Webinars & events buyer's guide
Written by the Happy Valley editors, reviewed by Mustafa Gezer. Updated October 20, 2026.
What is Webinars & events software?
Webinar and event software lets you host online presentations and virtual or hybrid events, and manage registrations and ticketing for in-person ones. A typical platform covers a registration page, reminder emails, a live or pre-recorded broadcast with chat, polls and Q&A, recordings, and attendance data you can pass to your CRM or marketing tool.
The category has three groups. Webinar tools such as Zoom Webinars, GoTo Webinar, Livestorm, Demio, ClickMeeting, WebinarJam and BigMarker focus on one-to-many sessions for marketing, sales and training. Virtual event platforms such as RingCentral Events, Airmeet and Cvent add multiple stages, networking and sponsor booths. Ticketing and event page tools such as Eventbrite, Luma, Tito and Kommunity handle sign-ups and payments, often for in-person events.
Webinars differ from video meetings, where everyone can talk, and from video hosting, though Wistia combines both. Live online classes are a neighbouring case that Perculus serves as a virtual classroom.
Key features to look for
- Registration and reminders
- Custom registration fields, confirmation emails and timed reminders drive attendance. Check whether you can edit the email text, add calendar links and send SMS reminders.
- Engagement tools
- Polls, Q&A, chat, handouts and calls to action keep viewers watching and turn interest into leads. Test them from the attendee side on a phone, not just in the host view.
- Automated and on-demand sessions
- Pre-recorded sessions that run on a schedule or on demand let you reuse one strong presentation. Livestorm, Demio, WebinarJam and ClickMeeting support this; check how replays are gated.
- Audience capacity
- Plans are usually capped by live attendees per session. Check the cap on your plan, what happens when more people join, and whether you can stream overflow to YouTube or LinkedIn.
- CRM and marketing integrations
- Registrant and attendance data should flow to HubSpot, Salesforce or your email tool automatically. Check which fields sync, including poll answers and watch time.
- Ticketing and payments
- Paid events need ticket types, discount codes, invoices and payouts. Compare per-ticket fees, who pays them, and which payout countries and currencies are supported.
- Recording and repurposing
- Recordings, transcripts and short clips extend the life of a session. Check where recordings are stored, for how long, and whether AI summaries are included.
How to choose Webinars & events software
- 1
Name the event type
Marketing webinars, internal town halls, paid workshops and multi-day conferences need different tools. Choose the main format before comparing features.
- 2
Estimate audience size
Pick a plan by your largest expected live audience, since capacity drives price. Most webinars have far fewer live attendees than registrants.
- 3
Test the attendee experience
Join a test session from a phone and from a locked-down corporate laptop. Browser-based tools such as Livestorm and ClickMeeting avoid download friction.
- 4
Check the data flow
Confirm that registrations, attendance and poll answers reach your CRM. Without this, follow-up depends on manual exports.
- 5
Price ticketing separately
For paid events, compare per-ticket fees, payment processing and payout support in your country. Fees can matter more than the subscription.
- 6
Run a rehearsal
Use the trial for a full rehearsal with speakers, slides, screen sharing and a recording. Audio and permission problems only surface in practice.
Webinars & events pricing
- 33%
- offer a free plan, free tier or open-source edition
- $89
- median starting price per month
- $48
- lowest paid starting price (ClickMeeting)
Webinar platforms usually charge a monthly or annual subscription tiered by live audience size and number of hosts, as Zoom Webinars, Livestorm and Demio do, with higher tiers adding automated webinars, branding and integrations. Enterprise event platforms such as Cvent, BigMarker and RingCentral Events are usually priced by quote, per event or per year. Ticketing tools such as Eventbrite and Tito mainly take a fee per paid ticket, though Eventbrite also charges to publish larger free events in some countries.
Watch for attendee caps that force an upgrade, extra hosts billed as seats, paid add-ons for streaming or recording storage, and payment processing charged on top of platform ticket fees.
Based on 18 tools in this category with prices checked on vendor pages.
