Vivid Seats vs. StubHub – Which Ticket-Buying Platform is Better?

E-commerce is everywhere. With every year that goes by, the world conducts more and more of its business online. In the last quarter of 2018, e-commerce sales accounted for between 10 and 15 percent of all retail sales and are growing at about four times the rate of offline sales. Brick and mortar stores will never go away, but buying things online is mainstream now. Whether for plane tickets or concert and sporting events, ticket sales are no exception to this trend. The secondary ticket market is vast and growing all the time.

The leading ticket outlets, however, have inflated prices and aggravated customers with limited slots. A few entrepreneurs have seized the opportunity to build alternatives. Two of the leading contenders in this secondary market are Vivid Seats and StubHub. Both services allow you to buy hard-to-find tickets or to sell yours if you no longer need them. Both sites also offer tickets for a wide variety of events, from sports to concerts, theaters to festivals, and pretty much everything in-between. They have been around for many years, are considered reliable vendors, and offer seats in places that many primary ticket websites do not.

How can you choose between the two sites? In this article, you’ll see the similarities and differences between the services and get the information you need to make an informed decision. You’ll also see a price analysis of several different events to identify which service has the best deals.

Vivid Seats

Vivid Seats was launched in 2001 and had a very mature website. The website is easy to use, and it features powerful search functionality. You can sort search results by ticket, region, date, or artist. Availability is excellent, as they sell a vast range of tickets across all areas of a given venue. This sector is one place Vivid Seats stands out from the competition. You get access to prime seats and cheaper ones with some variability based on factors like availability, the venue, and, of course, who is selling what. In 2017, Vivid Seats reported having more than $1 billion in turnover.

Of course, price is a primary concern with any ticket vendor, and this is where Vivid Seats stands out. Compared to its rivals, Vivid Seats usually undercuts by a decent amount. There are fees—the price you see at first isn’t the price you pay, but costs are still below StubHub in many instances. The exact fees ticket resellers charge are hard to pin down, and unfortunately, you won’t see the total amount until you’re at the site’s checkout page. Vivid Seats’ service fees are reported to run from 20% to 40% of the original ticket price. This section is where the site makes its money. Additional fees, like shipping, can be as much as $25 or as little as $7.

There are many comments found on Vivid Seats and independent feedback sites citing their excellent service. They take care of customers with benefits such as making a courtesy call informing ticket holders of venue or time changes, and they provide guarantees in case of fake tickets. These benefits can both be invaluable.

StubHub

eBay owns StubHub, and it launched in 2000. The website features all the bells and whistles you would expect from one of the big players in the business. Like eBay, StubHub ignores design in favor of data. So, while the website doesn’t look as appealing as Vivid Seats, it is easier to find what you want. Sorting by date helps you discover events, and StubHub also has an app, which means you get to use it in more places and on more devices.

For a few years, StubHub experimented with “All In Pricing,” where they showed up-front costs instead of tacking them at the end of the transaction. While this sounds good in theory, the higher initial prices scared consumers away, so now StubHub doesn’t show you its fees until you’re ready to finish buying the ticket. StubHub’s fees are reportedly a little higher than Vivid Seats’ on average. Total costs can range from 20% to 50% of the original price.

StubHub does have decent customer service but it is nowhere near as highly recommended as Vivid Seats. You do still get a guarantee against fake tickets, so it someone sells you a fake StubHub will help you get the genuine article for your show of choice if at all possible in order to make sure you don’t miss your show.

Price Comparisons

At the end of the day, the real choice between StubHub and Vivid Seats comes down to what service has cheaper tickets. Since both platforms are legit and don’t require you to jump through too many hoops to get the tickets you’re after, it’s safe to say that the real differentiator is price. Let’s look at a few past concerts and events to see what service offered better pricing for both budget options and front-row areas.

Ariana Grande – June 7, 2019 – Nashville, TN

Seating Area: Upper 330

• Vivid: $129
• StubHub: $133 – $143

Seating Area: Floor 1

• Vivid: $470 – $490
• StubHub: $496.37

NHL Islanders vs. Hurricanes – May 1, 2019 – Raleigh, NC

Seating Area: Upper 312

• Vivid: $108 – $171
• StubHub: $104

Seating Area: Center Ice 119

• Vivid: $296 – $321
• StubHub: $275 – $400

Jerry Seinfeld – November 16, 2019 – Las Vegas, NV

Seating Area: 307

• Vivid: $123 – $128
• StubHub: $128 – $155

Seating Area: 104

• Vivid: $271 – $515
• StubHub: $245 – $542

As this price comparison shows, both services have a wide variety of seats available and are usually competitive with one another on price. In cases where one service has a more extensive range of ticket prices than the other, it is generally due to the number of tickets available in that zone. You also have to consider that there are better and worse seats within the zones.

The Bottom Line—StubHub or Vivid Seats

Both Vivid Seats and StubHub get many important things right. They offer a vast range of genuine tickets at reasonable prices. They both provide good, user-friendly websites where you easily find what you need and get it rather quickly. Furthermore, both sites offer an app for finding tickets while on the move.

On another note, both vendors offer good customer service and guarantee legitimate, non-fake tickets for your show, so you don’t miss it because of a scam. Their prices are close enough that it can be worth your time to check out both options and compare the final amounts. In this head-to-head, there can be only one winner: you, the consumer.

Want more help with buying tickets online?

If you’re concerned about StubHub, see our article on whether StubHub is legitimate and safe.