Gig, band and website tools
Bandcamp sells your music. What does GigTag do at the gig?
Someone has stopped to listen. In a minute they will walk on. GigTag gives them one thing to do before they go: scan the code on your mic stand, and your page opens with your links, your next gig and a booking enquiry form. If you were looking at Bandcamp for your recordings, this is the tool for the moment you are actually playing.
- No app for your audience
- Free to start
- One code that never changes
Why GigTag
Why Bandcamp artists add GigTag when they play live
Bandcamp is built for recordings and the fans who buy them. GigTag is built for a performance and whoever happens to be listening. It gives a passer-by or a bar crowd one scan to follow you, find your music, save your next date or book you, and it works whether or not you have released anything.
- 1
The passing listener can follow
On the street or in a bar, attention lasts a song. A scan opens your page in the browser with your socials and music links, no app and no account, so the person who slowed down can find your Bandcamp page later. The tag is the bridge between a live moment and your recordings.
- 2
Hired by the people who heard you
A booking enquiry form is part of every page, on the free plan. The shop owner, the couple planning a wedding, the pub landlord: any of them can ask about hiring you from where they stand, and GigTag takes no commission on bookings. Bandcamp is built to sell your music. This is built for your diary.
- 3
Requests, in a queue
On Pro, listeners pick from your song list in their browser, and each request joins a live queue on your phone. Nobody has to interrupt you mid-song. It works for covers, for your own songs, or for both, and you choose what gets played.
- 4
Tell them where you are next
The page shows your next gig and weekly residencies, and anyone who scans can put one in their calendar. A busker with an indoor gig on Friday, or a band with a weekly night, can hand that date to everyone who stops. Listing gigs costs nothing: they are on the free plan.
- 5
No releases needed to start
You can begin with nothing recorded. The free plan covers the tag design and print file, your page, links, gigs and the enquiry form for one act, and you can print the tag yourself. Pro adds tips by card or Apple Pay, and GigTag takes 0% of them.
In short
Bandcamp and GigTag, in four lines
- Bandcamp is an online record shop and community for buying music and merch directly from artists.
- GigTag is built for live performance: one scan on the street or in a bar opens your page.
- It carries what a record shop is not built for: requests, your next gig and a booking form.
- Our recommendation: sell the records on Bandcamp and put a GigTag wherever you play.
Side by side
GigTag vs Bandcamp, topic by topic
Your music
Keep Bandcamp for selling music. GigTag links to it.
GigTag neither sells nor streams music. Your music links on the page send people to wherever your recordings are kept.
BandcampIts site describes selling digital albums and tracks, vinyl records, CDs and cassettes from a customisable store page of your own.
Staying in touch
Follows from one scan, same code every gig
People follow your socials from the page, and can scan the same unchanging code again at any later gig you play.
BandcampFollowers are notified of each new release, and artists can message their fans and look through their own sales history.
Live events
Built for in-person gigs, with live requests
GigTag is for in-person gigs: the audience scans the tag, requests songs on Pro and sees your next date and residencies.
BandcampIts site says artists can schedule live streams and listening parties that take place on their Bandcamp page, with merchandise alongside.
Being discovered
Found by whoever is standing in front of you
GigTag has no directory. People find your page because they are standing in front of you with the tag in view.
BandcampIts site describes browsing tools, tag pages, fan collections and editorial features that put music in front of the wider community.
Getting hired
A booking form on every page, no commission
A booking enquiry form is on every GigTag page, on the free plan, and invoices paid online are available on Pro.
BandcampSee its site for how it handles this.
The quick view
| GigTag | Bandcamp | |
|---|---|---|
| A QR code your audience scans | Yes, one that never changes | – |
| Song requests from the crowd | Yes, on Pro | – |
| Tips by card or Apple Pay | Yes, on Pro, into your own Ziina or Stripe. GigTag takes 0% | – |
| Booking enquiries | Yes, on the free plan | – |
| Your gigs and weekly residencies | Yes, on the free plan | – |
| Invoices for bookings | Yes, on Pro | – |
| A printed tag for your mic stand | Yes, in your own design | – |
| Works without an app for the audience | Yes, it opens in the browser | – |
A dash means we did not confirm it for Bandcamp, not that it is missing: see what Bandcamp offers above, or ask on its site.
