Skiddle covers UK clubs, gigs, and festivals with a wider regional footprint than DICE and a focus on dance music and grassroots venues. The trade-offs are booking fees that creep up to 15 percent on smaller events, a wait-list system that fails on hot shows, and zero coverage of the major arena tours that most casual fans actually buy. If any of that pushes you to look elsewhere, the UK event ticketing space has plenty of options. These seven Skiddle alternatives cover arenas, indie events, festivals, and artist alerts so you can pick the right tool for each gig.
Quick comparison
| App | Best for | Free plan | Booking fee | Standout feature |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DICE | Curated indie shows | Free app | Built into price | Face-value resale wait list |
| Ticketmaster | Arenas and stadium tours | Free app | 10-25% typical | Biggest catalogue worldwide |
| Eventbrite | Independent events | Free app | Set by organiser | Self-serve for small promoters |
| Songkick | Concert calendar by artist | Free app | None on app | Aggregates across all sellers |
| Fever | Local nightlife and events | Free app | Built into price | Curated city experiences |
| Fatsoma | UK student club nights | Free app | Booking fee varies | Big in student cities |
| Bandsintown | Artist tour alerts | Free app | None on app | Notifications based on listening |
Why people leave Skiddle
The complaints in Reddit threads and Trustpilot reviews come back to a few specific points.
Booking fees stack up faster than Skiddle’s marketing suggests. The headline ticket price is one thing; the per-ticket booking fee plus the order fee often adds 12 to 18 percent on smaller events. For a couple’s pair of £10 club tickets, that can mean £4 in extras.
The wait list for sold-out shows works in theory but routinely fails on high-demand club nights. When DICE drops tickets to the wait list at face value, Skiddle’s version often goes silent for hours and the inventory ends up reabsorbed by the venue.
Search is weak for partial names. “Hideout 2026” finds the festival fine. “Hideout” alone surfaces unrelated club nights. The recommendation engine has not had a meaningful refresh in years.
Major arena tours are mostly absent. Skiddle has good coverage of small to mid-cap venues but limited deals with the big promoters who route their tours through Ticketmaster or AXS.
The alternatives
1. DICE — best for curated independent gigs
DICE built its reputation on no hidden fees, face-value resale through a wait list that works, and a curated catalogue that filters out the worst-quality club nights. The app skews toward London, Manchester, Bristol, and the European cities, and the inventory is heavily indie, electronic, and emerging artists.
The trade-off is a narrower catalogue than Skiddle for regional UK shows and a no-screenshot ticket policy that some users find restrictive.
Pricing. Free app. Fees rolled into headline price.
Migrating from Skiddle. Search venue or artist by name. Most major UK independent venues list on both apps; DICE often has the same show with cleaner pricing.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play · App Store
Bottom line. Pick DICE if you go to indie and electronic shows in major cities and care about transparent pricing.
2. Ticketmaster — best for arenas and stadiums
Ticketmaster is where the big tours live. Stadium acts, arena shows, and most major UK and international festivals route through Ticketmaster as the primary seller. The catalogue is unmatched; the fees are the worst.
For tours that Skiddle simply does not carry, Ticketmaster is usually the only legitimate option.
Pricing. Free app. Booking fees 10 to 25 percent plus a flat order fee.
Migrating from Skiddle. No transfer. Search tour by artist name and buy in-app. Account is separate.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play · App Store
Bottom line. Pick Ticketmaster when Skiddle does not have the tour, which is most arena and stadium shows.
3. Eventbrite — best for independent events
Eventbrite is the platform of choice for small promoters, classes, workshops, conferences, comedy nights, and one-off independent festivals. The catalogue covers events Skiddle does not bother indexing and the checkout is fast.
Fees vary because organisers set their own pricing, with some absorbing costs into the ticket price and others passing them through.
Pricing. Free app. Fees per event.
Migrating from Skiddle. Search event name. Most independent UK festivals and one-off events list on both platforms, often with different fee structures.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play · App Store
Bottom line. Pick Eventbrite for community events and conferences that fall outside Skiddle’s dance and gig focus.
