How to create an event registration form (+ payment)

Creating a seamless event experience for attendees begins right from the registration process. Whether you’re planning a free or paid event, online registration forms do the heavy lifting of handling data collection from multiple people, so you don’t have to do it manually.

What is an event registration form?

Online event registration forms are tools used by organizers to gather necessary information and preferences of attendees. They are commonly found on event registration pages and event landing pages, where visitors can register for an event at their own time and convenience.

For event planners and organizers, this step of the registration process is crucial as the data will come in handy when aligning the event experience with the profile, expectations, and any specific needs of registrants.

💡Tip: you’ll get a list of attendees from the signups - this is necessary for a seamless event check-in process!

Use this retreat signup form template here.

Event registration online forms are used in event planning to:

• Collect attendees’ information (e.g. name, contact details, job title)
• Manage attendance numbers (for venue planning, logistics, F&B)
• Gather special requirements (i.e. dietary restrictions, allergies, accessibility needs)
• Facilitate event check-in

When someone registers for an event, they’re giving a thumbs up to show up, or giving their contact info in exchange for more event details. It’s a clear sign of interest in your event, so take this chance to leave a good impression!

For paid events, the forms may contain payment capabilities too, either for a deposit, split payments (installments or payment plans), or full payment (e.g. ticket sales for a gig).

💡 Tip: No matter the type of event (or size!), event registration forms help you plan a better event.

Is it the same as an RSVP form?

The terms “RSVP” and “register” are used interchangeably for many events, but in formal event settings, they have distinct meanings:

• An RSVP is arequest for a response from those who are invited. It doesn’t mean a person has to provide detailed information or register at this point. It’s more so that planners can confirm attendance numbers.
• Registering for an event can be seen as a more formal commitment and comes after the RSVP process (if there’s one). It typically involves providing more details, including personal information, making payments (if it’s a paid event), and selecting sessions, seats, or activities.

It’s not just for event organizers, event planners, or professionals. From cozy birthday parties to webinars or music concerts, using online event registration forms or form builders has these benefits:

⏲️ streamlined signup process

🗃️ accurate data collection

✉️ enhanced communications

🏟️ capacity management

Thus freeing up time for planners to focus on other aspects of the event, such as coordinating with vendors and partners, logistical details, enhancing the attendee experience, and designing marketing content.

Types of event registration forms

There are thousands of registration form templates available online, but they can be categorized into two main categories:

1. For guests, participants, or attendees
2. For partners, vendors, co-hosts, or speakers

Common event registration forms:

📃 RSVP form

📃 Event signup form

📃 Attendee registration form

📃 VIP registration form

📃 Conference registration form

📃 Virtual attendee registration form

📃 Speaker registration form

📃 Exhibitor registration form

📃 Sponsorship form

💡 Tip: Get ideas and save time by using one of our registration form templates or event form templates!

Best practices for registration forms

An event registration form is the digital equivalent of an invitation card, so you must set good first impressions. Using form design best practices, you can generate excitement in potential attendees and make them look forward to the event.

Do

✅ Keep the form simple and short

✅ Make it clear what people are signing up for

✅ Incorporate organizer info (i.e., logo, company, or brand)

✅ Display trust symbols (e.g., we use Stripe, a secure payment processor)

✅ Confirm registrations with a ‘Thank You page’ or email

✅ Ensure the form is mobile-friendly

Don’t

❌ Copy online registration form templates without customizing them to your needs

❌ Don’t collect unnecessary info (e.g., attendees’ mailing addresses for an online conference)

❌ Force users to create accounts to sign up for the event

❌ Neglect privacy concerns (e.g., GDPR)

❌ Hide branding or contact information

Steps to creating an event registration form with Checkout Page

We’ll now create two registration forms using Checkout Page. No coding knowledge is required, you can follow the steps as illustrated below.

