Online booking is becoming increasingly popular and enabling appointment setting through your WordPress-powered website simplifies the processes. When choosing a booking plugin, many WordPress users choose WP Event Manager.
This open-source tool functions as an all-in-one management platform. It provides all the front-end forms you need, plus a comprehensive event dashboard. You can create event listings for users to browse or allow them to customize events. Overall, the plugin delivers a versatile and smooth user experience. There are also multiple other features to support proper event management.
Still, this WordPress plugin might not be the best choice for all businesses.
Despite being free, most of its add-ons come with a price tag. Moreover, it leans more toward virtual events, which is not necessarily suitable for the majority of businesses. Not to mention that installing and configuring this plugin demands some time and expertise.
In this article, you will find 12 alternatives to the WordPress Event Manager plugin that’ll help you improve your website without breaking the bank.
Premium Alternatives to the WP Event Manager Plugin
- Amelia
- Calendarize It!
- EventON
- WP Events Plus
- Timetable
- Venture Event Manager
- Eventin
- Event Monster
- Event Organiser
- Modern Events Calendar
- The Events Calendar
- Time.ly
Amelia
Amelia is a powerful all-in-one WordPress booking plugin and event calendar that can help you fully automate all your event-related operations, and more.
With its sophisticated and user-friendly interface and sleek design, Amelia makes event booking an adventure to look forward to. You can track and manage your events, organize your workflow, enhance your event booking experience, and avoid double bookings.
Amelia is an excellent event management solution packed with features every event-based business needs. Easily create one-time, multi-day, or recurring events, and set up deposit payments and dynamic ticketing.
Amelia values both your and your client’s time. As a business owner, you can create, organize, manage, track, cancel, or delete events in a matter of minutes. At the same time, the complete user interaction takes a few clicks, making Amelia one of the most user-friendly WordPress booking plugins out there.
Only one license – no add-ons required. Fully customizable.
Curious? Take a look at the rest of the features Amelia offers.
Calendarize it!
Calendarize it! is a feature-rich and comprehensive event calendar for WordPress. One of its advantages over the WP Event Manager is that it offers a significant selection of free add-ons.
You can configure it to show both upcoming events and past events. Another excellent feature is allowing registered users to access their own events calendar.
Additionally, the plugin lets you filter events by organizers, venues, or location. It enables multiple views for your events calendar and supports several page builders.
Before committing to buy this WordPress plugin, you can test it using the username and password provided on their site.
EventON
EventOn is an event calendar with a clean schedule format. With it, you can automatically add and remove real-time live events on your WordPress theme.
Event listings enable unlimited images and suggest related content to users. After reading the event preview, users can open a single event page for more details.
As with the WP Event Manager, it integrates with Google Maps and several other platforms. You can also customize the display styles and colors.
There is a free version called EventOn Lite. It includes only the key features, whereas the paid version encompasses over 200 features in total.
EventOn is extremely easy for you to manage and for your users on the front end to use. You can add your choice of paid premium add-ons to your plugin through annual subscriptions.
WP Events Plus
Events Plus is a WordPress event calendar that does not require add-ons. It is available in five languages and provides access to all its features through a single purchase.
This approach differs from the WP Event Manager, which sells add-on categories as extras.
EventsPlus includes a comprehensive event dashboard presenting an outline of recent events. It also delivers a single event page with all the crucial details for each entree of your event listings.
After integration, you can use this tool to sell tickets and manage users. Additionally, you get valuable statistical insights on registrations, payments, and recent events.
Timetable
The Timetable plugin focuses on improving scheduling processes for you and your users.
You can create an event calendar and take online reservations according to pre-set available slots. You can also manage events by using shortcodes to display their occurrences.
The possibility to export timetables to PDF makes it perfect for any event manager. Plus, each event submission form field is customizable.
With this WordPress plugin, you may edit a single event or your entire timetable. It even allows you to display upcoming events through integrated widgets.
Unlike the WP Event Manager pricing plan, adding event listing functionality only requires a one-time fee. Another significant advantage is that this plugin allows calendar display and use on any mobile device.
Venture Event Manager
Venture Industries Online offers many digital solutions for businesses. Its Venture Event Manager is an excellent alternative to the WP Event Manager.
