Comparison
Bandwango alternatives and competitors in Canada: digital passport platforms compared (2026)
Looking for Bandwango alternatives or competitors in Canada? Bandwango is the most visible digital passport platform in Canada: Ottawa Tourism, Tourism Winnipeg, Destination Toronto and Tourism Kelowna have all used it. A tourism board or BIA looking for a Bandwango alternative mostly compares four things: the pass format, French support, where the data is hosted, and price. Here is what each platform publishes, checked at the source on November 6, 2026.
Key takeaways
- Bandwango builds each passport as a mobile-optimized website that visitors save to their home screen. Its pages mention neither Apple Wallet nor Google Wallet.
- None of the platforms compared publishes pricing for a destination passport. Bandwango prices by project scope.
- Alternatives fall into three formats: web pass (Bandwango), downloadable app (VisitApps) and Wallet pass (ARSOM, Loop).
- For Quebec destinations, Law 25 requires an assessment before personal information leaves the province, so data hosting matters.
- ARSOM issues the passport in Apple Wallet and Google Wallet, in English and French, with data hosted in Canada, and costs less than Bandwango.
What is Bandwango?
Bandwango is a US company, with its published address in Utah, that sells destinations a tool to build passports of offers at local businesses, along with event ticketing. In Canada, Ottawa Tourism (2020), Tourism Winnipeg (2023), Destination Toronto and Tourism Kelowna have used it.
Four public Canadian programs, checked at the source:
- #MyOttawa Savings Pass (Ottawa Tourism, June 2020): free, more than 60 offers, bilingual English and French, according to Bandwango’s case study.
- Winnipeg Attractions Pass (Tourism Winnipeg, January 2023): paid, up to five attractions, bought online “without having to download an app”, according to Global News.
- Toronto Brew Pass (Destination Toronto): “powered by Bandwango”, with 15+ craft breweries on the official page.
- #exploreKelowna (Tourism Kelowna): a series of passes built with Bandwango from 2020.
These organizations chose a proven tool. The question is not whether Bandwango works, but whether it fits your program: pass format, language, data, budget.
What are the Bandwango alternatives and competitors in Canada?
The platforms visible in 2026 are Loop (loop.fans), Seeker (an events platform with passports), VisitApps (a downloadable app) and ARSOM (Montreal, Apple Wallet and Google Wallet passes). None publishes pricing for a destination passport. They differ mostly in pass format and language.
| Platform | Published address | Pass format | French | Data hosting | Public passport pricing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bandwango | Cottonwood Heights, Utah (US) | Mobile website, saved to the home screen | Bilingual pass delivered in Ottawa in 2020 | Not stated | No: priced by project scope |
| Loop | Not stated | “The pass sits in their phone’s wallet” (Apple and Google not named) | Not stated | Not stated | Not for destinations (“Request a full quote”) |
| Seeker | Not stated | Passports and trails inside an events platform | Not stated | Not stated | No |
| VisitApps | Not stated | Downloadable app | Not stated | Not stated | No |
| ARSOM | Montreal, Quebec | Apple Wallet and Google Wallet | Yes, English and French | In Canada | Quoted per project, lower than Bandwango |
Loop publishes its own “Bandwango Alternatives” page (August 8, 2026), which puts Loop first on its own list. Its plans at $0, $29 and $79 a month are for a single venue’s loyalty program, not a destination passport. Check every point with the vendors before you decide: these pages change.
Web pass or Apple Wallet and Google Wallet pass: what is the difference for visitors?
A web pass is a page opened from a link, which visitors have to find again in their browser or on their home screen. A Wallet pass sits with their tickets: Apple can show it on the lock screen at the right time or place, and the issuer updates it remotely.
| Web pass (mobile website) | Apple Wallet or Google Wallet pass | |
|---|---|---|
| Adding it | Personal link by text or email, then a home screen shortcut | “Add to Apple Wallet” button or Google Wallet link, from a web page, an email or a QR code |
| Where to find it | In the browser or the added icon | In the Wallet app, with tickets and boarding passes |
| Lock screen | No | Apple: the pass can show at a relevant date or place (up to 10 locations) |
| Updates | The page changes on the next load | The issuer pushes an update to the phone; a notification can come with it |
One limit to know: Apple asks issuers to keep update notifications for time-sensitive information, never for marketing. Google caps issuer-triggered notifications at three per pass per 24 hours. A Wallet passport is kept alive with rare, useful messages.
How much does Bandwango cost, and is there a cheaper option?
Bandwango does not publish pricing: according to an email in a public June 2023 document, it prices by project scope, and some plans include advertising. ARSOM costs less than Bandwango. Its pricing is quoted per project, based on the number of businesses and the length of the program.
