Luma vs Songkick API for AI agents
Luma is Luma's JSON API for managing your own calendar's events and guests, plus a separate MCP server that can search public Luma events. Songkick API is Songkick's concerts and festivals API for live music events, artists, venues and metro areas.
The short answer
- Luma: Hosts automating their own Luma calendars, and agents finding public Luma events such as tech and community meetups through the MCP server.
- Songkick API: Live music listings for existing licensed partners; new developers cannot get a key today.
Side by side
| Luma | Songkick API | |
|---|---|---|
| Searches | The API covers only the calendar its key was created on. The MCP server can search upcoming public Luma events by keyword, location and date range. | Concerts and festivals by artist, date, venue and location; artists, venues and metro areas; past concert history for artists. |
| Before the first call | API: a Luma Plus subscription on the calendar and a per-calendar API key (200 requests a minute per calendar). MCP: any Luma account, signed in through OAuth. | An approved API key under a partnership agreement with a license fee; no student, educational or hobbyist projects. |
| Free | The MCP server works with any Luma account, without Luma Plus. | – |
| Paid | The API needs Luma Plus, listed at $59 a month billed annually. | A license fee is required; the amount is not published (details are in the application form). |
| Acting on a result | Not stated on its pages | A link to songkick.com is required; Songkick data may not be used to build a ticketing service. |
| Limits on keeping or showing results | Not stated on its pages | Cached data may be kept for at most 24 hours, and no copies of Songkick data may be retained; attribution is required wherever Songkick data is shown. |
| MCP server | Official MCP server at https://mcp.luma.com (searches public Luma events and manages events you host). | – |
Where Openpath fits
Openpath has no event listings yet. Events are on its roadmap, from organizers who list them themselves. Get listed.
Questions people ask
What do I need before I can use Luma?
API: a Luma Plus subscription on the calendar and a per-calendar API key (200 requests a minute per calendar). MCP: any Luma account, signed in through OAuth.
Is Luma free?
The MCP server works with any Luma account, without Luma Plus.
Sources
Every line about another company comes from its own pages. Prices and terms change, so check the source before you rely on one.
Luma, read on October 15, 2026:
- docs.luma.com/reference/getting-started-with-your-api: “To use the Luma API, you need a Luma Plus subscription.”
- docs.luma.com/reference/getting-started-with-your-api: “The Luma API is a JSON-based API that allows you to programmatically manage your events and guests.”
- docs.luma.com/reference/getting-started-with-your-api: “only grants access to the calendar it was created on”
- help.luma.com/p/luma-api: “The Luma API uses a per-minute rate limit shared across read and write requests:”
- luma.com/pricing: “$59 ... Per month, billed annually”
- luma.com/pricing: “API access”
- help.luma.com/p/mcp: “search upcoming public events on Luma by keyword, location, and date range.”
- help.luma.com/p/mcp: “Anyone with a Luma account can connect — you don’t need Luma Plus.”
- help.luma.com/p/mcp: “https://mcp.luma.com”
Songkick API, read on October 15, 2026:
- songkick.com/api_key_requests/new: “we are unable to process new applications for API keys.”
- songkick.com/developer: “Search for events by artist, date, venue, and location.”
- songkick.com/developer: “Search for artists, venues, and metro areas.”
- songkick.com/developer: “Use of the Songkick API will be subject to the standard terms of our partnership agreement and a license fee.”
- songkick.com/developer: “pay the standard license fee (details in form)”
- songkick.com/developer: “We are currently not approving API requests for student projects, educational purposes or hobbyist purposes.”
- songkick.com/developer/api-terms-of-use: “retaining cached information for a maximum of 24 hours.”
- songkick.com/developer/api-terms-of-use: “You may not retain any copies of the Songkick Data”
- songkick.com/developer/api-terms-of-use: “You agree to clearly display attribution on your website or application wherever Songkick Data is used.”
- songkick.com/developer/api-terms-of-use: “you must provide a link to songkick.com using the standard linking format”
- songkick.com/developer/api-terms-of-use: “agree not to use Songkick Data to create either a primary or secondary ticketing service.”