When to buy tickets
How the lowest listed resale price moved before 1,575 US shows that took place between 11 August 2026 and 9 October 2026.
21 days before the show, the lowest price was typically 13.4% higher than on show day. A week before: +6.9%. The day before: 0%.
Change in the lowest price, against show day
Median across shows. Above 0% it cost more that far out than on the day; below 0%, less.
Day by day
| Before the show | Median vs show day | Middle half | Cheaper then | Dearer then | Shows |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 days before | +13.4% | −9.5% to +62.5% | 32% | 62% | 135 |
| 14 days before | +11.7% | −10.3% to +53.4% | 35% | 59% | 532 |
| 10 days before | +9.9% | −10.9% to +57% | 34% | 59% | 809 |
| 7 days before | +6.9% | −12.6% to +50.3% | 37% | 55% | 1,048 |
| 5 days before | +4.6% | −11.6% to +46.7% | 36% | 54% | 1,142 |
| 3 days before | +2.7% | −13.3% to +37.2% | 38% | 52% | 1,373 |
| 2 days before | +1.2% | −13.5% to +30.7% | 38% | 50% | 1,476 |
| 1 day before | 0% | −11.5% to +23.6% | 40% | 47% | 1,548 |
By category
| Segment | 14 days | 7 days | 1 day | Shows |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Concerts | +22.2% | +16.6% | +3.1% | 691 |
| Sport | +17.8% | +4.7% | 0% | 589 |
| Theatre | −8.6% | −11.1% | −4% | 272 |
By venue size
| Segment | 14 days | 7 days | 1 day | Shows |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3,000 to 14,999 capacity | — | +23.5% | +4.6% | 68 |
| 15,000 capacity and over | +18.1% | +12% | 0% | 566 |
Methodology
- The data is StubHub resale listings only. It is the lowest listed price we recorded for each show, not face value, and not what tickets actually sold for.
- We record a show's lowest listed price whenever it changes. The price on a day is the last one recorded by the end of that day; show day is the price at the end of the day of the show.
- Each figure is the median, across shows, of that show's own change between that many days before and show day. A show counts only at the points where we hold a price at both ends; a point is shown once 30 shows have one.
- "Cheaper then" and "Dearer then" count shows whose price that far out was at least 1% below or above their show-day price. Changes beyond four times or a quarter of the show-day price are treated as data errors and left out.
- US shows that took place in the 60 days to 9 October 2026. UK football fixtures whose tickets may not be resold are left out.
- Venue size is the venue's listed capacity; shows at venues with no listed capacity count in the totals but in no size band.
Source and download
Source: NeedATicket, "When to buy tickets", https://needaticket.net/data/when-to-buy, updated 10 October 2026.
Download the aggregates (CSV) — percentages and counts for every offset, category and venue size; no prices, listings or event identifiers.
Today's figures across every tracked show: Resale Price Index.