1. Event registration form (e.g. for RSVP, lead capture, lead generation, free events)
2. Registration form with payment (for paid events, ticket sales, deposits, registration fees)

Step 1: Create a new form

Upon logging in you’ll first see the dashboard. Click on ‘Create Page’ in the top right corner.

💡 Tip: In Checkout Page, forms are also called 'pages'. Depending on the pricing model, a checkout can be used to accept payments, sell subscriptions, and collect customer information (lead capture form).

Step 2: Event name and type of form

On this page, you’ll select the type of event page and pricing.

• Checkout: for paid events, event ticketing, and event merchandise.
• Form: For RSVPs, event signups, or event registration without payment.

💡 Tip: Create payment fields to collect payment (for paid events, ticketed events, deposits, payment plans, and instalments) at step 4

Step 3: Add event description and images

Now we’ll populate the form with details. For the event description, include sufficient info for visitors to work with. Remember that there have to be enough details for visitors to decide if they would like to attend!

You could include:

• Event purpose/goal
• Target audience
• Date and time
• Location
• Schedule or agenda
• Cost, fees, and prices
• Speakers, partners, or co-hosts
• Cancellation or refund policies (or a link to them)

Then upload one or more relevant images to make the form visually appealing. Click ‘Save’ when you’re ready to move on!

💡Tip: Unsplash is a great resource for beautiful, royalty-free images. Just credit the creator if you decide to use any of their work!

Step 4: Add options or ticket types under ‘Variants’

Navigate to the next tab, Variants (circled in orange), to offer options on your form. This corresponds to anything from different ticket tiers (general admission, VIP) to accommodation (room types) or workshop sessions (different times and dates). In this example, we’ll create variants for room types - private rooms with a higher price tag and a shared double room for cheaper.

Click on ‘Settings’ and ‘Layout’ to further customize each option. There's also conditional logic to show or hide certain variants (options) based on another selection.

If your event charges per person (per pax), remember to select 'Multiply price with quantity' so that the final price is reflected correctly!

Another way of using variants here is to collect deposits or partial payment for a paid event, as shown here:

Step 5: Add form fields

If you’ve started with a new form/checkout, then you will have to add additional form fields to collect the necessary data. Examples of common form fields: name, email address, contact number, number of attendees, job title, experience level, accessibility requests, dietary restrictions, etc.

You can access fields from the top navigation bar (circled in orange):

Starting from a template? Edit the fields to suit your needs!

Note: if you offer discounts, toggle “discount code” on. You can create, edit, and track discount codes here (from your dashboard)

Step 6: Design the form's appearance

Now that you’ve added in the necessary form fields and options (variants), we’ll move on to making it look good. Here are some customization ideas for you:

🎨 Show/hide your logo, business name, price

🎨 Change button color

🎨 Change CTA text

The default button says “Submit”, but you can change the CTA. Look under ‘Custom Labels’, and type your new text under the ‘Submit button’.

🎨 Show trust symbols

Showing the ‘Powered by Stripe’ icon will help with reassuring visitors as they make online payments

🎨 Custom CSS

Useful for those with additional branding requirements

Final step: preview and publish

The form is ready, so let's quickly check how it looks right now. Click on 'Preview as' and see how it will appear to your customers. Then share your form link on social media, leverage email marketing, or embed the form directly on your website!

💡 tip: the form can be shared directly with attendees as a standalone link (event registration link)

This is what our event registration form template looks like now:

🎉 Registration or RSVP form (use this template here) ↓:

🎉💳 Event registration form with payment field (use this template here) ↓:

💡Tip: remember to test payments!

Check out more registration form templates here.

Optional: upsells, additional customization & settings

Do you sell merchandise or have an upsell? Use our new one-click upsell feature to increase revenue!

Checkout Page offers additional customization options after someone submits their RSVP, registration form, or payment. You may choose to customize the confirmation email, or connect to your CRM or other software using the Zapier integration.The default email notification will get sent to registrants otherwise.

Credits for the photos used in the registration form templates:

Sam Wermut, Cody McLain & Jared Rice on Unsplash