---
title: "Run a waiting list for a sold-out event | Ticket Fairy Guides"
description: "Switch on the waiting list, decide how many tickets one person can ask for, see who is waiting, and find out how the next person in line is offered a returned ticket and how long they have to buy it."
canonical: "https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/run-a-waiting-list"
---

1. [Ticket Fairy](https://www.ticketfairy.com/)
2. [Guides](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides)
3. Run a waiting list for a sold-out event

Checkout and orders

# Run a waiting list for a sold-out event

Promoters of a sold-out show put a waiting list on the event so nobody who missed out has to keep refreshing the page. Buyers leave their name against the ticket type they want, and when a ticket is resold or freed by a canceled payment plan, Ticket Fairy offers it to the next person in line. Each person gets a set time to buy, and when it runs out, the ticket goes to the next person.

Takes:  7 minutes

- [Turn the waiting list on](#step-1)
- [Limit how many tickets one person can ask for](#step-2)
- [The buyer's side of the list](#step-3)
- [Watch who is waiting](#step-4)
- [Tell the list when you add tickets](#step-5)

## Before you start

- You're an owner or admin of the event. People with the Promoter or Stats role do not see the switches or the Waiting List tab.
- You have decided whether one person may ask for several tickets, and whether add-ons that sell out should take a waiting list too.
- Your event is published. A buyer cannot join the waiting list of an unpublished event.

1. ## Turn the waiting list on

   Open your event, select **Tickets**, then **Settings**, turn on **Enable waiting list after ticket sell-out** and, when parking, camping or merchandise can run out, **Enable waiting list after add-on sell-out**, then select **Save Ticket Settings**. Both switches take effect for the next visitor to the event page.

   **Note:** The ticket waiting list starts on for a new event, under **Advanced options** in the create-event wizard. The Waiting List tab appears in Performance only while one of the two switches is on.

   ![Ticket settings with the waiting list switches for tickets and add-ons turned on](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-waiting-list--settings.png)    
   *Tickets, Settings.*
2. ## Limit how many tickets one person can ask for

   Open a ticket type, turn on **Set custom maximum quantity for waiting list** and enter the **Maximum tickets for waiting list**. If a buyer asks for more, they see a message when they sign up, and returned tickets go to more people.

   **Note:** Without a cap, a buyer can ask for up to ten. Each ticket a person asked for is offered to them separately as tickets come back.

   ![Ticket type form with Set custom maximum quantity for waiting list turned on and Maximum tickets for waiting list set to 4](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-ticket-page-form--waiting-list-limit.png)    
   *Event, Tickets, ticket type.*

## The buyer's side of the list

Once every ticket on the event is sold or held in a checkout, the event page shows a Join Wait List form asking for the ticket type, the quantity, a name and an email, and Ticket Fairy emails the person to confirm they're on the list. When a ticket is resold or freed, Ticket Fairy emails the next person in line for that ticket type with a link to buy it at the ticket's current price.

**Note:** An offer lasts 36 hours when the event is two weeks or more away, 18 hours inside two weeks, 14 hours inside a week and 8 hours inside the last two days, and anyone who doesn't buy in time leaves the list. On an event Ticket Fairy has set up to pool a category, the offer goes to the next person waiting for any ticket type in that category.

![Event page with both ticket types sold out and the Waiting List form asking for the ticket type, quantity, name and email](https://www.ticketfairy.com/resources/images/consumer-posters/consumer-ticket-selection--sold-out.png)

3. ## Watch who is waiting

   Open **Performance** and select **Waiting List**. Each row shows the person, the ticket type or add-on, the quantity requested, whether they are waiting, have been offered a ticket, bought or dropped out, and when an open offer expires.

   **Note:** Select **Export to CSV** to get a file of the list, with email addresses, when you plan a release by hand. Your browser saves it when it is ready.

   ![The Waiting List report with each person, their ticket type, quantity requested, status and sign-up date](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-waiting-list--report.png)    
   *Performance, Waiting List.*
4. ## Tell the list when you add tickets

   When you release more tickets, open **Messaging**, start an email and choose **Waiting list members** as the audience. Choose **Waiting list members without orders** to leave out anyone who has since bought.

   **Note:** Ticket Fairy doesn't offer a new release to the list automatically. Only returned tickets go to the next person in line on their own.

   ![Email composer with the audience selector](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-messaging--email-composer.png)    
   *Event, Messaging, Send Email.*

## Or have it done for you

Fai, your AI teammate, can check sales, update your event or change a ticket when you ask.

Fai can switch the waiting list on or off, set the most tickets one person can ask for when they sign up, tell you who is waiting and email the list. She shows you each change before she makes it. The whole workflow is also in the dashboard.

### In your dashboard, with Fai

```
Turn on the waiting list for <EVENT NAME> for tickets and add-ons, cap each signup at <NUMBER> tickets, then show me who is waiting and how many tickets they asked for
```

## From your terminal

Install the CLI from [our CLI page](https://www.ticketfairy.com/cli), sign in with `ticketfairy auth login`, and choose the brand you are working on with `ticketfairy brand use <BRAND_ID>`. `ticketfairy brand list` and `ticketfairy event list` show the IDs the other commands use.

Use the CLI to switch the waiting list on through the event's attributes. The per-ticket cap, the report and the messaging audience are in the dashboard.

