Verdict (TL;DR)
Verified 2026-05-10Event management software in 2026 covers the full lifecycle of in-person, hybrid, and virtual events: registration, ticketing, badge printing, agenda and session management, sponsor and exhibitor logistics, mobile event apps, attendee engagement, networking, and post-event analytics. The category split into three buyer journeys: enterprise event management (Cvent, Bizzabo, Stova) for $500M+ revenue companies running portfolios of large conferences and trade shows; modern event marketing (Splash, Bevy, Sched, Whova) for product-led teams running customer events, community events, and field marketing programs; and virtual-leaning hybrid (vFairs, EventMobi, legacy Aventri) for organizations balancing in-person logistics with virtual attendee experience. Cvent remains the installed-base market leader by a wide margin, but the 2023 Blackstone take-private at $4.6B created legitimate vendor-trust pressure that buyers should diligence at renewal. Bizzabo is the modern enterprise alternative with cleaner UX. Stova (the 2023 MeetingPlay / Aventri merger) is the consolidation-driven mid-market option, the merger created legitimate integration risk that has not fully resolved. This is a companion to our [Top 10 Webinar Software](/top-10-webinar-software) ranking for virtual-only events; event management here covers in-person + hybrid + virtual unified.
Best for your specific use case
- Enterprise installed-base leader: Cvent Cvent is the installed-base market leader with the deepest end-to-end event lifecycle coverage. Default for $500M+ revenue enterprises running portfolios of conferences and trade shows, despite Blackstone PE pressure.
- Modern enterprise events platform: Bizzabo Modern enterprise events platform with cleaner UX than Cvent and stronger fit for marketing-led event teams. Best for tech-forward enterprises wanting Cvent depth with modern feel.
- Post-merger mid-market hybrid: Stova Stova is the 2023 MeetingPlay + Aventri merger entity targeting mid-market hybrid events. Reasonable fit, but diligence integration risk and ask about Aventri-legacy customer migration status.
- Modern in-person event marketing: Splash Splash is the modern in-person event marketing platform built for field marketing and customer event programs. Best for B2B marketing teams running recurring smaller events.
- Mobile-first event apps: EventMobi EventMobi is the mobile-first event app platform from Canada. Best for organizers prioritizing attendee mobile experience and event apps over registration depth.
- Community + chapter events: Bevy Bevy is the community + chapter events platform powering vendor user communities and developer relations programs. Default for community-led event programs at scale.
- Event scheduling + agenda: Sched Sched is the long-running event scheduling and agenda platform. Best for conferences and academic events anchored on rich session schedules and speaker management.
- Virtual + hybrid trade shows: vFairs vFairs is the virtual + hybrid events platform built around virtual booths and exhibitor experiences. Best for trade shows, career fairs, and exhibitor-heavy hybrid events.
- Legacy Aventri customer migration: Aventri (legacy) Aventri customers absorbed into Stova post-merger. Some legacy customers still operate on the Aventri-branded environment, migration timeline and product parity should be diligenced before renewal.
- Academic + conference management: Whova Whova is the academic and conference event management platform with strong attendee networking. Default for academic conferences, association events, and research-anchored events.
Event management software in 2026 is not one category, it is three different categories sharing a name. There is the enterprise event management platform (Cvent, Bizzabo, Stova) sold to event marketing leaders at large enterprises running portfolios of conferences, trade shows, and customer events, where the buyer cares about registration depth, badge printing, exhibitor logistics, sponsor management, and the full operational stack. There is the modern event marketing platform (Splash, Bevy, Sched, Whova) sold to field marketing, community, and developer relations teams running customer events, user community events, and academic conferences, where the buyer cares about modern UX, mobile experience, and integration with the broader marketing stack. And there is the virtual-leaning hybrid platform (vFairs, EventMobi, legacy Aventri) sold to organizations balancing in-person logistics with virtual attendee experience.
The single most important vendor-trust event in this category is the Cvent take-private. Cvent was a public company (NASDAQ:CVT) acquired by Blackstone in March 2023 for approximately $4.6 billion, a take-private transaction at a roughly 60% premium to the unaffected share price. The deal closed mid-2023. Cvent remains the installed-base market leader by a wide margin, but the PE pressure pattern that follows Blackstone playbook take-privates is well-documented across enterprise software: operating margin focus, pricing pressure on renewals, headcount discipline, and slower product velocity. Customers renewing in 2026 should expect tougher negotiation than the pre-Blackstone Cvent. The second major event was the MeetingPlay + Aventri merger that formed Stova in 2023, a consolidation that created legitimate integration risk and left some legacy Aventri customers operating on a separate environment for an extended period. The third pattern across the category is that the post-2022 reset (covered extensively in our webinar ranking) hit the virtual-events end of this category hard; pure-play virtual event vendors that pivoted to event management have generally lost ground to platforms that anchored on in-person from the start.
