Understanding fee calculation helps you price tickets accurately and communicate costs to attendees. This document provides the exact formulas and examples.
Fee Components
Stripe Processing Fee
Domestic cards: 2.9% + $0.30
International cards: 3.9% + $0.30
American Express: 3.4% + $0.30
BrightStar Platform Fee
Seva: free
Elevate: a low per-ticket fee (small flat amount + small percentage)
Amplify: a higher per-ticket fee (flat amount + percentage)
All fees are shown live in your local currency at checkout.
Currency Conversion (if applicable)
International: +1% conversion fee
Calculation Formula
javascript
// Fee Calculation Formula
ticket_price = 100.00 // ticket price
tier = "elevate"
// BrightStar Fee (Elevate)
// bs_fixed + bs_percent are the tier rates for your currency,
// resolved live at checkout (Elevate = small flat amount + small percentage).
bs_fee = bs_fixed + (ticket_price * bs_percent)
// Stripe Fee (domestic)
stripe_percent = 0.029
stripe_fixed = 0.30
// If passing fees to buyer:
total_charge = ticket_price + bs_fee
stripe_fee = (total_charge * stripe_percent) + stripe_fixed
buyer_pays = total_charge + stripe_fee
organizer_receives = ticket_priceFee calculator — see exactly what you and your buyers pay
Ticket sales$2,250.00
Platform fee (Elevate)+ $86.13
Stripe processing+ $69.03
Customer pays$2,405.15
You keep$2,250.00
Estimate for a single order of 50 tickets. Stripe fees are charged per order; free tickets skip all fees.
Fee Absorption Options
Pass Fees to Buyer (Default)
Ticket price + fees shown at checkout.
Buyer sees: "$100 ticket + $6.02 fees = $106.02"
Organizer receives: $100.00
Absorb Fees into Price
Ticket price includes fees.
Buyer sees: "$100 total"
Organizer receives: $100 - $2.74 - $3.28 = $93.98
Partial Absorption
Absorb platform fee, pass Stripe fee.
Buyer sees: "$100 + $3.28 fees = $103.28"
Organizer receives: $100 - $2.74 = $97.26
Edge Cases
Free Tickets ($0) No fees charged. Payment processing skipped.
Very Low Price (<$5) Fixed fees become significant. $5 ticket + $2.74 BS + $0.45 Stripe = 64% fee ratio Consider absorbing for low-price tickets.
Donation Add-ons Fees calculated on total (ticket + donation).
Discount Codes Fees calculated on discounted price. 20% off $100 = $80, fees on $80.
For premium experiences ($200+), passing fees to buyers is standard. For accessible/community events, consider absorbing fees to keep the price clean.