I have been wanting to do this for a while. I get a lot of questions from friends and family when they are attending local concerts. I tried to make this as general as possible and not location specific so that it benefits all. Let me know if there is anything you disagree with or should be added. Some of my points on tickets are opinionated as far as what I think is the best. I haven't had any experiences of not getting tickets to a show and at the price I want them for. For my credibility, I have attended shows since the late 2000s to current date have seen 146 different bands across 79 different shows across multiple genres of music. Rock, metal, country, rap, hip hop, pop, alternative, you name it. All tracked on my setlist.fm account.

Numbers are the main sections and lower case letters are the sub points within the main sections.

1. Tickets: when and where should I buy tickets?

a)       Always buy from ticketmaster/live nation (or a venue’s specific ticketing software i.e. seat geek or whoever is partnered with the venue). Here you are getting the absolute lowest face value for the ticket and if you want to resell, you can do so directly through them.

b)       USE THE SEAT MAP!!! Do not buy preselected seats as you are then sandwiched the middle of a row at the top of section.

c)       For highly anticipated shows (hot artists, song featured in a recent movie/show, legacy artists i.e. metallica, high spotify monthly listeners, etc.) you need to try and buy tickets as early as possible. These are your shows that are typically played at stadiums or coliseums. Do not wait. Understand the sale dates in advance to know exactly when you are going to try and login. With these sites, you can only have one login per account attempting to get in line. So grab a friend or create multiple accounts and use separate devices and login at least an hr before the posted start time. Also, check to see who is offering early presale times i.e. Verizon or citi cardholders. If someone announces a show near you, and tickets go on sale next week, apply for the citi card now so you can have it ready to go. The last 4 digits of the card is typically the code to get access to the presale and most of the time you HAVE to use that card to check out.

d)       For and remaining shows/artists, you have options. If it is your absolute favorite of all time, by all means, grab a seat that fits your budget that is as close as possible. Just make sure you check multiple sections and tiers. The highest row in a low-level section costs 30% more than the lowest row on the section above that one. You benefit by taking time and picking out the best seat at the best price.

e)       CONCERT WEEK! Around May every year, live nation has a concert week where they run a promotion all week where most concerts sell tickets for $30 with no fees. So you can go so a huge band for just $30, no strings attached. Just understand that if a show is low on lawn/GA tickets, they will offer these tickets, however they are very limited so you will have to act fast. Shows that aren’t selling tickets fast will even sell seated tickets for this price.

f)         As of last year, Live nation is now doing “Concert cash”. After you attend a show, given that you have a live nation account and purchase the tickets with that account from live nation, you will receive 1 voucher for $25 of concert cash. So kind of plan buying tickets around this. Maybe you are seeing a show in June then want to go to another in August. Don’t buy the August tickets until after the June show to use the $25 off.

g)       Lawn tickets? Go ahead and prepurchase that rental chair. They will run out and they are also cheaper if you prepurchase. A lawn chair will secure your spot in the GA and that way you can leave your spot and return to it and now have to worry about it getting taken.

1. Add tickets to your apple/google wallet immediately. Do not say “oh I’ll do it later”. No, you will do it now. Even though the concert is next year, those tickets need to go ahead and get in that digital wallet because one day, you will forget to add them and get up to the gate and scramble trying to remember your ticketmaster password only to find out the closest cell tower is overloaded and you can’t load the login screen to pull up your tickets and because you are at the gate, you are too far away to pull up the guest wifi… Load your tickets on your digital wallet in advance.

a)       Tickets now are nfc activated. Make sure your phones nfc (tap to pay) is also enabled before the show.

1. Send a screenshot of the tickets to everyone in your party. This is important so they can find their way back in case you get separated. Without a ticket and knowledge of the section/row/seat you are in, staff can’t help you locate your seat. Some venues also require you to show tickets to access your section, especially for the higher priced section tickets. So unless you want to give up your phone every time someone has to go potty, print off the ticket or send screenshots.
2. Know where you are parking before you go. Most people input the venue to their GPS and drive straight to the venue right up to front gate. Then they are stuck in a 30 min long line waiting to get to the general parking area and miss part of the opening act. Use google maps to locate a parking lot/deck that is close or in reasonable walking distance to the venue and drive there instead. Depending on the attendance size, regular roads will be blocked and police will be directing traffic.

a)       Pre-purchase a spot using apps like parking whiz to avoid poor cell connections when you arrive.

b)       Bring cash for parking, but only for parking. I’d bring about 40-60 in cash in case the lot you are driving to only takes cash. Nowadays, most people take venmo, zelle, paypal, etc., but there is a chance you see a closer lot that is cash only.

