Is Vivid Seats Legit? Here's What Customers Are Saying About the Ticket Resale Platform

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These days, securing tickets to a musical concert, comedy show or sporting event is a challenging task. It can be even more difficult than finding a good parking spot or cheap Uber if you make it to said event. Just take the Taylor Swift "Eras Tour" ticket debacle, for example. Fortunately, ticket resale websites—like Vivid Seats and StubHub—exist for when our luck runs out. 

Although some folks take advantage of ticket resale websites to turn a profit, these websites do come in handy. This especially rings true if you look for tickets right before the event. Of course, it always seems a little risky to purchase resale tickets from a third-party website—especially when you're looking for reliable options.

We can't think of anything worse than walking up to the event gates, only to be told by an usher that your resold ticket is illegitimate or a scam. Some platforms are certainly more reputable than others, but, is Vivid Seats legit? We're exploring the ins and outs of the website—plus, what shoppers say about using Vivid Seats.

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Is Vivid Seats Legit?

Yes, Vivid Seats is a legit ticket resale website. It has verified sellers and over 100 million legitimate tickets sold.

While resold tickets must meet certain standards (for example, tickets must be for a U.S. event and tickets cannot be sold before purchasing them), if something does go awry with your tickets, Vivid Seats has a buyer's guarantee that's intended to settle any issues.

However, according to Consumer Affairs, Vivid Seats has only 1.2 stars out of 5, based on over 1,300 reviews. And out of the over-1,000 reviews on the Better Business Bureau website, there's an average rating of 1.04 out of 5 stars, largely due to shoppers complaining about running into a lot of difficulties receiving refunds from the company.

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Are There Fake Tickets on Vivid Seats?

Per their website, Vivid Seats guarantees there are no fake tickets sold on their platform. They explain that they have an anti-fraud team that verifies tickets are accurate and safely transferred. 

It's important to note with third-party websites that mishaps can occur. If you purchase a fake ticket on Vivid Seats, their buyer's guarantee should protect you and the customer service team should ensure you receive a proper refund.

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How Do I Know if a Ticket Seller Is Legit?

Before Vivid Seats allows sellers to list tickets at all, they are required to go through a vetting process to ensure buyer protection. Their full seller terms are listed on their website. It also outlines prohibited conduct and consequences of term violations.

Additionally, Vivid Seats awards ribbon icons to longstanding sellers who continuously provide exceptional inventory and service, which is a good way to know if a ticket seller is legit.

Related: Fans Accuse Ticketmaster of Scamming Them With Marked-Up Prices

Why Doesn't Vivid Seats Show Seat Numbers?

Since Vivid Seats is a third-party platform, they can only provide so much information. They are not the ones selling you the ticket, but rather the middle person. Since they do not own or generate tickets, Vivid Seats is unable to confirm exact seat numbers.

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Does Vivid Seats Guarantee Seats Together?

Though it may be frustrating to not know your exact seats, Vivid Seats guarantees seats together. As long as all tickets for the reserved seating are purchased within the same transaction, your tickets will be seated side-by-side—unless noted otherwise by the seller.

If the ticket's seats are not side-by-side, it would be indicated in the ticket listing's notes. Listings with notes are marked by a comment box icon, so make sure to fully examine the listing before blindly purchasing.

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What Shoppers Say About Using Vivid Seats

There are fairly mixed reviews about Vivid Seats from shoppers across the board, but remember—Vivid Seats is just the middle person. Here's what shoppers say about using Vivid Seats to purchase tickets.

This Vivid Seats review from @1nertias perfectly explains the process of getting your tickets, as well as discussing her own experiences and sharing more from Reddit users. She also has positive things to say about the improvement of the customer service team in recent years.

Why stress over getting tickets from Ticketmaster when they drop when you can get cheaper resale tickets from Vivid Seats? That being said, shoppers do tend to get stressed about ticket delivery timeliness.

Speaking of ticket delivery timeliness, these two Swifites never received their tickets from Vivid Seats. We're hoping they received a refund.

Another common response to your tickets not getting delivered (and being told by customer service they were) is, obviously, taking a knife to your phone.

We're not sure if @simplysimone got her SZA tickets, but she commented on how tickets listed on Vivid Seats are just as expensive as those sold on Ticketmaster. Ticket prices are up to the sole discretion of ticket sellers.

We definitely agree that $772,664 is a little hefty for Harry Styles concert tickets.

@heathermckird purchased last-minute Taylor Swift tickets for a fair price and had an overall positive experience using Vivid Seats.

Although many shoppers have a positive experience purchasing from Vivid Seats, many are left wondering about the pricey service fees.

Overall, if you're in a pinch, Vivid Seats is legit and a reliable ticket resale website that many shoppers have had a positive experience using—but it's good to read through recent reviews to see what issues come up in case any of them could be a deal-breaker for your situation.

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