"How many tickets should I sell?" is one of the first questions organizers ask once a venue says yes. Sell too few and the room feels empty when the DJ starts. Sell too many and you end up with a line of ticket holders who can't get in, an unhappy venue and a safety problem.
The answer is a short bit of math you can do before you announce. Here it is in eight steps, with a worked example for a room that holds 150 people.
Start with the real number
- Get the venue's capacity in writing. Ask the venue for its official occupancy limit, the number set by the local fire code or license, and ask for it in an email or the venue agreement. The number that "usually fits" doesn't count. That limit covers everyone inside at once, including staff and performers. If the venue has a Beatmatch venue profile, you can add it as a co-host on your event so the venue team helps run it with you (Add Co-Hosts to an Event).
- Take out everyone who isn't buying a ticket. Bartenders, security, door staff, performers and their guests, your photographer and your own team all count against the limit. Write the list down. In the example: 12 staff, 4 DJs with one guest each and 2 people from your team come to 22 people before a single guest walks in.
- Set your guest list and comps, and keep the number fixed. Decide how many free spots go to friends, promoters and press. In the example, 20 comps leaves 108 spots for paying guests. Run a Faster Door: Guest Lists, Comps and QR Check-In covers how to keep that list tidy on the day.
Turn the number into tickets
- Hold a few spots for the door. If you sell tickets at the door, keep some spots for walk-ups instead of selling every one online. In the example, holding 13 for the door leaves 95 tickets to sell ahead of time. If you don't sell at the door, you can release those spots online in the last week.
- Split your advance number across ticket options. Each ticket option has its own quantity available, plus its own sale start and end date (Create Ticket Options). Make the quantities add up to your advance number, for example 30 Early Bird, 55 General Admission and 10 VIP. A sale end date on Early Bird stops that tier on its own, so the next tier takes over. For help choosing prices, see How to Set Ticket Prices for a Party.
- Count free RSVPs, too. If you offer a free RSVP option alongside paid tickets, give it a quantity like any other ticket option. Every RSVP is a person who may show up at the door. Free RSVP vs Paid Tickets helps you decide whether to offer one at all.
- Set a maximum per order. Every ticket option has a minimum and maximum per order, and the help center suggests per-order limits to prevent bulk purchases or scalping (Create Ticket Options). For a small room, a cap of 4 to 6 per order still lets friends buy together without one order taking a big share of the room.
Before and during the event
- Watch the count from first sale to last guest. Before the event, the At a glance section at the top of the Orders tab summarizes your sales, and View insights opens a deeper look (Manage Your Orders). At the door, scanning tickets with the Beatmatch mobile app marks each guest as checked in, and the event dashboard shows who has arrived and your total attendance, which helps you manage capacity and entry flow (Check In Guests). Keep a simple tally for walk-ups and comps so your door team always knows the real number inside.
What to do when you sell out
Set quantities you're comfortable with from the start. The help center notes that once tickets start selling, lowering the quantity or changing prices may affect people who already purchased tickets (Create Ticket Options).
If you sell out early, keep the cap. Post that the event is sold out, say whether you're holding spots at the door, and point people to your next date. A sold-out event is the best reason for your crowd to buy early next time. If you host a series, How to Turn a One-Off Party Into a Monthly Series covers what to do with that demand.
The worked example
- Venue capacity: 150
- Staff, performers, performer guests and your team: 22
- Guest list and comps: 20
- Held for the door: 13
- Sold ahead of time: 95 (30 Early Bird, 55 General Admission, 10 VIP)
Quick checklist
- Capacity in writing from the venue.
- Staff, performers and your team counted.
- Comps set and fixed.
- Door spots held.
- Ticket option quantities add up to your advance number.
- Free RSVPs capped, too.
- Maximum per order set.
- Check-in ready on the Beatmatch mobile app.
Ready to set it up? Create your event on Beatmatch and set your ticket quantities before you announce. For the days before the event, The Week-of Event Checklist has the rest.
