What does “0% platform fee” actually mean for ticket sales?
By Donghui Qian (Milo)Updated 4 November 20262 min read
Short answer
It means the platform takes no percentage or fixed cut of the ticket itself, usually because it charges a subscription instead. It says nothing about card processing, which still goes to your payment provider, or about a service fee added at checkout — so check both, along with whose account the money lands in first.
Every event platform advertises its pricing in whichever unit makes it look smallest. “0% platform fee” is a real and checkable claim, but it answers only one of the three questions that decide what a ticket actually costs you.
Read the short answer and the FAQ first. The table and five questions below are how you verify the claim on any platform—ours included.
Frequently asked questions
The software takes no percentage or fixed cut of the ticket itself, usually because it charges a subscription instead. It does not waive card processing, and it does not by itself tell you whether a service fee is added for the attendee at checkout.
Yes — several platforms, including bagevent, charge a subscription instead of a percentage of tickets. Verify free registrations, whose payment account the money lands in first, any attendee-facing service fee, and what happens to fees on a refund.
No. Card processing still goes to your payment provider at their rates — no event platform can waive another company's fee — and the platform is usually charging a subscription instead.
A platform fee is charged to the organiser for running registration. A service fee is added to the attendee at checkout, so they pay more than the price you set. A platform can honestly advertise 0% platform fee while still adding a service fee — read the fee table for both.
Some do, per registration, even when the ticket price is zero. It is often the most expensive line for large free conferences, and it usually sits in a separate row from the paid-ticket fee.
Not automatically. Some platforms take no percentage and still collect into a platform balance they pay out later. Ask whose merchant account the attendee pays into first; that is a separate design decision from the fee percentage.
On every plan, no cut of ticket sales: attendees pay into your connected Stripe account at sale. You pay the subscription (and campaign email credits if you use them). Card fees still go to Stripe. Plan amounts are on the pricing page.
More detail
Three fees sit on one ticket
| Fee | Paid to | Typically charged as |
|---|---|---|
| Platform fee | The software you run registration on | A percentage of the ticket, a fixed amount per registration, a subscription, or a mix |
| Payment processing | The card processor or payment provider | A percentage plus a fixed amount per transaction, set by the provider—not by the event platform |
| Attendee-facing service fee | Usually the platform, sometimes the organiser | Added at checkout on top of the price you set, so the attendee pays more than your ticket price |
“0% platform fee” is a statement about the first row only. Separately: ask whether money lands in your payment account at sale, or in a platform balance paid out later—that design decides more about finance month-end than the percentage line does.
Check any 0% claim in five questions
- Is there a per-registration charge on free tickets?
- Whose account do attendees pay into first? Yours, or a balance the platform pays out later?
- Is a service fee added at checkout? If yes, is it optional, and who is it shown as?
- What happens to fees on a refund?
- What is billed per email, per seat, per domain or per entity?
On bagevent the platform fee is 0% of ticket sales on every plan: you connect your own Stripe account, attendees pay into it, and the money is yours at the point of sale. You pay a subscription, and marketing email credits if you send campaigns. Card processing still goes to your payment provider. Plan prices stay on the pricing page so this guide cannot go stale.
Read next
- What event registration software costsThe arithmetic across all four pricing shapes, at your own volume.
- Who sells the ticket?Merchant of record — the question behind whose account the money lands in.
- Marketplace or your own registrationWhen a per-ticket marketplace is still the cheaper, better answer
- bagevent pricingPlans, what is included, and the note on when we are the wrong tool.