What Are Booking Fees
Booking fees are charges added to the ticket price by the ticketing platform. They cover the platform costs and profit margin. Depending on the platform, they might be charged to the buyer (added at checkout) or the organiser (deducted from revenue).
Typical booking fees range from 2% to 15% plus a fixed amount per ticket. On a £10 ticket, you might see anything from 50p to £2 in booking fees.
Types of Fees
- Platform fee — the ticketing company commission (percentage or flat rate)
- Payment processing fee — Stripe or PayPal charges (typically 1.5% + 20p). Every platform has this.
- Service fee — sometimes a separate charge for premium features
- Delivery fee — rare now, but some platforms charge for PDF or postal delivery
How Tickts Works
Tickts charges zero platform fees. The only cost is Stripe payment processing (1.5% + 20p), which applies regardless of platform. Organisers can choose to absorb this or pass it to the buyer. Either way, Tickts takes nothing.
Types of Booking Fees
Booking fees in the ticketing industry fall into several categories, and understanding each one helps you make better decisions about pricing and platform choice:
- Platform service fee: The charge from the ticketing platform itself. This covers their technology, hosting, support, and profit. Ranges from 0% (Tickts) to 10%+ (Skiddle, WeGotTickets).
- Payment processing fee: The charge from the payment processor (Stripe, PayPal, etc.) for handling the card transaction. Typically 1.5% to 2.9% plus a fixed amount per transaction. This fee applies regardless of which platform you use.
- Facility fee: An additional charge sometimes added by large venues or promoters. More common in the arena and stadium market.
- Delivery fee: Some platforms charge extra for digital ticket delivery or printing. This is increasingly rare as e-tickets have become standard.
Who Pays the Fees?
This is one of the most important decisions an organiser makes. There are three common models:
Organiser absorbs: The ticket price includes all fees. If you list a ticket at £10, the fan pays £10 and you receive £10 minus fees. This creates a clean buying experience with no surprises at checkout.
Fan pays (pass-on): Fees are added on top of the ticket price at checkout. A £10 ticket might cost £11.50 after booking fees. Fans can feel deceived by the price jump, leading to cart abandonment.
Split fees: Some platforms split the cost between organiser and fan. This is less common but attempts to balance the burden.
The Psychology of Booking Fees
Research consistently shows that unexpected fees at checkout are the number one cause of cart abandonment in event ticketing. A UK consumer survey found that 56% of ticket buyers have abandoned a purchase after seeing booking fees added at checkout. The perception of being charged extra for something that should be included feels unfair.
Platforms with zero fees or absorbed fees consistently see higher conversion rates. When fans see a price and know that is what they will pay, trust increases and completion rates improve.
How to Minimise Booking Fees
- Choose a zero-fee platform: Tickts charges no platform fees, so the only cost is payment processing.
- Absorb fees into your price: Build Stripe processing costs into your ticket price so fans pay one clean amount.
- Bundle tickets: Group ticket options can reduce the per-ticket impact of fixed processing fees.
- Offer free ticket tiers: Free tickets (like under-5s) incur no processing fees at all.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do ticketing platforms charge booking fees?
Booking fees cover the cost of building and maintaining the ticketing platform — servers, development, support, and payment infrastructure. Platforms like Tickts have found ways to offer this without direct per-ticket charges.
Are booking fees refundable?
This varies by platform. Some refund the full amount including fees, while others keep their service fee even on cancelled events. On Tickts, refunds return the full amount to the fan.
How much do booking fees typically add to a ticket?
Booking fees in the UK typically add between 5% and 15% to the face value of a ticket. On a £20 ticket, that means £1 to £3 in additional charges. On Tickts, the Stripe processing cost on a £20 ticket is just 50p.
Curious how tickts compares? See our side-by-side comparison of tickts vs Skiddle: fees, payouts, and features for UK organisers.