Event Management Software Alternatives for UK Organisers
UK event organisers have more options than ever. Here's an honest comparison of event management and networking platforms suited to different event types.
FirstMove Team
18 April 2025 · 9 min read
The UK event industry is diverse — from large-scale conferences at ExCeL London to grassroots community festivals, industry socials, and independent cultural events. The software tools available to event organisers have expanded significantly, but so has the complexity of choosing the right ones.
This guide is for UK event organisers evaluating their options across the event management and attendee networking spectrum.
The Event Software Landscape
Event software broadly covers several distinct functions:
- Ticketing and registration: Selling tickets, managing attendee data, check-in
- Event marketing: Promotion, email, social
- Programme management: Agenda, sessions, speakers
- Attendee networking: Helping attendees connect with each other
- Post-event analytics: Understanding what happened and what worked
Most platforms serve one or two of these functions well; few cover all of them at the right price point for the full range of UK event sizes.
Enterprise Platforms
Bizzabo
Bizzabo is a comprehensive enterprise event management platform covering registration, marketing, programme management, networking, and analytics. It integrates with enterprise marketing and CRM systems.
Best for: Large corporate events and conferences run by marketing teams with dedicated event budgets. Custom enterprise pricing makes it inaccessible for smaller events.
Cvent
Cvent is another enterprise-grade platform with deep functionality for large events, particularly in the US market. Strong on logistics, registration, and reporting. Similar profile to Bizzabo — enterprise scale and pricing.
Conference Networking Platforms
Whova
Whova covers agenda management, session content, community boards, and attendee networking. Well-regarded for academic and professional conferences.
UK relevance: Whova is used internationally, including at UK academic conferences, but isn't UK-specific in design or support.
Brella
AI-powered matchmaking and meeting scheduling for B2B conferences. Strong in the tech conference segment.
Grip
Trade show and exhibition networking with commercial ROI tools. Strong European presence with some UK conference use.
Ticketing and Discovery
Eventbrite
Eventbrite is the dominant general-purpose ticketing and event discovery platform in the UK. Good for events of all sizes from grassroots to large-scale. Limited attendee networking functionality.
Ticket Tailor
UK-based ticketing platform with lower fees than Eventbrite. Good for smaller independent events. No networking component.
Dice
Music and culture-focused event discovery and ticketing. Popular with UK music fans and independent venues. No networking component.
Attendee Networking
FirstMove
FirstMove fills a distinct gap: attendee-to-attendee networking at live events, without requiring organiser deployment. Available as a free consumer app (iOS and Android), with a business tier for organisers who want venue analytics.
Core offering for UK organisers:
- Attendees can download and use FirstMove at your event without you having to do anything
- FirstMove Business gives you venue flow analytics, engagement heatmaps, and attendee interaction insights
- Privacy-first architecture aligns with UK GDPR expectations — ephemeral profiles, data minimisation
- No enterprise contract required — accessible for events of all sizes
FirstMove Business is available at firstmove.live/business.
UK GDPR Considerations
For UK organisers, data protection is an operational reality. Any platform that collects attendee data creates compliance obligations. Key questions to ask of any event platform:
- What attendee data is collected?
- How long is it retained?
- What is the legal basis for processing?
- Does the platform have adequate safeguards for UK data transfers?
FirstMove's ephemeral profile model is explicitly designed to minimise data retention. Event profiles expire after the event ends, reducing the ongoing compliance burden for both organisers and attendees.
This doesn't mean other platforms are non-compliant — enterprise platforms like Bizzabo and Cvent invest significantly in compliance infrastructure. But for smaller UK organisers without dedicated legal/compliance teams, simpler data architecture means simpler compliance.
Comparison Table for UK Organisers
Platform | Type | Best event size | UK GDPR-friendly | Cost model
Bizzabo | Enterprise event management | Large | Yes (enterprise) | Custom enterprise
Cvent | Enterprise event management | Large | Yes (enterprise) | Custom enterprise
Whova | Conference management + networking | Medium-large | Standard | Per-event/platform
Brella | Conference matchmaking | Medium-large | Standard | Per-event
Grip | Trade show networking | Large | Standard | Custom
**FirstMove Business** | **Attendee networking + analytics** | **Any size** | **Privacy-first** | **Accessible tiers**
Eventbrite | Ticketing + discovery | Any size | Standard | Per-ticket fee
Ticket Tailor | Ticketing | Small-medium | Standard | Monthly/per-ticket
Dice | Music/culture ticketing | Small-large | Standard | Per-ticket
Recommendations by Event Type
Large professional conference: Whova or Brella for networking; Eventbrite or direct ticketing; analytics via FirstMove Business if you want venue flow data.
Trade show or exhibition: Grip for exhibitor networking; enterprise management via Bizzabo or Cvent if scale warrants.
Festival or large social event: Eventbrite or Dice for ticketing; FirstMove for attendee networking; FirstMove Business for venue analytics.
Community or grassroots event: Ticket Tailor for low-fee ticketing; FirstMove for attendee networking (no organiser setup required).
Industry social or professional meetup: Eventbrite for ticketing; FirstMove for in-event networking.
The Gap FirstMove Fills
Most UK event management tools focus on organiser-side infrastructure. The attendee experience — particularly the social connection layer — is often neglected. Attendees arrive, they're checked in, and then they're on their own to navigate a room of strangers.
FirstMove addresses that last-mile problem: once attendees are in the room, how do they actually meet each other? It's a question the event management software category has largely ignored.
Try FirstMove
Download the FirstMove app free, or explore the business platform for event organisers at firstmove.live/business.