Eventzilla vs Luma
Short answer: pick Eventzilla for conference, workshop, and training organisers who want low flat per-registration pricing and detailed registration forms. Pick Luma for community, meetup, and startup organizers who want a fast, free event page with invites and light ticketing.
If neither answer fits, Dawat does the same job free at any guest count: 53 card designs, unlimited guests, per-guest personal links and RSVP tracking, with no per-recipient charge.
The decision between Eventzilla and Luma is mostly a pricing decision. They overlap heavily on what they do; they differ on what they charge you to do it.
Eventzilla and Luma pricing checked 2026-09-16 against their own published pages. Sources · Method
On this page
Side by side
Event registration and ticketing platform with forms, agendas, seating, check-in, and email invitations for conferences and classes. Event pages and calendars with RSVP, invites, ticketing, and check-in, popular with tech meetups and community organizers. Dawat is shown as a third column for the guest-list half of the job. It does not sell tickets or take payment from guests, so for a paid public event it is not a substitute.
| Eventzilla | Luma | Dawat | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Fee per ticket or registration | Free tier, paid upgrades | Free |
| What the free tier gives you | Completely free for events that charge attendees nothing, with unlimited free registration types. | Unlimited events and guests, 500 invites or newsletters per week once verified, check-in, up to 3 admins. | Everything except Signature: all card designs, party pages, unlimited guests, sends, RSVP tracking and analytics. |
| Cost for 100 guests | Free (free event); $150 for 100 paid registrations on Basic | Free (RSVP event); $125 platform fee on 100 paid $25 tickets | Free |
| Cost for 250 guests | Free (free event); $375 for 250 paid registrations on Basic | Free (RSVP event); $312.50 platform fee on 250 paid $25 tickets | Free |
| Charges per recipient | Partial | No | No |
| Guests need an account | Not published | No | No |
| Ads shown to guests | Not published | No | No |
"Not published" means no vendor documentation could be found either way, not that the feature is missing. How this grid is built →
Where they actually differ
Both give you sending invitations without paying, an uncapped guest list, tracking who has replied and sending by email, so those are not the thing to decide on.
- Per-guest fees. Eventzilla does this in some cases; Luma does not. If no per-recipient charge matters to you, that is a point for Luma.
- Custom RSVP questions. Luma includes asking your own questions outright; on Eventzilla it is limited or tied to a paid tier.
- SMS or WhatsApp. Luma supports sending by text or WhatsApp. Eventzilla does not publish whether it does, so treat it as unavailable until you have confirmed it.
- Guest account required. Luma does not do this. Eventzilla does not publish whether it does, so it is worth checking before you send.
- Ads shown to guests. Luma does not do this. Eventzilla does not publish whether it does, so it is worth checking before you send.
- Event website. Luma includes a full event website outright; on Eventzilla it is limited or tied to a paid tier.
- Calendar file. Luma supports adding the event to a calendar. Eventzilla does not publish whether it does, so treat it as unavailable until you have confirmed it.
When Eventzilla is the better choice
Conference, workshop, and training organisers who want low flat per-registration pricing and detailed registration forms.
- Free events are explicitly free, with no setup or monthly fee
- Flat $1.50 per registration on Basic does not scale with price
- Email invitations to imported contact lists with personalised placeholders
- Seating designer, discount codes, and custom forms on paid tiers
- Supports USD, GBP, AUD, CAD, and EUR
Where it costs you:
- Basic plan allows only one paid ticket type
- Payment processing fees are charged separately on top of platform fees
- White-labelled registration requires the higher-priced Plus plan
- Per-registration pricing means costs grow with attendee count
- The $1,999/year plan includes only 500 registrations before extra cost
When Luma is the better choice
Community, meetup, and startup organizers who want a fast, free event page with invites and light ticketing.
