing tickets from a vendor that can guarantee the authenticity of your tickets. You don’t want to get scammed into buying fake ones. Look for barcodes, logos, and ticket numbers that can indicate your tickets are valid. You can also try calling the venue to see if there’s a way for them to verify your tickets over the phone.
2. Choose to buy tickets very early, or at the last-minute to save money.
If you can, buy your tickets as soon as possible after they go on sale, or wait until as close to the event date as you can. During the time in between, ticket prices will increase. The best times to buy event tickets to save money are right when they release, and right before the event.
3. Avoid buying re-sold tickets, but if you must, ensure they aren’t fakes.
Buying tickets from other people or through classifieds sites like eBay, Craigslist, and Kijiji can sometimes be tempting, as people will advertise great seats at low prices. However, this can sometimes result in you ending up with fake tickets and being scammed. Be sure that the tickets are real before you pay anything for them.
Your best bet is to buy tickets from a website or person you trust, or from the venue directly. But if you must buy from someone, be sure to go pick the tickets up in person, and look at them before handing over the cash. If you need some tips, be sure to check out our article on using online classified websites safely.
4. Compare prices on multiple websites.
Before you go ahead and purchase tickets for the event you want to go to, look around on other websites and see which site is offering the type of seats you want at the lowest price. Sometimes, you’ll be able to get a better deal on one site than another, so shop around rather than buying them on the first website you see.
Also, be wary of timers and other features on ticket websites that are designed to pressure you into thinking you have to make your purchase right away. Unless it’s a once-in-a-lifetime kind of event, it’s unlikely that tickets for it will sell out in a matter of minutes. Take your time browsing and don’t worry too much about how quickly you make your ticket purchase.
5. Verify your “delivery method” before selecting it.
When you purchase tickets online, they may have several options for ways they can “deliver” your tickets to you. Before finalizing your purchase, double check that you’ve selected the right delivery method. The most popular delivery method nowadays is a digital download or email, where you can print out your tickets at home. Some people, however, may prefer to have their tickets sent in the mail.
If you opt to have your tickets mailed to you, keep in mind that there may be a fee for the company to mail them to you. Be sure to double check your mailing address as well. Digital downloads also sometimes come along with “service fees,” so you may want to look into the fees charged by the specific site you’re purchasing from before you finalize your order.
Now that we’ve given you some tips for getting the best deal on event tickets, let’s talk about some of our favorite sites to buy cheap concert tickets.
Best websites to buy cheap (and real) concert tickets
1. Ticketmaster
Perhaps the most well-known site to purchase event tickets online is Ticketmaster. Ticketmaster has been selling event tickets online since 1996, and has sold millions of tickets to people around the world. On their site, you can purchase tickets for concerts, festivals, and other fun events. Search by venue, city, or type of event. You can also browse upcoming events, and check out ones that were just announced. Ticketmaster verifies and guarantees authenticity of tickets sold on their site, and also has a pretty decent refund/exchange policy.
TicketMaster Refund/Exchange Policy: http://www.ticketmaster.com/h/returns
2. SeatGeek
SeatGeek is a website that helps speed up the process of comparing ticket prices on various websites. If you’ve heard of websites like Trivago or Kayak that allow you to compare travel deals, SeatGeek is the same kind of concept, but for event tickets! SeatGeek helps you get the best possible deal on your tickets, guarantees the authenticity of your tickets, and lets you know where you’ll be sitting.
SeatGeek Refund/Exchange Policy: https://seatgeek.com/buyer-guarantee
3. eBay
You’ve probably heard of eBay before, but what you may not know is that they also have a Tickets & Experiences section on their website. Here, you can purchase tickets for sports games, concerts, theme parks, and more. You can even find tickets for special experiences, like hot air balloon rides, test driving a racecar, taking a plane flying lesson, and other once-in-a-lifetime experiences.
eBay Refund/Exchange Policy: http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/money-back-guarantee.html
4. Ticket Liquidator
Ticket Liquidator is another awesome ticket vendor website. It allows individual sellers to list tickets they have available for sale, and other customers to purchase those tickets through the Ticket Liquidator marketplace. The way the site works is similar to eBay, where many different sellers have items available for sale on one site.
