The honest math
Consignment is worth it when the achieved price beats the commission. Here’s when that’s true — and when it isn’t.
Usually true for premium dates and season-ticket portfolios. Usually not for cheap single tickets. The numbers behind both answers are on this page.
Ticket consignment means a service lists your tickets across the resale marketplaces, manages the pricing, and takes a commission only when they sell — you keep ownership until the moment of sale.
The short answer: ticket consignment is worth it when active pricing and wider distribution lift your sale price by more than the commission difference — which is usually true for premium dates and season-ticket portfolios, and usually not true for cheap single tickets. Marketplaces charge roughly 10–15% on the seller side to list it yourself, with buyer fees layered on top that vary 10–40%. See the full fee breakdown — what it really costs to sell tickets in 2026. Full-service consignment runs 15–25% (we charge 20%, and the first regular-season sale is free for new season ticket holders). A broker buying your tickets outright works on 30–50% margins. The rest of this page is the math behind that answer — including the cases where consigning is the wrong call.
The worked example: same pair, three routes
Say you hold a pair of seats to a premium date — $200 face each, $400 the pair. Here is what each route actually puts in your pocket:
| Route | Sale price | Cost | You net | Your time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| List it yourself | $480 | $72 (15% fee) | $408 | Listing, monitoring, transfer, disputes |
| Consignment ours: 20% | $560 | $112 (20% commission) | $448 | None after handoff |
| Broker buyout | — | Built into the offer | $300 | None; instant cash |
The three ways to sell, priced honestly
| Route | What it costs you | What you do | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| List it yourself on a marketplace | ~10–15% seller fee (TickPick ~10%, StubHub ~15%, Vivid Seats/SeatGeek ~10% plus heavier buyer fees that suppress your price) | Pricing, monitoring, repricing, transfers, buyer issues — all you | One or two games, cheap seats, sellers who enjoy managing it |
| Full-service consignment | 15–25% commission (ours is 20%; first regular-season sale free for new season ticket holders) | Nothing after handoff — pricing, multi-marketplace listing, repricing, transfers, disputes all handled | Premium dates, season-ticket portfolios, anyone whose time matters |
| Sell to a broker outright | 30–50% below market — their margin is the difference | Nothing; instant cash | When certainty today beats more money later |
Two of those numbers get misread constantly. First, marketplace “10–15%” is only the visible cost — buyer-side fees varying 10–40% come out of what buyers are willing to bid, which quietly lowers your achievable price. Second, a buyout offer isn’t a fee at all: it’s a price set low enough to guarantee the broker’s profit, which is why it’s the most expensive convenience in the business.
When consignment is NOT worth it
We tell people this directly, because a consignment service that takes everything is a consignment service you shouldn’t trust:
Cheap seats
Below roughly $50 face per seat, fees and commission eat the spread no matter who sells it. List those yourself, give them to friends, or donate them.
Collapsing demand
A losing team’s cold-weather weeknight game is going below face on every platform on earth. No service can conjure demand that isn’t there — the right move is selling early at market, and a good consignor will say so instead of taking the listing.
One game, and you enjoy the process
If you hold a single pair once a year and don’t mind managing a listing, the marketplace route is fine. Consignment earns its keep on volume, premium dates, and portfolios — not hobby-scale selling.
If you send us inventory that fits those categories, we’ll tell you it’s not worth consigning — with the numbers — and point you at the better option. Real numbers, real advice. That’s the standard you should hold any service to.
When it clearly IS worth it
Season-ticket extras
A season is eight to forty separate pricing problems. The premium dates — the rivalry game, the marquee visitor, the night game — are exactly where self-listing leaves the most money behind. How the process works end to end →
Premium single dates
Playoff games, rivalry games, marquee visitors — inventory where the spread between a guessed price and an actively-managed price is hundreds of dollars per seat. How we work postseason inventory →
Anyone whose hourly rate matters
Managing listings across a season is real work — monitoring, repricing, transfer deadlines, dispute emails. If your time is worth more than the commission delta, the math is done.
Want the real number for your tickets?
Tell us what you hold — team, section, which dates. Within one business day we’ll tell you whether consigning beats your alternatives, including when it doesn’t.
FAQs
What does a ticket consignment service actually charge?
Full-service consignment runs 15–25% of the sale price. We charge 20% standard, with the first regular-season sale commission-free for new season ticket holders. For comparison: self-listing on a marketplace costs roughly 10–15% in seller fees (with buyer fees suppressing your price on top), and selling to a broker outright costs 30–50% in below-market pricing. Full breakdown: ticket broker commission rates.
How is consignment different from listing on a marketplace myself?
Three things: distribution (your tickets appear on every major marketplace at once instead of one), pricing (set and re-set against real comparable sales by people who do this daily, instead of guessed once from asking prices), and handling (transfers, deadlines, and buyer disputes are someone else’s job). You pay a higher visible percentage for a higher achieved price and zero work. See also: marketplace seller fees vs consignment, compared in detail.
When should I skip consignment?
Cheap seats (under ~$50 face), dates with collapsing demand, or hobby-scale selling where you genuinely enjoy managing the listing. In those cases self-listing or selling early at market nets you more — and an honest consignor will tell you that before taking your inventory.
How do payouts work?
With us: one payout every Friday, by PayPal or wire, for everything that sold the prior week — no marketplace payout delays, no funds held until after the event. Payout timing varies widely between services, so ask before you sign anything.
Do I lose control of my tickets?
No. You choose which games to consign and which to keep — full season, a handful of extras, or a single premium date. Unsold tickets remain yours, and you can pull a listing before it sells.
Last verified June 2026. We update this page when fees change. Related reading: commission rates across the industry · how consignment works · the NFL extras playbook · the college football playbook.
The answer for your specific tickets takes one business day.
Team, section, dates — we’ll tell you what they’re actually worth and whether consigning beats your alternatives. Including when it doesn’t.
Get Started →Nearly 20 years in the ticket market · 100,000+ tickets sold · First regular-season sale commission-free for new season-ticket holders · Paid every Friday
Related guide: How to sell season tickets you can’t use — every option compared.
Related: Want us to handle the whole thing? Sell my season tickets for me · Ticket consignment services compared