[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":286},["ShallowReactive",2],{"guides-en-festival-break-even":3},{"id":4,"title":5,"body":6,"cta":264,"description":274,"extension":275,"eyebrow":276,"heading":277,"highlight":278,"meta":279,"navigation":280,"path":281,"seo":282,"stem":283,"updated":284,"__hash__":285},"guides_en\u002Fguides\u002Ffestival-break-even.md","Festival break-even: how many tickets you need",{"type":7,"value":8,"toc":254},"minimark",[9,13,16,21,30,33,67,74,78,81,154,157,165,168,172,175,195,198,202,205,208,212,244,248,251],[10,11,12],"p",{},"Every festival has a number of tickets below which it loses money. Knowing that number before you commit to a line-up tells you how much risk you're taking on, and it makes most \"should we add this?\" decisions much easier to answer.",[10,14,15],{},"The arithmetic is simple. Getting the inputs right is where the work is.",[17,18,20],"h2",{"id":19},"the-formula","The formula",[22,23,24],"blockquote",{},[10,25,26],{},[27,28,29],"strong",{},"Break-even tickets = (fixed costs − other income you can count on) ÷ (net revenue per ticket − per-head cost per ticket)",[10,31,32],{},"Each part needs a little care.",[34,35,36,49,55,61],"ul",{},[37,38,39,42,43,48],"li",{},[27,40,41],{},"Fixed costs"," are the ones that don't change with attendance: artist fees, stages and production, site hire, insurance, the core team. See the ",[44,45,47],"a",{"href":46},"\u002Fguides\u002Fhow-to-budget-a-festival","budgeting guide"," for how to split them out.",[37,50,51,54],{},[27,52,53],{},"Other income you can count on"," is income you can rely on whether or not tickets sell: signed sponsorship, confirmed grants. It reduces what tickets have to cover. Income that depends on the crowd, like your share of bar takings, belongs in the per-ticket figures instead, and only at a level you'd defend.",[37,56,57,60],{},[27,58,59],{},"Net revenue per ticket"," is what reaches you from each ticket: the price, less the VAT included in it, less the ticketing company's fee.",[37,62,63,66],{},[27,64,65],{},"Per-head cost per ticket"," is what each extra person costs you: security and stewarding scaled to the crowd, toilets, wristbands, cleaning, waste.",[10,68,69,70,73],{},"The difference between the last two is the ",[27,71,72],{},"contribution per ticket",": what each ticket sold adds towards the fixed costs.",[17,75,77],{"id":76},"a-worked-example","A worked example",[10,79,80],{},"These figures are made up to show the arithmetic. They aren't benchmarks.",[82,83,84,95],"table",{},[85,86,87],"thead",{},[88,89,90,93],"tr",{},[91,92],"th",{},[91,94],{},[96,97,98,107,115,123,134,142],"tbody",{},[88,99,100,104],{},[101,102,103],"td",{},"Weekend ticket price, including VAT",[101,105,106],{},"€110",[88,108,109,112],{},[101,110,111],{},"VAT included (10% in this example)",[101,113,114],{},"−€10",[88,116,117,120],{},[101,118,119],{},"Ticketing fee per ticket",[101,121,122],{},"−€4",[88,124,125,129],{},[101,126,127],{},[27,128,59],{},[101,130,131],{},[27,132,133],{},"€96",[88,135,136,139],{},[101,137,138],{},"Per-head costs per attendee",[101,140,141],{},"−€12",[88,143,144,149],{},[101,145,146],{},[27,147,148],{},"Contribution per ticket",[101,150,151],{},[27,152,153],{},"€84",[10,155,156],{},"The festival's fixed costs come to €504,000, and €84,000 of sponsorship is signed.",[22,158,159],{},[10,160,161,162],{},"(€504,000 − €84,000) ÷ €84 = ",[27,163,164],{},"5,000 tickets",[10,166,167],{},"With a capacity of 8,000, the festival breaks even at 62.5% sell-through. Every ticket beyond 5,000 adds €84 to the result, and every ticket short of it costs €84.",[17,169,171],{"id":170},"use-it-to-test-decisions","Use it to test decisions",[10,173,174],{},"The same contribution figure answers \"what if\" questions quickly.",[34,176,177,183,189],{},[37,178,179,182],{},[27,180,181],{},"A bigger headliner."," An extra €42,000 in fees needs €42,000 ÷ €84 = 500 more tickets to pay for itself. Ask