Bandcamp or GigTag
Where GigTag is different from Bandcamp
Recordings versus the live set
Bandcamp is about music that has been recorded and released. GigTag is about music being played right now. On Pro, the audience scans your tag and requests a song from your list, or anything if you open requests, and it appears in a live queue during the set. There is no store on GigTag and nothing to buy: it is not a music shop.
How people find the page
A fan finds your Bandcamp through a link, a search or a recommendation. Someone finds your GigTag page because the tag is on the mic stand in front of them. They scan, and it opens in the browser with no app or account. From there your music links can take them on to Bandcamp, once they are home and want the album.
Dates and bookings
GigTag carries the working side of a live act. Your page shows your next gig and weekly residencies, which fans can add to their calendar, and a booking enquiry form for anyone who wants to hire you. Both are on the free plan. On Pro you can invoice a client in your own design and be paid online. Bandcamp's focus is selling music and merch.
A night with GigTag
A busker's Saturday on the high street
No stage, no door, no guest list: only people walking past with shopping. You have a small amp, a mic stand and the tag fixed to it at eye level. Most people give you half a song. The ones who slow down can scan the code without stopping you or waiting for a gap. Your page opens in their browser. They follow your socials, open your music links to find your recordings, or see where you are playing indoors next week and add it to their calendar.
A shop owner across the road has been listening all morning. She scans the tag and sends a booking enquiry about playing at her opening evening. A visitor picks a song from your list that they want to film, and on Pro it appears in your live queue. Two passers-by tip by card from the page, into your own Stripe account, and GigTag takes 0%. On this street the tag brings requests, follows, bookings and tips. You pack up and read the enquiry on the train.
About Bandcamp
What is Bandcamp?
Bandcamp is an online record shop and music community where fans buy directly from artists and labels. An artist gets a store page to sell digital albums and tracks along with physical releases and merchandise: vinyl, CDs, cassettes, shirts. Fans build collections of what they have bought and follow the artists they like, which gives the site the feel of a community as much as a shop.
You upload a release, set how it is sold, and share the page. Followers are told when something new comes out, and you can message them. Its artist pages describe pre-orders, download and discount codes, players you can embed elsewhere, and statistics on what is being played and where listeners came from. Artists can also schedule live streams and listening parties on their Bandcamp page.
- Where
- Worldwide
- Website
- bandcamp.com
How Bandcamp works
- 1
Create your artist page. You set up a store page for the act and customise it. This is where your releases, merchandise and updates will live, and what followers will see.
- 2
Upload a release. You add a digital album or track and decide how it is offered to fans. Physical formats such as vinyl, CDs and cassettes, and merchandise such as shirts, can be listed with it.
- 3
Tell your followers. Followers are notified automatically when you release something. You can also message them, and its site says you can target messages by where fans are.
- 4
Watch and repeat. Statistics show which tracks are played, where listeners came from and where your players are embedded. Codes, pre-orders and listening parties help with the next release.
Who Bandcamp is for
Independent artists. Musicians selling their own recordings. Its site describes a customisable direct-to-fan store with direct communication with fans and direct access to data, for artists who want a direct line to the people buying their music.
Record labels. Record labels with several artists and a back catalogue. Its site addresses artists and labels together as the sellers on the platform, offering both a store for digital and physical releases and a following that hears about each new one.
Fans and collectors. Listeners who want to support artists and own the music. Its site describes fan collections, reviews, recommendations chosen by people, editorial writing and radio, which make it a place to discover music as well as buy it.
The verdict
GigTag or Bandcamp: which should you choose?
The bottom line
If you play live, anywhere from a pavement to a festival, get a GigTag. The strongest reason is that it gives a listener with one spare minute something to do with it: a single scan for your links, your next date and a way to book you. Bandcamp is the place to sell recordings and merch, which GigTag does not do, so an artist with music to sell should keep it and link it from the page. Together they cover the record and the gig.
Use both. Bandcamp sells the records. GigTag sits on your stand and, among your music links, points to your Bandcamp page. The person who enjoyed the set scans the tag, follows you, sees your next date, and can buy the album later. If you have nothing recorded yet, GigTag works without it: gigs, requests and enquiries need no releases.
- Step 1
Keep releases on Bandcamp
Your albums, tracks and merch stay on your Bandcamp page, which is where your followers already look for them and hear about each new release.
- Step 2
Add it to your links
Put your Bandcamp page among the music links on your GigTag page, next to your socials and website, then add your gigs and any weekly residency.