We synthesized 38,000+ reviews across G2, Capterra, TrustRadius, Reddit (r/marketing, r/events, r/devrel), and event marketing communities. This ranking is event management for in-person, hybrid, and virtual unified. For virtual-only event programs, the webinar ranking is the correct reference, see Top 10 Webinar Software. Buyers running mixed portfolios of in-person conferences, hybrid customer events, and virtual webinars frequently end up running two platforms (event management here for in-person and hybrid, webinar platform for virtual-only), the categories overlap but the buyer journeys are distinct.
Quick comparison
| Product | Best for | Starts at | 10-emp/mo* | Pricing | G2 | Geo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Cvent | Enterprise event marketing and management teams | Quote | - | 4.3 | Global; strongest in US, EMEA, APAC, India | |
| 2 Bizzabo | Tech-forward enterprise event marketing teams | Quote | - | 4.5 | Global; strongest in US, UK, EU, Israel | |
| 3 Stova | Mid-market hybrid event teams | Quote | - | 4.2 | Global; strongest in US, UK, EU | |
| 4 Splash | B2B field marketing teams | $0 | $0 | 4.5 | Global; strongest in US, UK | |
| 5 EventMobi | Associations and mobile-first event organizers | Quote | - | 4.6 | Global; strongest in Canada, US, UK, EU | |
| 6 Bevy | B2B SaaS community + DevRel programs | Quote | - | 4.6 | Global; strongest in US, UK, EU | |
| 7 Sched | Conferences and academic events | $0 | $0 | 4.7 | Global; strongest in US, EU | |
| 8 vFairs | Trade shows, career fairs, exhibitor-heavy events | Quote | - | 4.6 | Global; strongest in US, UK, MENA, APAC | |
| 9 Aventri (legacy) | Legacy Aventri customers | Quote | - | 4.0 | Global; strongest in US, UK, EU | |
| 10 Whova | Academic conferences and association events | Quote | - | 4.7 | Global; strongest in US, UK, EU, APAC |
*10-employee monthly cost = base fee + (per-employee × 10) using the lowest published tier. For opaque-pricing vendors, no value is shown.
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| From ↓ / To → | Cvent | Bizzabo | Stova | Splash | EventMobi | Bevy | Sched | vFairs | Aventri (legacy) | Whova |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cvent | - | Medium 5 | OK 4 | Hard 7 | OK 4 | Medium 5 | Hard 7 | OK 4 | OK 4 | Hard 7 |
| Bizzabo | Medium 5 | - | Hard 7 | Medium 6 | Hard 7 | OK 4 | Medium 6 | Hard 7 | Hard 7 | Medium 6 |
| Stova | OK 4 | Hard 7 | - | Medium 5 | Medium 6 | Hard 7 | Medium 5 | Medium 6 | Medium 6 | Medium 5 |
| Splash | Hard 7 | Medium 6 | Medium 5 | - | Medium 5 | Medium 6 | OK 4 | Medium 5 | Medium 5 | OK 4 |
| EventMobi | OK 4 | Hard 7 | Medium 6 | Medium 5 | - | Hard 7 | Medium 5 | Medium 6 | Medium 6 | Medium 5 |
| Bevy | Medium 5 | OK 4 | Hard 7 | Medium 6 | Hard 7 | - | Medium 6 | Hard 7 | Hard 7 | Medium 6 |
| Sched | Hard 7 | Medium 6 | Medium 5 | OK 4 | Medium 5 | Medium 6 | - | Medium 5 | Medium 5 | OK 4 |
| vFairs | OK 4 | Hard 7 | Medium 6 | Medium 5 | Medium 6 | Hard 7 | Medium 5 | - | Medium 6 | Medium 5 |
| Aventri (legacy) | OK 4 | Hard 7 | Medium 6 | Medium 5 | Medium 6 | Hard 7 | Medium 5 | Medium 6 | - | Medium 5 |
| Whova | Hard 7 | Medium 6 | Medium 5 | OK 4 | Medium 5 | Medium 6 | OK 4 | Medium 5 | Medium 5 | - |
All 10, ranked and reviewed
Each product gets the same scrutiny: who it’s actually best for, where it falls short, what it really costs, and how it scores across six dimensions.
Cvent
Installed-base market leader; Blackstone PE pressure is the buyer-side risk.