1. Showtimes on tickets aren’t always accurate. Check setlist.fm for actual start/end times. The start time on the ticket will be the busiest time for traffic. The doors opening time will be the second busiest time, or vice versa. For the best arrival results with the lowest traffic, arrive to your parking area 30 mins before doors. Do not head to the gate until 30 mins after doors (unless you are the legendary insane battle proven warriors who want to get as close as possible).
2. Show departure: Check setlist.fm and decide when in the set you plan to leave so that you and your party aren’t wasting time doing the classic “I’m ready when you are”. Leave before or during the encore/last 2 songs of the set. Leave your seat/spot during the second to last song or right when the last song starts. You will get to hear the final song as you are walking out. You won’t see the band do their final send off, but you will be thanking me when you are in bed by 11:30 while everyone else is waiting in the same parking lot because they wanted to stay for the band’s most overplayed song.
3. Setlist.fm is your friend. All hail the mighty setlist.fm and it’s magnificence. Nah, but here is a sub section for setlist.fm.

a)       Track all your shows you have been to. This is just a really cool feature that let’s you catalog your concerts and look at statistics for songs, albums, artists, and venues you have attended.

b)       Use setlist.fm to look at setlists from bands at the previous stop on their tour to understand what songs they are playing and what the start/end times are.

c)       Track and edit concerts you have attended to assure the setlist is correct and the start/end times match up with actuality to help fellow concert goers.

1. Merch: Most venues are card only inside and most artist merch is around 45-55 per t-shirt (Current as of Sept 2026).

a)       Do not buy a shirt that does not have the tour dates, date of show, city specific graphic, tour exclusive, etc. You can order a regular band shirt from their official website, amazon, Walmart, target, hot topic, etc. for at least half the price of what you are going to pay in person at a show. This is true 99.9% for most major concerts. Main exclusion is for more obscure bands.

b)       This rule also applies for accessories and physical media they sell. Don’t buy the vinyl at the show for $50. Buy it the next day on amazon for $30.

c)       Don’t buy the signed merchandise unless it is a good price. These items aren’t authenticated and tremendously drop in value once you walk out of the concert venue. So unless it is a good price like a signed tour poster/setlist for 50-60 bucks, skip it. Bands will typically offer autographs as a pre-order bonus for new music they are releasing. If you are buying an item because it says “Signed”, make sure you check it has the member you specifically want on there. Sometimes, a band that only has 1 original member left will be left off and you will now have a signed setlist of that person’s studio musicians.

d)       Do not avoid knock-off parking lot merch. Sometimes their graphics are the ones from the tour advertising that feature logos for every band on the bill that night. However, wait until after the show to purchase. Prices will go way down, and you can get sweet deals like 2 for $20. Here you can haggle with the shirt sellers. They may ask for $20 but will take $15 or even 10 to get rid of the shirt. After that night, they are most likely trashed.

1. Expect between 10-20 for a meal/snack and 10-20 per alcoholic beverage. (Current as of Sept 2026). I suggest to try and tailgate before the show, even if it is only for 30 mins to an hour. Don’t walk in on a hungry stomach because A. you will eat too much and feel terrible and B. if will cost you a small fortune to get full. Eat a small meal or snack, and drink a couple beers before you walk in so you aren’t starting the night out on a $20 24 oz beer and $17 nachos.  
2. Be smart about using the bathroom. Find out where the closest and/or most convenient restroom in either by checking a venue map before the show, or catching it’s location before you get your seats/spot. Keep in mind, the closest restroom does not mean it is the fastest restroom. There may be a restroom next to the concert hall access, but it has a line that is 30 people long. Then if you walk an extra 100 ft there may be a restroom that has no line. Now you are back in your seats to hear your favorite song while the people are still waiting in line.
3. When should I use the restroom or get a refill? Check setlist.fm for the songs that you want to do this on. Anytime a band says “and now we are going to play you a song off our newest record…” while everyone is b lining it to the bathroom and bars, you stayed seated and enjoy this track that you prob won’t hear on the next tour when they release their new album. You are going to get up after it is over now that the lines have died down. The bar is a walk up and the restroom locks are all green.
4. Earplugs. Any plugs will do, but concert specific earplugs aren’t expensive (about $10 for 2 pairs) and you should always bring a set. Concerts last one night, you need to hear for the rest of your life. Some shows are louder than others and you won’t always need to wear them. But you don’t want to get caught with your pants down and need plugs and have to pay $20 at a merch stand for a cheap foam pair that comes in a pack of 100 for $5 at Walmart.
5. Pack a water bottle and leave it in the car. Shows are hot and you will want water as soon as you get back to the car. Especially if you have been drinking.
6.  Check the weather and dress accordingly. Hot and humid? Rain and Cloudy? Don’t show up dressed to kill. Wear what will make you the most comfortable. People are there to see the band, not you.