To compare two quotes, ask both vendors for the same items:
- The licence: per program, per year or per season, and the number of passes included.
- The businesses: is there a cost per participating business?
- Onboarding: setup, business training, posters and QR codes.
- Pass sales, if your pass is paid: transaction fees and currency.
- The data: full export at the end of the season, and where it is hosted.
A program that is free for visitors, like a holiday shop local passport, pays no transaction or ticketing fees. That is where the price gap shows the most.
How do you choose a Bandwango alternative for a Canadian destination?
Check five points: the pass format (web, app or Wallet), French for visitors and businesses, where the data is hosted, the contract currency, and the end-of-season report. PIPEDA applies across Canada, and in Quebec, Law 25 requires an assessment before personal information is communicated outside the province.
- Format. A visitor who adds the pass to their Wallet finds it without searching. A downloadable app slows adoption; a web pass depends on a shortcut.
- Language. In a bilingual destination, the pass must exist in both languages, and so must the businesses’ scan screen.
- Data. PIPEDA sets the rules for private-sector organizations in most provinces. Quebec’s privacy commission notes that since September 2023, a privacy impact assessment must come before any communication of personal information outside Quebec. Hosting in Canada also makes your board’s questions easier to answer.
- Currency. A contract in US dollars moves your budget with the exchange rate.
- The report. Passes added, offers used per business, active visitors: ask to see the dashboard before you sign.
What ARSOM does, and what it does not
ARSOM issues the passport in Apple Wallet and Google Wallet, in English and French, with one scan link per business, a map of businesses, a dashboard and data hosted in Canada. ARSOM does not choose the businesses’ offers, and it is not an event ticketing platform.
The Arsom Pass platform is built for tourism boards, BIAs, chambers of commerce and towns: one offer per business, refused at the second scan, one QR code per booth or event, visitor origin by postal code, and a data export. Pricing is quoted per project and is lower than Bandwango’s.
Bandwango also offers ticketing and advertising-funded plans. If those are at the heart of your project, compare those features with them. For a passport of offers in the Wallet, in English and French, with data in Canada, tell us about your program.
Frequently asked questions
Is Bandwango a Canadian company?
No. The address on Bandwango’s website is in Cottonwood Heights, Utah, in the United States. Several Canadian organizations have used it, including Ottawa Tourism in 2020, Tourism Winnipeg in 2023 and Destination Toronto for the Toronto Brew Pass.
Does Bandwango work with Apple Wallet?
Its public pages do not say so. Bandwango writes that it builds each passport as a mobile-optimized website, opened from a personal link and saved to the phone’s home screen. Destination Toronto describes its Brew Pass the same way.
How much does Bandwango cost?
Bandwango does not publish its pricing. In an email reproduced in the public agenda of a California tourism district (June 2023), Bandwango says it prices according to the scope of each project. Some of its plans include advertising options to help fund the licence.
Is there a Bandwango alternative that works in French?
Yes. ARSOM is a Montreal company: the passport, the sign-up page, the scan screen and the support are available in English and French. Bandwango also delivered a bilingual pass for Ottawa Tourism in 2020, according to its own case study.
Can we move from Bandwango to ARSOM without losing our partner businesses?
Yes. Businesses keep their offers: all it takes is the list of participants, their addresses and their offers. Each business then gets a scan link for its phone. Visitors add the new pass to their Wallet from a link or a QR code.
Sources
- Bandwango (2023). What makes Bandwango unique.
- Bandwango. Passholder Experience.
- Bandwango. Bandwango (home page, address in footer).
- Visalia Tourism Marketing District (2023). Special board meeting agenda, June 8, 2023 (item “Bandwango in-market rewards programs”).
- Bandwango. A creative way to pay for your Bandwango license through ad space and sponsorships.
- Bandwango. Ottawa Tourism launched locals-first initiative.
- Global News (2023). Tourism Winnipeg launches digital pass.
- Destination Toronto. Toronto Brew Pass.
- Tourism Kelowna (2024). Learn more about the #exploreKelowna passes.
- Loop (2026). Bandwango Alternatives for DMOs and Downtowns (2026).
- Loop. Loop (home page).
- Seeker. Seeker: AI-Native Event Discovery and Calendar Platform.
- VisitApps (2021). Digital Passports Simple Guide (Kirkland Tourism Development Committee packet, October 2021).
- Apple. Showing a pass on the Lock Screen.
- Apple. Adding a web service to update passes.
- Google. Google Wallet: Generic pass, Updates.
- Apple. Human Interface Guidelines: Wallet.
- Google. Google Wallet: Trigger push notifications (Generic pass).
- Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada. PIPEDA in brief.
- Commission d’accès à l’information du Québec. Principaux changements apportés par la Loi 25 (in French).