Here’s the short version of Luma vs Partiful: Luma is built for community events, meetups, and anything with tickets. Partiful is built for private parties with friends who live in the group chat. Both are free to host a free event. The biggest difference is what your guests have to do. Luma asks for a name and an email. Partiful asks for a phone number and a texted code.
I host a lot of parties. I wrote a whole book about it, The 2-Hour Cocktail Party, and I’ve sent invites on just about every app out there. People ask me “Luma or Partiful?” all the time, and the honest answer is that they solve different problems.
So I went through both companies’ pricing and help pages on October 21, 2026 and pulled out what actually matters to a host: price, free-plan limits, what guests have to do, reminders, and which kind of event each one fits. There’s an Apple Invites vs Partiful section too, since that’s the other matchup people search.
Full disclosure: I own Mixily, so I have a horse in this race. I’ll keep this about Luma and Partiful first.
Quick verdict: Pick Luma for public or ticketed community events, and Partiful for casual parties where every guest is happy to verify a phone number. If you want a free invite your guests can answer with no app, no account, and no ads, Mixily is our pick for small gatherings. Start free on Mixily →
Key takeaways:
- Both Luma and Partiful are free for free events. Luma takes a 5% platform fee on paid tickets unless you pay $59 a month (billed annually) for Luma Plus. Partiful doesn’t publish its ticket fee rate.
- Luma guests register with a name and email, no account needed. Partiful guests must enter a phone number and a texted code, even if you invited them by email.
- Neither app makes guests download anything. Both work in a browser.
- Luma sends reminders 1 day and 1 hour before. Partiful reminds “Going” guests 2 hours before and nudges “Maybe” guests a week out.
- Apple Invites is free for guests, but you need iCloud+ (from $0.99 a month in the US) to create an event.
Luma vs Partiful at a glance
Here’s the side-by-side. I added Apple Invites and Mixily because those are the two other apps people weigh against Partiful.
| Luma | Partiful | Apple Invites | Mixily | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | Meetups, community and ticketed events | Casual parties with friends | iPhone-heavy friend groups | Small private gatherings, dinners, clubs |
| Price to host a free event | $0 | $0 | Needs iCloud+ (from $0.99/mo US) | $0 |
| Paid plan | Luma Plus, $59/mo billed annually | None. Optional premium invite designs | iCloud+ storage plans | Lite $19, Pro $29, Plus $79 per month |
| Ticket fees | 5% platform fee on Free, 0% on Plus (plus Stripe fees) | Varies by event size and ticket price | No ticketing | Built for RSVPs, not tickets |
| Ads | None noted on Luma’s pricing page | None noted in Partiful’s help center | None noted | None, on any plan |
| What guests do to RSVP | Name and email. No account | Name, phone number, texted code | Email and a verification code on the web, or the iPhone app | Answer from the email or link. No account |
| App required for guests | No | No | No | No |
| Guest capacity | Unlimited guests per event | Unlimited by shared link. Up to 1,000 invites sent through Partiful | No limit published by Apple | 40 RSVPs on Free, up to 1,500 on Plus |
| Automatic reminders | 1 day and 1 hour before | 2 hours before (Going), 1 week before (Maybe) | Not documented | Yes |
| RSVP tracking | Guest list, approvals, waitlist, check-in | Guest list, approvals, waitlist, check-in | Going, Maybe, Not Going, approvals | Guest list, custom questions, export |
| Design | Clean themes and cover images | Playful effects, fonts, colors, music | Custom backgrounds, Maps and Weather | Your own photo, colors and details |
Checked October 21, 2026, on luma.com/pricing, help.luma.com, help.partiful.com, support.apple.com and mixily.com. “None noted” means the vendor’s own pages don’t mention ads either way.
Luma vs Partiful pricing: what each one actually costs
Short answer: both are free for a normal free event. The money only shows up when you sell tickets or want extras.
Luma pricing
Luma’s free plan really is generous. Per Luma’s pricing page, you get unlimited events, unlimited guests per event, check-in, Zoom integration, and blasts and reminders by email, SMS, push, and WhatsApp. The limit you’ll actually feel is 500 invites or newsletters per week.
Paid events are where it changes. The free plan takes a 5% platform fee on ticket sales, and Stripe adds its own card fee (typically 2.9% plus 30 cents) on top.
Luma Plus costs $59 a month, billed annually. It drops the platform fee to 0%, raises your sends to 5,000 a week, and adds a custom event URL, Zapier, API access, and a check-in manager role. Luma’s page doesn’t list a month-to-month price.
