What Hometown does

Hometown (legal entity Hometown Ticketing Inc.) is a privately held, U.S.-based software company that operates a cloud-based digital platform serving K-12 schools, school districts, universities, and athletic associations. Founded in 2016 in Columbus, Ohio as Easy Peasy Ticketing by co-founders Wesley Haines and Nate, the company rebranded to Hometown and pivoted to the K-12 vertical after its first school customer (Pickerington Central High School) adopted the platform. The company is headquartered in Dublin, Ohio, and has 101-250 employees distributed across the United States.

The platform is built around three core product pillars: Box Office (digital ticketing and event management with season passes, reserved seating, gate scanning, and integrated payment processing), Schoolfundr (fee-free online fundraising where schools keep approximately 97% of donations, with standard credit card processing as the only cost), and Engage (school-branded websites and mobile apps with code-free configuration, launched in 2025). Supporting modules include Schoolfundr+ for district-wide oversight, a Fan App for ticket purchase and digital wallet storage (Apple Wallet, Google Wallet), and a Gate App for on-site scanning with offline capability. The platform integrates with Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Boxout for social graphics, and is built on mobile-first, real-time reporting architecture.

Hometown's business model is freemium: core products are free to schools with no setup, onboarding, or subscription fees. Revenue is generated primarily through credit card processing margins on Schoolfundr donations and optional donor tips, plus implied transactional economics on Box Office ticketing. The company has scaled to 17,000+ schools, reports $1.3 billion in revenue secured for schools through its platforms, and reaches an estimated 6 million students and 50 million community members. Distribution combines a self-serve product-led growth motion with field sales targeting districts and athletic departments, supplemented by partnerships with seven-plus state athletic associations and conference-level deals (Big East, South-West Conference, PSFCA). The company received a growth investment from Nexa Equity in 2022 and grew inorganically through the Ticket Spicket acquisition (2022) and the Schoolfundr merger (2024).

Name

Hometown

Legal name

Hometown Ticketing Inc.

Website

https://hometown.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Hometown is a cloud-based digital platform serving K-12 schools, districts, and universities with free ticketing (Box Office), fee-free fundraising (Schoolfundr), and school-branded websites and apps (Engage), reaching 17,000+ schools and processing $1.3B in transactions for school communities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Dublin

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Transaction/Payment Processing (Schoolfundr): Schoolfundr generates revenue through standard credit card processing fees deducted from donations. Schools keep approximately 97% of funds raised (only standard credit card fees apply). The platform makes money primarily on donor tips.
2. Platform Services (Core Products): Hometown Box Office, Engage, and Schoolfundr are provided free to schools with no setup fees, onboarding fees, or subscription costs. Revenue generation from core platform is minimal or non-existent.
3. Growth Investment: In 2022, Hometown received a growth investment from Nexa Equity to support product innovation, technology upgrades, and acquisitions that broadened the platform's capabilities.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels11 records

Core offering

Hometown operates a free, cloud-based platform for K-12 schools, school districts, and universities that combines digital ticketing and event management (Box Office), fee-free online fundraising (Schoolfundr), and school-branded websites and mobile apps (Engage) into a single ecosystem. The company monetizes through payment processing fees on donations and optional donor tips rather than subscription or platform fees, and serves more than 17,000 schools and organizations across the United States.

Product overview

Hometown is a suite of school-first digital solutions built around three core platforms: Box Office (digital ticketing and event management), Schoolfundr (fee-free online fundraising), and Engage (school-branded websites and mobile apps). These products share a unified backend, allowing schools and districts to manage promotion, ticketing, and donor outreach within a single ecosystem. Schoolfundr+ extends district-wide visibility across fundraising campaigns at no additional cost, while the Fan App and Gate App provide dedicated mobile experiences for event attendees and venue operations staff respectively.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Box Office: Digital ticketing and event management platform for schools offering ticket sales, season passes, gate scanning, and payment processing.
• Schoolfundr
• Schoolfundr+
• Engage
• Hometown Fan App
• Hometown Gate App

Products and services

• Box Office Hometown's digital ticketing and event management platform enabling schools to sell tickets and season passes, manage reserved seating with custom seat maps, process payments, scan attendees at the gate, and access real-time revenue reporting. Designed for K-12 schools, school districts, and universities.
• Schoolfundr Fee-free online fundraising platform that allows schools and student programs to run digital fundraising campaigns without platform fees, contracts, setup fees, or subscription costs. Schools retain approximately 97% of funds raised (only standard credit card processing fees apply), with optional donor tips providing platform revenue.
• Engage Free, code-free school-branded website and mobile app solution that helps schools promote events, share schedules, rosters, scores, news, and live stream content from a single hub, with automatic syncing between website and mobile app and integration with Box Office for ticket purchasing.
• Schoolfundr+ District-level oversight and analytics tool for athletic directors and administrators to monitor, track, and gain visibility into all fundraising campaigns across a school or district at no additional cost. Provides centralized tracking, reporting, and streamlined approval processes.
• Hometown Fan App Mobile application for fans and families to discover events, purchase tickets, store tickets in Apple Wallet or Google Wallet, and manage their event experience on iOS and Android. Supports multi-factor authentication and no-login ticket purchasing.
• Hometown Gate App Mobile application for gate staff and operations teams to scan tickets, sell tickets on-site, process point-of-sale transactions, and manage entry operations at events. Includes offline scanning capability for venues with connectivity issues.

