Best exhibitor management software for trade shows
Seven platforms compared on how they get exhibitors from signed contract to show-ready: portals, onboarding tasks, staff, payments and leads.
Exhibitor management software gives each exhibitor a portal for their profile, staff, deadlines and payments, and gives the organizer one view of who is behind. Map D connects that portal to booth sales and the floor plan with published per-event pricing; MapYourShow suits very large established shows; A2Z Events suits associations on Momentive Software; Cvent suits enterprise meeting programmes; and PheedLoop sells the pieces as modules.
Written by Map D. Map D is ranked first on this list and also publishes it, which is a conflict of interest — read it with that in mind. Claims about other platforms are limited to what those companies publish on their own sites, and each is sourced at the foot of the page. Last verified October 2026.
Published, per event
Most vendors here
Adding organizers or exhibitors does not change the plan price.
Trusted by leading associations
How this list is ranked
- Weighted for organizers whose exhibitors buy space from them: whether the portal, onboarding deadlines and staff registration connect to the booth they bought and the floor plan it sits on.
- Self-service counts heavily. Every task an exhibitor can complete in a portal is an email the organizer does not have to chase.
- Whether a vendor publishes its rates counts, because it decides whether you can size a budget before entering a sales cycle.
- Map D publishes this list and ranks itself first, which is a conflict of interest. What makes that defensible is the weighting being stated rather than implied — and every entry here, including ours, carries its limitations in the same words and the same styling.
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publish their rates on their own site. The rest route you to a demo or an RFP.
| Vendor | Rates on their site |
|---|---|
| Map D | Published |
| MapYourShow | Quote only |
| A2Z Events | Quote only |
| Cvent | Quote only |
| PheedLoop | Published |
| 3e by EXPOCAD | Quote only |
| ExpoFP | Published |
Publishing a rate does not make a product better. It decides whether you can size a budget before committing to a sales cycle, which is a different and more checkable question than which tool is best.
$1,500
$2,500
$2,750
—
Map D’s rates are per event and listed on the pricing page. The dashed column has no height and no figure on purpose: where rates are not published we will not put a number on them, and where they are published we will not restate one that can change without notice.
| # | Vendor | Best for | Published pricing | Where it is weakest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Map D | Organizers who sell the booths and then have to get every exhibitor show-ready | Yes | The self-service exhibitor portal is on the Scale plan only. Starter and Growth give exhibitors a public profile and marketplace listing, not the portal. |
| 2 | MapYourShow | Large, established trade shows whose exhibitors already use its portal | No — quote or demo | Oriented to large shows with an established exhibitor directory, which can be more platform than a smaller organizer team needs. |
| 3 | A2Z Events | Associations already standardized on the Momentive Software stack | No — quote or demo | The pull is the surrounding Momentive ecosystem. If you do not use the rest of it, that advantage does not apply to you. |
| 4 | Cvent | Enterprise programmes that already run registration and meetings on Cvent | No — quote or demo | Exhibitor management is one module of a large corporate meetings suite, which is a lot of platform if exhibitors are your main business. |
| 5 | PheedLoop | Organizers who want exhibitor applications and only the modules they need, including virtual | Yes | The exhibitor application system and lead retrieval are priced as separate modules, and core pricing is tiered by user count, so the total depends on what you combine. |
| 6 | 3e by EXPOCAD | Shows whose general service contractor already drafts in EXPOCAD | No — quote or demo | The CAD lineage is a real advantage for precise drafting and a real cost if nobody on your team works that way. |
| 7 | ExpoFP | Organizers who mainly need exhibitors to book space and fill in their own listing | Yes | Its home page does not mention registration, badge printing or lead retrieval, so those would run in another system. |
- 1
Map D
Organizers who sell the booths and then have to get every exhibitor show-ready
Strengths
- Exhibitors who buy a booth online are added and invited to their portal automatically once the order is confirmed. Others can be added one at a time or imported, with booth staff and logos imported in bulk.