Quick math: if you sell $1,000 in tickets a month, the 5% fee is $50. Plus costs $59. So Plus only pays off once you’re selling well over $1,000 a month in tickets. We break down “is Luma free?” in more detail in our Evite vs Luma comparison.
Partiful pricing
Partiful’s help center says its “core platform is free to use,” and “it’s free to host or attend a free event.” No subscription. No plan tiers.
Partiful makes money two ways:
- Ticket fees. Partiful doesn’t publish a flat rate. Its help center says fees “depend on your event size and ticket price,” and hosts can absorb them or pass them to guests. Free tickets have no fees.
- Premium invite designs. Optional. Partiful doesn’t list prices for these in its help center, so I won’t guess.
Bottom line on price: for a free birthday party, both cost $0. For a ticketed event, Luma is the one with a published, predictable rate.
What your guests have to do (app or no app)
This is the section that matters most, and it’s the one nobody talks about.
Your guests’ experience decides your RSVP rate. Every extra step between “Oh fun!” and “Yes, I’m coming” loses people. I’ve watched it happen at my own parties.
Luma: a name and an email
Luma’s help center is clear: “Guests don’t need a Luma account or a sign-in to register.” They fill in a name and email on your event page and they’re done. If you add registration questions, they answer those too.
At the door, guests show a QR code from their confirmation email or an Apple or Google Wallet pass. No app needed.
Partiful: a phone number and a texted code
Partiful guests also don’t need the app. They can RSVP in a browser. But here’s the step that trips people up. Per Partiful’s own RSVP guide, guests enter their name and phone number, then type in a code Partiful texts them.
That’s true even when you invite someone by email. Partiful’s help center says guests “will still need to log in with their phone number in order to RSVP, even if they were invited via email.”
For a 26-year-old, that takes four seconds. For your aunt, your boss, or a neighbor who’s never heard of Partiful, a “verify your phone number” screen can look like a scam.
One more thing hosts often miss: Partiful says you “will not be able to see the guest’s phone numbers.” Great for guest privacy. Less great if you host every month and want your own contact list. You can export guest names to a CSV, though.
Match the RSVP step to your least techy guest. If your list includes parents, coworkers, or neighbors, pick a tool where an email is enough.
Send a Partiful link to a mixed crowd and assume everyone will push through the phone verification. The people who quietly give up are the ones you won’t hear from.
Want the easiest possible RSVP for a mixed crowd? That’s the whole reason Mixily exists: guests answer from the email or link, with no account and nothing to install. Start free on Mixily →
RSVP and reminder features, side by side
Both apps cover the basics well: a guest list, guest approval, a waitlist, and check-in. Here’s where they differ.
Automatic reminders
Reminders are the single biggest lever for turnout. I’ve written about the reminder messages that get people to show up, and the timing matters.
- Luma sends reminders 1 day and 1 hour before the event, by email, SMS, and push, on whatever channels each guest has turned on. You can’t edit the wording, but you can turn them off per event or schedule your own Event Blast instead.
- Partiful reminds “Going” guests 2 hours before the event. Guests who said “Maybe” or haven’t answered get a nudge 1 week before. Auto-reminders only go to invited guests with a Partiful account. Guests you invited by email get reminders by email until they RSVP.
Messaging your guests
- Luma: Event Blasts by email, SMS, and push. The free plan allows 500 invites or newsletters a week. Plus raises that to 5,000.
- Partiful: Text Blasts to groups (Going, Maybe, Can’t Go, Invited). You get up to 10 text blasts per event. After that, Partiful suggests posting a comment on the event page instead.
Recurring events
Neither app has true recurring events. Both tell you to clone.
Luma’s clone tool can make up to 30 copies at once, and you can collect them all on a Luma Calendar page. Partiful’s help center says it doesn’t “currently support a recurring events feature,” so you duplicate the event and change the date.
If you run a monthly book club or a weekly run club, Luma’s calendar setup is the better fit of the two.
Community events vs private parties: which one fits
This is really the core of Luma vs Partiful. They’re built for different rooms.
When Luma wins
Luma is built for events you want strangers to find. Public Luma events show on your calendar, can be featured on other calendars, and can be indexed by Google and Bing. You can also send newsletters from your Luma calendar, so one event feeds the next.
That’s why it’s everywhere in tech and startup circles. It fits:
- Meetups, talks, and workshops
- Anything with paid tickets
- Hybrid or online events (it plugs into Zoom)
- Groups that run regular community events and want a following
Luma can do private events too. A private event is unlisted, only people with the link can register, and search engines are asked not to index it. The party.pro team has a solid rundown of Luma tips and things to know if you’re setting one up.
When Partiful wins
Partiful is built for the party itself. Animated effects, custom fonts and colors, music on the event page, a photo roll, and an activity feed where guests comment and hype each other up. It feels like a party poster that talks back.