Cvent is the installed-base market leader in event management by a wide margin, founded 1999. The company went public on NASDAQ in 2013, was taken private by Vista Equity in 2016 for $1.65B, re-listed via SPAC in December 2021, and was acquired by Blackstone in March 2023 for approximately $4.6B in a second take-private. The product covers the full event lifecycle: registration, mobile event app (Cvent Attendee Hub), badge printing, agenda and session management, exhibitor and sponsor logistics, supplier network for venue sourcing, post-event analytics, and virtual / hybrid extensions. Strengths: deepest end-to-end event lifecycle coverage in the category, largest installed base across enterprise, strongest venue sourcing supplier network, mature integration with Salesforce / Marketo / HubSpot. Best fit for $500M+ revenue enterprises running portfolios of large conferences and trade shows. Trade-offs: Blackstone PE pressure has produced reports of more aggressive renewal pricing and tougher contract terms, modular pricing makes the full Cvent stack expensive at scale, UX is functional but dated relative to Bizzabo, and implementation complexity is meaningful (3-6 months for full deployment).
Enterprises (1,000-50,000+ employees) running portfolios of large conferences, trade shows, and customer events with full lifecycle needs (registration, badge, exhibitor, sponsor, mobile app, analytics).
Modern UX seekers (Bizzabo cleaner), SMB / lower mid-market with single-event programs (Splash / Whova better fit), or virtual-only event programs (webinar ranking is the right reference).
Strengths
- Deepest end-to-end event lifecycle coverage
- Largest installed base across enterprise
- Strongest venue sourcing supplier network in category
- Mature MAP / CRM integration (Salesforce, Marketo, HubSpot)
- Cvent Attendee Hub mobile app mature and widely deployed
- Full badge printing and on-site logistics stack
- Strong fit for $500M+ revenue enterprises
Weaknesses
- Blackstone PE pressure on renewal pricing and contract terms
- Modular pricing makes full stack expensive at scale
- UX functional but dated relative to Bizzabo
- Implementation complexity (3-6 months typical)
- Aggressive multi-year contract pressure reported by mid-market
- Account management churn flagged post-Blackstone
- Innovation pace flagged as slower under PE ownership
Pricing tiers
opaque- Cvent Event Marketing & Management (Standard)~$30K-$80K/year typical for mid-marketQuote
- Cvent Event Management (Professional)$80K-$250K/year typicalQuote
- Cvent Enterprise (Full Stack)$250K-$1.5M+/year for enterprise with Attendee Hub, Supplier Network, OnArrival, and analyticsQuote
- · Per-event registration fees in addition to platform subscription
- · Cvent Attendee Hub mobile app priced separately
- · OnArrival badge printing priced separately
- · Annual price increases reported at 8-12% post-Blackstone
- · Implementation services ($25K-$200K)
- · Multi-year contract pressure
Key features
- +Registration and check-in workflows
- +Cvent Attendee Hub (mobile event app)
- +OnArrival badge printing and check-in
- +Agenda and session management
- +Exhibitor and sponsor logistics
- +Supplier Network for venue sourcing
- +Post-event analytics and reporting
- +Salesforce / Marketo / HubSpot integration
- +Virtual + hybrid event extensions
- +300+ integrations
Bizzabo
Modern enterprise events platform; cleaner UX than Cvent.
Bizzabo is the modern enterprise events platform, founded 2011. The product covers registration, mobile event app (Bizzabo Klik for smart badges), agenda and session management, exhibitor and sponsor logistics, networking, and post-event analytics. Strengths: cleaner modern UX than Cvent, founder-led culture with aggressive product velocity, Klik smart badge integration for on-site experience, deep MAP / CRM integration, strong fit for marketing-led enterprise event teams. Best fit for tech-forward enterprises (500-10,000 employees) wanting Cvent-depth functionality with modern UX and cleaner attendee experience. Trade-offs: thinner installed base than Cvent for the largest enterprise conferences, pricing meaningful and opaque ($40K-$300K+ annually typical), and support quality flagged as variable as company scaled post-2022.
Tech-forward enterprises (500-10,000 employees) wanting modern event UX with Cvent-depth functionality, particularly marketing-led event teams running customer conferences and large field marketing programs.
Buyers needing deepest venue sourcing supplier network (Cvent better), SMB / lower mid-market wanting cheaper pricing (Splash / Whova better), or virtual-only event programs (webinar ranking is the reference).