4. Songkick — best concert calendar
Songkick aggregates tour announcements across all major ticket sellers and turns them into a personal concert calendar. Track an artist and Songkick adds every tour date to your feed with a link to whichever ticket platform sold the show.
The app is free with no booking fees of its own. Useful as a planning layer that sits above Skiddle, DICE, and Ticketmaster rather than replacing any of them.
Pricing. Free.
Migrating from Skiddle. Import Spotify or Apple Music listening history. Songkick auto-tracks based on what you actually play.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play · App Store
Bottom line. Pick Songkick as your concert planning layer; let it route you to Skiddle, DICE, or Ticketmaster per event.
5. Fever — best for city nightlife discovery
Fever curates local listings of nightlife, candlelight concerts, immersive experiences, dinners, and one-off events. The catalogue overlaps with Skiddle on the clubbing side but adds the experiential and food sides Skiddle ignores.
Booking fees are built into the headline price.
Pricing. Free app. Fees included in ticket price.
Migrating from Skiddle. Not a direct swap. Use Fever for variety, Skiddle for dedicated gig and club nights.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play · App Store
Bottom line. Pick Fever to discover nightlife and experiences beyond the standard UK gig circuit.
6. Fatsoma — best for UK student club nights
Fatsoma is the dedicated app for UK student-focused club nights in cities like Leeds, Manchester, Nottingham, Sheffield, Newcastle, and Liverpool. The catalogue is deep on freshers events, wristband promotions, and student union nights that Skiddle covers patchily.
Fees vary by event, generally comparable to Skiddle.
Pricing. Free app. Booking fee varies.
Migrating from Skiddle. Search venue by name. Most student venues run their tickets through Fatsoma exclusively or as a primary, with Skiddle as secondary.
Download: Google Play · App Store
Bottom line. Pick Fatsoma if you live in a UK student city and the club nights you go to run through it.
7. Bandsintown — best for artist alerts
Bandsintown is built around notifications. Connect Spotify or Apple Music, and Bandsintown alerts you the moment a tracked artist announces a date within a radius you set. The actual ticket sale happens via whichever seller the artist chose, so the inventory is broader than any single platform.
The app is free with no fees of its own.
Pricing. Free.
Migrating from Skiddle. Import Spotify in 30 seconds. Past Skiddle purchases do not transfer.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play · App Store
Bottom line. Pick Bandsintown so you never miss the moment an artist announces a UK date.
How to choose
Pick DICE for curated indie and electronic shows in big cities.
Pick Ticketmaster for arenas, stadiums, and major festivals.
Pick Eventbrite for community events, conferences, and small independent festivals.
Pick Songkick as your concert calendar across all sellers.
Pick Fever to discover city nightlife and experiences outside the gig circuit.
Pick Fatsoma for UK student club nights.
Pick Bandsintown for instant tour alerts based on your listening.
Stay on Skiddle if you go to a wide range of regional UK club nights and small to mid-cap gigs and need the broadest single catalogue. No alternative covers the UK underground as widely.
FAQ
Does Skiddle have a booking fee? Yes. Skiddle adds a per-ticket booking fee and a per-order fee. Combined, these typically add 10 to 18 percent to the headline price.
Is DICE cheaper than Skiddle? On the same show, DICE is usually about 5 to 10 percent cheaper because most fees are built into the headline price rather than added at checkout. Compare the same event on both before buying.
Which ticket app is best for UK festivals? For major festivals, check Ticketmaster, See Tickets, and the official festival app. Skiddle covers smaller and grassroots festivals best. Eventbrite hosts a stream of indie one-day festivals.
Can I get a Skiddle refund? Skiddle’s refund policy follows the event organiser’s terms. Most non-cancelled events are non-refundable, though you can offer the ticket on the in-app resale if the organiser enabled it.
What replaced Festicket? Festicket closed in 2023. Most festivals it sold now route tickets through Skiddle, Eventbrite, See Tickets, or their own dedicated apps.
Does Bandsintown sell tickets? No. Bandsintown is an alerts and discovery app. The actual ticket purchase happens via whichever seller the artist or venue chose, with Bandsintown linking out.