It fits:
- Birthdays, house parties, and pregames
- Friend groups who already text each other all day
- Hosts who want the invite to be part of the fun
There’s a public side too (Partiful has public events and an Explore page), but its heart is the private friend party. The hands-on Partiful review on party.pro covers the good and the annoying parts.
Use Luma when the goal is to grow an audience, sell tickets, or check in a crowd at the door.
Use Luma for a kid’s birthday or a dinner for eight. It works, but it’ll feel like your guests are registering for a conference.
Apple Invites vs Partiful
Apple Invites is the closest thing to Partiful’s polished feel, so a lot of people compare the two directly.
The big catch is on the host side. Per Apple Support: “To create an event, you must have an iCloud+ subscription.” In the US, iCloud+ starts at $0.99 a month for 50 GB. If you already pay for iCloud storage, Apple Invites costs you nothing extra.
Guests have it easier. Apple says your guests “don’t need iCloud+ or even an Apple Account.” They can RSVP in the iPhone app or on the web at iCloud.com. Without an Apple Account, they enter an email address and a verification code or link. Android friends can RSVP too.
Here’s how Apple Invites vs Partiful shakes out:
- Cost to host: Partiful is free. Apple Invites needs iCloud+.
- Guest verification: Partiful wants a phone number and a texted code. On the web, Apple Invites guests without an Apple Account confirm an email address with a code or link.
- Extras: Apple Invites has shared photo albums, Apple Music playlists, Maps directions, and the day’s weather. Guests without an Apple Account can’t add to the shared album or playlist.
- Hosting without an iPhone: Apple Invites hosts need an Apple Account with iCloud+, using the iPhone app or iCloud.com. Partiful is free to host from a browser.
- Fun factor: Partiful’s effects and activity feed are louder. Apple Invites is calmer and very Apple.
My take: if you already pay for iCloud+ and most of your friends have iPhones, Apple Invites is a lovely, calm alternative. If you don’t, Partiful is free and does more party stuff. We compare Partiful with more options in our Partiful alternatives guide.
The free option guests don’t need an app for: Mixily
Some events don’t fit either bucket. A monthly dinner with your parents’ friends. A book club. A neighborhood potluck. You don’t need tickets or a following, and you don’t want anyone verifying a phone number.
That’s the gap Mixily fills. You make an event page with your own photo, colors, and details, then invite guests by email or share one link. Guests answer from the email or link. No app, no account, no ads.
What you get, per Mixily’s plans page (checked October 21, 2026):
- Free: $0. 2 active events, 50 invites and 40 RSVPs per event.
- Lite: $19 a month. 5 active events, 100 invites and 100 RSVPs per event.
- Pro: $29 a month. 10 active events, 250 invites and 250 RSVPs per event.
- Plus: $79 a month. Unlimited active events, 1,500 invites and 1,500 RSVPs per event.
Mixily also sends automatic reminders, and you can ask custom RSVP questions, poll guests on a date, add co-hosts, and export your guest list.
Where Mixily loses: it’s built for RSVPs, not ticket sales, so Luma is the better tool for paid events. And Partiful’s party-poster animations are flashier. If you want the full head-to-head, read Mixily vs Partiful.
So, Luma or Partiful?
Here’s how I’d pick, based on the event in front of you:
- Startup meetup, workshop, or talk: Luma.
- Anything with paid tickets: Luma. Its fee is published and Plus removes it.
- A 30th birthday with your college friends: Partiful.
- A house party where everyone’s already in the group chat: Partiful.
- iPhone crowd and you already pay for iCloud+: Apple Invites.
- Dinner, book club, or family event with guests of every age: Mixily, so nobody has to verify anything.
Still stuck between platforms? Our pillar comparison of Evite vs Paperless Post and our Evite vs Partiful breakdown cover the classic invitation apps too.
Luma vs Partiful FAQ
Is Luma or Partiful better?
Is Partiful free?
Is Luma free?
Do guests need an app for Luma or Partiful?
Can you RSVP to Partiful without a phone number?
Is Apple Invites better than Partiful?
The bottom line on Luma vs Partiful
Luma is the community and ticketing tool. Partiful is the friend-party tool. Both are free for free events, and neither makes guests download an app. The real difference is the RSVP step: an email for Luma, a phone number and a code for Partiful.
Pick the one that fits your guest list, not just your vibe. And if your guest list is a mix of ages and phones, give them the easiest yes possible. Now go throw the party. Start free on Mixily →
Related reading: Evite vs Luma | Partiful Alternatives: 8 Best Apps Like Partiful | Mixily vs Partiful
