We make Festidy, so we might not be neutral, but we were objective and based the review on facts. How we compared.
Last updated
The short version:
Evite is a long-running invitation site, free to send, with paid Premium upgrades.
Partiful is a free, social invitation app for adults, built around text blasts.
Festidy is free, needs no accounts, and goes past the reply: the headcount sizes your food, shopping and budget.
The facts side by side
Prices and features checked October 2026 on each company's own pages. Sources are below the table.
Swipe the table sideways to see Evite and Partiful.
| Festidy | Evite | Partiful | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to the host | Free, no paid tier | Free to send. Premium $17.99 to $99.99 per event, Pro $249.99 a year [1][2] | Free core. Optional in-app purchases, $1.99 to $9.90 [4][5] |
| Ads | None | Premium lists "No ads!" as a feature [3] | Not mentioned [4] |
| Gift links on the invitation | None unless you add one | Added to free invitations automatically [2] | Not mentioned [4][6] |
| Host account | Not needed | Needed | Phone number [7] |
| How guests reply | One tap, no account | From the email, text or a link [8] | Web link with a phone number [5] |
| Designs | 495 designs, 83 themes, or your own photo or art | Free and Premium designs [3] | Free pages, premium designs to buy [4][6] |
| Questions in the reply | Kids, grown-ups, allergies, a note | Not covered on the pages we read | Host's own questions [6] |
| Texts to guests | No. Email, or share the link yourself | Yes [9] | Yes, text blasts [5] |
| Reminders to guests | Not yet | Yes [9] | Yes [6] |
| Photos after the party | Free album | Premium photo gallery [3] | Shared on the event page [6] |
| Plan, shopping and budget from the replies | Yes | Not offered | Not offered |
Sources: [1] Evite, Premium Pricing · [2] Evite, free or Premium · [3] Evite, What is Premium · [4] Partiful, how it makes money · [5] Partiful on the App Store · [6] Partiful home page · [7] Partiful terms, Sep 25, 2026 · [8] Evite, shareable link · [9] Evite home page
Each one, in short
Evite: the familiar invitation site
Evite has been sending party invitations for years. Free invitations go out by email, text or link, and Evite sends reminders for you.
- Good for: hosts who want a well-known site with texts and reminders built in, and big guest lists on Premium or Pro.
- Keep in mind: free invitations include gift suggestions, and removing them takes Premium (which also lists "No ads!"). Hosts need an Evite account.
Partiful: a social event page for adults
Partiful turns the invitation into a lively page, with text blasts, guest questions and shared photos.
- Good for: adults planning a night out with friends, and paid events with tickets.
- Keep in mind: its terms say users must be 18 or older, and guests reply with a phone number. It doesn't plan the party from the replies.
Festidy: the invitation and the whole plan
Festidy starts with the invitation and keeps going. Each reply counts kids and grown-ups, and the plan, shopping list and budget follow those numbers.
- Good for: a kids' birthday at home, when you want the invitation, replies and plan in one place, free, with no accounts for anyone.
- Keep in mind: Festidy doesn't send texts or guest reminders yet, its designs are still images, there are no co-hosts (helpers get their own task list), and it runs in your browser rather than as an app.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a free alternative to Evite?
Yes. Festidy is free for hosts and guests, with no ads and no paid tier. You get an invitation with an RSVP link, and the replies size your shopping and budget. Evite's free invitations are also free to send; its Premium upgrades cost $17.99 to $99.99 per event, as of October 2026.
How much does Evite cost?
Evite's free invitations cost nothing to send. Premium is priced per event by guest count, from $17.99 for up to 12 guests to $99.99 for up to 750, and Evite Pro is $249.99 a year, according to Evite's pricing page in October 2026.
Is Partiful free?
Partiful says its core product is free and always will be. It earns from a fee on ticket sales and optional purchases such as premium designs, which cost $1.99 to $9.90 in its App Store listing as of October 2026.
Can I use Partiful for a kids' birthday party?
Partiful's terms say users must be 18 or older, so the parent hosting and the parents replying can use it. It's built for social events among adults, and it doesn't plan the party from the replies. Festidy counts kids and grown-ups in each reply and plans the party from those numbers.
Do guests need an account to reply?
Not on Festidy: guests tap the link and reply, without an account or an app. Partiful guests reply on the web without the app. Evite guests reply from the email or text they receive or from a shareable link.
Does Festidy send text messages?
Not yet. Festidy emails invitations to the addresses you add, and you can share the link yourself by text, WhatsApp or any group chat. Text messages and guest reminders are planned.
How we compared
We read Evite's and Partiful's own pricing, help, terms and App Store pages on October 23, 2026, and list what they say, with a link to each one. Where they do something better than we do, we say so. We'll check again at least every three months or when their prices change. If something here is wrong or out of date, email hello@festidy.com and we'll fix it within a day.