When something breaks 20 minutes before curtain, do I get a human — or a ticket number?Most asked
We work hard to make sure nothing breaks, especially before showtime. And if something does, you'll get a person, not a ticket number. Calls ring straight through to our support team, and someone is there to answer calls and emails during business hours (10 am – 6 pm Central Time). Outside those hours, the phone is still open for emergencies: if you can't sell tickets, can't print them, or your site is down, call and someone will pick up.
Is support included, or is it extra?
Included. There is no support tier to buy, no premium plan, and no per-incident charge. The person who picks up when you call is the same person whoever you are and whatever you spend.
Will your support still be this good in two years, or will you get bought and gutted like the others?Most asked
It'll be even better. Support isn't a cost we're looking to cut — it's the reason our clients stay. We're privately owned, and we're not for sale. If the company ever changes hands, it'll go to the people who already work here — the way it came to us — and that's not on the horizon. We're not going anywhere.
Will it run on the computers we already have, or do we need new ones?
Almost certainly the ones you have. TixPro 8 runs in a web browser, so there's nothing to install and nothing to keep updated. PC or Mac, iPad or Android tablet — it's the same box office whichever you use. At the window you'll want one of those, and at the door a dedicated scanning device.
If the venue's wifi drops mid-event, can I still sell and scan?
If your venue loses wifi often, we'll help you switch your scanning device over to cellular data and keep right on scanning, and help you set up a cellular hotspot so the box office can keep selling, too. And if you're just worried about it, call us — we'll walk through how to be ready before it ever happens.
Money — fees & contracts
What does it actually cost — and do you charge on cash, comps, or donations?Most asked
You choose: pass a flat $1.25 per ticket to your patrons, or pass along all the card fees at 4.5% + $1 per ticket — either way, the software is free to you. Prefer to cover it yourself? Absorb the $1.25. No monthly bill, and no fees on cash, check, comps, or free tickets. Donations carry no fee from us, either — just the usual card processing from your payment processor.
Are there hidden fees — like being charged to edit a seating chart?
There are never any surprises. Your seating charts are yours to edit anytime, free. We'll even build your first one free for you (we suggest your biggest). Want us to build more later? We're happy to, at a rate that fits your budget. You'll always know the price before we start.
What does it cost to get started?
Nothing. Moving your patron and donor data across is free, training is a total of four hours and included, and we build your first seating chart at no charge — we suggest your biggest. Your charts are yours to edit whenever you like after that. Anything you ask us to build later is priced before we start.
Am I locked into a long contract?Most asked
Nope. Come and go as you like. We keep your database safe, so if you ever leave and come back, you pick up right where you left off. Plenty of folks have tried a system or two and come back — we're just always glad to have you.
Can I take cards in person at the window?
Yes. Card readers plug straight into the box-office sale — tap, dip, or swipe — so the payment lands on the order with nothing re-keyed. We'll help you pick and set up the reader.
Do you help stop card fraud before it becomes our problem?
Yes. 3D Secure is on from day one — nothing for you to set up. If a bank isn't sure the person using a card owns it, it texts them a code before the sale goes through. Most venues leave it at that; you can set it to ask more often if you'd rather. We also watch for card testing. That's when someone runs a list of stolen numbers through your checkout in amounts small enough to go unnoticed, looking for the ones that still work. Ticketing sites get hit with it a lot. We spot the pattern and shut it down, often before anyone at the venue knows it started. And when a sale has been through that check and later turns out to be fraud, the chargeback is usually the bank's to cover, not yours.
Ease of use — for staff and volunteers
Can my volunteers and seasonal staff run this, or do I need an IT person?
No IT person required. It runs in your browser, so there's nothing to install — the one exception is a ticket printer, and we'll help you set that up. You decide exactly what each staffer or volunteer can see and do, and it's simple enough that a first-timer can sell a ticket on opening night. Our documentation is public, too — read it before you buy, not just after.
How does training work?
A total of four hours, included and not billed — and in twelve years no venue has needed more than two of them. We work in small groups with the people who’ll actually run your box office, small enough that nobody’s too shy to ask questions, and the aim is to make them the experts so they can bring new staff up themselves. If something didn’t land the first time, call us — that’s support, not a billable session. If you ever want more formal training than the four hours, we’ll quote it by the hour before we start — though nobody’s asked yet.
Are everyday tasks easy to find, or buried in menus?
Your everyday tasks live right on the dashboard, and the rest is a click or two away. It's built to be found, not hunted for.
Does it look and feel modern, or like something from 2005?
It's modern. But you won't feel like you're flying a spaceship.
Control — change your own stuff
Can I change my own prices, codes, seating charts, and reports — or do I file a ticket and wait?
