Case study
Festival Buddy at Camper Calling 2026
Camper Calling is a family festival held 27–30 August 2026. Festival Buddy was not the official app. It was an independent app that people found through Facebook groups and friends, and 1,471 of them used it over the weekend. This is what happened.
Festival Buddy is an independent app. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by Camper Calling.
- 37,186app opens
- 11,976set listings added
- 1,471fans tested it
- 23 daysfans spent in app
Fans scored the app 4.8 out of 5
The numbers
One weekend, measured.
- App opens over the festival
- 37,186
- Acts added to personal lineups
- 11,976
- People who used it
- 1,471973 iPhone · 496 Android
- Busiest day
- 866 people8,503 opens
- Want it made official
- 92%58 of 63
- Coverage of the bill
- 85 of 85Every act appeared in someone’s lineup
- Time in app, combined
- 23 days
- Survey rating
- 4.8 / 563 responses, nothing below 4
Server telemetry, computed 1 September 2026, and a 63-response survey run 31 August to 2 September. No attendance figure is claimed; we do not know it.
2025 to 2026
Second year, same field.
The app ran at the same festival in 2025 in a simpler form. In 2026 it added personal lineups, clash warnings and post-set ratings, and word got round.
- App opens
- 1,565 → 37,186
- Time in app
- 2d 10h → 23d
“Thought it was good last year, but so many better features this year! Thank you 🙏”
What people used it for
The grid, the stage list, and the field with no signal.
Asked which two features mattered most, people picked the grid schedule first and the By Stage view second, with On Now third. Asked for any other comments, the things that came up again and again, unprompted, were that it worked with no signal, that it beat the printed programme (which got lost or wet), and that the artist write-ups helped people decide.
“Found the app very useful, particularly in the wet weather when trying to get the paper one out was impossible. It’s so easy to use and could see straight away who was on when/where”
“Really useful to see what’s on at each time. Much better than the ‘official’ leaflet!!”
“I found the app schedule really helpful, especially as everyone else in my group either lost their paper programme (or it got wet)”
“I liked the description of the artists, I used these to explain to my husband any new artists.”
“Loved the write up on the acts to help decide what we wanted to see.”
“It was a god send with no signal, so glad I downloaded it. Much appreciated”
Should it be official?
58 of 63 said yes.
We asked whether people would like to see the app made official and adopted by the festival. 92% said yes. The one condition people attached was that it stays as it is: no adverts, no promotional filler.
“It would be great for it to be adopted as an official app, but only if it stays in its current form. I wouldn’t want it to be pumped full of ads or promotional content (if that would even work with the lack of signal).”
“Hope this gets adopted by CC and others . Thank you”
This is the survey’s question, quoted. It is not a claim that Camper Calling has adopted or endorsed the app.
Your festival next?
Send us a sample lineup as a CSV. We’ll load it into Backstage and the app, so you see your own festival in the demo.