### Turn on the ticket and add-on waiting lists for an event.

```
ticketfairy event update <EVENT_ID> --body '{"flagEnableWaitingList": true, "flagEnableAddOnWaitingList": true}'
```

## Close the list without losing the names

Turn off **Enable waiting list after ticket sell-out** when you stop taking names. The event page shows no form, the people already on the list stay in the report, and open offers stay open until the person buys or the offer expires.

Fai can turn the waiting list off after showing you how many people are on it. The CLI sets the same attribute.

### In your dashboard, with Fai

```
Tell me how many people are on the waiting list for <EVENT NAME>, then turn the waiting list off
```

## Send returned tickets to the right ticket type

On an event with ticket categories, a returned ticket is offered as the resale ticket type set on its category, so keep tickets with different entry times or seating areas in separate categories. The categories guide explains how to choose the resale type.

![The Create Category dialog, with the category name and resale type fields](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-ticket-categories--create-category.png)

*Event, Tickets, Ticket Categories, Create.*

Fai can create the categories and set each one's resale type after showing you the ticket types in it. The CLI does not manage categories.

### In your dashboard, with Fai

```
On <EVENT NAME>, put each ticket type into a category by entry time and set the resale type so a returned ticket is offered as the same kind of admission
```

## Questions you might have

**What if Messaging on my event opens with For you, Messages and Templates?**

 Select **New email** and choose **Everyone on the waiting list** under **Who gets it**. Choose **People on the waiting list without a ticket** to leave out anyone who has since bought.

**What price is a returned ticket offered at?**

 The ticket type's current price, or the price of the category's resale ticket type when you run categories. The person who returned the ticket receives the face value less any resale fee, as the resale guide describes.

**Who gets a returned ticket first?**

 The person who signed up earliest for that ticket type and still has tickets to be offered. A person who asked for three is offered three tickets one after another, and drops back to waiting between them.

**How long does someone have to buy?**

 By default it shortens as the event nears: 36 hours when the event is two weeks or more away, 18 hours inside two weeks, 14 hours inside a week and 8 hours inside the last two days. Ticket Fairy support can set one fixed length of time for your event instead, which then applies whatever the date. If the person doesn't buy in time, the ticket goes to the next person.

**Does the waiting list open before tickets sell out?**

 No. The form appears on the event page once every ticket is sold or held in a checkout and sales are still open. To collect interest before the on-sale, use pre-registration instead.

**Do refunded tickets go to the waiting list?**

 Not by default. A refunded ticket goes back on public sale. To offer refunded tickets to the next person in line instead, ask Fai to send refunded tickets for your event to the waiting list. She shows you the change before she makes it, and the change applies to every refund made after it.

**Does the list include people who already bought?**

 The report shows everyone who signed up, with their status. When you email the list, choose the audience without orders to leave out anyone who has since bought a ticket.

**Can I offer a ticket to a particular person on the list?**

 Not from the report. Offers go to the next person in line automatically. To favor someone, issue them a guest ticket or send them a personal invitation instead.

## Still have a question?

Book a demo and we will answer it on a call, on your kind of event. Or create your account and see it for yourself.

   [Book a demo](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-ticketing/book-a-demo) [Create a free account](https://manage.ticketfairy.com/welcome)

No setup fees. No monthly fee. No credit card required.

## Related guides

- [More ways to use Ticket Fairy](https://www.ticketfairy.com/features/orders-refunds-and-resale)
- [How do you keep a high-demand on-sale running smoothly?](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/keep-a-high-demand-on-sale-running-smoothly)
- [Let buyers resell their tickets at face value](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/let-buyers-resell-their-tickets-at-face-value)
- [Group your tickets into categories](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/group-your-tickets-into-categories)
- [Refund an order on your event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/refund-an-order)
- [Email your ticket buyers about your event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/email-your-buyers)
- [How can fan club members get presale access?](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/give-fan-club-members-presale-access)
- [Every Ticket Fairy guide](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides)

## Do this on your own event

Create your account, build your event and follow the steps in your own dashboard. You do not need to book a sales call.

  [Create a free account](https://manage.ticketfairy.com/welcome) [Book a demo](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-ticketing/book-a-demo)

## Sell tickets with Ticket Fairy

Start free with unlimited events and no monthly fee, and choose a paid plan when you need more.

- Set up your event in minutes
- Free events are free
- Fai, your AI teammate, is built in

 [Create a free account](https://manage.ticketfairy.com/welcome)

No setup fees. No monthly fee. No credit card required.

## See it on a call

Book a demo and we will show you how Ticket Fairy handles your kind of event.

 [Book a demo](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-ticketing/book-a-demo) [More ways to use Ticket Fairy](https://www.ticketfairy.com/features/orders-refunds-and-resale)

### Tips for selling more tickets

Practical advice from working event organizers, and every new guide as it is published.

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---

This page is on Ticket Fairy, a ticketing, marketing and operations platform for live events and the venues that host them: festivals, club nights, concerts, conferences and tours, and night clubs, beach clubs and concert venues. It grows revenue with fan rewards that turn an audience into a sales channel, and runs the money side with payments and payouts, Vault business banking, and working capital advanced against ticket sales. [How Ticket Fairy ticketing works](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-ticketing) · [Ticket Fairy for AI assistants](https://www.ticketfairy.com/llms.txt)