Strengths
- Cleaner modern UX than Cvent
- Founder-led culture and aggressive product velocity
- Bizzabo Klik smart badges for on-site experience
- Deep MAP / CRM integration (Marketo, Salesforce, HubSpot)
- Right fit for marketing-led enterprise event teams
- Modern API and webhook architecture
- Strong virtual / hybrid extensions
Weaknesses
- Lighter market share than Cvent for largest enterprise conferences
- Pricing meaningful and opaque ($40K-$300K+ annually)
- Support quality variable as company scaled
- Venue sourcing supplier network below Cvent
- Implementation 2-4 months typical
- Smaller geographic footprint than Cvent
Pricing tiers
opaque- Bizzabo Growth~$40K-$90K/year typical for mid-marketQuote
- Bizzabo Enterprise$90K-$300K/year for full enterprise stackQuote
- Bizzabo Klik (Smart Badge)Priced per-event in addition to platform subscriptionQuote
- · Bizzabo Klik smart badges priced per-event
- · Annual price increases of 6-10%
- · Implementation services
- · Multi-year contract pressure reported
Key features
- +Registration and check-in workflows
- +Bizzabo Klik smart badge integration
- +Mobile event app with networking
- +Agenda and session management
- +Exhibitor and sponsor portals
- +MAP / CRM integration (Marketo, Salesforce, HubSpot)
- +Virtual + hybrid event extensions
- +Post-event analytics
- +100+ integrations
Stova
Post-merger mid-market event platform; integration risk is the buyer-side concern.
Stova is the merged entity formed in 2023 when MeetingPlay (founded 2008, mobile event apps) acquired Aventri (founded 2008, formerly etouches, registration and event management) and rebranded the combined company as Stova. The product covers registration, mobile event apps (MeetingPlay heritage), agenda and session management, exhibitor logistics, and hybrid event capabilities. Strengths: combined platform covers both mobile-first event apps (MeetingPlay strength) and full registration depth (Aventri strength), strong fit for mid-market hybrid events, large combined customer base across both legacy brands. Best fit for mid-market organizations running hybrid events wanting integrated registration + mobile app. Trade-offs: post-merger integration is the dominant buyer-side risk, some legacy Aventri customers report being on a separate environment for an extended period, brand confusion persists into 2026, and product velocity has been mixed as engineering integrates two codebases.
Mid-market organizations (200-5,000 employees) running hybrid events wanting integrated mobile app + registration, particularly buyers who can tolerate post-merger integration timeline.
Largest enterprise events (Cvent / Bizzabo better), modern UX seekers (Bizzabo cleaner), or buyers wanting fully integrated single-platform without merger-era technical debt.
Strengths
- Combined mobile-first app (MeetingPlay) + registration depth (Aventri)
- Strong fit for mid-market hybrid events
- Large combined customer base across both legacy brands
- Reasonable pricing relative to Cvent / Bizzabo
- Modern mobile event app from MeetingPlay heritage
- Strong networking features
Weaknesses
- Post-merger integration is dominant buyer-side risk
- Legacy Aventri customers on separate environment for extended period
- Brand confusion persists into 2026
- Product velocity mixed as engineering integrates two codebases
- Support quality variable across legacy customer cohorts
- MAP / CRM integration depth below Cvent / Bizzabo
Pricing tiers
opaque- Stova Core~$25K-$60K/year typical for mid-marketQuote
- Stova Pro$60K-$150K/yearQuote
- Stova Enterprise$150K-$400K/year for full hybrid stackQuote
- · Per-event registration fees
- · Mobile app licensing in addition to platform
- · Implementation services
- · Post-merger product migration costs for legacy customers
Key features
- +Registration and check-in (Aventri heritage)
- +Mobile event app (MeetingPlay heritage)
- +Agenda and session management
- +Exhibitor and sponsor logistics
- +Networking features
- +Hybrid event extensions
- +Reporting and analytics
- +60+ integrations
Splash
Modern in-person event marketing platform for field marketing.
Splash is the modern in-person event marketing platform, founded 2011. The product is anchored on branded event pages, registration, attendee CRM, and integration with the broader marketing stack. Strengths: cleanest branded event page experience in the category, modern UX, strong fit for field marketing programs running recurring smaller events (customer dinners, roadshow events, regional summits), founder-led culture, deep Salesforce / Marketo integration. Best fit for B2B marketing teams running portfolios of small-to-mid-size in-person events. Trade-offs: feature depth for large conferences below Cvent / Bizzabo (no native badge printing, supplier network, or exhibitor portal depth), pricing meaningful relative to peers, and mobile event app capabilities thinner than Cvent / Bizzabo.
B2B marketing teams (50-2,000 employees) running portfolios of small-to-mid-size in-person events (customer dinners, roadshows, regional summits, field marketing programs).
Large conferences with badge printing + exhibitor + supplier needs (Cvent / Bizzabo better), virtual-only event programs (webinar ranking is the reference), or buyers wanting cheapest entry-tier pricing.