- An onboarding checklist with tasks for profile details, products, booth personnel, booth assignment, certificate of insurance, document uploads and acknowledgements, each with a due date, optional approval and progress tracking.
- You choose which portal features exhibitors get, such as personnel, services, videos, photos and a contact form, for the whole show or one exhibitor at a time, and can lock the portal when profiles must stop changing.
- The exhibitor portal is on the Scale plan at $2,750 per event, published on the pricing page, with no per-booth or per-exhibitor charge.
Limitations
- The self-service exhibitor portal is on the Scale plan only. Starter and Growth give exhibitors a public profile and marketplace listing, not the portal.
- No CAD drafting or general service contractor workflow. If your contractor runs the floor in EXPOCAD, Map D does not replace that.
- If exhibitors are a small part of a large corporate meetings programme, a suite that already runs the rest of that programme may be the better home for them.
- 2
MapYourShow
Large, established trade shows whose exhibitors already use its portal
Strengths
- The Exhibitor Resource Center gives exhibitors one portal to keep their online listing current, work through a checklist with reminder emails before items are due, and find key event files.
- Exhibitors can view and pay their balance, buy booth space and package upgrades at scheduled times, and buy advertising and sponsorships in the same portal.
- A personalized login for each member of an exhibitor's team, with leads and stats visible in the portal.
- Sits alongside Floor Builder, Booth Sales, MYS Smart Scan, onsite rebooking and exhibitor training.
Limitations
- Rates are not published; the site routes you to a demo.
- Oriented to large shows with an established exhibitor directory, which can be more platform than a smaller organizer team needs.
- 3
A2Z Events
Associations already standardized on the Momentive Software stack
Strengths
- An exhibitor portal it describes as a centralized hub for exhibitor profiles, staff registrations and content management.
- Task creation, progress tracking and automated reminders to keep exhibitors on schedule.
- Digital contracts that exhibitors review, sign and pay online, plus booth assignment, lead capture by badge scanning and a searchable exhibitor directory.
- Lists Momentive Software as a partner brand, which matters if your association already runs on it.
Limitations
- Rates are not published; the site asks you to book a demo.
- The pull is the surrounding Momentive ecosystem. If you do not use the rest of it, that advantage does not apply to you.
- 4
Cvent
Enterprise programmes that already run registration and meetings on Cvent
Strengths
- An Exhibitor Portal where exhibitors complete assigned tasks, such as company profiles and booth staff, with completion reports for organizers.
- Self-serve registration for booth staff.
- LeadCapture for exhibitors to capture, qualify, note and rate leads, plus booth management for the show floor.
- Automated pre- and post-event emails, reminders and access codes.
Limitations
- Rates are not published; the exhibitor management page offers a demo rather than prices.
- Exhibitor management is one module of a large corporate meetings suite, which is a lot of platform if exhibitors are your main business.
- 5
PheedLoop
Organizers who want exhibitor applications and only the modules they need, including virtual
Strengths
- A multi-step exhibitor application where prospective exhibitors apply, choose booths and pay by card, cheque or wire transfer.
- A private portal for each exhibitor, with organizers controlling what exhibitors can see and edit.
- Leads go straight to the exhibitor's portal with notes and ratings, and booth traffic can be tracked for in-person and virtual booths.
- Publishes a detailed rate table on its own site.
Limitations
- The exhibitor application system and lead retrieval are priced as separate modules, and core pricing is tiered by user count, so the total depends on what you combine.
- The exhibitor management product page points you to a pricing form rather than a total for your event.
- 6
3e by EXPOCAD
Shows whose general service contractor already drafts in EXPOCAD
Strengths
- The 3e cloud platform includes an Exhibitor Resource Center and an exhibitor portal with online contracts, invoices, payments and exhibitor badges.
- Exhibit sales and sponsorship sales tools on the same platform.
- Serves general service contractors and venues as well as organizers, with EXPOCAD Contractor for CAD design.
