Event promoter commission calculator.

Worked example

150 tickets at $20 with 5% refunded leaves 142.5 paid heads and $2,850.00 gross. Organizer-side processing of 3% plus $0.30 a ticket takes $128.25, leaving $2,721.75. At a 10% rate, gross commission is $285.00, net commission is $272.18, a $2 flat fee per head is $285.00 and a tiered deal of 10% plus $1 per head over 100 is $327.50. If the venue shares $25 average spend per head into a pool and you hold 5% of it, spend commission adds $187.50, and 30 guest-list heads at $1 add $30.00. On the gross basis the total is $502.50, or $3.35 a head, and $41.88 an hour over 12 hours.

Methodology

Paid heads = heads × (1 − refund %). Gross = paid heads × price. Organizer fees = gross × processing % + paid heads × flat fee. The attendee fee is what the buyer pays on top; it raises the all-in cost per head ($46.00 here with spend) but is not part of commission unless your agreement says so. Spend commission = heads × max(average spend, drink minimum) × venue share × your rate. Guest-list pay = guest-list heads × pay per head. Break-even heads = organizer overhead ÷ (price × (1 − processing %) − flat fee) × (1 − refund %), rounded up; it is the organizer’s view and helps judge whether a night can pay anyone.

Edge cases handled

Zero heads gives no per-head figure. Refunds above 100% and rates above 100% are capped and flagged. If fees exceed ticket sales, net-based commission is floored at zero instead of going negative. Spend commission uses attendees who came, so a drink minimum higher than average spend raises it.

Using it with a real agreement

Get the basis in writing: gross or net, before or after refunds, whether the attendee fee counts, and when you are paid. Then enter exactly those terms. Compare offers with the per-head fee vs percentage comparison, and turn the payout into a wage with the hourly comparison. See how event promoters get paid for the structures themselves.

What this page does not cover

• Any rate or income figure for promoters; there is no typical rate here.
• Venue contracts, liability, licensing or tax rules; read your agreement.
• Cash tips and under-the-table arrangements; enter only what is documented.
• Table and bottle-service commissions; use a table-specific tool for those.

Sources (retrieved October 2026)

• Ticket Fairy: Referenced only as one ticketing platform that advertises referral features for buyers and organizers; no commission rate is claimed. Retrieved October 2026.
• Posh (posh.vip): Referenced only as one event platform whose footer lists organizer and referral terms; no rate is claimed and the terms were not read for this page. Retrieved October 2026.
• IRS, Self-employment tax: The self-employment tax rate is 15.3%. This site only offers a user-chosen set-aside percentage; your actual tax depends on your whole return. Retrieved October 2026.

Every other number on this page is an input you type or a labelled example. Platform fees change and differ by category, so confirm them on the platform before relying on a result.

FAQ

How much do promoters make per head?

It depends entirely on the agreement. This calculator takes your per-head fee or percentage as an input and does not claim a typical rate.

Is commission paid on gross or net ticket sales?

Both exist. Gross ignores fees; net deducts them first. The table on this page shows both for the same event.

Does the attendee fee count toward my commission?

Only if your agreement says so. By default it is shown as a cost to the buyer, not a base for commission.

What happens to commission when tickets are refunded?

Many deals pay only on tickets that stay sold. The refund field removes those heads from every ticket basis.

What is a tiered commission?

A base rate plus a bonus for each head above a threshold. Enter the threshold and bonus to see the effect.