Strengths
- Cleanest branded event page experience in category
- Modern UX (best-in-class for in-person event marketing)
- Fit for field marketing programs
- Founder-led culture
- Deep Salesforce / Marketo integration
- Strong attendee CRM
- Modern API
Weaknesses
- Feature depth for large conferences below Cvent / Bizzabo
- No native badge printing depth
- No supplier network / venue sourcing
- Mobile event app capabilities thinner than Cvent / Bizzabo
- Pricing meaningful relative to peers
Pricing tiers
partial- Splash BasicLimited free tier for very small events$0 /mo
- Splash Pro~$15K-$40K/year typical for field marketing teamsQuote
- Splash Enterprise$40K-$150K/year for enterprise field marketing programsQuote
- · Event volume scaling above contracted tier
- · Annual price increases
- · Advanced integration tier-gated
Key features
- +Branded event pages and registration
- +Attendee CRM
- +Salesforce / Marketo integration
- +Email and reminder workflows
- +Event analytics
- +Modern API and webhooks
- +Field marketing program management
EventMobi
Mobile-first event app platform with full registration depth.
EventMobi is the mobile-first event app platform from Toronto, founded 2009. The product is anchored on attendee mobile experience (event apps, gamification, networking, polls, surveys) and combined with registration, agenda management, and on-site logistics. Strengths: best-in-category mobile event app experience, strong fit for organizers prioritizing attendee mobile experience over registration depth, Canadian operating discipline, founder-led culture, reasonable pricing relative to Cvent / Bizzabo. Best fit for associations, mid-market organizations, and conference organizers prioritizing attendee mobile experience. Trade-offs: registration depth below Cvent / Bizzabo, MAP / CRM integration narrower than peers, and brand recognition lower in B2B marketing circles.
Associations, mid-market organizations, and conference organizers (100-5,000 employees) prioritizing attendee mobile experience and event apps over registration depth.
Large enterprise conferences with badge printing + exhibitor + supplier needs (Cvent / Bizzabo better), B2B field marketing programs (Splash better), or virtual-only event programs.
Strengths
- Best-in-category mobile event app experience
- Works for attendee-mobile-first organizers
- Canadian operating discipline
- Founder-led culture
- Reasonable pricing relative to Cvent / Bizzabo
- Strong gamification and networking features
- Modern API
Weaknesses
- Registration depth below Cvent / Bizzabo
- MAP / CRM integration narrower than peers
- Brand recognition lower in B2B marketing circles
- No venue sourcing supplier network
- Smaller US enterprise footprint than Cvent
Pricing tiers
partial- EventMobi Essential~$12K-$30K/year typicalQuote
- EventMobi Professional$30K-$80K/yearQuote
- EventMobi Enterprise$80K-$200K/yearQuote
- · Per-event scaling above contracted tier
- · Annual price increases
- · Advanced gamification tier-gated
Key features
- +Mobile event app (best-in-class)
- +Registration and check-in
- +Agenda and session management
- +Gamification
- +Networking and matchmaking
- +Polls and surveys
- +On-demand content hubs
- +Reporting and analytics
Bevy
Community + chapter events platform for developer relations and customer programs.
Bevy is the community + chapter events platform, founded 2017 by former Startup Grind operators. The product is purpose-built for vendor user communities, developer relations programs, and customer community events at scale. Strengths: purpose-built for community-led event programs (the only platform in the top 10 with this anchor), strong fit for developer relations and customer community teams, modern UX, founder-led culture, deep integration with community tooling. Best fit for B2B SaaS companies running global user community programs and developer relations event programs. Trade-offs: not the right platform for large flagship conferences (Cvent / Bizzabo better), feature depth for registration and badge printing below enterprise peers, and MAP / CRM integration narrower.
B2B SaaS companies (200-10,000 employees) running global user community programs, developer relations event programs, and distributed chapter events at scale.
Large flagship conferences (Cvent / Bizzabo better), trade shows with exhibitors (Cvent / vFairs better), or field marketing programs (Splash better).
Strengths
- Purpose-built for community + chapter events
- Default for developer relations programs
- Modern UX
- Founder-led culture
- Deep integration with community tooling
- Strong for distributed event programs at scale
- Best for B2B SaaS user communities
Weaknesses
- Not the right fit for large flagship conferences
- Registration depth below Cvent / Bizzabo
- Badge printing capabilities thinner
- MAP / CRM integration narrower
- Smaller installed base than enterprise peers
Pricing tiers
opaque- Bevy Standard~$30K-$80K/year typicalQuote
- Bevy Pro$80K-$200K/year for global community programsQuote
- Bevy Enterprise$200K-$500K/year for large vendor user communitiesQuote
- · Chapter volume scaling above contracted tier
- · Annual price increases
- · Advanced analytics tier-gated
Key features
- +Community + chapter events management
- +Distributed event program orchestration
- +Member directory and CRM
- +Event registration and check-in
- +Reporting and community analytics
- +Integration with developer tooling
- +Modern API
Sched
Long-running event scheduling and agenda platform.
