Bigtent

Bigtent

Bigtent is an open-source alternative to Meetup groups and event management platforms. It allows admins to create community event pages with RSVPs, discuss topics in forums, and build mailing lists. The focus is on enabling in-person connections.
events rsvp mailing-lists forums meetups

Bigtent: Open-Source Event Management Platform

An open-source alternative to Meetup groups and event management platforms, Bigtent enables admins to create community event pages with RSVPs, forums for discussion, and mailing lists, focusing on in-person connections.

What is Bigtent?

Bigtent is an open-source web application that serves as an alternative to Meetup groups or other proprietary event management platforms. It aims to empower community leaders to foster in-person connections by providing tools to organize events, facilitate discussions, and grow mailing lists.

Some key features of Bigtent include:

  • Creating community pages with custom URLs
  • Scheduling events with RSVPs
  • Building mailing lists and sending newsletters
  • Enabling forum-style conversations
  • Tracking participation and membership analytics
  • Customizing layouts and design
  • Integration with payment processors
  • Open API for extensions and connected apps

As an open-source platform built with Ruby on Rails, Bigtent gives admins full control and ownership over their communities' data. There are no advertisements or monetization schemes enforced. This allows Bigtent to stay focused on serving group organizers' needs rather than corporate interests.

The software is free to install on one's own server, or low-cost plans are available through the Bigtent Foundation that supports development. Overall, Bigtent aims to provide similar utilities as proprietary players like Meetup and Eventbrite while prioritizing transparency, privacy, and putting control into local organizers' hands.

Bigtent Features

Features

  1. Allows admins to create community event pages with RSVPs
  2. Enables discussion in forums
  3. Builds mailing lists
  4. Focuses on enabling in-person connections

Pricing

  • Open Source

Pros

Open source

Free to use

Good for building local communities

More customizable than Meetup

Cons

Limited integrations compared to Meetup

Less user friendly interface

Smaller user base than Meetup


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