You're in control. Build and change your own seating charts, prices, discount codes, ticket formats, and reports whenever you want — nothing to file, no waiting on us. And when you do want a hand, we're right here.
Our seating isn’t standard rows. Can you handle it?
Yes. Your chart is built to match your room — straight rows, curved rows, tables, boxes, or a mix of them. We build your first chart at no charge, and you can edit it as often as you like after that.
How fast can I do an exchange or refund at the window during a show?
Fast enough for a line at the window. Find the order, a few clicks, and it's done — new clients tell us, with obvious relief, how easy that is compared to what they came from.
Can I design my own tickets?
Top to bottom. Build your own ticket formats — logo, sponsor line, QR code, the works — then print by the batch, hold at will call, or send print-at-home PDFs. Want a different look per show? Go ahead.
Reporting
Can I build the exact reports I need, or will I run five and still not get the number?
You can build custom reports — but honestly? Most people never need to. Our standard reports already cover what the vast majority of box offices are after. And if there's a number you can't find, tell us and we'll help you get it.
The patron's experience
Is it genuinely easy for an 80-year-old subscriber on a phone, or will I get refund calls?
Someone will always struggle with anything — but we design our checkout for the patron who isn't glued to a screen. Plenty of our clients have audiences that skew 70 or better, and they're doing real online-sales numbers. It's built for regular people, not just the tech-savvy.
Can a patron buy several performances in one order?
Yes. They add one performance to their cart, then another — same as any online store. If they've bought anything online before, they already know how.
Do you stop orphan "gap" seats I can never sell?
Yes, if you turn it on. When a patron picks seats, the seating chart nudges their selection to avoid leaving a single empty seat behind — and tells them if they've stranded one. Fewer unsellable singles for you.
Do QR-code tickets just work?
Yes. Add a QR code to your ticket format and every ticket gets one. At the door, a dedicated scanning device reads them through ScanTix, our own app, included free on every current pricing plan. Running a show you'd rather not scan? Set up a separate format without it. Your call, per show.
Do patrons get a reminder before the show?
If you want them to — most do. TixPro 8 sends reminder emails automatically before curtain, on your timing, in your words. Fewer no-shows, and fewer “what time was that again?” calls.
Switching, data & integrations
When I switch to you, can I bring my years of patron and donor data?
Yes, but here's the honest answer: most systems don't want you to leave, so they make your own data hard to pull out. We hate that too. We don't want you to lose your history, and we want you to feel at home fast — so we'll work hard to bring over as much of your data as we can get our hands on.
If we ever leave, can we take our patron list with us?
Yes, and you won’t have to ask. Export the whole patron and donor list yourself, whenever you want, at no charge — the list itself, not a report about it. Sales, donation and attendance reports export to Excel or PDF too.
Does it work with QuickBooks and my email tools?
A tighter QuickBooks integration is in the works. Today, every report exports cleanly and drops into QuickBooks on whatever schedule your accounting runs — daily, weekly, however you like.
Can I send an email blast to patrons from inside the system?
Yes. Auditions, announcements, thank-yous, whatever you need, written and sent right inside TixPro 8 with templates you design yourself. Send to everyone, or just the people who came to one particular show.
Flexibility for real life
How do you handle my complicated season and subscription setup, without clunky workarounds?
Whatever your package or subscription setup looks like, we've got a way to handle it — we haven't met one we couldn't yet. In over 40 years working with box offices, we've seen just about every configuration there is. Tell us how yours works and we'll be glad to help you set it up.
When a show sells out, is there an automatic waitlist?
Yes. A waitlist kicks in when a show sells out — automatically if you want, or manually if you'd rather stay hands-on. And when seats open up, you decide whether they get word automatically or you reach out yourself.
Can we sell gift cards?
Yes — online and at the window. Patrons buy one (printed, or emailed with a personal note), and the recipient spends it at checkout like cash. Balances track themselves. And when someone can't make a show, you can refund to a gift card and keep the revenue in the house.
We run classes and summer camps. Can TixPro 8 handle registration?
Yes. Classes, camps, and workshops get real registration — rosters, waitlists, deposits, and forms you build yourself. Every signup lands on the same patron record as the family's tickets.
Do you do flex passes?
Yes. Sell a pass for any number of admissions, and patrons pick their shows and seats whenever they're ready — during the sale or long after, and one or two admissions at a time without committing the rest. Built for festivals and choose-your-own seasons.
Can we sell parking, concessions, or merchandise with tickets?
Yes — add-ons ride along in the same order, online or at the window: parking passes, dinner packages, T-shirts, raffle tickets. Price them per order or per ticket. Your call.