Ticket Sales Calculator
Buying tickets or selling them? Pick a mode and enter the same four numbers — ticket price, how many tickets, the service fee per ticket, and the tax rate. Buyer mode works out the sales tax and the grand total on your order. Organizer mode works out the revenue, costs, net profit, and break-even tickets for an event you are selling.
Work out the tax on your order
Buyer mode: work out the sales tax and the grand total on a ticket order before you check out.
Your sales tax
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Tickets: 2 × $100.00 | $200.00 |
| Service fees ($20.00 per ticket) | $40.00 |
| Sales tax (8%) | $19.20 |
| Grand total at checkout | $259.20 |
| Total per ticket (with tax) | $129.60 |
How this calculator works
Buying tickets (Buyer mode)
- Enter the ticket price and how many tickets you are buying. That gives the subtotal: the price of the tickets alone, before fees and tax.
- Enter the service fee per ticket. Tax is worked out on the ticket price plus the service fees, because that is how most US ticket checkouts tax an order. If your fee is already included in the listed price, set the fee to $0 here or the tax will be counted on it twice.
- Enter your local sales tax rate. There is no single US sales tax rate. It depends on the state and the venue, and some platforms only show the tax at checkout. If you do not know your rate, check your state rate or leave the field at 0% to see the total before tax.
- Read the tax, then the grand total. The big number at the top is the sales tax for the whole order. The table below it shows the tax per ticket and the grand total, so you can see what each ticket really costs with tax included.
The math, in plain words (Buyer mode): ticket subtotal = ticket price × number of tickets. Total service fees = service fee per ticket × number of tickets. Sales tax = (subtotal + total service fees) × tax rate. Grand total = subtotal + total service fees + sales tax. Tax per ticket = sales tax ÷ number of tickets. Total per ticket = grand total ÷ number of tickets.
Selling tickets (Organizer mode)
- Enter your ticket price and how many tickets you sell. Gross revenue is the ticket price times the number of tickets. That is the money coming in before anything is taken out.
- Add the service fee per ticket. This is the fee the platform takes on each ticket you sell. If the buyer pays the fee instead, leave it at $0. Total service fees are the per-ticket fee times the number of tickets.
- Add the sales tax rate. Tax is worked out on the ticket price plus the service fee combined, because that is how most US checkouts tax a ticket sale. The rate varies by state and venue, so enter the rate that applies to your event.
- Add your venue and fixed costs, then read the net profit. Net profit is gross revenue minus service fees, minus tax, minus venue and fixed costs. The break-even number is the smallest whole number of tickets you must sell for revenue to cover the fees, the tax, and the venue costs.
The math, in plain words (Organizer mode): gross revenue = ticket price × number of tickets. Total service fees = service fee per ticket × number of tickets. Sales tax = (gross revenue + total service fees) × tax rate. Total costs = service fees + sales tax + venue and fixed costs. Net profit = gross revenue − total costs. Profit per ticket = net profit ÷ number of tickets. Break-even tickets = the smallest whole number of tickets where each ticket’s price, after its fee and tax, covers the venue and fixed costs.
Watch out for the tax base. This calculator taxes the ticket price plus the service fee together. Some states tax only the ticket price. If your state taxes only the ticket price, the tax here will be slightly higher than the real tax. Check your state and venue rules, or enter a lower effective rate to match them.
Worked example: selling tickets (Organizer mode)
With the Organizer defaults — $50 per ticket, 200 tickets, a $5 service fee per ticket, 10% tax, and $3,000 in venue and fixed costs — the math runs like this:
| Step | Amount |
|---|---|
| Gross revenue: 200 × $50.00 | $10,000.00 |
| Total service fees: 200 × $5.00 | $1,000.00 |
| Sales tax: 10% of ($10,000.00 + $1,000.00) | $1,100.00 |
| Venue and fixed costs | $3,000.00 |
| Total costs: $1,000.00 + $1,100.00 + $3,000.00 | $5,100.00 |
| Net profit: $10,000.00 − $5,100.00 | $4,900.00 |
| Profit per ticket: $4,900.00 ÷ 200 | $24.50 |
| Break-even: $3,000.00 ÷ $39.50 kept per ticket, rounded up | 76 tickets |
Each ticket keeps $39.50 after its $5.00 fee and $5.50 tax, so 76 tickets are needed to cover the $3,000 in venue and fixed costs (75 tickets cover only $2,962.50).