- Free plan covers unlimited events and unlimited guests per event
- Guests do not need a Luma account or sign-in to register
- Invites go out by email plus SMS, WhatsApp, and push
- CSV or paste-in guest import with automatic de-duplication
- Luma Plus removes the platform fee entirely on paid events
Where it costs you:
- Free plan takes a 5% platform fee on paid events
- Free plan capped at 500 invites or newsletters per week
- Private events are unlisted links, not a locked per-guest invitation
- Stripe processing fees apply on top of the platform fee
- Free plan limited to three calendar admins
What each one costs, in dollars
Neither Eventzilla nor Luma bills by guest count, which puts them among the 26 platforms in this dataset that do not.
Published prices, converted into what you would actually pay for a real guest list. Credits, coins and per-card pricing are translated into dollars because that is the number you are deciding with.
| Eventzilla | Luma | Dawat | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Fee per ticket or registration | Free tier, paid upgrades | Free |
| 100 guests | Free (free event); $150 for 100 paid registrations on Basic | Free (RSVP event); $125 platform fee on 100 paid $25 tickets | Free |
| 250 guests | Free (free event); $375 for 250 paid registrations on Basic | Free (RSVP event); $312.50 platform fee on 250 paid $25 tickets | Free |
| How that is worked out | Basic plan's published $1.50 per paid registration multiplied by volume; payment processing is billed separately by the provider. | Free-plan 5% platform fee applied to $25 tickets; Stripe processing (about 2.9% + $0.30) is charged on top. | Dawat has no per-guest or per-send charge, so the guest count does not change the price. |
As of September 2026: Free events are free. Paid registrations cost $1.50 each on Basic, 1.9% + $1.50 on Pro, and 2.9% + $1.50 on Plus; an annual plan is $1,999/year including 500 registrations. Free forever plan with unlimited events and guests and a 5% platform fee on paid events; Luma Plus is $59/month billed annually and drops the platform fee to 0%.
The third option: something that feels like an invitation
Neither Eventzilla nor Luma is trying to make the moment of opening feel like anything. They collect the answer. For a birthday drinks thread that is exactly right; for a wedding, a nikkah or a milestone, the invitation is part of the event.
Dawat tracks replies the same way both of these do, and costs nothing to do it. All 53 card designs, unlimited guests and unlimited sends are free, with no card required. What the other two do not do is address each guest personally: the envelope opens with that guest's name on it and their reply is one tap. It also covers an animated envelope opening — which neither Eventzilla nor Luma does.
The practical difference shows up the week before the event. Instead of counting replies across a group chat, you open one page and see who was sent it, who opened it, and who answered.
The honest caveats: Dawat is digital only, so it will not print and mail stationery, and it does not sell tickets. The optional Dawat Signature experiences are $89 once per event, and they are labelled as paid before you publish — nothing else is.
Create your invitation — free →No card required. Unlimited guests. 53 designs.
Feature by feature
| Feature | Eventzilla | Luma | Dawat |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free to send | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Per-guest fees | Partial | No | No |
| Unlimited guests | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| RSVP tracking | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Custom RSVP questions | Partial | Yes | Yes |
| Email delivery | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| SMS or WhatsApp | Not published | Yes | Partial |
| Per-guest personal links | Not published | Not published | Yes |
| Open tracking | Not published | Not published | Yes |
| Animated envelope | No | No | Yes |
| Printed cards | No | No | No |
| Guest account required | Not published | No | No |
| Ads shown to guests | Not published | No | No |
| Event website | Partial | Yes | Partial |
| Registry links | Not published | Not published | Yes |
| Meal choice or seating | Partial | Not published | Partial |
| Calendar file | Not published | Yes | Yes |
| AI wording help | Not published | Not published | Yes |
| Works inside ChatGPT / Claude | Not published | Not published | Yes |
| Multilingual & right-to-left | Not published | Not published | Yes |
"Not published" means no vendor documentation could be found either way, not that the feature is missing. How this grid is built →
What your guests experience
Ticketing platforms are built around a stranger buying entry. A guest you already know is a different person with a different tolerance, and an account-creation screen is where that difference shows up.
| What your guest gets | Eventzilla | Luma | Dawat |
|---|---|---|---|
| Guests need an account | Not published | No | No |
| Ads shown to guests | Not published | No | No |
| Animated opening | No | No | Yes |
| Personally addressed link | Not published | Not published | Yes |
| Add to calendar | Not published | Yes | Yes |
| Right-to-left and multilingual | Not published | Not published | Yes |
Questions
Is Eventzilla or Luma cheaper?