Limitations
- Rates are not published; the site asks you to schedule a demo or submit an RFP.
- The CAD lineage is a real advantage for precise drafting and a real cost if nobody on your team works that way.
- 7
ExpoFP
Organizers who mainly need exhibitors to book space and fill in their own listing
Strengths
- Exhibitors fill in their own logo, description and contacts through a personal auto-login link, and organizers approve the profiles.
- Exhibitors see live availability and can reserve or purchase space by credit card directly on the map.
- An Organizer Portal for changing the floor plan, exhibitors and booths.
- Rates are published on its own pricing page, with a free trial.
Limitations
- Its home page does not mention registration, badge printing or lead retrieval, so those would run in another system.
- Plan tiers are set by booth count, so a larger floor moves you up a tier.
When another tool on this list is the better buy
Named, not hedged. If one of these describes your show, the vendor beside it is the honest answer and Map D is not.
- MapYourShowYour show is large and established, and your exhibitors already use the Exhibitor Resource Center to pay balances and buy advertising, sponsorships and next year's space.
- CventExhibitors are one part of a corporate meetings programme that already runs on Cvent, and keeping them in that system matters more than a specialist portal.
- A2Z EventsYour association already runs on Momentive Software and wants events inside the same stack.
- PheedLoopYou need virtual booths alongside in-person ones, with traffic tracked for both. Map D is built for in-person events.
- 3e by EXPOCADYour general service contractor drafts in EXPOCAD and the contracting workflow already runs through them.
Stop reading about it. Build one.
Upload the floor plan you already have and place your booths on it yourself, in Map D’s editor. Free to build, no contract, and nothing to install.
“I am really excited about this. The staff met with me this morning and we all LOVE the platform. People are already filling out their booths.”
Frequently asked questions
What does exhibitor management software do?
It replaces the spreadsheet and email chain between selling a booth and opening the doors. Exhibitors complete their profile, register booth staff, upload documents such as insurance certificates, buy services and see their orders in a portal, while the organizer tracks who has finished and who needs a reminder.
Which of these publish their pricing?
Three of the seven do. Map D publishes its per-event plans, PheedLoop publishes a detailed rate table, and ExpoFP publishes plan rates set by booth count. MapYourShow, A2Z Events, Cvent and 3e by EXPOCAD route you to a demo or an RFP. This page does not restate anyone else's figures.
Which Map D plan includes the exhibitor portal?
The Scale plan, $2,750 per event. Starter and Growth include exhibitor profiles and the marketplace listing, and Growth adds online booth sales, but the self-service portal with personnel, products, media, live chat and lead generation is on Scale.
Can Map D collect exhibitor insurance certificates?
Yes, if your show includes Insurance. Map D works with Vertical Insure: exhibitors can buy a policy or upload a certificate they already have, and a certificate-of-insurance task can sit in the onboarding checklist.
Map D wrote this list. Is it biased?
Yes, and it is worth being blunt about it. Map D is ranked first on a weighting that favours organizers who sell booths, which is what Map D is built for. The weighting is published above the list, every vendor including Map D lists its limitations, and a section names the vendors that are a better buy and why.
Keep exploring
Related event solutions
Sources
- Map D pricing (plans and add-ons) · checked 2026-10-20
- MapYourShow product site · checked 2026-10-20
- MapYourShow Exhibitor Resource Center · checked 2026-10-20
- A2Z Events product site (lists Momentive Software as partner brand) · checked 2026-10-20
- A2Z Events exhibitor management software · checked 2026-10-20
- Cvent exhibitor management (demo, no rates) · checked 2026-10-20
- PheedLoop exhibitor management product page · checked 2026-10-20
- PheedLoop detailed pricing table (rates published) · checked 2026-10-20
- 3e by EXPOCAD product site (Applied Computer Technology Inc.) · checked 2026-10-20
- ExpoFP product site · checked 2026-10-20
- ExpoFP pricing page (rates published) · checked 2026-10-20