Ticket Liquidator guarantees ticket purchases and tests their site for safety and security every day. They also have a buyer guarantee – if your event is cancelled or postponed, Ticket Liquidator will provide you with a refund or tickets for the new event date. If you don’t get your tickets on time, or if they end up not being valid, they’ll give you a 200% refund!
Ticket Liquidator Refund/Exchange Policy: https://www.ticketliquidator.com/policies
5. StubHub
StubHub is another online ticket vending marketplace. Similarly to Ticket Liquidator, StubHub allows users to sell tickets they have purchased but no longer want, and other users to purchase these tickets. This way, you may be able to find tickets to shows that are sold out elsewhere. StubHub has a “FanProtect Guarantee” which guarantees you’ll get the tickets you paid for on time for the event you’re attending. StubHub is quite popular, so there’s always a huge variety of tickets available on their site.
StubHub Refund/Exchange Policy: https://www.stubhub.com/content/legal/?section=fp
6. Razorgator
Razorgator is another ticket-selling website where you can find tickets for concerts, theater, and sports. They have been around since 2001 and have sold millions of tickets to over 250,000 events. They have an A+ rating from the BBB (Better Business Bureau) and they also guarantee that tickets sold on their site are authentic, and will be refunded if an event is cancelled. Best of all, you can find tickets on their site at up to 20% lower prices than other popular ticket vending sites.
Razorgator Refund/Exchange Policy: https://www.razorgator.com/tickets/content/ourguarantee/
7. Craigslist
Craigslist is an online classifieds website. Anyone can go on Craigslist and post an ad for something they would like to sell. When people have tickets to an event that they no longer want, or are unable to attend, they may try to sell them through an ad on Craigslist. Buying concert tickets from someone on Craigslist can sometimes get you great deals, but you also run the risk of buying unauthentic tickets. Though this can be a way to find tickets at low prices, or get tickets to an otherwise sold-out show, be very cautious when buying tickets through classifieds sites.
On Craigslist, returns and exchange policies are determined by the person you purchase from. You can contact the person you’ve purchased from if you have any issues, but ultimately it is up to them whether you’re allowed to return the tickets to them. Speak to them about this before purchasing if you have any concerns.
Those are all of our favorite places to buy event tickets online. Which one is your favorite? The last thing we need to cover in this article are our tips for after you’ve purchased your event tickets.
Tips after buying concert tickets
1. Before you go to the concert, verify the authenticity of your tickets.
If you bought tickets from a website or person that is unable to verify that the tickets you’re purchasing are authentic, try calling the venue hosting the event. If you provide them with some information (ticket numbers, etc.) you should be able to verify that your tickets are real and valid for entry to the event.
2. Show up early to leave time to solve any last-minute problems.
On the day of the event, get to the venue early so you have time to wait in line to get in, and have time to solve any issues that may arise. If you purchased tickets second-hand (through StubHub, Craigslist, etc.), you may be given a hard time if the name on your ticket is different from your own. Leave yourself some extra time just in case.
3. There are ways to get a refund if you can’t go to the concert anymore, or if you bought fake tickets.
If you aren’t able to go to the concert anymore, you can try to get a refund from the website or person you purchased them from, or sell them on a ticket marketplace site like StubHub, Ticket Liquidator, or eBay. You could also create an ad on a classifieds site like Craigslist.
If you bought tickets that turned out to be fake, get in touch with the customer support team for the website or company you purchased from. Most times, these businesses will issue a refund for your tickets. However, if you purchased tickets from someone on Craigslist and they turn out to be fake, it’s less likely that you’ll be able to easily get your money back.
4. Think about how to get a better deal for next time.
If you weren’t able to get a great deal on your event tickets this time around, use our tips from this article to try to get a better deal on tickets for your next event. If you have any other money-saving tips that we missed, leave us a comment and let us know!
That’s what we have on where and how to buy cheap tickets for events and concerts this Summer 2018. We hope it helps you out! If you’re looking for a more detailed overview of the available concert ticket websites online, check out our article on the best sites like Ticketmaster or the best sites like StubHub. We also have a guide to buying baseball tickets online to make your summer even more fun!