Sched is the long-running event scheduling and agenda platform, founded 2008. The product is anchored on rich agenda and session management for conferences, academic events, and industry conferences with complex session schedules and speaker management. Strengths: deepest agenda and session management in the category, strong fit for conferences with rich session schedules, modern attendee-facing schedule UX, mature speaker portal, founder-led and bootstrap-funded culture, reasonable pricing. Best fit for conferences and academic events anchored on rich session schedules. Trade-offs: not a full event lifecycle platform (no badge printing depth, no exhibitor portal, no supplier network), registration capabilities thinner than Cvent / Bizzabo, and MAP / CRM integration narrow.
Conferences and academic events (50-2,000 employees, or association-run programs) anchored on rich session schedules with speaker management and attendee-facing schedule UX.
Full-stack enterprise event programs needing registration + badge + exhibitor + supplier (Cvent / Bizzabo better), B2B field marketing programs (Splash better), or trade shows.
Strengths
- Deepest agenda and session management in category
- Right call for rich-schedule conferences
- Modern attendee-facing schedule UX
- Mature speaker portal
- Founder-led, bootstrap-funded culture
- Reasonable pricing
- 17+ year track record
Weaknesses
- Not a full event lifecycle platform
- No badge printing depth
- No exhibitor portal or supplier network
- Registration capabilities thinner than Cvent / Bizzabo
- MAP / CRM integration narrow
- Brand recognition lower in B2B marketing
Pricing tiers
public- Sched FreeFree tier for very small events$0 /mo
- Sched StarterUp to 350 attendees per event$99 /mo
- Sched StandardUp to 1,000 attendees per event$299 /mo
- Sched ProUp to 3,000 attendees, custom branding$599 /mo
- · Larger attendee tiers scale
- · Premium support add-on
Key features
- +Agenda and session management
- +Speaker portal
- +Attendee-facing schedule UX
- +Session check-in
- +Mobile event app
- +Reporting and analytics
- +Integration with common tools
vFairs
Virtual + hybrid events platform with virtual booth and exhibitor depth.
vFairs is the virtual + hybrid events platform, founded 2016. The product is anchored on virtual booths, exhibitor experiences, virtual trade shows, and virtual career fairs, with extensions for in-person and hybrid format. Strengths: deepest virtual booth and exhibitor experience in the category, strong fit for virtual + hybrid trade shows and career fairs, reasonable pricing, founder-led culture, broad customer base across education, recruiting, and B2B trade shows. Best fit for trade shows, career fairs, and exhibitor-heavy hybrid events. Trade-offs: in-person logistics (badge printing, on-site check-in, supplier network) thinner than Cvent / Bizzabo, MAP / CRM integration narrower, and product feels more virtual-first than truly hybrid for the most complex in-person events.
Trade shows, career fairs, and exhibitor-heavy hybrid events (100-5,000 employees, or association-run programs) prioritizing virtual booth experience and exhibitor logistics.
In-person flagship conferences with deep badge printing + supplier sourcing needs (Cvent better), B2B field marketing programs (Splash better), or community + chapter events (Bevy better).
Strengths
- Deepest virtual booth and exhibitor experience
- Right call for virtual + hybrid trade shows and career fairs
- Reasonable pricing relative to Cvent / Bizzabo
- Founder-led culture
- Broad customer base across education and B2B trade shows
- Strong virtual networking features
Weaknesses
- In-person logistics thinner than Cvent / Bizzabo
- Badge printing depth limited
- No venue sourcing supplier network
- MAP / CRM integration narrower
- Product feels more virtual-first than truly hybrid
Pricing tiers
partial- vFairs Self-Service~$8K-$20K/event typicalQuote
- vFairs Full-Service$20K-$80K/event with white-glove supportQuote
- vFairs Enterprise$80K-$300K/year for annual programsQuote
- · Per-event pricing scales fast for large programs
- · White-glove support priced separately
- · Custom booth design priced separately
Key features
- +Virtual booths and exhibitor portals
- +Virtual trade shows and career fairs
- +Hybrid event extensions
- +Registration and check-in
- +Networking and matchmaking
- +Webinars and on-demand
- +White-glove implementation service
Aventri (legacy)
Legacy Aventri customers absorbed into Stova post-2023 merger.
