Meetup
Depends
Confidence: Medium
Great as a free attendee hunting local interest groups; nothing else matches its density.
Comparison
Meetup vs Odd Circles
Meetup and Odd Circles both land on Depends.
Odd Circles
Depends
Confidence: Low
Buy only if you are an indie organizer wanting community plus ticketing at low fees and accept a tiny, unproven vendor.
| Compare | Meetup | Odd Circles |
|---|---|---|
| Verdict | Depends | Depends |
| Best for | Finding local hobby and interest groups | Indie community builders |
| Who it's not for | One-off or ticketed event hosts . use Eventbrite | Large orgs needing vendor stability |
| Privacy | 2020 high-risk flaws enabled group takeovers and payment redirection (44M members exposed, since patched); one 2024 privilege-escalation CVE exists.⁷ | No known public vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed. |
| Support quality | 1.9/5 ratings; complaint-heavy feedback | Users cite excellent communication and support |
| Public sentiment | Reviews are polarized: attendees still find real community, while recent organizer complaints about aggressive price hikes dominate.¹ | Early users like the ease of use and responsiveness, but the independent review base is very small.11 |
| Biggest gotcha | Organizer prices tripled with under a month's notice in 2024; expect more hikes³ | Tiny vendor (Om Sai Raam Ltd); export your member data early in case it folds |
Pick Meetup when
- Finding local hobby and interest groups
- Regular attendees joining existing groups
- Organizers running recurring in-person communities
- Brands managing many groups via Meetup Pro
When Meetup is not a fit
- One-off or ticketed event hosts . use Eventbrite
- Budget-sensitive organizers; fees rose sharply
- Online-only webinar and virtual event teams
- Small casual friend circles . fees outweigh value
Pick Odd Circles when
- Indie community builders
- Small event organizers monetizing tickets
- Meetup users tired of fees
- Hobby and local groups
When Odd Circles is not a fit
- Large orgs needing vendor stability
- Buyers demanding verified reviews or security docs
- Revenue-critical communities fearing shutdown lock-in
- Anyone wanting transparent published pricing upfront
Sources
- Meetup Reviews . Rated 1.9/5, 498 reviewssmartcustomer.comreview
- Meetup Reviews | Trustpilottrustpilot.comreview
- Meetup triples subscription price with less than a month's noticenews.ycombinator.comnews
review
- Organizer Subscription prices overview . Meetup Helphelp.meetup.comofficial
security
- CVE-2024-50483: Meetup Privilege Escalation Vulnerabilitysentinelone.comsecurity
security
- Meetup Pro Reviews . G2g2.comreview
news
- Odd Circles Reviews | Trustpilottrustpilot.comreview
- Odd Circles Reviews | Product Huntproducthunt.comreview
- Odd Circles Reviews | G2g2.comreview
- Odd Circles Review | FactCheckToolfactchecktool.comreview
- Odd Circles Review | Apibitapibit.comreview
- Odd Circles overview | Toolifytoolify.aireview