New · Reserved seating
Hold seats for your friends. They pay for their own.
Hold for a Friend lets a buyer keep the seats beside theirs for their group, then share one link. Each friend picks a held seat and pays for it themselves, so nobody has to pay for the whole group and everyone still sits together.
★ Built into 123 Tix seat maps · You choose how long seats are held · No extra cost
1 linkshared with the whole group
$0paid up front for anyone else’s seat
1 daylongest hold, from 15 minutes: you choose for each event
Autounbought seats go back on sale
Why it matters
Nobody has to pay for the whole group
Groups usually book one of two ways: one person pays for everyone and chases the money afterwards, or everyone books separately and ends up sitting apart. Hold for a Friend avoids both.
Everyone sits together
The seats beside the buyer are held for the group, so friends who book later still sit next to them.
Everyone pays for their own seat
The buyer only pays for their own tickets. Each friend pays for their own seat with their own card, and gets their own tickets and receipt.
More groups book
Groups can book once one person is ready, rather than waiting until everyone can pay. For you that means the whole group buys, not just the one person organising it.
You stay in control
It is off until you switch it on for an event. You choose how long seats are held, and any seat not bought goes back on sale.
Simple for buyers
How it works
1
Pick seats together
The buyer chooses their seats on the map and sets the ones beside them to A friend instead of Me.
2
Pay for their own
They pay only for their own tickets. The friends’ seats are held for the time you set, from 15 minutes to a day.
3
Share one link
Their confirmation and receipt email include the link, ready to copy or share in any group chat.
4
Friends buy their own
Each friend opens the link, sees the seats held for them, takes one and pays for it.
For their friends
Open the link, take a seat, pay
The link opens your event on its seat map with the held seats marked. Friends do not need an account or a code to type in. They choose a held seat, pay for it on your own branded ticketing site, and get their own tickets straight away.
- Only people with the link can take the held seats
- A friend who changes their mind gives the seat back to the group
- Each friend gets their own tickets, receipt and refund
Emails sent for you
The buyer always knows who has bought
Nobody has to keep a list in the group chat. 123 Tix emails the buyer each time a friend buys their seat, reminds them halfway through a longer hold while seats are still waiting, and tells them when the time is up.
- “Sam has bought their seat beside you”
- A reminder with the link to send again
- A note when unbought seats go back on sale
For organisers
Your event, your rules
Turn Hold for a Friend on for an event from its Seat Map page and choose how long seats are held. Everything else runs by itself.
15 minutes
30 minutes
1 hour
3 hours
1 day
Off for any event
Counts towards the order maximum
Seats Manager shows each group’s seats
Questions
Good to know
Who pays for the held seats?
Each friend pays for the seat they take. The buyer pays only for their own tickets and must buy at least one. Held seats count towards the order’s ticket maximum, so one buyer cannot hold a whole section.
What happens if a friend doesn’t buy?
When the time you set is up, every seat nobody has bought goes back on sale by itself, and the buyer gets an email saying so. Their own tickets are not affected.
How long are seats held?
You choose for each event: 15 minutes, 30 minutes, 1 hour, 3 hours or 1 day, counted from when the buyer’s payment goes through. A short hold suits a fast-selling show and a full day suits a gala or a group booking.
Which events can use it?
Reserved seating events on 123 Tix’s own seat maps, booked online. It is off until you switch it on for an event, and it doesn’t change how the box office or kiosk sell.
Does it cost anything extra?
No. Every friend’s ticket is an ordinary booking with the same flat $1 booking fee per paid ticket, paid straight into your Stripe account.
Start selling today
$1 a ticket. Paid before your event.
No percentage of your sales, no setup or monthly fees. Your own white-label ticketing site, with ticket money going straight into your Stripe account.
Card fees are absorbed by the organiser at the 123 Tix rate or their Stripe Connect rate.
Scroll to Top