Zeffy alternative scorecard Event Schedule vs Zeffy
Open source event ticketing with zero platform fees, open to any organizer, not only registered nonprofits.
5/20
lines where Event Schedule has the edge.
The other 15 are a match or go to Zeffy.
Every line on this card is scored from the same table below. Nothing is averaged, weighted or rounded.
The card
Scored line by line.
A feature-by-feature comparison of Event Schedule and Zeffy, in 20 lines across 6 sections. Our column names the plan behind every gated feature, because a comparison that hides the tier is not a comparison.
| Line | Event Schedule | Zeffy |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing & Fees 1 of 5 to Event Schedule | ||
| Free plan | Included forever | Included 100% free, tip-funded |
| Paid plan price | $5/mo (7-day free trial) | None (optional tips at checkout) |
| Platform fees | 0% | 0% (optional tips at checkout) |
| Payment processing | Stripe/PayPal/Payfast (processor rates apply) | Stripe (card fees covered by Zeffy) |
| Open to any organizer (Event Schedule has the edge on this line) | Included | Not offered nonprofits and charities only |
| Events & Ticketing 1 of 5 to Event Schedule | ||
| Ticketing | Included free RSVP, paid on Pro | Included |
| QR check-ins | Included Free | Included |
| Recurring events (Event Schedule has the edge on this line) | Included Free | Multi-date events |
| Promo/discount codes | Included Pro | Included |
| Reserved seating | Included Enterprise | Included seating chart |
| Integrations 0 of 1 to Event Schedule | ||
| Newsletters | Included Free | Included up to 5,000 contacts per email |
| Customization 1 of 3 to Event Schedule | ||
| Custom domains (Event Schedule has the edge on this line) | Included Enterprise | Not offered email sender domain only |
| Custom fields | Included Pro | Included custom questions |
| Built-in analytics | Included Free | Included reports |
| Unique Features 0 of 2 to Event Schedule | ||
| Fundraising & donations | Not offered | Included donations, raffles, auctions |
| Team collaboration | Included Enterprise | Included unlimited users |
| Platform 2 of 4 to Event Schedule | ||
| REST API | Included Pro | Read access (payments, contacts, campaigns) |
| Webhooks | Included Pro | Included payment completed |
| Open source (Event Schedule has the edge on this line) | Included | Not offered |
| Selfhosting (Event Schedule has the edge on this line) | Included | Not offered |
Selfhost Event Schedule and every one of those plan chips opens: a selfhosted install resolves to Enterprise, so no line on the card is held back by a plan. Either way, ticket sales run through your own Stripe or PayPal account and Event Schedule takes 0%.
Straight answers
Three lines we do not claim.
A card you can trust has to name what is missing from it. These three are true about Event Schedule no matter which platform you are holding it against.
No marketplace
You bring the audience
Your public events can be listed on the Event Schedule browse and search pages, but a listing is not a marketplace's built-in audience. What actually fills a room is your own schedule page, an embeddable calendar, a follower QR code, newsletters, and an interest list that emails people when tickets go on sale.
Seat maps are Enterprise
Ticket types, then seats
On Free and Pro a ticket type has a name, a price and a quantity, and buyers are not choosing a specific seat. A reserved-seating house needs Enterprise, where a venue schedule draws the room once and buyers pick their seats from the map.
One team member on Free
Extra members are Enterprise
The free plan is one person per schedule. Adding team members is on Enterprise and is capped at five on the hosted platform, so do not plan on inviting a whole staff for nothing.
Everything else on this page is a line you can check for yourself. Back to the card
The margin marks
Where the marks fall our way.
5 of the 20 lines above carry a diamond. Here are the 6 advantages over Zeffy that most often decide it, in plain language rather than table cells.
Open to Everyone
Zeffy is for registered nonprofits and charities in six countries. Event Schedule works for any organizer, anywhere: a community group, a venue, a band or a business.
0% Platform Fees
Event Schedule takes no platform fee on any plan, and there is no tip prompt at checkout. Paid tickets are on Pro at $5/mo.
Two-Way Calendar Sync
Google, Outlook and CalDAV sync both ways, free, and anyone can subscribe to your schedule's live calendar feed.
A Public Schedule Page
Every event you run sits on one public schedule page, with followers who hear about new events by email and an embeddable calendar for your website.
