Event management software for conferences, venues and event teams

What does event management software do?

For an event team, the software handles each stage of the event. These are the main parts:

• Registration and tickets: Attendees sign up, pick ticket types and pay. You set early bird prices, group rates and promo codes.
• Event website: A page shows the agenda, speakers, venue and sponsors.
• Attendee app: Attendees see their own agenda, get updates and message each other.
• Check-in and badges: Staff scan attendees in at the door and print badges on the spot.
• Speakers and sponsors: You collect speaker talks, manage sponsor packages and give exhibitors a way to collect leads.
• Reports: You see sign-ups, revenue, check-ins and session attendance.

If you only sell tickets to simple events, you may not need all of this. My guide to Eventbrite alternatives covers lower-fee ticketing tools.

What do Cvent and Whova offer?

Cvent

Cvent sells a full event platform for planners who run conferences and event programs. Its event management product covers registration and marketing, event apps, check-in and badges through OnArrival, and attendee engagement through Attendee Hub. It also covers hotel room blocks, approvals and budgets, speaker management, webinars and reports. The Cvent Supplier Network helps planners find and book venues.

Cvent does not publish prices on its event management page. You contact sales for a quote, and it also offers a free trial of its event management product.

Whova

Whova calls its event app award-winning, and the app offers personal agendas, live updates and networking. It also covers registration and ticketing, name badges, kiosk check-in, live streams, call for speakers, an event website builder and exhibitor tools with lead retrieval. Whova serves corporate, academic, government and association events, trade shows and festivals.

Whova's pricing page is a quote form. It asks for your event format, length, expected attendees and how many events you run each year.

Why do teams look for a Cvent or Whova alternative?

Teams compare tools for reasons tied to budget and fit.

• Quotes make budgeting hard: Neither Cvent nor Whova lists a price, so you cannot compare costs before a sales call.
• Size of the program: A large suite fits a team that runs many events each year. A team with one or two events may want a smaller tool.
• Feature fit: Some teams need strong registration but only a light app, or the other way around.

What are the best Cvent and Whova alternatives?

These alternatives publish at least a starting price on their own pages.

RSVPify

RSVPify suits smaller events and galas, and some nonprofits can get special pricing. It has a free plan with 100 registrations a month. Starter costs $288 a year, which works out to $24 a month, or $39 billed monthly. Plus costs $1,068 a year or $125 monthly and adds check-in from any device. Professional costs $3,588 a year or $409 monthly, with 1,500 registrations a month and embeddable forms. RSVPify says no contract is needed.

Accelevents

Accelevents suits teams that want registration, check-in and an app in one tool. The Professional plan starts at $7,500 for one event. The Business plan starts at $13,500 and covers unlimited events. Ask whether these prices cover one year or are a one-time fee. Professional includes staff or kiosk check-in and badge printing, but some check-in and badge items are marked as extra cost, so get them in your quote. Virtual events are a paid add-on.

Swoogo

Swoogo suits teams that run many events each year. Its pricing page shows an estimate of $11,800 a year for the Professional plan, and the final price depends on team size. That plan covers unlimited events with no cap on registrants. It includes a check-in app, automated workflows and more than 30 integrations. Event apps and onsite tools are add-ons, and Enterprise is priced by quote.

Eventbrite and other ticketing tools

If your events are public and ticket sales matter most, a ticketing platform may be enough. These tools charge per ticket and include fewer planning features. My Eventbrite alternatives guide compares them.

Product	Published starting price	Best suited to	Notes
Cvent	Quote only	Large conferences and corporate event programs	Venue sourcing, room blocks and full event suite
Whova	Quote only	Conferences, associations and trade shows	Strong attendee app and exhibitor tools
RSVPify	Free, or from $24 a month billed yearly	Galas, nonprofit events and smaller events	Plans set by registrations per month
Accelevents	From $7,500 for one event	Teams that want registration, check-in and an app together	Business plan from $13,500 covers unlimited events
Swoogo	About $11,800 a year	Teams that run many events	Event app and onsite tools are add-ons

What software does an event venue need?

