Planning and managing events requires tools that can handle many moving parts. From registration and websites to check-ins and data tracking, event organizers depend on platforms that help coordinate these tasks efficiently.
Swoogo and Cvent are two well-known platforms used by organizations to manage events. While both serve similar purposes, they differ in how they approach event planning and what types of users they often support. Accelevents emerges as a strong alternative, intentionally built to deliver a seamless experience with a single, unified data model. This ensures consistency for event organizers, attendees, exhibitors, and speakers, and makes the platform particularly easy to use, highly customizable, and reliable.
This comparison explores how each platform is positioned in the market, what types of events they typically support, and what features define their core focus in 2025, while highlighting where Accelevents can benefit enterprises and associations seeking a balanced, all-in-one event management solution.
Swoogo vs Cvent vs Accelevents: Company Overview
Swoogo was founded in 2015 and has focused on ease of deployment and customization for teams managing multiple events. Cvent, established in 1999, has grown largely by acquisitions, which reviews often note leads to modules that aren’t fully integrated. Becoming an expert in Cvent often requires certification courses due to its system complexity and depth of features.
Accelevents stands apart by being intentionally built from the ground up with a single, consistent data model, creating a seamless experience for all users. Its platform is recognized for its ease of use, flexibility, and a support team that responds in less than 21 seconds, 24/7. This approach eliminates the integration challenges found in platforms grown through acquisitions and enables rapid onboarding for event organizers of any size.
Market Position: Cvent is a legacy enterprise platform grown through acquisitions; Swoogo is a newer mid-market solution; Accelevents bridges complex enterprise features and ease of use, delivering a balanced, highly customizable, all-in-one event solution.
Core Focus: Cvent is preferred for large-scale, complex logistics; Swoogo emphasizes rapid deployment; Accelevents delivers seamless workflows and consistent data across all event components.
Typical Users: Cvent is favored by large corporations and associations; Swoogo is chosen by marketing teams, agencies, and mid-sized organizations; Accelevents supports enterprises, associations, agencies, and nonprofits with an all-in-one platform.
Registration & Ticket Tools Comparison
Registration is the first touchpoint for attendees. User reviews reveal that Swoogo’s registration builder is quick, though some users report confusion with more advanced flows. Cvent’s registration tools are powerful but can be overwhelming, and users mention frustration with setup time and branching logic. Both can handle conditional logic, but Cvent’s depth can make configuring forms time-consuming, often requiring training.
Accelevents offers a highly customizable event registration platform with drag-and-drop tools for event pages, forms, and badges. Organizers can easily create unlimited ticket types, leverage discount codes, and save time with reusable templates. One-click registration forms, seamless payment processing, and conversion tracking are all built in. Ticket bundles enable simplified group registration, and conditional logic supports tailored workflows for any attendee type.
Form Building: Swoogo drag-and-drop; Cvent template-based; Accelevents event website builder for full customization.
Payment Options: Swoogo integrates with major gateways; Cvent offers enterprise payment features; Accelevents provides seamless payment and conversion tracking.
Registration Logic: Swoogo is easier for conditional logic; Cvent is complex but powerful; Accelevents supports drag-and-drop rules and tailored attendee flows.
Branding Options
Swoogo offers significant freedom in branding, while Cvent’s structured templates sometimes limit brand matching—deep customization can require technical know-how. Accelevents delivers full white-label branding across web, mobile, and virtual environments, letting you apply custom themes and remove platform branding entirely, which is especially valued by enterprises and associations.
Design Freedom: Swoogo high; Cvent moderate; Accelevents white-label branding is fully customizable.
Ease of Branding: Swoogo for non-technical users; Cvent may require technical support; Accelevents allows anyone to control look and feel without coding.
On-Site Check-In and Badge Printing
Swoogo supports check-in via standard tablets or laptops, and badge printing with common printers. Cvent provides a proprietary on-site suite with integrated hardware, which may increase setup time and require more staff training.
Accelevents badge printing is natively integrated, supporting mobile app check-in and instant badge creation on standard hardware. The result is quick, seamless deployment and a positive first impression for attendees.
Hardware Requirements: Swoogo standard devices; Cvent proprietary; Accelevents works with standard badge printers and mobile devices.
Setup Complexity: Swoogo quick; Cvent more involved; Accelevents is designed for rapid on-site setup.
Pricing and Packages
Swoogo charges by the number of event administrators, which is predictable for teams running multiple events. Cvent’s per-registration or per-event pricing can escalate quickly for frequent event programs, and reviews note add-on modules may introduce unexpected costs. Accelevents, in contrast, offers transparent, scalable pricing with modules that allow you to pay only for what you need, and no surprise add-ons. This is especially beneficial for organizations scaling event programs over time.
Analytics & Reporting
Swoogo provides basic reporting, but real-time analytics and sharing are somewhat limited, according to users. Cvent’s analytics are more complex and offer more pre-built dashboards, but can be complex to navigate and export.
Accelevents delivers shareable reports, real-time data, and a fully integrated data model across registration, on-site activity, mobile engagement, and virtual participation. This enables instant, actionable insights for event organizers and stakeholders.
Who Chooses Each Platform? Typical Customers?