Recurring Events
Weekly, monthly or every few weeks, with dates you can skip, on every plan, and each date keeps its own tickets.
Open Source
Read the code and selfhost it on your own server. Zeffy is a hosted service only.
Both columns
Read both sides before you sign.
About Zeffy
Zeffy is a free fundraising and ticketing platform for nonprofits and registered charities in the US, Canada, the UK, Ireland, Australia and Germany. It covers card fees itself and is funded by optional tips from donors and buyers.
Zeffy's strengths
- No fees for the nonprofit: Zeffy covers card and transaction fees
- A full fundraising suite: donations, raffles, auctions, memberships and an online store
- Unlimited users, with permissions per campaign
Why choose Event Schedule?
Three things decide it against Zeffy: the money is yours, the code is public, and the calendar keeps itself in step with the one you already use.
What you get
- Zero platform fees on ticket sales, at every plan level, into your own Stripe or PayPal account
- Free registration with no monthly ceiling, and a ticket scanned at the door on every plan
- Refunds from the Sales page on Pro, in full or in part, that send the money back through Stripe or PayPal
- One checkout for tickets to several of your events, and an interest list that emails people when tickets go on sale
- Passes, gift cards and installment payments on Pro, and allocated seating for venues on Enterprise
- Two-way Google, Outlook and CalDAV sync, free, so the public listing and your own diary cannot disagree
- Open source under the Attribution Assurance License, and selfhostable, which resolves to Enterprise
A fresh card
How to switch in 4 steps
Nothing has to move on day one. The schedule is useful the moment it exists, and the events and the list follow at whatever pace suits you.
01
Create your schedule
Free, no card, and it has its own address the moment it exists. Nothing has to move before it is useful.
02
Bring the events across
Paste a listing or upload the flyer and the parser fills in the name, date, time, venue and description for you to check. Fifty a day on the free and Pro plans (ten during a Pro trial), a hundred on Enterprise.
03
Bring your list across
Export the addresses you already have and paste them in or upload a CSV, up to ten thousand rows, on any plan. What the newsletter allowance counts is sending to them, not holding them.
04
Connect Stripe or PayPal and sell
Your own Stripe or PayPal account, so the money settles into it rather than into ours. Zero platform fees on every plan, a ticket with a price on it is Pro, and refunds go back through the same account.
Free forever. Upgrade when you're ready.
Free registration for as many people as you like. When you start charging, zero platform fees on every plan - the only deduction is your payment processor's own.
Everything you need to publish a schedule and fill the room, for as long as you like.
- Unlimited events, sub-schedules and recurring dates
- Two-way Google, Outlook and CalDAV sync
- Unlimited free registration and RSVPs, scanned at the door
No expiry, and no card asked for.
Start charging, and the rest of the selling kit arrives with it.
- Sell paid tickets, with the live check-in dashboard
- Promo codes, add-ons, passes and gift cards
- The REST API, webhooks, and no Event Schedule branding
7-day free trial, cancel any time.
For a room with a seating chart, a team, and a domain of its own.
- Reserved seating, drawn once and reused every date
- Your own domain, and up to five team members
- Internal and unlisted events, and 1,000 newsletter recipients
Included free on every selfhosted install.
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about switching from Zeffy.
Can a group that is not a registered nonprofit use Event Schedule?
Yes. Any organizer can use Event Schedule: community groups, clubs, venues, artists and businesses, in any country. Zeffy is limited to nonprofits and charities in six countries.
How does Event Schedule pricing compare to Zeffy?
Zeffy is free for nonprofits and asks buyers for an optional tip at checkout. Event Schedule has a free plan with free registration, and Pro at $5/mo adds paid tickets with zero platform fees and no tip prompt.
Does Event Schedule take donations like Zeffy?
No. Event Schedule is built for events, not fundraising, so there are no donation forms, raffles or auctions. If fundraising is the heart of what you do, Zeffy covers more of it.
Who pays the card fees?
Paid tickets go through your own Stripe or PayPal account at its standard rates. Event Schedule adds no platform fee on top, and refunds go back through the same account from the Sales page.
Free forever, 0% platform fees
That is the card. Now sign it.
Final tally: 5 of 20 lines to Event Schedule.
Create your free schedule today. No credit card required, and nothing taken from your ticket sales.
Open source, and yours to selfhost whenever you want it.
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