A venue sells space to people who host their own events. The work is about leads, proposals and the details of each booking. Venue software should handle these jobs:

• Leads: Inquiries from your website land in one list, with the date, guest count and budget.
• Space calendar: You see which rooms are held, booked or free on each date.
• Proposals and contracts: You send a proposal with menus and room fees, and the client signs online.
• Deposits and payments: The client pays a deposit and then the balance on a schedule.
• Event orders: A banquet event order, or BEO, tells your kitchen and staff what to set up and serve.

Perfect Venue is one option with published prices. It has a free plan with a CRM, BEOs, proposals, payments and an events calendar. The Professional plan costs $199 a month per location billed yearly, or $239 monthly. Premium costs $299 billed yearly or $339 monthly and adds sales team tools and bank transfer payments. Card payments cost 2.9% plus 30 cents, plus a Perfect Venue fee of 0.5% on Professional and 0.3% on Premium. Every plan has unlimited users.

Hotels with meeting space often need this to connect with their room system. My guide to hotel management software covers that side.

How do you choose event management software?

Start with your events, then test the parts you use most. These steps help.

• Write down your year: List how many events you run, their size and whether they are in person, virtual or hybrid. This decides which plans fit.
• Test registration as an attendee: Register on your phone with a promo code and a group ticket. Check how the confirmation email looks.
• Ask about card and ticket fees: Some tools charge a fee on each ticket, and some let you pass it to buyers.
• Check what is an add-on: Apps, onsite tools and virtual features are often extra. Get a full quote for your real event.
• Check your other tools: Ask if the tool connects with your CRM, email and accounting tools, and get the vendor to show it working.
• Plan check-in early: Ask what hardware you need for badge printing and how check-in works if the internet drops.

How can AI help with events?

AI helps event teams most in the weeks before an event, when questions pile up.

Answering attendee questions

Attendees ask the same things about parking, agendas, refunds and dress codes. An AI assistant trained on your event details can answer them on your website or in chat at any hour. My guide to AI chatbots for business explains how to set one up.

Fast replies to venue inquiries

A couple or event planner may ask several venues about the same date. AI can check your calendar, reply with open dates and a draft proposal, and book a tour. Your sales team then takes over the conversation.

Matching attendees and summing up sessions

AI can suggest who each attendee should meet, based on their job and interests. After the event, it can draft session summaries and a recap email from your notes and recordings. Always check these drafts before you send them.

When does custom event software make sense?

Most teams should buy one of the products above. A custom build starts to pay off when your events look like this.

• Member pricing tied to your database: An association may need ticket prices and access based on member status in its own system.
• Unusual event formats: Multi-city tours, competitions with judging or training with exams may not fit standard tools.
• Venue groups with many spaces: A group with several venues may want one calendar, one sales pipeline and one set of reports.
• Your tools do not talk to each other: Staff copy data between registration, CRM, accounting and email tools by hand.

You can also keep a standard tool and add a custom piece, such as a booking system or a sponsor portal. My guide on build vs buy software helps you weigh the cost.

What mistakes do owners make here?

• Buying an enterprise suite for one or two events a year. Cvent and similarly broad platforms earn their cost for teams running many events annually. A team with a handful of events usually gets better value and an easier setup from a focused alternative.
• Not testing registration as an actual attendee before launch. Register on your own phone with a promo code and a group ticket before you commit. A clunky attendee experience during your trial is the clunky experience your real attendees will have.
• Not asking who owns the attendee data when the contract ends. This matters more than most teams realize until they try to switch platforms and discover their own attendee list is hard to export cleanly.

How would Blur Studio approach an event software project?

I start by walking through one of your recent events, from the first email to the final report. I look at where data gets copied by hand and where attendees or clients get stuck. If a standard tool fixes it, I recommend the tool. If custom work fits, I build the missing part myself and connect it to the tools you already use.

The code and accounts stay in your name, and I keep everything running between events, including the AI assistant if you add one for attendee questions.