Cvent is extensively used by large enterprises and associations, but its price and complexity often make it less accessible to smaller organizations or those with fewer resources. Swoogo attracts marketing teams, agencies, and mid-market organizations that need quick deployment and greater design control.
Accelevents is trusted by 1,847 organizations of all sizes, including large enterprises, mid-market corporations, associations, agencies, and nonprofits. Its rapid onboarding, highly customizable tools, and ongoing investment in new features make it a top choice for those seeking an all-in-one solution and strong customer success support.
In-Person, Virtual, and Hybrid Event Capabilities
Swoogo supports hybrid events through its registration flows and video integrations. Cvent features an integrated virtual event hub but may charge additional fees for virtual modules, and reviews sometimes mention technical glitches.
Accelevents, originally built for in-person events, now supports all event types. It features native badge printing, mobile app check-in, and a dedicated Virtual Event Hub with modular features, offering seamless management for in-person, virtual, and hybrid experiences.
Uptime & Reliability
While Swoogo and Cvent are both established in the market, user reviews of Accelevents consistently highlight platform reliability, with no references to outages.
Target Users and Industries
Swoogo is favored by marketing teams, agencies, and mid-market organizations. Cvent is preferred by large enterprises, associations, and those with dedicated event staff or complex event requirements.
Accelevents is suitable for conferences, trade shows, fundraisers, internal meetings, and continuing education events—especially for enterprises, associations, agencies, and nonprofits—providing a solution that scales as event programs grow.
Integrations and API
Swoogo offers an open API and basic integrations with major CRM systems. Cvent supports deep integration but may require additional fees or complex configuration, and some modules use older formats or have separate documentation.
Accelevents provides well-documented REST APIs and webhooks with no fees for access, and no hidden integration charges for native connectors. Connect deeply to Salesforce, HubSpot, Marketo, and association management systems.
Lead Capture and Tracking
For exhibitors and sponsors, Swoogo and Cvent offer lead capture solutions, but Cvent often charges per-exhibitor or per-device fees, and Swoogo’s tools may require third-party devices.
Accelevents includes mobile app lead capture with QR scanning, offline support, unlimited users, real-time reporting, lead scoring, note-taking, and integrated meeting booking—all without restrictive device or user fees.
Call for Papers & Abstract Management
Swoogo and Cvent both provide tools for speaker management, but users report configuration challenges or the need for external systems for complex review processes.
Accelevents offers native workflows for calls for papers, multiple submission paths, auto-assignment for reviewers, and a speaker portal with built-in task management.
Exhibitor Management
Cvent and Swoogo both offer exhibitor portals, but users note limitations in lead tracking, demo booking, or team management features.
Accelevents delivers a comprehensive exhibitor portal for managing digital booths, capturing leads, booking demos, coordinating teams, and tracking ROI.
Support for Continuing Education Credit Tracking
Cvent and Swoogo handle CE credits, but automations may require additional setup or integrations.
Accelevents provides automated credit assignment, a flexible program builder, instant certificate generation, self-service retrieval, audit trails, and LMS integration for continuing education events.
White-Label Branding Options
Cvent and Swoogo allow some branding but may limit full white-labeling or removal of platform branding, particularly on mobile or virtual components.
Accelevents delivers full white-label branding across web, mobile, and virtual environments with customizable themes.
Role-Based Access and Compliance
All three platforms support permission controls, SSO, and compliance, but Cvent’s tools are part of its complex suite, and Swoogo’s controls are less granular.
Accelevents offers custom roles, SSO, MFA, SOC-2 and ISO 27001 compliance, and detailed security audit logging.
Where Accelevents Fits In
Accelevents bridges the gap between platforms focused solely on enterprise complexity and those built for rapid deployment. With a single, unified data model and a highly customizable approach, Accelevents empowers event organizers to deliver seamless experiences for attendees, exhibitors, and speakers. Its support team that responds in less than 21 seconds, 24/7, transparent pricing, and continual platform reinvestment make it a reliable choice for organizations of all sizes.
For those seeking a platform that combines ease of use, rapid onboarding, deep customization, and complex enterprise functionality, Accelevents stands out among event technology solutions.
Request a demo to discover how Accelevents can simplify your event management process.
FAQs About Swoogo vs Cvent
How do the security features compare between Swoogo and Cvent?
Cvent holds several enterprise-grade security certifications, including ISO/IEC 27001 and SOC 2, and offers complex controls for data privacy and compliance. Swoogo follows standard security practices and supports GDPR compliance but does not list the same level of formal certifications as Cvent.
Can both platforms handle on-site registration and walk-ins effectively?
Both platforms support on-site registration and walk-ins using check-in tools and badge printing. Cvent offers a proprietary on-site solution with integrated hardware, while Swoogo uses standard devices and browser-based tools for similar tasks.
Which platform offers better pricing options for multiple events per year?
Swoogo uses a per-user pricing model, which can be more predictable for organizations running multiple events. Cvent often charges per registration or per event, which may result in higher costs as event volume increases.
How do mobile apps compare between Swoogo and Cvent?
Cvent provides a native mobile app with networking, session tracking, and branding options. Swoogo offers mobile access through web-based tools and third-party integrations but does not have a proprietary mobile app with the same depth of features.
