On a $20 community-concert ticket in 2026, total fees run from about $1.90 to about $3.18. EnsembleBase ($1.91) and TicketSpice ($1.90) sit within a penny of each other at the low end, and Eventbrite sits at the high end.
That's the short answer. The longer answer is that fee structures are built differently (flat fees, percentages, per-order charges), so the ranking shifts with your ticket price and order size. Below is the math for each platform on a $20 ticket, a worked example for a full concert, and the two questions the fee table can't answer: when you get your money, and what happens on a refund. All figures come from published pricing verified in July 2026; fee structures change, so confirm before you commit.
How each platform charges in 2026
Eventbrite charges a service fee of 3.7% + $1.79 per paid ticket, plus 2.9% payment processing. The per-ticket fee cap was removed in 2026, so fees now scale with price without a ceiling.
TicketSpice charges $0.99 per ticket (49 cents for tickets under $5), plus card processing of 2.9% + $0.30.
TicketLeap charges $1.00 + 2% of the ticket price per ticket, plus a 3% online transaction fee per order. Ticketing fees are capped at $20 per ticket.
Brown Paper Tickets charges $1.49 + 6% per ticket, with payment processing included in that figure rather than added on top.
EnsembleBase charges a flat $1.00 service fee per paid ticket, added at checkout, plus standard Stripe card processing of about 2.9% + $0.30, which buyers can choose to cover. When buyers cover both (the totals in the tables below assume they do), your ensemble receives the full face value of the ticket. Ticketing comes with the platform's Pro and Scale plans rather than as a separate product.
The fee table: a $20 ticket, platform by platform
| Platform | Service fee | Card processing | Approx. fees on $20 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eventbrite | 3.7% + $1.79 per paid ticket (fee cap removed in 2026) | 2.9% | ~$3.18 |
| Brown Paper Tickets | $1.49 + 6% per ticket | Included in service fee | ~$2.69 |
| TicketLeap | $1.00 + 2% per ticket (capped at $20/ticket) | 3% online transaction fee per order | ~$2.04 |
| EnsembleBase | $1.00 flat per paid ticket, added at checkout | ~2.9% + $0.30 (Stripe) | ~$1.91 |
| TicketSpice | $0.99 per ticket (49¢ under $5) | 2.9% + $0.30 | ~$1.90 |
Two caveats before you read too much into a single column. First, most of these platforms let the organizer choose whether to absorb fees or pass them to the buyer; the totals above are the same money either way, but who pays it changes your net. (On EnsembleBase the split is fixed: the $1.00 service fee is always added at checkout, and the buyer chooses whether to also cover card processing.) Second, percentage-based structures move with your price: Eventbrite and Brown Paper Tickets get relatively more expensive on a $35 ticket, while the flat structures stay put.
A worked example: 250 tickets at $20
Take a typical community concert: a 300-seat hall, tickets at $20, and about 250 sold. Face value is $5,000. Here is the approximate total in fees on those sales, assuming fees are passed to buyers where the platform allows it:
| Platform | Approx. fees per ticket | Approx. total fees (250 tickets) |
|---|---|---|
| Eventbrite | ~$3.18 | ~$795 |
| Brown Paper Tickets | ~$2.69 | ~$673 |
| TicketLeap | ~$2.04 | ~$510 |
| EnsembleBase | ~$1.91 | ~$478 |
| TicketSpice | ~$1.90 | ~$475 |
The rule for reading this table: when buyers cover the fees, the ensemble receives the full $5,000; where a platform lets the organizer absorb them instead, the fee totals above come out of it. On EnsembleBase that means card processing comes out of the payout only when a buyer declines to cover it — the service fee is always paid by the buyer.
When the money reaches your bank account
For a volunteer treasurer, payout timing matters more than the pennies separating the cheapest options. The deposits from your spring concert might be paying the hall rental for your fall one, and the platforms handle this very differently:
| Platform | When you get your money |
|---|---|
| Eventbrite | Paid out several business days after your event ends. |
| Brown Paper Tickets | Paid out after the event (see the note below on payout history). |
| TicketLeap | Held until 4–7 days after the event; faster payout requires approval for their FastPay program. |
| TicketSpice | Weekly payouts by default, including the week of your event. |
| EnsembleBase | Sales land in your organization’s own Stripe account as they happen — you are the merchant of record. Stripe pays out on its standard rolling schedule, and you can watch the balance in EnsembleBase. |
Being the merchant of record cuts both ways, and you should know that going in: card disputes land on your organization's Stripe account rather than a platform's, and a brand-new Stripe account has onboarding (bank details, identity verification) plus a slower first payout before the rolling schedule kicks in.