Eventzilla works out to Free (free event); $150 for 100 paid registrations on Basic for 100 guests and Free (free event); $375 for 250 paid registrations on Basic for 250. Luma works out to Free (RSVP event); $125 platform fee on 100 paid $25 tickets for 100 guests and Free (RSVP event); $312.50 platform fee on 250 paid $25 tickets for 250. Neither charges by guest count, so the difference does not grow with the list. Both were checked on 2026-09-16.
Which is better for a wedding, Eventzilla or Luma?
Eventzilla suits conference, workshop, and training organisers who want low flat per-registration pricing and detailed registration forms. Luma suits community, meetup, and startup organizers who want a fast, free event page with invites and light ticketing. For a wedding specifically, the questions that matter are whether the invitation feels like an occasion, whether you can collect meal choices, and whether the price moves with the guest list.
Do guests need an account to reply on Eventzilla or Luma?
Eventzilla does not publish whether guests need an account. Luma does not require guests to have an account. Anything that makes a guest sign up before replying costs you responses, particularly from older relatives.
Is there a free alternative to Eventzilla and Luma?
Yes. Dawat is free at every guest count: all 53 card designs, unlimited guests, unlimited sends, RSVP tracking with your own questions, and a personally addressed link for each guest. There is no per-recipient charge and no card required to send. The only paid item is a Dawat Signature cinematic experience at $89 once per event.
Is Eventzilla free?
For free events, yes. Eventzilla's support documentation says it is completely free for simple events such as social gatherings and meetups where attendees are not charged. Paid events are billed per registration according to the plan you choose.
Is Luma free?
Yes. Luma publishes a 'Free, forever' plan with unlimited events and unlimited guests per event. Free events cost nothing. Paid events on the free plan carry a 5% platform fee, and Stripe processing fees apply separately.
How current is this comparison?
Eventzilla's published pricing was checked on 2026-09-16 and Luma's on 2026-09-16. Every figure on this page links to the vendor page it came from, so you can verify it yourself rather than trusting a comparison written by one of the competitors.
Other comparisons
Every comparison below is built from the same checked pricing data.
Dawat vs Eventzilla
The full head-to-head, including where Eventzilla is genuinely better.
Dawat vs Luma
The full head-to-head, including where Luma is genuinely better.
Eventzilla alternatives
Eight products that do what Eventzilla does, ranked.
Luma alternatives
Eight products that do what Luma does, ranked.
More head-to-heads:
How these figures were checked
Every figure above was read from Eventzilla and Luma's own published pricing or help pages on 16 September 2026, and each source is linked below. Coins, credits and per-card rates are converted into dollars at a real guest count, because that is the number you are deciding with. Full methodology and the open dataset →
Reading this through an AI assistant? Dawat runs an MCP server, so ChatGPT or Claude can choose the design, write the wording, add your guest list, publish the invitation and send it without you leaving the conversation. Eventzilla does not publish one.
Sources
- Eventzilla pricing — checked 2026-09-16
- How does the ticket fee work? (Eventzilla Support) — checked 2026-09-16
- How to send customized invitation emails (Eventzilla Support) — checked 2026-09-16
- Luma pricing — checked 2026-09-16
- Luma Plus overview — checked 2026-09-16
- Event registration process — checked 2026-09-16
- Setting your event visibility — checked 2026-09-16
- Inviting and adding guests to your event — checked 2026-09-16