Price & Availability:  

Ticketmaster typically offers the best price on theater tickets because they are the primary ticket venue selling tickets at face value. That being said, we should note that Ticketmaster does charge several fees for their services. The tickets will be sold at face value, but you should also plan on paying a building facility fee, which is determined by each individual venue. Most other online ticket sites include this price in the price of the ticket. Ticketmaster separates the ticket price and the facility fee, so the actual ticket price accurately reflects face value.

Another added fee you will pay is the service, or convenience fee. This varies from ticket to ticket, but for theater tickets, it is typically in the 8% range, which is very agreeable compared to some other sites. Not only are you paying for face value tickets, but the service fees are considerably low.

Ticketmaster offers a variety of shipping options, including a standard mailing that is free. Other shipping options are available through UPS. Most of the tickets offered on Ticketmaster can be printed from your own printer, but even this requires an additional $2.50 service fee. While it seems foolish to have to pay for permission to print on your own computer, the price is comparatively small and certainly convenient. Using these TicketFast tickets, Ticketmaster sends you a PDF file of your tickets, which you can print immediately or at your own convenience.

Ticket availability at Ticketmaster is rare and even then, has its pros and cons. On one hand, Ticketmaster is the source for many tickets and so ideally, has access to the widest selection and best prices… at first. But soon after the tickets are made available, the good tickets are likely to be bought up. Popular events can “sell out” in a matter of seconds online, leaving anxious fans frustrated and angry.

Obtaining premium seats for popular events on Ticketmaster is difficult at best, so you will probably end up searching elsewhere. But for less popular events, Ticketmaster often has the best selection available and again, tickets at face value, which is always a plus.

Features:  

Ticketmaster has several great features to help you locate the tickets you want and easily purchase them through the checkout. Being able to print your own tickets is definitely a convenient feature. Ticketmaster even offers customizable gift cards, the perfect gift idea for sports, concert and theater fans.

While Ticketmaster primarily offers tickets at face value, they also provide a service for users to sell their own tickets to others and to even put tickets up on an online auction.

Ticketmaster offers tickets for almost any event you can imagine, and has them effectively categorized, including Broadway, Off-Broadway, Ballet, Dance, Classical, Comedy, Musicals, Plays, Opera, and even Museums and Exhibits.

Ease of Use:  

With several useful features and some unique options, Ticketmaster is very easy to use. You can search for tickets by the name of the event or performer, city or by venue. Ticketmaster also has seating charts available for almost every venue. Once you locate your chosen event or venue, you can navigate through a calendar view and find the right date.

Finding available seats is fairly intuitive. You designate how many tickets you want, and you can filter by price or by specific seating sections. You can even search for tickets filtered by seat viewpoint location (center, left, or right of stage).

Ticketmaster also makes it very simple to find the best seats available. This unique feature will select the best possible seats that are still available in the price range you're looking for, or at any price. Ticketmaster is the only online ticketing site we reviewed that incorporates this option.

The checkout system is detailed, but not difficult. The process is scheduled and each step has a certain time limit, so if you aren’t quick enough, your transaction is stopped and your tickets are again made available to others. This makes the checkout a little stressful for first time users, but once you get used to it, you see that it is straightforward and simple.

Another unique feature Ticketmaster offers is showing you the exact seat numbers that you will have, not just the section and row.

Security:  

Ticketmaster is a secure website that has a safe checkout system. Because you are buying the tickets from a primary source, you don’t have to worry about the integrity of third party ticket brokers or the validity of the tickets.

Help/Support:  

Ticketmaster offers a variety of help options throughout the process of finding and purchasing your tickets. You can call Ticketmaster to order tickets or for other assistance. Ticketmaster has several customer service phone lines across the country, so be sure and find the one for your local area.

You can also email Ticketmaster for further assistance, or find answers to a variety of questions online in the customer service section.

Ticketmaster is the best place to start looking for theater tickets. With great features and a professional, easy to use website, using Ticketmaster is not only the best way to start your search, but often, if you’re fast enough (or lucky enough), a great place to buy. Buying the tickets directly from the source and being able to print them yourself is one of the most convenient features. Ticketmaster is the best online ticketing service, not only because it is one of the only services offering tickets at face value, but because it also has unique features and simple functionality.

Looking for sports tickets or concert tickets? Read our reviews of the top rated Online Sports Tickets and Online Concert Tickets Services.