Resident Advisor vs Luma

It depends on the ticket price. Resident Advisor (10%, last known rate) is cheaper on lower-priced tickets and Luma (5%) is cheaper from around $15. On a $30 ticket, with card processing included, Resident Advisor costs $3.00 and Luma costs $2.67.

Fees and features from each platform's public pricing pages, checked September 2026.

Resident Advisor and Luma at a glance

Resident Advisor

Resident Advisor (RA) is an electronic music magazine, listings site and ticketing platform. Promoters list events and sell RA Tickets through RA Pro, reaching RA's audience through its listings and the RA Guide app. Fees are paid by the ticket buyer.

Fee per paid ticket
10%, last known rateincludes card processing
When you're paid
After the event, on the following Tuesday
Best for
Electronic music promoters, clubs and festivals who want RA's listings audience
Based in
London, UK, founded 2001

Luma

Luma is an event page, registration and community calendar tool, popular for meetups and tech events. It is free to use with a 5% fee on paid tickets, or 0% on the Luma Plus subscription, and payments run through the organizer's own Stripe account. Guest messaging by email, SMS and WhatsApp is built in.

Fee per paid ticket
5%plus card processing
When you're paid
As tickets sell, on your own Stripe payout schedule
Best for
Community meetups and tech events with free or simple paid registration
Based in
San Francisco, USA, founded 2020

Hi.Events

Also worth a look

Hi.Events is an open-source ticketing platform with a hosted cloud version. Organizers sell from their own branded event pages or an embedded widget, and card payments settle straight into their own Stripe account as tickets sell.

Fee per paid ticket
1.25% + $0.60plus card processing
When you're paid
As tickets sell, on your own Stripe payout schedule
Best for
Organizers who want low published fees, their own branding and their money as tickets sell
Based in
Ireland
Start selling for free
§ 01 · Fees

What Resident Advisor and Luma cost

The all-in cost of selling 250 tickets at $30 each: platform fee plus card processing. Move the sliders to match your event.

Ticket price$30
Tickets sold250
Resident Advisor · 10%, last known rate$750

Card processing is included in the fee.

Luma · 5%$668

$375 platform fee + about $293 card processing.

Hi.Events · 1.25% + $0.60$536

$244 platform fee + about $292 card processing.

Illustrative, from each platform's published standard rate. Where a platform charges card processing on top, we add its own stated rate or a standard 2.9% + $0.30 per ticket, so every total is like for like. Your actual card rate depends on your processor and the cards your buyers use.

§ 02 · Features

Resident Advisor vs Luma, feature by feature

Where the two differ, and where they don't.

FeatureResident AdvisorLumaHi.Events
Platform fee per paid ticket10%, last known rate5%1.25% + $0.60
Card processingIncluded in the feeCharged on topCharged on top
Free eventsFree tickets can be created; RA does not say whether a fee appliesFreeFree
When you're paidAfter the event, on the following TuesdayAs tickets sell, on your own Stripe payout scheduleAs tickets sell, on your own Stripe payout schedule
Payment processorRA collects the money and pays you outYour own Stripe accountYour own Stripe account
Pass fees on to buyersAlways; the buyer pays the feeNo Yes
Your branding at checkoutNot statedCustom event URLs on Luma Plus Yes
Embed checkout on your siteListings widget Yes Yes
Listed in a consumer marketplace Yes YesNo
Tickets work without an app or accountBuyers need an RA account Yes Yes
QR check-in app Yes YesYes, in any phone browser
Reserved seatingNot statedNot statedNo
Recurring events and time slotsNot statedNo Yes
Promo codes Yes Yes Yes
Waitlist Yes Yes Yes
Custom checkout questionsNot stated Yes Yes
API and webhooksNot statedOn Luma Plus onlyWebhooks
Official ticket resaleYes, RA Resale on sold-out eventsNoNo
Open sourceNoNo Yes
Can be self-hostedNoNo Yes
§ 03 · Trade-offs

Strengths and limitations

Resident Advisor

Strengths

  • The largest electronic music listings audience
  • Nothing to pay as a promoter; the buyer covers the fee
  • Official resale for sold-out events
  • Free promotion tools, rep links and a door-scanning app

Limitations

  • The fee rate is no longer published
  • Payouts arrive after the event, with advances only for exclusive partners
  • Buyers need an RA account, and tickets unlock 24 hours before the event
  • Built around electronic music rather than general events

RA no longer publishes its fee, so 10% is its last known rate. Its help centre gives one example, where the buyer pays £8.50 and the promoter receives £7.50. The fee is paid by the buyer and is included in the displayed price by default.

Luma

Strengths

  • Free plan with unlimited events and guests
  • Luma Plus removes the platform fee entirely
  • Money goes to your own Stripe account as tickets sell
  • Email, SMS and WhatsApp guest messaging built in

Limitations

  • Fees cannot be passed to the buyer
  • No recurring events or time slots; you clone events instead
  • API, webhooks and Zapier need the paid plan
  • Built for registration more than box-office ticketing

Luma Plus, at $59 a month billed annually, removes the 5% fee and adds API access, Zapier and tax collection. Fees cannot be added on top of the ticket price, so the organizer always absorbs them.

§ 04 · Verdict

Which should you choose?

Choose Hi.Events if

you want a low published fee, your own branding at checkout and card payments in your own Stripe account as tickets sell.

Start selling for free →
§ 05 · FAQ

Resident Advisor vs Luma: common questions

Is Resident Advisor cheaper than Luma?
It depends on the ticket price. Resident Advisor (10%, last known rate) is cheaper on lower-priced tickets and Luma (5%) is cheaper from around $15. On a $30 ticket, with card processing included, Resident Advisor costs $3.00 and Luma costs $2.67. Resident Advisor's published fee includes card processing and Luma's does not, so the figures above add card processing to Luma to keep the comparison like for like.
Which pays out faster, Resident Advisor or Luma?
Resident Advisor: after the event, on the following Tuesday. Luma: as tickets sell, on your own Stripe payout schedule. Luma gets money to you sooner, which matters if you have deposits or suppliers to pay before the event.
Do Resident Advisor and Luma promote events in a marketplace?
Yes, both do. Resident Advisor and Luma each list events in their own consumer marketplace, which can bring you buyers you would not otherwise reach. The trade-off is that your event sits next to other organizers' events.
Are free events free on Resident Advisor and Luma?
Resident Advisor: free tickets can be created; RA does not say whether a fee applies. Luma: free.
Is there a cheaper alternative to Resident Advisor and Luma?
Hi.Events charges 1.25% + $0.60 per paid ticket, the same for every organizer, with no monthly fee. On a $30 ticket that is $2.15 including Stripe's card processing. Card payments settle into your own Stripe account as tickets sell, and free events are free. It has no consumer marketplace, so it suits organizers who bring their own audience.See pricing →
§ 06 · More comparisons

Compare with something else

Resident Advisor vs

Luma vs

See every comparison → · Resident Advisor fees explained → · Luma fees explained →

Sources and corrections

Every figure on this page comes from the platform's own pricing and help pages, checked September 2026. Platforms change their pricing, so confirm with the vendor before you decide. If something here is out of date, tell us and we will fix it. Product names are trademarks of their owners; Hi.Events is not affiliated with Resident Advisor or Luma.

Or skip both

Hi.Events gives you a low published fee, your own branding and your money as tickets sell. Create an event and see how it compares with Resident Advisor and Luma for yourself.

Get started free

Free events cost nothing. Paid tickets are 1.25% + $0.60, with no monthly fee and no contract — see the full pricing.