TicketFaeHow to Pair TicketFae with a Friend's Buddy App
Pair once and tickets, seat details and payment requests arrive on your friends' phones by themselves — no share sheet, no group chat, no chasing. It takes about a minute, and you only do it once per buddy.
Before you start
Pairing joins two separate iCloud accounts, so you need two phones — yours, and your friend's — each signed into its own Apple ID. That is an iCloud rule, not a TicketFae one: an account cannot pair with itself.
- You need TicketFae, and an event with the buddy already in its list.
- Your friend needs the free TicketFae Buddy app. No purchase, no account to create.
- Both phones need to be online, and near enough to see each other's screens.
The steps
- 1Open TicketFae on your phone and the Buddy app on theirs.
- 2You: open Settings from the gear, tap the wrench to show advanced settings, then scroll to Buddies and switch on Linked to Buddy App.
- 3You: go to Buddies, open the event's buddy list, and tap Pair beside the friend you want. A QR code appears.
- 4Them: tap Pair with Organiser, then Start Pairing. Their camera opens.
- 5Them: point their phone at your code. It reads on its own — there is no shutter button.
- 6You: tap the button under your code once they have scanned. Their phone now shows a code of its own.
- 7You: scan their code the same way. Pairing runs in both directions, which is why each phone scans once.
- 8Both phones show Pairing Complete. Tap Activate Connection on each, and you are done.
Why twice? Each app opens a private channel to the other, and each side has to hand over its own address. The second scan is what makes replies, receipt confirmations and payment approvals work — not just one-way delivery.
What pairing gets you
- Tickets arrive by themselves. Split the PDF, and each paired buddy's ticket lands on their phone next time they are online. More on sending tickets →
- You can see who has theirs. Sent, delivered, confirmed — per person, on the event card.
- Money comes back faster. Payment requests go straight to their phone, payable by PayPal or SEPA QR code.
- Everyone can see the plan. The seat poll, who has answered and the running total show up on each buddy's phone — and after the event they rate it from the app instead of a group chat.
Not everyone has to pair. Buddies without the app still get their tickets by AirDrop, WhatsApp, Messages or email. Pairing simply removes the step where you send them.
If pairing does not complete
- The code will not scan. Turn the brightness up on the phone showing it and hold the phones roughly 20 cm apart. Check the Buddy app is allowed camera access in iOS Settings.
- It stalls after the first scan. Both phones need to be online. Move to better signal and give it a few seconds — the channel is created on iCloud, not on the phones.
- You paired the wrong buddy. Tap Cancel Pairing, or reset the pairing from the buddy's row, and start again.
- Still stuck. Reset pairings from Settings on both phones and run through it once more from step 3.
Frequently asked
Do my friends need to pay for anything?
No. The Buddy app is free and never shows a paywall. Only the organiser needs TicketFae.
Why does pairing need two devices?
Because it joins two separate iCloud accounts. iCloud will not let one account pair with itself, so a second phone on a different Apple ID is always needed.
Is my Apple ID shared with my buddies?
No. Neither app ever sees the other person's Apple ID. Pairing uses hashed iCloud identifiers, and the QR code carries only what is needed to open the shared channel.
Do I have to pair with everyone?
No — it is optional and per buddy. Unpaired friends still receive their tickets the normal way.
Can I pair the same buddy for a different event?
You only pair a person once. After that they appear in your buddy list for any event.
Pair once. Stop chasing people.
Free on the App Store — and the Buddy app is free for your friends.
Download TicketFae