Why the tax is more than you expect
Two things catch buyers out. First, the tax is usually charged on the ticket price plus the service fees, not on the ticket price alone. On a $100 ticket with a $20 service fee, an 8% tax is charged on $120, so the tax is $9.60 per ticket, not $8.00. Second, the fee itself is often 20% to 30% of the listed price, so the amount the tax is charged on is already much higher than the price you first saw.
Tax rates also vary a lot. Some states have no sales tax at all, while combined state and local rates pass 10% in parts of several states. The venue matters too: the same tour can carry a different tax rate in different cities. That is why this calculator asks for your rate instead of guessing one for you.
Since May 2025, US ticket sellers must show an all-in price that includes mandatory fees whenever a ticket price is displayed. Tax is still often added after that all-in price, at checkout. So the all-in price you see while browsing is usually the price before tax, and this calculator fills in that last missing piece.
Frequently asked questions
Which mode should I use — Buyer or Organizer?
Use Buyer mode if you are buying tickets and want to know the sales tax and the grand total on your order. Use Organizer mode if you are selling tickets for an event and want to know your revenue, costs, net profit, and how many tickets you need to sell to break even. The ticket price, quantity, service fee, and tax rate carry over when you switch modes, so you can check both sides of the same sale without retyping them.
Is sales tax charged on the service fee too?
On most US ticket checkouts, yes. The tax is worked out on the ticket price plus the service fees. That is why this calculator adds the fees first and then applies the tax rate to the combined amount. If a platform in your state taxes only the ticket price, set the fee to $0 here and the tax will be worked out on the ticket price alone.
What tax rate should I enter?
Your combined state and local sales tax rate for the venue’s city and state. Tax varies by state and venue, so there is no one rate to use. If you do not know it, search for your state sales tax rate and add the local city or county rate. Five states have no statewide sales tax, so buyers there may see $0 tax.
Why does the tax differ from what the platform charged me?
Most often because the rate you entered is not the rate for that venue, or because the platform taxed a different base amount. Some platforms tax the ticket price only, some tax the price plus fees, and some include a facility charge in the taxable amount. The checkout total on the platform is always final, so use this calculator to estimate and compare, not to dispute the charge.
Can I use this for resale tickets?
Yes. The math is the same for primary and resale tickets. Enter the resale listed price per ticket and the buyer service fee the resale platform charges, and the calculator works out the tax on that order. Resale buyer fees are often 20% to 30%, so the tax base is higher than on a primary ticket at the same listed price.
What counts as venue and fixed costs?
Everything that stays the same no matter how many tickets you sell: venue rental, staff, security, sound and lighting, insurance, and marketing. Add them together into the one venue and fixed costs field in Organizer mode. Costs that change with each ticket, like the per-ticket service fee, go in the service fee field instead.
What does the break-even number mean?
It is the smallest whole number of tickets you must sell for the money kept from ticket sales to cover your venue and fixed costs. With the Organizer defaults, each ticket keeps $39.50 after its fee and tax, so 76 tickets cover the $3,000 in fixed costs. Sell fewer than that and the event loses money; sell more and each extra ticket adds $39.50 in profit.
Why is net profit lower than gross revenue?
Because gross revenue is the money coming in before anything is taken out. The platform takes a service fee on each ticket, the state takes sales tax, and the venue and fixed costs have to be paid whether tickets sell or not. Net profit is what is left after all three are paid. With the Organizer defaults, $10,000 in gross revenue leaves $4,900 in net profit after $1,000 in fees, $1,100 in tax, and $3,000 in fixed costs.
Can I use this for a free event?
Yes, in Organizer mode. Set the ticket price to $0 and the calculator will show the venue and fixed costs as a loss, because no ticket money comes in. That is the amount the event costs you. The break-even number will show as no break-even point, because a $0 ticket never earns anything toward the fixed costs.
Related guides
These guides from TheTicketLover explain the fees, the all-in pricing rule, and the platforms behind the numbers above.
TheTicketLover is an independent ticket guide. It does not sell tickets. Platform names are used only to compare fees and buying options.