whether that act will sell 500 tickets that wouldn't have sold otherwise.",[37,184,185,188],{},[27,186,187],{},"A price change."," Raising the ticket price by €5.50 including VAT adds €5 net. Contribution goes from €84 to €89, and break-even falls to about 4,720 tickets, as long as sales hold.",[37,190,191,194],{},[27,192,193],{},"A sponsor falling through."," Losing €21,000 of sponsorship adds 250 tickets to break-even.",[10,196,197],{},"Running the numbers for three versions of the plan, a cautious, an expected and an optimistic one, shows you how wide the range of outcomes really is.",[17,199,201],{"id":200},"several-ticket-types","Several ticket types",[10,203,204],{},"Most festivals sell more than one ticket: early bird, weekend, day tickets, VIP. Work out the net revenue for each type and weight it by the mix you expect to sell. If half of your weekend tickets go at an early-bird price, your average net revenue per ticket is lower than the full price suggests, and break-even is higher.",[10,206,207],{},"Day tickets need one more step. A day ticket usually brings in less but costs you per-head costs only on the day it's used, so give it its own contribution figure.",[17,209,211],{"id":210},"mistakes-that-move-the-number","Mistakes that move the number",[34,213,214,220,226,232,238],{},[37,215,216,219],{},[27,217,218],{},"Using the ticket price instead of net revenue."," Leaving VAT and fees in makes break-even look thousands of tickets lower than it is.",[37,221,222,225],{},[27,223,224],{},"Counting comps."," Guest-list and free tickets add per-head costs and no revenue.",[37,227,228,231],{},[27,229,230],{},"Counting sponsorship that isn't signed."," Until it's signed, it's an upside, not a deduction.",[37,233,234,237],{},[27,235,236],{},"Assuming bar income at full turnover."," If you take a share, count the share, and only at a level you'd defend.",[37,239,240,243],{},[27,241,242],{},"Forgetting that per-head costs come in steps."," Security and toilets are often booked in blocks, so a few hundred extra tickets can tip a line into its next block.",[17,245,247],{"id":246},"keeping-it-current","Keeping it current",[10,249,250],{},"Break-even isn't a number you work out once. Fees get confirmed, sponsors sign or drop out, and presales tell you how the mix is really shaping up. Check it again whenever a big line changes, and compare the tickets sold so far with what you still need.",[10,252,253],{},"In Cashbox, that check is a scenario. Each version of the plan sits beside the original with its own result, and shows how much of the revenue still to come it needs before it stops losing money, counting what is already in or expected. When you've chosen a version, applying it updates the event's budget in one step.",{"title":255,"searchDepth":256,"depth":256,"links":257},"",2,[258,259,260,261,262,263],{"id":19,"depth":256,"text":20},{"id":76,"depth":256,"text":77},{"id":170,"depth":256,"text":171},{"id":200,"depth":256,"text":201},{"id":210,"depth":256,"text":211},{"id":246,"depth":256,"text":247},{"eyebrow":265,"title":266,"subtitle":267,"points":268,"related":272},"Try other versions of the plan","See where each version of the plan breaks even.","In Cashbox, scenarios let you try a bigger headliner or a smaller crowd beside the plan. Each one shows its result, and how much of the revenue still to come it needs before it stops losing money.",[269,270,271],"15-day free trial","No card required","Scenarios on every event",{"label":273,"to":46},"How to budget a festival","Work out how many tickets a festival must sell to cover its costs: net ticket revenue, per-head costs, secured income, and a worked example you can copy.","md","Guide","Festival break-even: how many tickets do you need to sell?","how many tickets",{},true,"\u002Fguides\u002Ffestival-break-even",{"title":5,"description":274},"guides\u002Ffestival-break-even","2026-10-24","CQ3t3DW4BKobWxrFzBFX4fjS6lL11XYH3xBmFIndDus",1793142965092]