Aventri (formerly etouches, founded 2008) was a long-running enterprise event registration and management platform. In 2023, Aventri merged with MeetingPlay and the combined entity was rebranded as Stova. Some legacy Aventri customers continue to operate on the Aventri-branded environment with migration timelines extending into 2024-2026. We rank this entry separately from Stova above because the buyer journey is meaningfully different: existing Aventri customers facing renewal decisions need to evaluate migration to unified Stova versus alternative platforms. Strengths: mature registration depth (Aventri heritage), large legacy customer base, integrated under Stova umbrella. Best fit: legacy Aventri customers evaluating renewal options. Trade-offs: migration timeline to unified Stova platform extends into 2024-2026 for some customers, brand and account team continuity has been disrupted, product velocity on the legacy environment is minimal, and the Stova consolidation roadmap has caused some legacy customers to evaluate alternative platforms (Cvent, Bizzabo) at renewal.
Existing Aventri legacy customers (200-5,000 employees) evaluating renewal options post-Stova merger, with awareness that migration to unified Stova or alternative platforms is the realistic 2026-2027 decision.
New buyers (Stova unified platform or Cvent / Bizzabo better fit), buyers wanting modern UX (Bizzabo better), or organizations wanting full event lifecycle without merger-era technical debt.
Strengths
- Mature registration depth (Aventri heritage)
- Large legacy customer base
- Integrated under Stova umbrella post-merger
- Familiar workflows for existing Aventri admins
Weaknesses
- Migration timeline to unified Stova extends into 2024-2026
- Brand and account team continuity disrupted
- Product velocity on legacy environment minimal
- Many legacy customers evaluating alternatives at renewal
- No native badge printing depth
- MAP / CRM integration limited on legacy environment
Pricing tiers
opaque- Aventri Legacy Standard~$20K-$50K/year typicalQuote
- Aventri Legacy Pro$50K-$120K/yearQuote
- · Migration costs to unified Stova
- · Account team transitions
- · Reduced velocity on legacy platform
Key features
- +Registration and check-in (Aventri heritage)
- +Agenda and session management
- +Exhibitor logistics
- +Reporting and analytics
- +Integration with common tools
Whova
Academic and conference event management with strong attendee networking.
Whova is the academic and conference event management platform, founded 2013. The product is anchored on attendee networking, agenda management, mobile event app, and conference-style logistics. Strengths: strong attendee networking and matchmaking, default in academic conferences and association events, mature mobile event app, founder-led culture, reasonable pricing, broad academic and association customer base. Best fit for academic conferences, association events, and research-anchored events. Trade-offs: not the right fit for large flagship corporate conferences (Cvent / Bizzabo better), enterprise registration depth thinner than Cvent, and MAP / CRM integration narrower for B2B marketing use cases.
Academic conferences, association events, and research-anchored events (50-2,000 attendees) prioritizing attendee networking and conference-style session management.
Large flagship corporate conferences (Cvent / Bizzabo better), B2B field marketing programs (Splash better), or trade shows with exhibitor focus (vFairs better).
Strengths
- Strong attendee networking and matchmaking
- Default for academic conferences and association events
- Mature mobile event app
- Founder-led culture
- Reasonable pricing
- Broad academic + association customer base
- Strong session-management UX
Weaknesses
- Not the right fit for large flagship corporate conferences
- Enterprise registration depth thinner than Cvent
- MAP / CRM integration narrower
- Brand recognition lower in B2B marketing circles
- Limited venue sourcing capabilities
Pricing tiers
partial- Whova Basic~$2K-$8K/event typical for academicQuote
- Whova Standard$8K-$25K/eventQuote
- Whova Enterprise$25K-$80K/year for annual programsQuote
- · Per-event pricing scales with attendee count
- · Premium support add-on
- · Advanced analytics tier-gated
Key features
- +Attendee networking and matchmaking
- +Mobile event app
- +Agenda and session management
- +Speaker portal
- +Registration and check-in
- +Polls and Q&A
- +Reporting and analytics
7 steps to pick the right event management software
- 1 Define the event portfolio
Map the events your organization runs annually by category: flagship corporate conferences, recurring customer events, field marketing roadshows, user community chapter events, trade shows, academic conferences. Different categories have different platform needs, and most organizations end up running 2-3 platforms across the portfolio.
- 2 Diligence vendor stability
Given the post-2022 events sector reset and ongoing PE consolidation (Cvent Blackstone take-private, MeetingPlay + Aventri merger forming Stova), vendor stability is a real consideration at renewal. Check ownership status, executive stability over 24 months, and post-acquisition behavior. Bootstrap-funded and founder-led vendors (Sched, Whova, BigMarker, EventMobi) have shown the strongest vendor stability through the reset.
