Bubble Seat chart – CS @ Kenyon

Creating a concert seating chart on Bubble.io that lets users see available seats and click to buy them involves using Bubble’s visual editor, a database, and workflows. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you build that:

🧱 1. Set Up Your Data Structure

Go to the Data tab and create a new type called Seat.

Seat Data Type:

Seat Number (text or number)
Row (text or number)
IsAvailable (yes/no)
Price (number)
Buyer (User) — optional, link to the user who bought it
Event (Event) — optional, if you support multiple concerts

You may also create an Event data type if you have multiple shows.

🧩 2. Design the Seating Chart

On the Design tab:

Use Repeating Groups to show rows and seats dynamically.
Each seat is a shape, group, or button, depending on how you want to style it.

Example layout:

A Repeating Group for Rows
- Inside, a Repeating Group for Seats in that row
  - Each seat is displayed as a button or icon.

Use conditions like:

When This Seat's IsAvailable is "no"
→ Change background color to red (or gray)
→ Disable the button

🖱️ 3. Make Seats Clickable

When a user clicks on a seat:

Use a workflow to:
- Check if it’s available
- Mark it as selected (maybe using a custom state)
- Or send them to a checkout page for payment

You can allow multiple selection by adding selected seats to a list using custom states.

💸 4. Set Up the Purchase Flow

Use Bubble’s workflow to handle purchase:

Show selected seats and total cost.
Use Stripe plugin (or Bubble’s Payment plugin) to process payment.
After payment is successful:
- Update each Seat:
  - IsAvailable = false
  - Buyer = Current User

🎨 5. Polish the UI/UX

Use colors:
- Green = available
- Red/gray = sold
- Yellow = selected
Add a legend so users understand the color codes.
Optional: Hover tooltips showing price or seat number.

⚙️ Optional Features

Let users pick how many seats they want first, then auto-assign adjacent ones.
Add filters for price, section, or row.
Implement a timeout so users must confirm purchase within X minutes.

Let’s walk through a starter template for a seating chart in Bubble.io. This version assumes a simple concert layout with rows and seats, clickable buttons for seats, and a shopping cart-style checkout.

🎭 Simple Seating Chart Template in Bubble

📦 Step 1: Set Up Your Data Types

➤ `Seat`

Field	Type	Example
`seat_number`	Text	“A5”, “B12”
`row`	Text	“A”, “B”, “C”
`column`	Number	1, 2, 3
`price`	Number	45.00
`is_available`	Yes/No	Yes
`buyer`	User	(link to user)

🧱 Step 2: Create the Layout

🎨 Design > Seating Chart Page

Add a Repeating Group
- Type of content: Seat
- Data source: Do a search for Seats (filter by row if needed)
- Layout style: Full list (or Grid)
Inside the Repeating Group Cell
- Place a Button or Shape to represent a seat
- Set the button text to:
  Current cell's Seat's seat_number
Conditionally style it:
- When Current cell's Seat's is_available is "no"
  → Disable the button
  → Change background color to gray/red
- When selected (see below), highlight (yellow, outline, etc.)

✨ Step 3: Make It Interactive (Select Seats)

1. Add a Custom State to the page:

Name: selected_seats
Type: Seat
List: Yes ✅

2. Button Workflow: When Seat is clicked

Only when: This Seat's is_available is "yes"
Action:
→ Set state selected_seats to
selected_seats :plus item This Seat

(If you want deselect on second click, use conditional logic with :contains / :minus item.)

🛒 Step 4: Checkout Button

Add a “Buy Now” button:

Workflow on Buy Now:

Charge with Stripe (total = selected_seats:sum price)
When payment is successful:
- For each item in selected_seats:
  - Make changes to Seat
    → is_available = no
    → buyer = Current User

🧪 Step 5: Optional Polishing

Add hover popups to show seat details (price, section).
Add legends like:
- 🟩 Available
- 🟥 Sold
- 🟨 Selected
Add section filtering or VIP/general seating.

Would you like a ready-to-import JSON or Bubble editor preview link example? I can generate a simple layout for you and walk through setup with real seats if you’d like.

You said:

yes

ChatGPT said:

Certainly! To create a concert seating chart in Bubble.io that allows users to view available seats and purchase them, you can utilize existing templates to streamline the development process. One such template is the “Events with Reserved Seats” template, which is designed for events hosted in venues with reserved seating or general admission without reserved tickets. Bubble

Key Features of the “Events with Reserved Seats” Template:

Reserved Seating: Enables the creation of seating charts where users can select specific seats.
General Admission: Supports events without assigned seating.Bubble+1Bubble Forum+1
User-Friendly Interface: Designed to provide a seamless experience for both event organizers and attendees.

By leveraging this template, you can customize the seating chart to match your venue’s layout and integrate functionalities such as seat availability display and purchasing options.

Additional Resources:

Bubble Templates: Explore a variety of templates on Bubble’s official template page to find one that best fits your needs. Bubble
Bubble Forum Discussions: Engage with the Bubble community to gain insights and assistance on building seat maps and integrating payment systems. Bubble Forum

If you require further assistance in customizing the template or implementing specific features, consider reaching out to the Bubble community or exploring tutorials available on the Bubble platform.

Sources