Modifying a registration
Plans change. Someone books the standard ticket and then wants the premium one, or they need to drop down to a cheaper option. Sunfish lets you change what an attendee registered for, and it works out the money difference for you so you don't have to do the math by hand.
Depending on how your event is set up, either you can make the change from the attendee's order, or the attendee can make it themselves. Either way, the same logic applies.
The simple rule
When a registration changes, Sunfish looks at what the person had before and what they have now, and settles only the difference:
- If the new selection costs more, the attendee owes the extra amount, and they're charged that difference.
- If the new selection costs less, the attendee is owed money back, and they receive a credit or refund for the difference.
The order keeps a running record of every change, so no matter how many times it's adjusted, the totals always balance.
Upgrades: an additional charge
An upgrade means the new choice costs more than the old one, so there's a balance to collect.
For example, if someone upgrades from a $50 ticket to a $75 ticket, they're charged the $25 difference, not the full $75. Their original $50 still counts toward the new ticket; they only pay what's left to make up the higher price.
The attendee completes that additional payment the same way they paid originally, and once it goes through, the order shows the ticket as fully paid at the new price.
Downgrades: a credit or refund
A downgrade means the new choice costs less, so the attendee has overpaid and is owed the difference.
For example, if someone moves from a $75 ticket down to a $50 ticket, there's a $25 difference in their favor. What happens to that $25 depends on your setup: it may be issued back to them as a refund, or held as a credit on the order. In either case, the order records it so the balance stays correct.
How downgrades are handled, refund versus credit, can depend on your event's settings and the refund policy attached to the ticket. If you're unsure what your event does, check Refunds & cancellations and your Refund policies.
Why the order always balances
Every charge, credit, and refund is written to the order's history. Rather than replacing the old total with a new one, Sunfish tracks each adjustment on top of what came before. That means you can always open an order and see exactly how you arrived at the current amount, what was paid, what was refunded, and what (if anything) is still owed.
Before making a big change, open the order and glance at its current balance. After you save the change, the history will show the new charge or credit right away, so you can confirm the difference looks right.
When there's a fee involved
Your event may add a small platform fee per order. Fees follow the same balancing logic; they're accounted for in the order's running total alongside everything else, so the amount owed or refunded stays accurate.
If a change turns into a cancellation rather than a swap, head to Refunds & cancellations.