Events and venues
Event ticket break even
Calculate ticket contribution and whole admissions needed to cover an event budget.
Your inputs
Complete the fields for your selected method. Zero means intentionally zero, not unknown. Currency selection labels amounts; it does not convert exchange rates.
How this calculation works
contribution/ticket = price × (1-fee rate) - fixed ticket fee - attendee variable cost; break-even = fixed cost/contribution
Ticket fees may use another base or be paid by buyers; enter only seller-borne charges. Supply capacity after checking venue requirements. Complimentary attendance, refunds, tax and sponsorships are not automatically included. Use your own records for the same scope and period. Example figures are illustrative, not industry benchmarks. Results exclude income taxes and any cost you have not entered. Check the result before pricing work or committing resources.
What information do I need?
Use records for the same job, equipment or accounting period. Only the fields for your selected entry method are required. An unknown amount is not zero.
Input definitions and where to find them
- Ticket sale price (selected currency): Use a supplier quote, invoice, payroll record or allocated cost for the exact job or period named here. Include this amount only once.
- Seller-paid percentage fee on ticket price (%): Enter a percentage from your records or an explicitly chosen scenario. No typical or recommended rate is supplied.
- Fixed platform fee per ticket (selected currency): Use a supplier quote, invoice, payroll record or allocated cost for the exact job or period named here. Include this amount only once.
- Other variable cost per attendee (selected currency): Use a supplier quote, invoice, payroll record or allocated cost for the exact job or period named here. Include this amount only once.
- Fixed event costs (selected currency): Use a supplier quote, invoice, payroll record or allocated cost for the exact job or period named here. Include this amount only once.
- Your maximum paid admissions (tickets): Use the matching measured quantity, time log, schedule or clearly stated estimate. Zero means intentionally none; an unknown amount is not zero.
- Expected paid tickets sold (tickets): Use the matching measured quantity, time log, schedule or clearly stated estimate. Zero means intentionally none; an unknown amount is not zero.
Use the Where to find this value controls beside the inputs for available work-it-out helpers. Estimates remain your assumptions; a helper does not verify the source figures.
Worked example
Example amounts use US dollars (USD).
Example answer: Contribution after entered fixed costs is $1,000.00 for the illustrative inputs below.
Example inputs
- Ticket sale price: $40.00
- Seller-paid percentage fee on ticket price: 5.00 %
- Fixed platform fee per ticket: $1.00
- Other variable cost per attendee: $9.00
- Fixed event costs: $6,000.00
- Your maximum paid admissions: 300 tickets
- Expected paid tickets sold: 250 tickets
- Contribution after entered fixed costs
- $1,000.00
- Whole tickets to break even
- 215 sales
- Contribution per ticket
- $28.00
- Break-even capacity check
- Within supplied capacity
These illustrative values are not recommended rates or industry averages. Replace every example input with your own figures.
Use the result well
Calculate ticket contribution and whole admissions needed to cover an event budget. Inputs come from your own records and stated assumptions; no rates or legal limits are looked up.
Keep inputs on the same scope and time basis. Calculations retain precision internally; displayed values generally round to two decimal places, with extra precision for very small values and whole-unit rounding where required. Economic comparisons describe your supplied assumptions and do not guarantee future results.
This tool provides business arithmetic. It does not approve engineering designs, establish legal or tax treatment, select equipment or certify safe operating conditions.