Refunds deserve the same scrutiny. Your refund policy is yours to set on every platform; the question is who keeps the fees when you issue one. Eventbrite keeps its service and processing fees on refunded tickets (fee credits exist for full cancellations, by request). On EnsembleBase, refunds come out of your own Stripe balance: you record the refund in the app, which releases the seats and invalidates the tickets, and complete the payment in your Stripe dashboard. Stripe keeps its processing fee, and the $1.00 service fee stays with EnsembleBase on refunds you issue. TicketSpice, TicketLeap, and Brown Paper Tickets publish less about refund fee handling; ask directly before you commit. Whatever platform you choose, run one imaginary snowed-out concert through its refund policy before you sign up.
One piece of history worth knowing: in 2020, Brown Paper Tickets stopped paying organizers the money from their own ticket sales, leading to a Washington State attorney general lawsuit; the company later changed ownership. The lesson applies to every platform on this list: before you sell a season through anyone, search the platform's name plus "payout problems" and read what organizers say. Fee tables are public; payout reliability you have to go looking for.
The trade-off: platform plan vs. standalone processor
On per-ticket fees for a $20 ticket, EnsembleBase and TicketSpice land within a penny of each other, with TicketLeap close behind. At this price point the per-ticket differences are noise. The structural difference that should drive the decision: EnsembleBase ticketing comes with a paid platform plan (Pro, $35/month), while TicketSpice and Eventbrite charge no subscription. Run that math before you decide: if ticketing is the only thing you'd use, the subscription costs more than the fees you'd save. If your ensemble also needs the roster, email, dues, and events, the plan you're already paying for includes the box office.
What the per-ticket fee doesn't show:
- The fee is flat and predictable: $1.00 per paid ticket whether you charge $10 or $40, with no percentage of your price and no fee-cap fine print.
- Ticket money goes to your organization’s own Stripe account, not a platform balance you wait on.
- Online buyer lists land next to your donor and member records — the names you’ll ask for a donation in the fall.
What changes the math
- Order size. Per-order components (TicketLeap’s 3% online transaction fee, Stripe’s $0.30 per charge) spread across multi-ticket orders, so a family of four costs slightly less per ticket than four separate buyers.
- Ticket price. Rerun the math at your price point before choosing — the percentage-heavy structures pull further ahead of the flat ones as prices rise.
- Time. Fee structures change (this year alone moved Eventbrite’s numbers), so treat every figure here as a July 2026 snapshot.
One roster powers everything
In EnsembleBase, your member list is entered once and reused everywhere. Every tool below works from the same roster — no re-typing names, no out-of-sync copies.
Frequently asked questions
Who pays ticketing fees — the buyer or the ensemble?
It depends on the platform and your settings. Most platforms let organizers either absorb fees (deducted from your payout) or pass them to buyers at checkout. On EnsembleBase, the flat $1.00 service fee is added at checkout and buyers can choose to cover the card processing — with both covered, your ensemble receives the ticket’s face value.
Can we avoid card processing fees entirely?
Not for online card sales. Processing fees around 2.9% + $0.30 are what card networks and processors like Stripe charge, and every platform passes them through in some form. The only sales that avoid them are cash transactions at the door, which come with their own counting and reconciliation work.
Do these fees apply to free tickets?
Service fees on the platforms compared here apply to paid tickets. Free and comp tickets generally do not incur service fees, on EnsembleBase or the others, though policies vary in the details — verify with any platform you are considering before publishing a free event.
Do ticketing platforms offer nonprofit discounts?
Some platforms offer reduced rates for registered nonprofits, usually on request rather than automatically. The figures in this article are standard published 2026 rates. If your ensemble is a 501(c)(3), ask each platform directly, and check whether any discount covers the service fee, the processing fee, or both.
Keep reading
Ticketing & box office
Concert ticketing software that never takes a percentage of the ticket price
Read the guideTicketing & box office
How to sell tickets for a community concert
Read the guideMoney & fundraising
How to collect member dues without the awkwardness
Read the guideOperations
Planning a concert season: the master timeline and checklist
Read the guideThe bottom line
Flat fees, full face value, your own Stripe account.
EnsembleBase charges a flat $1.00 per paid ticket plus standard card processing, with buyers covering fees at checkout — and every sale lands in your organization's own Stripe account, in the same platform as your roster, email, and dues.
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