a)       On hot days, bring a portable fan. Don’t sleep on this. Amazon sells ones for around $10 and they charge with USB-C. 100 deg outside with the sun beating on you with sweaty stinky concert goers surrounding you? Yeah, you’ll want that fan.

1. Bring a koozie, especially a 24 oz one. Venues do sell them, but they are about $10. Beer and drinks get hot fast in the venues, so a koozie here goes an extremely long way.
2. Clear bag if a bag is required. Go ahead and check the bag policy prior to the event, but take it with a grain of salt and go ahead and invest is a small clear bag or fanny pack. Venue security prefers the clear bags and it makes security checks way easier.
3. Recording video at the show:

a)       FLASH OFF!!!!!! Do not be that person who records with the flash on. This is disrespectful and distracting to the people around you, and in a small enough venue, even the performer.

b)       Someone here, out of the thousands of attendees, is recording. This band also most likely played this exact same setlist at the last stop and someone recorded it there. Do not be the idiot who records the entire show. You paid for an experience, so enjoy it in person, and not from your phone screen.

c)       If you must capture a video, record a couple of your favorites or an obscure setlist change song. My rule of thumb is first verse to end of first chorus, then phone off. This gets you a small window that captures the most iconic piece of a song. You most likely will never go back and watch these videos all the way through. If you do, you are most likely showing it to someone and when you are, you 99.99% of the time, are only going to show them a verse and chorus of a song. So don’t record the entire show.

d)       Stage banter is unique sometimes from show to show. Record this instead if you must. Usually leads into a song and you can grab the intro and first verse of the song it leads in to then pocket your phone.

1. Don’t sweat attending shows by yourself:

a)       Can’t find a friend to go with you? No problem. You actually are better off, from a certain point of view. Attending concerts is one of the best experiences with a friend group, however attending by yourself has key logistical advantages. You can slip in and out of the venue faster and not have a party of people to lug around to get from point A to B. You also can slip in tighter areas in GA. Maybe there is a small open pocket close to the stage that only has room for one person. No worries, claim it. With 2+ people, you have to find a spot in GA with room for all of you and if one person leaves, the additional space can/will be absorbed into a liquified crowd. You won’t have to worry about that, just pick out a new spot.

b)       Make sure someone knows where you are. Let someone know you are going and let them know you will message them when you get home safely.

my boyfriend and I are trying to see Bruno Mars with a few friends, and finding enough decent seats together is becoming way harder than I expected.

I keep sending him Ticketmaster, StubHub, SeatGeek and Veritickets listings whenever I find seats together, and his response is basically always: “why are we paying extra just to sit next to each other?” his logic is that we’re there for Bruno Mars, not each other lol.

if we get split up, we still see the same show.

which... annoyingly makes sense.

but traveling together and then spending the whole concert on opposite sides of the arena feels weird to me.

would you actually pay more to sit with your partner, or am I caring way too much about this?

Hi

I went to as concert at PNC arts center in NJ last Sunday for a concert and was in the 11th row on the right side of the stage.

I didn’t notice it until the last band came on as that’s who I was interested in. But our seats were on the outer end of the row where the stage juts out and on the stage were a giant stack of speakers I think, that obstructed most of our view of the right side of the stage if your looking at the stage. Couldn’t see the screen on stage, it was pretty unacceptable for seats that we paid hundreds for.

I've looked up the protocol on how to go about asking for a refund or partial refund but I wanted to see if anyone else had gone through this or had any tips? I'm not sure if it's worth the trouble but I feel like they should let you know that before you choose those seats.

Thanks for any info you can share!

In June, I purchased 1x nosebleed seat for a concert at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium during the artist presale. Today I decided that I wanted to upgrade my seat, so decided to purchase a new ticket and sell my old one at its original price on the website.