Venture Event Manager will improve your WordPress website experience from both the backend and frontend.
The features are created with administrators in mind. Multiple views for diverse event types and settings for recurring events are available.
There are specialized lists you can share via a shortcode, thus adding event-listing functionality. Other elements include an archive for expired events and widgets for users to access event details easily.
Its display configurations are fitted to different devices.
However, there is no free version available.
Eventin
Eventin is a WordPress plugin that simplifies creating, managing, and selling events. It has a wide variety of features to help event management businesses grow.
As an event manager, you can create an unlimited number of single and multiple events. Plus, you receive detailed analytics reports to track attendees and other users.
Event organizers and speakers are assigned an individual page on your WordPress theme. Users also earn access to purchased event details through a personal event dashboard.
Unlike the WP Event Manager, you can download this free plugin or opt for a paid version with extra features. You can choose a plan fitted to your needs and decide between a yearly subscription or a lifetime purchase.
Event Monster
Event Monster is a comprehensive event management portal. It allows you to manage users and attendee data, sell tickets, and customize events and template files.
It presents an event dashboard where you can manage all your events by type, venue, and date. You also get custom event fields for forms and can share event details through social media platforms.
Like the WP Event Manager, Event Monster integrates with Google Maps to display an event location. It even includes a countdown timer for upcoming events.
This free plugin also has a paid version with premium add-ons, including coupons and payment features.
Event Organiser
Event Organiser is a user-friendly event management tool that offers a free limited version and three paid subscription plans.
Several free add-ons are available, such as a VAT rate setting tool and a sigma theme for your WordPress website. With a pro plan, you can get paid extensions with extra features, like emailing users and attendees from your event dashboard.
Front-end forms are customizable with their field editor. You can also manage multiple payment gateways and implement discounts.
Users get multiple views for upcoming events, besides the usual event calendar. They can access a single event or browse your event listings.
As with the WP Event Manager, there are advantages if you are a developer or know HTML code. Event Organiser adds functionality and customization with alterable hooks and template files.
Modern Events Calendar
Modern Events Calendar lives up to its name by bringing the most recent technology to your event management portal. It offers over 50 event display layout options.
This plugin integrates with other platforms to adapt to private, corporate, in-person, virtual, or hybrid events. It includes booking and ticketing features and supports various payment gateways.
You can create shortcodes for custom styles from any past event and archive them. Besides, your WordPress users can use front-end forms to submit their own events listings.
The free version of this plugin is Modern Events Calendar Lite, which includes a significant variety of features. Like the WP Event Manager, it has a paid add-on list from which to choose.
The Events Calendar
Surpassing the WP Event Manager, The Events Calendar has over 28 million downloads. This digital community creates plugins that integrate seamlessly with any WordPress site.
This tool delivers a fully responsive experience built to streamline event management processes.
The Events Calendar has a free version, an annual pro plan, and five plugin bundle solutions according to your business needs. You will find resources to sell tickets and follow up on registrations for any upcoming event.
Additionally, you can purchase extra add-ons, like filtering options. Thus, users can find events based on event tags, price, date, or event types.
The free extensions include a tool to remove past events and a progress bar for current event listings.
Time.ly
Time.ly all-in-one event calendar is a full-service plugin. You can use it to manage upcoming and recurring events, learning programs, and event venues.
Like the WP Event Manager, it is compatible with various time zones and languages. Plus, you can manage attendees, send invoices, and receive payments.
This tool integrates seamlessly with your WordPress site theme, making it easy to install and use. It has a fully responsive design and allows unlimited event listings.
You can create public event listings or share them with a limited number of your WordPress users. You can also set search filters for users to find events based on the event type and location.
There is a free version for freelancers, and organizations can get customized pricing according to their needs.
Parting Words
There you have it – the best WordPress event booking and management plugins to consider instead of WP Event Manager.
It goes without saying that each plugin has its advantages, especially considering the unique requirements each event-based business has.
However, we believe that the Amelia WordPress event calendar offers the best value for the price. It’s extremely user-friendly, intuitive, and responsive, with amazing built-in features and all the necessary integrations to make event management a breeze.