The best event planning companies match your event type, guest count, and budget, and they can show past work that looks like what you want. For a luxury wedding or milestone party, look at Rafanelli Events. For a wedding or party on a fixed budget, look at Events On a Budget. For brand events and VIP hospitality, try Luxe Fête. For nonprofit galas and corporate events, compare AJ Events, Event Solutions, JDC Events, and BoomPop.
Searching for planners "near you" usually gives you directories with dozens of names and little to separate them. Most listings read the same way: full-service, stress-free, tailored to your vision. You need a way to tell a firm with a real track record from one with a polished profile.
This article gives you seven firms, with what each one does, who it suits, and what to ask before you sign. They are based in large US metros, so use them as benchmarks, or as real options if your event spans several cities. Then you get a method for finding and vetting planners in your own area, and a clear picture of what planners charge. Exhibition Globe has reported on the events and exhibitions industry since 2017, so the vetting advice focuses on what organizers check before they sign a supplier.
1. Rafanelli Events
Specialty and track record
Rafanelli Events is a luxury planning firm for social events: weddings, milestone birthdays, anniversaries, and high-profile galas. Bryan Rafanelli founded it in 1996, so the firm has about three decades of work behind it.
It has offices in New York City, Palm Beach, and Boston, and a team of about 50 design and production professionals. The services cover venue selection, décor, floral design, entertainment, guest experiences, and on-site management. The firm also plans destination events, not only local ones.
A large in-house design team is what you pay for with a luxury planner, so find out who will actually run your event.
Best fit and questions to ask
Rafanelli suits hosts who want a fully designed event and accept a premium price. A firm built for galas and destination weddings is rarely the right call for a simple backyard party, so be honest about your event’s scale before you call.
Ask these before you book:
- Will the founder or an associate planner lead my event day to day?
- Which design and floral work is done in house, and which is subcontracted?
2. Events On a Budget
Specialty and track record
Events On a Budget is a Miami firm that sells affordable, stylish events. It reports more than 20 years in business, and its team negotiates vendor deals and sources lower-cost alternatives to keep spending in check.
Its services include full and partial wedding coordination, floral design, venue transformation, and event lighting. It also offers a "Wedding in a Box" package that bundles catering, décor, and vendor selections at set pricing. That kind of packaged pricing makes costs easier to predict.
If budget is your main constraint, choose a planner whose business model is cost control, not one that discounts a luxury service.
Best fit and questions to ask
This is a good starting point if you are a couple or host with a fixed budget and a mid-sized guest list. Small events benefit most from packages, because a custom luxury process costs more than the event may justify.
Ask these before you book:
- What exactly does the package include, and what costs extra?
- Do vendor discounts you negotiate pass through to me, or do they stay in your margin?
3. Luxe Fête
Specialty and track record
Luxe Fête is an award-winning boutique production company in Miami. It covers corporate events, luxury weddings, brand activations, VIP hospitality, and gala dinners, and it handles planning, design, and execution under one roof.
Its Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix Paddock Club shows the scale it can handle. The team turned more than 200,000 square feet of raw stadium space into a hospitality venue and welcomed 6,000 VIP guests over three days. Few planners have run an event that size, so it is a useful marker of production depth.
Look for a planner whose biggest event is larger than yours, because scale experience covers the small problems too.
Best fit and questions to ask
Luxe Fête suits brands and hosts who want a high-impact guest experience, such as a client hospitality weekend, a launch dinner, or a wedding with heavy design. It is more than most simple parties need.
Ask these before you book:
- Have you run an event with my guest count and format?
- What is the minimum budget you take on for a project like mine?
4. AJ Events
Specialty and track record
AJ Events is a full-service planning and design firm in Boston, led by founder and executive producer AJ Williams. It reports more than 25 years of experience across corporate events, nonprofit fundraisers, and luxury weddings.
An in-house team manages every part of production, which keeps design and logistics consistent. The firm says it has raised millions of dollars for nonprofit clients, which is the kind of measurable result you should ask any fundraising planner to show.
For a fundraiser, a planner’s results are the ones that count: money raised, not just a good-looking room.
Best fit and questions to ask
AJ Events suits nonprofit teams and corporate hosts who want one firm for galas, launches, and fundraisers. It also works for weddings if you prefer a planner with a large events portfolio.
Ask these before you book:
- What did your last three fundraisers raise compared with their targets?
- Which parts of the event are handled by your staff and which by subcontractors?
5. Event Solutions
Specialty and track record
Event Solutions is a corporate event planning and production company in Santa Monica, California. It reports more than 35 years of experience, which makes it one of the longest-running firms here. The work includes large corporate gatherings, product launches, company anniversaries, incentive trips, and conferences.
The services run from logistics and venue sourcing to creative branding and event technology. A nationwide network lets it support events in several locations, and it produces in-person, hybrid, and virtual formats.
When an event runs in more than one city, a planner with its own network is worth more than a famous name.
Best fit and questions to ask
It suits mid-size and large companies planning conferences, sales meetings, or incentive travel, especially across multiple locations. A single small dinner would not use most of what the firm offers.
Ask these before you book:
- Who will be on site in my city, and are they your staff or local partners?
- How do you handle the technology if part of my audience attends remotely?
6. JDC Events
Specialty and track record
JDC Events is a Silver Spring, Maryland, firm serving corporate, government, and nonprofit clients. It reports more than 20 years of hands-on experience and provides full-service event management, including strategy, design, and production.
Its work spans large conferences, high-profile galas, and specialized training sessions. That mix matters because training events and institutional conferences have different rules from a party. They involve agendas, approvals, and attendee logistics more than décor.