Quantifiable outcome

• $1.3 billion in revenue secured for schools
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature7 records

Partnerships

15 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• SchoolfundrcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Hometown merged with Schoolfundr in 2024, expanding solutions to include powerful fee-free fundraising tools. Schoolfundr's expertise in fundraising and vision aligned closely with Hometown's mission to help schools keep more money.
• Ticket SpicketcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Hometown acquired Ticket Spicket in 2022, expanding ticketing capabilities and broadening geographic presence. This acquisition strengthened Hometown's position in the digital ticketing market for schools.
• MSHAA (Mississippi State High School Activities Association)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerState athletic activities association partnership providing visibility and credibility among member schools.
• CHSAA (Colorado High School Activities Association)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerState athletic activities association partnership providing visibility and credibility among member schools.
• DCSAA (District of Columbia State Athletic Association)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerState athletic activities association partnership providing visibility and credibility among member schools.
• NJSIAA (New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerState athletic activities association partnership providing visibility and credibility among member schools.
• OHSAA (Ohio High School Athletic Association)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerState athletic activities association partnership (notable as Hometown originated in Ohio).
• PIAA (Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerState athletic activities association partnership providing visibility and credibility among member schools.
• IHSAA (Indiana High School Athletic Association)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerState athletic activities association partnership providing visibility and credibility among member schools.
• OSAA (Oregon School Activities Association)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerState athletic activities association partnership providing visibility and credibility among member schools.
• National Junior College Athletic AssociationminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership with NJCAA providing visibility and credibility among junior college athletic programs.
• South-West ConferencecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerSouth-West Conference extended its official fundraising partnership with Schoolfundr, driving over $350K in fundraising dollars. Renewed partnership supporting member schools with fee-free fundraising.
• Big East ConferencecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerBig East Conference extended digital ticketing partnership with Hometown for Olympic sports championships across 11 member schools.
• PSFCA Big 33 Football ClassiccoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPSFCA Big 33 Football Classic selected Hometown as official digital ticketing partner. Box Office powers ticket sales, reserved seating, gate scanning, and payment processing.
• UIL (University Interscholastic League)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with UIL to launch the Impactful Leader Scholarship recognizing graduating senior athletes across Texas who exemplify leadership, resilience, and commitment to teams and communities.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Broad incumbents

• PowerSchool: PowerSchool is the dominant K-12 Student Information System and broader ed-tech platform. While not focused on ticketing/fundraising, it could expand into adjacent school engagement functions that overlap with Hometown's product suite.
• Eventbrite: Eventbrite is a broad ticketing platform for events of all sizes, including some school and athletic events. It competes with Box Office in ticketing but is not specialized for K-12 schools or fundraising.
• Frontline Education: Frontline Education is a leading K-12 administrative software provider covering HR, student management, and school operations. It serves the same school district buyers as Hometown and could expand into engagement/fundraising.

Direct peers

• Bonterra (Network for Good): Bonterra's Network for Good is a nonprofit fundraising and donor management platform serving schools, charities, and community organizations with online giving and event tools comparable to Schoolfundr's offerings.
• Givebutter: Givebutter is a modern fundraising platform with a fee-free, tip-based monetization model very similar to Schoolfundr. It serves schools, nonprofits, and community organizations with digital fundraising campaigns.
• Funraise: Funraise is a nonprofit fundraising platform offering donor management, online giving, event ticketing, and peer-to-peer campaigns. It targets nonprofits, schools, and faith-based organizations competing in the same fundraising SaaS space.
• Classy (GoFundMe Pro): Classy is a leading online fundraising platform for nonprofits and educational institutions, now part of GoFundMe Pro. It offers campaign management, donation processing, and event ticketing features directly competitive with Schoolfundr.
• GoFan: GoFan is the largest direct competitor in K-12 athletic digital ticketing, owned by IMG Arena (Endeavor). It offers cashless ticketing for high school sporting events and serves a similar school customer base to Hometown.
• RallyUp: RallyUp is an online fundraising and event management platform for nonprofits, schools, and community organizations, offering auctions, ticketing, and donation campaigns with features overlapping Box Office and Schoolfundr.
• Bloomerang: Bloomerang combines donor management/CRM with online fundraising tools for nonprofits, schools, and small charities. It offers similar fundraising and donor engagement capabilities to Schoolfundr.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/meethometown
• Facebookfacebook.com/meethometown
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/meethometown
• Instagraminstagram.com/meethometown

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Hometown