Best Webinars & events tools by need
- Best overallLivestormBrowser-based webinars with marketing features
- Best free optionEventbriteTicketing and discovery for live events
- Best for small businessesZoom WebinarsWebinars on the platform everyone has
- Best for enterprisesBigMarkerWebinar and virtual, hybrid event platform for B2B marketing teams
- Best for freelancersLumaBeautiful event pages and community calendars
- Best from TurkeyKommunityCommunity and event platform for RSVPs, tickets and paid memberships
Recommendations by team type
- Creators and solo trainers
- Luma and Kommunity make event pages and RSVPs simple, and ClickMeeting or WebinarJam handle paid and automated webinars without a large budget.
- Marketing teams at SMBs
- Livestorm, Demio and GoTo Webinar cover lead-generation webinars with CRM integrations, and Wistia suits teams that also want their video library in the same place.
- Community and education programmes
- Bevy and Kommunity support chapter and meetup events, and Perculus serves live online classes. Eventbrite and Tito handle ticketing for in-person sessions.
- Enterprises and large conferences
- Cvent, BigMarker, RingCentral Events and Airmeet handle multi-session, hybrid and sponsored events. Zoom Webinars fits large internal broadcasts where staff already use Zoom.
Webinars & events trends in 2026
AI is now built into most webinar tools: automatic transcripts, summaries, translated captions and short clips cut from recordings are common in Zoom, Livestorm and Sessions. The market has also consolidated, with Hopin's events business now part of RingCentral as RingCentral Events, and many teams have moved from large virtual conferences to smaller webinars, hybrid events and in-person meetups.
Evergreen and on-demand webinars make up a growing share of programmes because they keep generating leads, and event pages such as Luma have become popular with tech and startup communities.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Picking a plan by registrant count instead of peak live attendance and paying for capacity you never use.
- Skipping a full rehearsal and discovering audio, screen sharing or permission problems live.
- Leaving registration and attendance data in the webinar tool instead of syncing it to the CRM.
- Ignoring per-ticket and payment processing fees when comparing ticketing platforms.
- Not planning follow-up, so recordings and leads go unused after the event.
Webinars & events in Turkey
Kommunity and Perculus are Turkish platforms with Turkish interfaces: Kommunity covers meetups, tickets and memberships, and Perculus is used for live online classes. For paid events, check that the platform can pay out to a Turkish bank account and plan how ticket sales will be invoiced through e-Arşiv or e-Fatura. Registrations and recordings involve personal data, so add a KVKK privacy notice to sign-up forms, tell attendees when sessions are recorded, and register marketing consent in İYS before sending commercial emails or SMS.
Webinars & events FAQ
- What is the best Webinars & events software?
- Based on community votes and market presence, the leading Webinars & events tools right now are Livestorm, Zoom Webinars, Demio.
- What is the cheapest paid Webinars & events tool?
- ClickMeeting has the lowest listed starting price at $48.00 per month.
- What is the best webinar software?
- It depends on the job. Zoom Webinars and GoTo Webinar are safe choices for large, familiar broadcasts, Livestorm and Demio are strong for marketing webinars with CRM integrations, and ClickMeeting suits paid and automated webinars. For large hybrid conferences, look at Cvent or BigMarker.
- Is there free webinar software?
- Few webinar platforms have a lasting free plan; most offer a trial instead. Luma and Kommunity are free for free events, as is Eventbrite for small ones, and they can be paired with a meeting tool or live stream for small sessions. For regular webinars with branding and integrations, plan for a paid subscription.
- How much does webinar software cost?
- Most webinar tools charge a monthly or annual subscription that rises with live audience size, number of hosts and features such as automation. Enterprise event platforms are quoted individually, and ticketing tools take a fee per paid ticket. See the live prices on this page for current starting points.
- Zoom Webinars vs GoTo Webinar: which is better?
- Zoom Webinars is the easier choice when your company and audience already use Zoom, and it scales to large audiences. GoTo Webinar is an established alternative with solid reporting and marketing features. Compare audience caps, integrations and recording options on the plan you need.
- What is the difference between a webinar and a virtual event platform?
- A webinar platform runs single sessions where one or a few presenters speak to an audience. A virtual event platform such as RingCentral Events, Airmeet or Cvent adds multiple stages, an agenda, networking, sponsor booths and attendee profiles for conferences and trade shows.
- Eventbrite vs Luma: which should I use?
- Eventbrite is the better fit for public, ticketed events that benefit from its discovery marketplace and mature ticketing tools. Luma is popular for community and startup events thanks to clean event pages, calendars and free RSVPs, and charges a fee on paid tickets that depends on your plan.