Sophia Michaels
Ticketmaster’s Verified Fan program can be a bit of a mystery, and it’s been causing headaches for fans ever since it was introduced in late 2016. If you’ve tried to get tickets to attend tours for artists like Taylor Swift, Harry Styles, BTS, Beyoncé, and more, you’re probably at least a little familiar with how it works. Ticketmaster asks you to preregister with your information and what shows you’re seeking tickets for. Then, before tickets go on sale, it lets you know if you’ve been verified and if you’re getting a presale code.
The program is supposed to keep out bots and scalpers, but many real fans have expressed concern that they haven’t gotten codes or tickets. After Swift announced new 2024 dates for her Eras Tour on Aug. 3, one Twitter user tweeted, “@Ticketmaster is really bold for making us go through a second round of verified fans for Taylor swift AND STILL HAVE THE AUDACITY TO PUT US IN A WAIT ROOM TO REGISTER TO MAYBE GET TICKETS.”
Back in 2017, POPSUGAR spoke to David Marcus, a Ticketmaster executive vice president, about how the Verified Fan system works. He said the program had been a success. “For big events, more than 30 percent of tickets might end up being resold,” Marcus said. “But with [Harry Styles’s 2017] tour, we saw less than five percent of tickets being resold for the shows, and that’s a huge improvement.”
When Ticketmaster verifies someone as a fan, they receive a text message with a code to buy tickets, which is the main way to buy tickets right from Ticketmaster. But Marcus said there are things fans can do that might signal to the algorithm that they’re actually not fans, but scalpers. One red flag, he said, was putting in for every date on a tour.
“Registering for every show is not something a normal fan would do. That’s something a bot or reseller would do because they want to get as many tickets as possible to resell,” he said. “We’re looking at who is most likely to use the tickets and not resell them.” Of course, that’s not taking into account that many people do like to see their favorite artists in multiple cities.
In 2017, Swift tried a twist on the Verified Fan system for her “Reputation” tour. To get a “boost” in the process, fans could watch videos, listen to music, and buy merchandise. “Taylor knows how engaged her fans are, so she thought this would be a good way for the dedicated fans to be rewarded,” Marcus said. But Swift didn’t bring back the system for her canceled “Lover” Fest or her Eras Tour.
How to Become a Verified Fan on Ticketmaster
Every artist has their own unique Ticketmaster Verified Fan page for their tour. It will make you sign into your Ticketmaster account. On the next page, enter your information and which shows you’re interested in tickets to. Often, it will limit the number of shows you can select. Submit the form. You can only register once per account, but you can go back and edit your registration. Ticketmaster will let you know before tickets go on sale if you’ve been selected and will text you a code. Ticketmaster’s website says it will send the codes the night before. Getting a code does not guarantee you’ll receive tickets.
The Verified Fan presale code will only work with the account that registered for it. If someone else buys tickets for you, they can transfer them to your account after. Sometimes tours have other presales that aren’t Verified Fan that you can access for another chance at tickets. Sometimes you will be placed on a Verified Fan waitlist, which means that if there are still tickets available, you will be given a code and a chance to purchase.
