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10 Best Event Management Software for Hotels in 2025

Jordan Hollander

| Last updated August 06, 2024

30 PRODUCTS REVIEWED

544 HOTELIERS SURVEYED

Rankings

Features

Pricing

Q&A

We’ve surveyed 544 hoteliers across more than 34 countries to understand which are the best Event Management Software vendors, along with everything you need to know in order to buy the right Event Management Software for your hotel (including our 2025 Event Management Software Guide). We also aggregate key decision criteria data including integration availability, partner ecosystem, expert recommendations and more (learn more about HTR’s ranking methodology).

FREE TOOL

Let us find the right Event Management Software for you

Tell us about your hotel’s location, room count, integrations and requirements and we’ll send a free custom list of recommended vendors.

FEATURES

Most Important Features of Event Management Software

Bookings calendar: The calendar organizes upcoming events (and all of their details) into an easy-to-read format, which contains information like the assigned sales manager, the space, the chosen menu, parking requirements, A/V needs, and more.
Client database: Like a digital Rolodex, a client database holds contact information like email address and phone number, company or organization, payment methods, and event history.
Banquet event orders: A good event management system lets you create BEOs with just a few clicks. Upload all of your menus and pricing once, and you can easily configure BEOs based on the guest count and menu selections for any given event.
Task management: Tasks and traces help you prevent details from falling through the cracks. These reminders can trigger according to a preset workflow (like a reminder to distribute BEOs 3 days before every event) or ad hoc (like a reminder to pick up the ice sculpture for a wedding reception).
Customer relationship management: Build and nurture relationships with current and potential clients with your event management system’s CRM module. You can build email campaigns that advertise special offers, share news and updates, or send holiday wishes so that your venue is always top of mind.
Payment processor: Seamlessly charge credit cards with an integrated payment processor.
Documents and contracts: Quickly create branded documents like menus and contracts with the ability to send contracts out for signature electronically.
Reporting: Gain a deeper understanding of your revenue performance with the event management system’s analytics module and automate tasks like compiling and sending reports.
Integrations: Connect your event management system to your hotel’s property management system, payment processor, or customer relationship management system for a seamless flow of data between departments.

PRICING

How much does event management software cost?

Event management systems usually come with a monthly fee, and the fee varies based on the functionality you need and the scale of your business. Note that before you’re ready to commit, it’s a good idea to do a demo or sign up for a free trial so you are confident you’re choosing the right system. A basic event management system for a small venue can cost around $100 per month, and a more robust system that can support multiple users and several locations will cost a few hundred dollars per month. Enterprise-level systems often charge a setup or implementation fee, while basic systems do not. If the system has an integrated payment processor, you’ll also need to pay a payment processing fee, which is usually around 2% of funds processed.

IMPLEMENTATION

What is the process like to implement new event management software?

The setup process for an event management system can be as quick as one day or, for more complex venues with a lot of history, it can take a couple of weeks. The biggest task in the implementation process is to input the details about your function rooms, menus, pricing, contracts, and other materials used in the sales process. If you’re migrating from an existing system, some event management systems offer support for data transfers (for a fee) which can greatly speed up the process. Otherwise, you’ll be building menus and uploading contracts manually. If you’ve been operating your venue for a while, you’ll also want to upload your client database so you retain access to contact information and history.

Once all of your data is in the system, you can train your staff and incorporate the event management system into your daily processes. One best practice before going fully live is to book a test event: go through all the steps, from sending a contract to printing the BEOs, to confirm that everything works the way you expect it to. The last thing you want is to use a real event as your guinea pig!

FAQs

Hoteliers Also Ask

What success metrics (KPIs) should you focus on?

Sales revenue: An event management system should help your team book more events and pull them off more successfully, so you should see revenue growth after implementing one. Tracking your sales revenue, especially year-over-year, will help you determine the impact of this technology partner. Client satisfaction: Sending surveys after your events is a great way to collect client satisfaction data, and you can monitor this data to spot trends and determine if your current processes are working. Ideally, client satisfaction will increase after you implement an event management system.

What is an event management system?

An event management system is a software application with all the tools necessary for events professionals to sell, contract, plan, and execute a function. Key features include a booking calendar, task management, payment processing, and banquet event order creation.

What is EMS event management?

In the events industry, EMS is an abbreviation for Event Management System, which is software that sales and catering managers use to plan events and coordinate activities among the team executing the event.

What are the 7 P's of event management?

The 7 P’s is a framework to use when planning an event with as much value to the attendees as possible. The 7 P’s are Purpose (why does the event exist?), Place (where will you meet?), Partners (who will help you pull it off?), Plan (how will you pull it off?), Practice (ensuring everything runs smoothly), Promote (securing attendance), and Post-Show (thanking attendees and continuing to nurture relationships after the event ends).

What type of software applications are used in the event management business?

In addition to an event management system, which is the most comprehensive type of software in the events business, sales managers might also use catering management software and project management apps. Catering managers or meeting planners might also leverage registration software, fundraising apps, and platforms for attendee engagement (like polling apps) when executing events.