Institutional events reward a planner who is comfortable with agendas and approvals, not only with design.
Best fit and questions to ask
JDC suits associations, agencies, and nonprofits running recurring conferences, annual galas, or training programs. If your event has a formal program and many stakeholders, this profile fits better than a wedding-led boutique.
Ask these before you book:
- How do you manage approval chains and procurement paperwork on projects like mine?
- Can you share a recurring client whose event you have run for several years?
7. BoomPop
Specialty and track record
BoomPop is a San Francisco company built around corporate team events: company kickoffs, client summits, retreats, and offsites. It combines a planning platform with an expert event team. The platform covers venue selection, budget tracking, attendee RSVPs, and itinerary planning in one place.
It offers both full-service planning and expedited planning for short timelines. The team numbers 26 people in San Francisco, so you are working with a focused group, not a large agency.
A platform-led planner is the right choice when speed and organization matter more than bespoke design.
Best fit and questions to ask
BoomPop suits startups and distributed teams that need to organize an offsite fast and want clear tracking of spending and attendance. It is less suited to weddings or social events.
Ask these before you book:
- What is the shortest timeline you have delivered, and for what group size?
- How is pricing structured, and what changes if our headcount moves?
How to find reputable event planners near you
Start with the event, not the directory. Decide whether you need a wedding planner, a corporate specialist, or a nonprofit fundraising team, then shortlist three to five local firms and compare them on the same checklist. Local planners know the venues, caterers, and rental companies in your area, which often saves more money than a famous name.
Where to look for local firms
The most reliable leads come from people who have watched planners work. Use several sources and see which names repeat:
- Venue managers: ask the venues you like which planners they recommend. They see planners at work every weekend.
- Recent clients: colleagues, friends, and local business owners who hosted a similar event in the last two years.
- Planner directories and review sites: filter by your city, event type, and published minimums.
- Industry directories: the EG Business Listing on Exhibition Globe lists service providers, venues, and jobs tied to the events and exhibitions industry.
- Professional credentials: the Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) credential from the Events Industry Council is a plus for corporate work, though experience with events like yours matters more.
Small and boutique firms often appear only through referrals and local searches, so do not skip them. They can be the best affordable option if their portfolio matches your event.
How to vet a shortlist
Run the same five checks on every firm. Treat a vague answer to any of them as a warning sign:
- Ask for a portfolio of similar events by size, format, and budget.
- Ask for two references from the past 12 months and call them.
- Read the contract for scope, fees, cancellation terms, and who is on site.
- Ask for proof of insurance, and for licenses where your area requires them.
- Ask how the planner handles vendor markups and commissions.
Also note how fast and how clearly each firm replies. Communication in the sales stage is usually the best you will get.
Compare every planner against the same five checks, and the strongest candidate usually becomes obvious.
Match your event to the right type of firm
Use this table to narrow the field before you request quotes:
| Your event | Firm profile to look for | Example from this list |
|---|---|---|
| Luxury wedding or milestone party | Design-led social planner with destination experience | Rafanelli Events |
| Wedding or party on a fixed budget | Package pricing and vendor negotiation | Events On a Budget |
| Brand event or VIP hospitality | Production boutique with corporate and luxury work | Luxe Fête |
| Nonprofit gala or fundraiser | Full-service team with fundraising results | AJ Events |
| Multi-city conference or incentive trip | National network, venue sourcing, event technology | Event Solutions |
| Association, government, or training event | Experience with institutional clients | JDC Events |
| Team offsite or retreat | Platform plus planners, fast turnaround | BoomPop |
What event planning companies cost
Event planners usually charge in one of three ways: a flat package fee, a percentage of the event budget, or an hourly rate. The right model depends on how well defined your event is and how much of the planning you hand over.
Common fee structures
Scope matters as much as the model. Full-service planning covers the project from concept to execution. Partial planning covers selected tasks, such as vendor selection. Month-of or day-of coordination starts late and manages the final timeline and the event itself.
| Fee model | How it works | Best when |
|---|---|---|
| Flat package fee | One fixed price for a defined scope | Weddings and parties with a clear scope |
| Percentage of budget | Commonly quoted at 10% to 20% of total event spend | Larger or changing events |
| Hourly rate | You pay for time, often for advice or day-of help | Small jobs and consulting |
Fees vary a lot by market and by firm, so treat the percentage range as a rough guide. Always request a written proposal with line items.
A worked example
Say you are planning a corporate dinner with a total event budget of $30,000. At 10%, the planner’s fee is $3,000. At 15%, it is $4,500. At 20%, it is $6,000.
If a firm instead quotes a flat $4,000, that equals about 13% of the budget, which sits inside the typical range. Ask whether the fee sits on top of or inside the budget. A planner who negotiates vendor discounts can sometimes recover part of the fee, but only if those savings reach you.
Judge a planner’s fee against what they save and prevent, not only against the number on the proposal.
Event planner or party planner
People use both terms for the same job, and the overlap is large. A party planner usually focuses on smaller social events such as birthdays, showers, and family celebrations. An event planner covers a wider range, including weddings, corporate meetings, conferences, and galas.
The label matters less than the portfolio. Ask any planner to show events matching your size and format, and judge them on that proof.
Next steps for your shortlist
The right planner is the one whose past events look like yours. Match your event to a firm type, use venues and recent clients to find local names, and run the same five checks on every candidate. Then compare written proposals with the fee model and scope side by side.
If you want to keep researching event service providers and venues, browse Exhibition Globe’s business directory. If you run an event planning firm yourself, you can add your own listing there.
