How the calls work

These calls are new and not yet proven. Here is what we do, in plain words.

What we check

The ticket sites shown on each game page: today SeatGeek, Ticketmaster, Vivid Seats and StubHub. Prices include fees, except StubHub, which is shown before fees and left out of comparisons. We check on a schedule, from several days before tip-off down to 15 minutes before.

How the call is made

For each section we look at where today's price sits compared with the last 2 days, whether listings are disappearing, and how long is left until tip-off. Our assumptions about how prices move before tip-off are starting estimates; we haven't fitted them to our own data yet. We say “Buy now” when the drop we'd expect from waiting looks too small to be worth it, and “Wait” otherwise.

The test

We are testing a newer version of these calls against real prices, under rules we wrote down before the test started. The calls you see today are not that version yet. Until the test reads out, treat a call as a second opinion, not a guarantee.

The alert promise

One email: when our call says buy, or about 15 minutes before tip-off at the latest.

Free, no ads, no account needed

Buy links go straight to the seats where the site allows it.