- 3 Negotiate multi-year commits with price caps
Event management pricing is largely opaque and renewal pricing pressure is a known pattern, particularly post-Blackstone Cvent. Always negotiate multi-year commits with annual price-increase caps in writing (typical achievable caps: 5-7% per year). Lock in volume and module commitments to prevent mid-contract upsell pressure.
- 4 Validate MAP / CRM integration depth in production
Marketing-led event teams should validate MAP integration depth against their actual Marketo, HubSpot, Eloqua, or Salesforce instance during the pilot, not at the demo. Engagement scoring, account-level intent signals, and bidirectional sync are where the marketing-led platforms (ON24, Goldcast for virtual; Bizzabo, Cvent for in-person) earn their premium over baseline registration platforms.
- 5 Pilot the on-site experience separately from the demo
Registration, mobile app, and badge printing are the three on-site experience pillars. The demo will show all three working perfectly; the pilot should validate them under realistic event volume (1,000+ attendees, multiple sessions, exhibitor logistics). Cvent OnArrival, Bizzabo Klik smart badges, EventMobi mobile app, and Whova networking are where the on-site experience differentiation lives.
- 6 Confirm exhibitor and sponsor portals if relevant
For trade shows and exhibitor-heavy events, exhibitor portal depth is the make-or-break feature. Cvent and Bizzabo have mature exhibitor portals; vFairs leads on virtual booth depth; Splash and Sched are lighter on exhibitor logistics. Validate exhibitor lead retrieval, sponsor logo and content placement, and exhibitor reporting flows during the pilot.
- 7 Build the event analytics integration plan
Event data (registration, attendance, engagement, lead retrieval) feeds the broader marketing and revenue analytics stack. Confirm the integration plan with MAP, CRM, BI tools, and revenue attribution platforms before signing. Engagement-by-account is the highest-value output of an event platform for B2B marketing, this is where platforms differ most.
Frequently asked questions
The questions buyers actually ask before they sign a event management software contract.
Cvent vs Bizzabo: which event management platform should we choose?
How does event management software differ from webinar software?
What is the impact of the Cvent Blackstone take-private on customers?
What happened to MeetingPlay and Aventri? Is Stova a safe choice?
How should we think about pricing for enterprise event management platforms?
Is Splash the right choice for B2B field marketing programs?
Which platform is best for community + chapter event programs?
How should we evaluate the post-2022 events sector reset when choosing a platform?
Glossary
- Registration
- The attendee sign-up workflow for an event, including form capture, payment processing (for paid events), confirmation emails, and integration with CRM / MAP for downstream marketing and sales follow-up.
- Badge printing
- On-site printing of attendee badges at event check-in, often combined with QR codes or NFC chips for session check-in and lead retrieval. Cvent OnArrival and Bizzabo Klik are the category leaders for badge printing and smart-badge on-site experience.
- Attendee engagement
- The set of attendee-facing features that drive participation during an event: mobile event app, polls, Q&A, surveys, gamification, networking, and matchmaking. Engagement scores feed post-event analytics and MAP / CRM enrichment.
- Hybrid event
- An event with both in-person and virtual attendees, requiring integrated registration, simultaneous in-person and virtual session experiences, and unified analytics across both attendee cohorts.
- Virtual booth
- A digital exhibitor presence within a virtual or hybrid event, allowing exhibitors to share content, host live and on-demand sessions, capture leads, and engage with attendees. vFairs and Bizzabo lead on virtual booth depth.
- Networking and matchmaking
- Attendee-to-attendee discovery features, often AI-driven, that recommend meeting opportunities based on profile attributes, session attendance, and stated interests. Whova, EventMobi, and Bevy are category leaders in attendee networking.
- Mobile event app
- A purpose-built mobile application for an event that surfaces agenda, speakers, networking, polls, and on-site logistics. Cvent Attendee Hub, EventMobi, and Whova have mature mobile event apps; Bizzabo Klik adds smart-badge integration.
- Venue sourcing / supplier network
- A marketplace of venue suppliers (hotels, conference centers) and event service providers that platforms can offer to event organizers as part of the planning workflow. Cvent Supplier Network is the dominant venue sourcing marketplace in the category.
- Session management
- The set of features for managing event sessions: agenda creation, speaker portals, session check-in, session ratings, attendance tracking, and session-level analytics. Sched and Whova are category leaders in deep session management.
- Lead retrieval
- Exhibitor-side feature for capturing attendee leads at trade shows and exhibitor-heavy events, often via QR or NFC badge scan, with structured data flow into exhibitor CRM / MAP for follow-up.
Final word
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Last updated 2026-05-10. Pricing data is reverified quarterly. Found something inaccurate? Tell us.