Fees are part of live events and help our marketplace work to get you tickets. Here’s what they cover, where they go, and how StubHub determines what you pay.
Planning a night out at your favorite artist’s concert or cheering on your team from the stands takes enough energy. Decoding your ticket total at checkout shouldn’t add to that. Fees are a reality of the live events industry, and fans deserve a straight answer about what they’re paying for and how those amounts get set.
Here’s the honest breakdown.
What Are Ticket Fees, Really?
When you buy a ticket on StubHub, the price you see reflects more than just your seat. Several different parties contribute to making a live event happen and getting that ticket into your hands. Fees help cover a share of those costs. The most common types you’ll encounter:
Service fees cover the infrastructure and the guarantees that protect your purchase. Infrastructure means the operational side of running a ticket marketplace: the technology, the customer support teams, the fraud prevention tools, and the systems that keep your transaction secure. Guarantees means buyer protection: our FanProtect Guarantee, which ensures you’ll get into the event or receive a full refund.
Delivery fees make sure tickets get from seller to buyer — whether that means shipping physical tickets or ensuring a digital transfer goes through seamlessly.
How Does StubHub Determine the Fee You See?
This is the question fans ask most, and we want to be upfront.
StubHub’s service fees come from a fixed set of fee levels. The specific fee applied to a session draws from that set using an anonymous browser cookie, a small piece of data that is standard across all websites and is not connected to your name, account, purchase history, location, or any other personal information.
Because that cookie resets with each browsing session, two people checking the same ticket at the same moment may see different fees. That’s also true across different browsers, devices, or browsing modes. The variation reflects standard e-commerce testing across different session environments — not personalization, and not targeting based on who you are.
To be direct: StubHub does not use purchase history, demographics, location, or account data to set fees.
Why Do Fees Vary Between Listings for the Same Event?
Individual sellers set their own asking prices, and StubHub’s buyer fee calculates as a percentage of that price. Higher-priced listings carry proportionally higher fees. This has nothing to do with who the buyer is, it reflects the seller’s listed price.
Why Do We Charge Fees at All?
On the primary market, venues and their ticketing partners typically set and retain the largest portion of ticketing fees. On StubHub’s secondary marketplace, fees fund both the buyer and seller experience, including authentication, guaranteed delivery, and the FanProtect Guarantee that backs every order.
Running a global marketplace that serves fans across more than 200 countries and territories, in over 30 languages, requires meaningful investment in technology, people, and trust infrastructure. Your fees help pay for that ecosystem.
Nearly 80% of U.S. concert tickets sold on StubHub last year were priced under $100. Fees exist across that range, and StubHub’s goal is to make sure fans can access live events at a range of price points, with the confidence that their purchase is protected.
The Push for All-In Pricing
StubHub has long advocated for all-in pricing — showing fans the full cost of a ticket from the first moment they see it, fees included. As of May 2025, all major ticket platforms including StubHub display fees in default prices, in compliance with FTC rules and state laws designed to eliminate hidden fees for live-event tickets.
The total you see on StubHub is the total you pay.
How to Shop Smarter for Tickets
Look at the all-in total first. The price displayed on StubHub includes all mandatory fees. That’s the number that matters.
Compare across listings. StubHub shows a range of options for most events, across sections and price points. Sorting by price gives you a real picture of what’s available.
Time your buy. Demand drives price on the secondary market, especially for high-demand events. If your plans are flexible, deals sometimes surface right before an event begins.
Trust the FanProtect Guarantee. Every order on StubHub is backed by the guarantee: your tickets will be valid, or you’ll get your money back. That protection is part of what the platform’s fees fund.
FAQ
Does StubHub use my personal data to set fees?
No. StubHub does not use purchase history, account data, demographics, or location to determine fees. The fee draws from a fixed set of levels using an anonymous browser cookie that is not linked to any personal information.
Why might two people see different fees for the same ticket?
Each browsing session carries its own anonymous cookie, which generates a fee from a fixed range. Different sessions produce different draws — similar to how two people refreshing a search results page might see listings in a slightly different order. This is a standard feature of e-commerce environments and reflects session-level variation, not personalization.
Why do fees vary between listings for the same event?
Individual sellers set their own asking prices, and StubHub’s buyer fee is a percentage of that price. Higher-priced listings carry proportionally higher fees.
Can I avoid fees entirely?
On any digital marketplace, some fees are built into the cost of the service. What you can do is compare listings, filter by total price, and find the best value for your section and seat.
Are StubHub’s fees negotiable?
The platform’s service fees are set, but total ticket price varies across listings. Shopping around within StubHub’s inventory often surfaces meaningful differences.
What if something goes wrong with my tickets?
Our FanProtect Guarantee covers you. If you can’t get into the event, StubHub will provide replacement tickets of comparable or better value, or a full refund.