Updated October 2026: rewritten with Big Tickets' current fees, checked against its pricing page and fee calculator on October 8, 2026.
Big Tickets, whose event listings include the Maryland, Ohio and Carolina Renaissance Festivals, publishes one rate for every event: a service fee of $1.49 + 2.5% per ticket, plus 3% for card processing. By default, your attendees pay it at checkout.
Its own fee calculator shows what that adds up to. A $50 ticket costs the buyer $54.32, so $4.32 goes to fees. On TixFox, the same ticket costs the buyer $52.20. Here's how Big Tickets' pricing works, what it costs at different ticket prices, and where it's still the better fit.
How much does Big Tickets charge? Big Tickets charges a service fee of $1.49 per ticket plus 2.5% of the ticket price, and 3% for credit card processing on every transaction. Attendees pay the fees by default, or you can absorb or split them. There are no subscriptions, setup fees or monthly minimums, and free events are free.
How Big Tickets' pricing works
Big Tickets' pricing page keeps it to one rate:
- Service fee: $1.49 per ticket + 2.5% of the ticket price
- Card processing: 3% on all transactions
- Who pays: attendees by default, or you can absorb or split the fees, event by event
- Free events: no service or processing fees
- No subscriptions, setup fees or monthly minimums
Every feature comes with that rate, including reserved seating, dynamic pricing, waitlists, abandoned cart recovery and affiliate tracking. Festivals, fairs and other high-volume events can ask for custom pricing. Nonprofit pricing is handled case by case.
Where the fees go on one $30 ticket
Here's one $30 ticket, with the fees passed to the buyer:
- Service fee: $1.49 + 2.5% of $30 ($0.75) = $2.24
- Card processing: 3% of $32.24, the ticket plus the service fee = $0.97
- The buyer pays $33.21, and you receive $30
On TixFox, the same ticket carries 39¢ plus Stripe's fee on the buyer's total, $1.22. The buyer pays $31.61, and you still receive $30.
What Big Tickets' fees cost your buyers
TixFox charges 39¢ per ticket ($0.30 under $5) plus Stripe's 2.9% + 30¢. With the fees passed to the buyer on both, so you keep the full ticket price either way, here's what a buyer pays in fees on a one-ticket order. The Big Tickets figures match its own calculator to the cent.
- $10 ticket: $2.09 on Big Tickets, $1.01 on TixFox
- $25 ticket: $2.93 against $1.46
- $50 ticket: $4.32 against $2.20
- $100 ticket: $7.11 against $3.70
That's about half the fees on TixFox at every price. The gap starts with the flat part: $1.49 against 39¢. Then Big Tickets adds 2.5% for itself, and its 3% card fee is charged on the ticket plus the service fee.
If you absorb the fees instead, you keep $22.13 from a $25 ticket on Big Tickets, according to its calculator. On TixFox, you keep $23.58.
What a festival season adds up to
Big Tickets says it's trusted by festivals and fairs, so take a festival. Say you sell 5,000 tickets at $30, one per order, with the fees passed on. Your attendees would pay $16,050 in Big Tickets fees, $3.21 a ticket. On TixFox, they'd pay $8,050, or $1.61 a ticket.
When you get paid
Big Tickets collects the money and pays you by direct deposit, on a schedule you agree when you sign up: weekly, before the event, after it, or a mix. It says pre-event payouts are available for qualifying events.
On TixFox, each sale goes into your own Stripe account as it happens, and TixFox never holds the money. You move it to your bank on your own schedule, so you can pay a venue deposit or suppliers before the gates open.
What one organizer says about TixFox
Price matters, and so does getting help fast when something breaks. The Modesto Gospel Mission wrote on Trustpilot in August 2026 that TixFox is "easy to use, and their customer support is excellent - very responsive, helpful, and quick to resolve issues."
Watch how selling on TixFox works
The video shows the setup in under six minutes: connecting Stripe at 0:26, ticket types and the pass-or-absorb fee setting from 1:35, and what your buyers see at checkout from 3:49.
When Big Tickets is the better choice
- You want sales tax handled for you. Big Tickets is a marketplace facilitator, so it calculates, collects and remits sales tax in every state where that's required.
- You need reserved seating now. Big Tickets includes it, along with dynamic pricing. TixFox's reserved seating is coming soon.
- Your buyers want to pay with PayPal or Venmo, which Big Tickets accepts alongside cards, Apple Pay and Google Pay.
- You run a large festival or fair and want custom pricing, an account manager and phone support from a team in Atlanta.
When TixFox costs less
- Every ticket price: $1.46 against $2.93 in fees on a $25 ticket, passed on.
- When you absorb the fees, too: $23.58 kept from a $25 ticket against $22.13.
- Your money in your own Stripe account as you sell, instead of a payout schedule.
We've done the same math for Ticketbud and TicketLeap, which also add a percentage to a per-ticket fee.
To try TixFox, create a free account, connect Stripe and put your first event on sale. Free events cost $0, and paid tickets are 39¢ each ($0.30 under $5) plus Stripe's card processing. See TixFox pricing.
FAQ
How much does Big Tickets charge per ticket?
A service fee of $1.49 plus 2.5% of the ticket price, and 3% for card processing. On a $50 ticket, Big Tickets' calculator shows $4.32 in fees.
Who pays Big Tickets' fees?
Attendees, by default. You can also absorb the fees into your ticket price or split them, event by event.
Does Big Tickets charge for free events?
No. Big Tickets says free events have no service or processing fees.
When does Big Tickets pay organizers?
By direct deposit, on a schedule set up when you onboard: weekly, before the event, after it, or a mix. Pre-event payouts are for qualifying events.
Does Big Tickets have a nonprofit discount?
Big Tickets says it looks at nonprofit pricing case by case, so contact it with your event details.
Does Big Tickets collect sales tax?
Yes. Big Tickets says it's a marketplace facilitator, so it calculates, collects and remits sales tax in every state where that's required.
Are Big Tickets' service fees refundable?
No. Big Tickets' FAQ says service fees are non-refundable, and that the organizer is responsible for refunding attendees if an event is canceled. TixFox's platform fee is also non-refundable once a ticket is sold.
Is Big Tickets cheaper than TixFox?
No. With fees passed to the buyer, a $25 ticket carries $2.93 in fees on Big Tickets and $1.46 on TixFox, and TixFox is lower at every ticket price.
Sources
- Big Tickets: Organizer pricing, including its fee calculator and FAQ. Checked October 8, 2026.
- Stripe: Pricing (US cards).
- Trustpilot: TixFox reviews, screenshot taken October 8, 2026.
- TixFox: Pricing and FAQ. Screens from the TixFox demo account, October 2026.