- Step 3
Play with the tag out
At each gig or busking pitch, fix the tag where people can see it. A scan leads to you, and from there to the records.
Choose GigTag if
You gig regularly and want a code on your stand for requests, next dates and booking enquiries. GigTag is not a music store.
Start freeBandcamp may still suit you if
You sell recordings and merchandise and want fans to buy them directly from you.
GigTag FreeYour page, your tag design, every gig and residency, a booking form. One act.
GigTag ProSong requests, tips, invoices, more than one act. AED 30, £11.99 or $15.99 a month.
GigTag Printed tagFrom AED 100 in the UAE, £24.99 in the UK or €28.99 in the EU, delivered free, with a large size for more; $32.99 elsewhere, plus postage from the UK. Or print your own, anywhere, for free.
Is GigTag better than Bandcamp for a busker?
For the busking itself, yes: GigTag is built for people who are listening in person. They scan the tag, follow you, open your music links, request a song on Pro or send a booking enquiry. Bandcamp is built for selling recordings online. A busker with music to sell can use both, with the Bandcamp page among the links on GigTag.
Why use GigTag at gigs when I could just show my Bandcamp link?
Because a gig audience may want more than the album. One GigTag scan offers your next gig to save, a booking enquiry form, your socials, live requests on Pro and your music links, Bandcamp among them. The code is permanent and printed in your own design. It gives each person the action that suits them, and buying the record is one of several.
Is GigTag a Bandcamp alternative?
No. Bandcamp is a store and community for buying music and merch from artists. GigTag does not sell or stream music. It is a QR tag for a live act's mic stand, opening a page for song requests, gig dates, links and booking enquiries. If you want to sell recordings, a store is what you need.
Can I link my Bandcamp from GigTag?
Yes. Your GigTag page has room for your socials, your website and your music links, so your Bandcamp page can be one of them. Someone who scans the tag at a gig can go through to it straight away, or scan again another night, since the code on the tag never changes.
I already send people to my Bandcamp at gigs. What does GigTag add?
It adds things for the gig itself. From one scan the audience can request a song on Pro, see your next gig and weekly residencies, send a booking enquiry and reach all your links, Bandcamp included. The tag is in your own design and sits on the mic stand, so it is in view for the whole set.
Bandcamp fans support artists directly. Can GigTag fans tip me?
Yes. On the Pro plan, fans can tip by card or Apple Pay into your own Stripe account, or your own Ziina account in the UAE, and GigTag takes 0% of tips. Tips and everything else on GigTag, including song requests, work in every country.
How do buskers get followers from people walking past?
By making it possible without stopping. A GigTag fixed to the mic stand can be scanned in passing. The page opens in the phone's browser with your socials, music links and next gigs, and no app or account is needed. The same code works at every pitch and every gig you play.
Can buskers take card tips through GigTag in the UK, or only in the UAE?
In both. On the Pro plan, people can tip by card or Apple Pay, and GigTag takes 0%. In the UK the money goes into your own Stripe account, and in the UAE into your own Ziina account. Requests, links, gigs and booking enquiries work there too.
What is Bandcamp used for by gigging musicians?
Mainly for selling what they record. Its site describes a store page for digital music, vinyl, CDs, cassettes and merchandise, with followers told about new releases. A gigging musician can pair that with a tool for the live side. GigTag is one option: its page handles requests, dates and enquiries, and links out to the store.
Do I need recorded music to use GigTag?
No. GigTag is built around playing live, so nothing has to be released first. Your page can carry your song list, gigs, weekly residencies, socials and a booking enquiry form on their own. When you do have recordings, add them as music links and the same tag starts sending people to them.
Looking for Bandcamp itself?
This page is GigTag's. Bandcamp's sign-in, prices, reviews and support are on its own site.
Apps like Bandcamp: more gig, band and website tools compared
- BandHelpervs GigTag
- BandMGTvs GigTag
- Bandzooglevs GigTag
- BookLivevs GigTag
- Gigwellvs GigTag
- Jotformvs GigTag
Bandcamp is the name of its owner's product; GigTag is not connected with it. What is said about Bandcamp here comes from its own public website, checked on 7 October 2026. Products change: if something here is out of date, tell us and we will correct it.
For musicians
One code on your stand. Requests, tips and the next gig behind it.
No app for your audience, nothing to download. Free to start.