The Host vs. Salesforce Event Management Tools

How The Host event management compares against native AppExchange apps and off-platform tools that integrate with Salesforce.
Native = built on the Salesforce platform (your data, your security model, no middleware).
Integrated = a separate system synced to Salesforce via API, connector, or Zapier.

● Full support ◐ Partial / limited ○ Not available

Capability	The Host Native	Blackthorn Native	Fonteva Native	AC Events Native	SF Labs Events Native	Cvent Integrated	Splash Integrated	RegFox Integrated (Zapier)
Platform & Cost
Pricing	Free on AppExchange	Customcontact sales	$175+/moannual	Free / paid tiers	Free	~$19K+/yr	Custom enterprise	$0.99 + 1%per registrant
Runs natively on Salesforce	●	●	●	●	●	○	○	○
Data lives in your CRM (no sync)	●	●	●	●	●	○	◐ bidirectional sync	○ one-way via Zapier
Inherits org security model	●	●	●	●	●	○	○	○
AppExchange Security Review	●	●	●	●	●	◐ connector only	◐ connector only	○
Scale & Simplicity
Simple event in under 60 seconds	●	◐	◐	◐	◐	○	●	●
Progressive disclosurecomplexity only when you enable it	●	○	○	○	○	○	○	○
Multi-day conference	●	◐	●	◐	○	●	◐	○
Multi-site / multi-venue	●	○	◐	○	○	●	○	○
Registration & Ticketing
Online registration & ticketing	●	●	●	●	◐	●	●	●
Native payment processing	● Stripe Connect	●	● 100+ gateways	○	○	●	●	●
Waitlist with priority promotion	● VIP / sponsor / early-bird	◐	●	○	○	●	◐	○
Dietary / accessibility requests	● aggregated catering reports	○	◐	○	○	◐	○	◐
Conference Features
Call-for-speakers / CFP workflow	● blind review + scoring	○	◐	○	○	●	○	○
Multi-track agenda builder	● conflict detection	◐	●	◐	○	●	○	○
Vendor / exhibitor management	●	◐	●	○	○	●	○	○
Booth rental & exhibit hallfloor map, pricing, add-ons	●	○	◐	○	○	●	○	○
Sponsor tiers & fulfillment tracking	●	◐	●	○	○	●	◐	○
Volunteer management	● shifts + hours	○	○	○	○	◐	○	○
Paid staff / crew management	●	○	○	○	○	◐	○	○
On-Site & Engagement
Badge design & on-site printing	● any printer, browser-based	◐	●	○	○	●	◐	○
Kiosk self check-in (with offline mode)	●	◐	◐	○	○	●	◐	○
Session attendance via badge scan	●	◐	◐	○	○	●	○	○
Hybrid / virtual (Zoom, Teams, Webex)	●	◐	●	◐	○	●	◐	○
Real-time command center dashboard	●	○	◐	○	○	◐	○	○
AI & Salesforce Ecosystem
Agentforce AI agents	● attendee, organizer, volunteer	◐ announced	◐ via SF AI	○	○	○	○	○
Data Cloud integration	● unified profiles + scoring	○	○	○	○	○	○	○
Marketing Cloud journeys	●	○	◐	◐	○	◐	◐	○
Experience Cloud portals	● 5 LWR portals	◐	●	●	○	○	○	○
Native Salesforce reports on event data	●	●	●	●	●	◐ synced data only	◐ synced data only	◐ synced data only

Comparison compiled April 2026 from vendor websites, AppExchange listings, and public reviews (G2, Capterra). Integrated tools (Cvent, Splash, RegFox) store event data in their own systems and sync to Salesforce via connector or Zapier; capability ratings reflect the product itself, while “native reports” and “data in CRM” rows reflect what survives the sync. Feature sets and pricing change frequently — verify current details with each vendor.

Why The Host wins: It’s the only option that scales from a 20-person meetup to a multi-day, multi-site conference on one native platform — with booth rental, volunteers, staff, Agentforce, and Data Cloud built in — and it’s free on the AppExchange. Native rivals match pieces; integrated rivals match features but leave your data outside the CRM.