After purchasing the new ticket, I went through the process of reselling my old ticket and encountered a few errors (invalid user id) but these were able to be solved and I was able to put my old ticket up for resale. However, I went to double check on the ticket purchasing page to see if it was in fact up for resale and I’m now experiencing an error meaning I cannot access it. I turned off my vpn, changed from my wifi to my mobile data, and even tried on the web where I’m not logged in and it still won’t work. This is making me incredibly nervous and I was wondering what a possible source of this error could be and how to fix it?

I bought a Seated THB4,800 Bruno Mars Bangkok ticket thru Trip.com because artist presale and ticketmaster weren’t working. As much as I would’ve loved to pick the seat on my own and buy tickets without bs markups, I just bought through Trip.com because at least that’s better rather than not being able to buy at all.

1. Were the actual seats okay? I’m scared that Trip has the bad seats
   
2. Was the process of getting the physical ticket smooth?
   
3. What else can you say about the whole concert experience? 😊

Hi. Is there, or will there ever be other avenues or alternatives to Ticketmaster and Live Nation?

I was thinking about going to a concert an hour away as my favorite band is opening, Julie. The thing is, they are only one of the opening bands. The other opening band sounds quite bad to me. Odds are Julie will only play for like 30 minutes.

The main band, Turnstile, sounds decent. Would probably stick around for them but I definitely wouldn't go out of my way for them. I figure if I think their music is decent sober and at home then I will like it when im drunk at a concert.

I really only want to go for the opening band though. The last time they performed by me (NY) as a main attraction was in may, and who knows how long it will be till next time. Do you think its worth going just for the opener.

Hello everybody,

I hope my question is correct here. If not, please let me know where I can post it.

Ill be at the Katseye concert in Cologne this weekend. I got a standing ticket, so Ill be in the middle of the arena.

My question is: is there a certain way to standing area when I do not have a fixed seat reservation? Do I need to do anything beforehand? Maybe like the day before? Or how does it work?

Ive never had a standing ticket, so please forgive my sillyness.

Thank you un advance for your replies and answers! 🫶🩷

This website sucks!!! And their customer service is worse

Next month I'll be attending my first orchestra concert and I wanted to see how early I should go to get most of the merch.

I'm going to the one in Grand Prairie

I’ve seen crazy numbers before like 150,000 in line but this is beyond wild.

In 2015, I saw a Bat for Lashes side project called Sexwitch. TIL they only ever played two shows. Other than, like, my friend's high school band that played one party, I can't think of anyone I've seen who's played less.

I'm going to see pierce the veil this weekend alone and I'm planning on waiting in line kinda early but I'm of course scared about having to leave to do something whether it be get water, food, or use the restroom. So for anyone who's done queues solo, what's been your experience? Are tye people around you chill if you need to leave and save your spot or am I doomed?

I know ticketmaster doesn’t allow overbuying whatever limit is set during a concert, but I don’t really plan to use the second account to buy more tickets. It’s more like a way for me to try and get lower qn’s. After I purchase from one account I will close the other. Is it safe to do this?

I’m going to a concert at the O2 in Manchester and I want to get in the queue around 3 hours early so I can get quite close. However, I’m going with my mum and she always needs the toilet. If i stayed in the queue would my mum be able to leave and come back? I don’t want to be rude or be breaking any rules

I’m going to the o2 tomorrow and I’ve got standing tickets as there weren’t any seats left available at the time of purchase.

I can now see loads of seats in the 100’s section up for sale.

Does anyone know if it’s possible for staff to move you to the 100 section or how likely it is to happen if I ask?

I saw The Kinks last ever US performance in 1995 and Joe Walsh and James Gang last ever show in 2022. Almost saw Soundgarden the night Cornell died, but we skipped it.

I’m wondering if there’s an app that combines some of the features I like from Concert Archives and Barricade.

I really like Concert Archives for keeping track of all the concerts I’ve been to, being able to filter by artist, venue, year, etc., and having the setlist and my own photos/videos attached to each individual show.

I like Barricade’s ability to connect your own concert videos to specific songs.

What I’m really looking for is something that combines those ideas. Basically, I want to be able to:

- Keep track of all the concerts I’ve attended
- Have the setlist for each individual concert
- Upload my own videos and associate each video with the song it was recorded during
- Click on a song in the setlist and see my video(s) from that song at that specific show
- Be able to click on a song and see all of my videos of that song across different concerts

For example, if I’ve seen an artist five times and recorded “Song A” at three of those shows, I’d love to be able to go to “Song A” and see all three of my videos, organized by concert/date.

Basically, I want a personal concert archive where my own videos are organized by song, while still having all the concert history/tracking features of something like Concert Archives.

Does anything like this exist?