In this article, we’ll learn how to build a real-world Ticketing System with Strapi and Vue.js, where users can buy tickets for upcoming events. Our case study will be a system to purchase tickets for upcoming movies.

What You’ll Need for This Tutorial

• Basic knowledge of Vue.js
• Knowledge of JavaScript
• Node.js (v14 recommended for Strapi)

Table of Contents

• A Brief Intro to Strapi, a Headless CMS
• Scaffolding a Strapi project
• Building the ticket collections
• Building the event collections
• Seeding the database
• Allowing public access
• Building the Vue.js app
• Setting up Tailwind CSS
• Building components and views
• Editing the Strapi Backend Manually
• Conclusion

The completed version of your application should look like the image below:

A Brief Intro to Strapi, a Headless CMS

The Strapi documentation says that Strapi is a flexible, open-source, headless CMS that gives developers the freedom to choose their favorite tools and frameworks and allows editors to manage and distribute their content easily.

Strapi helps us build an API quickly with no hassle of creating a server from scratch. With Strapi, we can do everything literally, and it’s easily customizable. We can add our code and edit functionalities easily. Strapi is amazing, and its capabilities would leave you stunned.

Strapi provides an admin panel to edit and create APIs. It also provides easily-editable code and uses JavaScript.

Scaffolding a Strapi Project

To install Strapi, head over to the Strapi docs at Strapi We’ll be using the SQLite database for this project. To install Strapi, run the following commands:

1    yarn create strapi-app my-project # using yarn
2    npx create-strapi-app@latest my-project # using npx

Replace my-project with the name you wish to call your application directory. Your package manager will create a directory with the specified name and install Strapi.

If you have followed the instructions correctly, you should have Strapi installed on your machine. Run the following commands to start the Strapi development server:

1    yarn develop # using yarn
2    npm run develop # using npm

The development server starts the app on http://localhost:1337/admin.

Building the Event Collections

Let’s create our Event collection type:

1. Click on Content-Type Builder under Plugins on the side menu.
2. Under collection types, click create new collection type.
3. Create a new collection-type named Event .
4. Create the following fields under product content-type:
   • name as short text
   • date as Datetime
   • image as media(single media)
   • price as Number(decimal
   • tickets-available as Number

The final Event collection type should look like the image below:

Building the Ticket Collections

Next, we create our Ticket collection type:

1. Click on Content-Type Builder under Plugins on the side menu.
2. Under collection types, click create new collection type
3. Create a new collection-type named Ticket .
4. Create the following fields under product content-type: - reference_number as UID - seats_with as Number - seats_without as Number - total as Number - total_seats as Number - event as relation (An event has many tickets.)

The final Ticket collection type should look like the image below:

Seeding the Database

To seed the database, create some data under the Events collection type. In order to do that, follow the steps below:

1. Click on Content Manager on the side menu.
2. Under collection types, select Event.
3. Click on create new entry.
4. Create as many new entries as desired.

Allowing Public Access

Strapi has user permission and roles that are assigned to authenticated and public users. Since our system does not require user login and sign-up, we need to enable public access for our Content types.

Follow these steps to allow public access:

1. Click on Settings under general in the side menu.
2. Under User and permission plugins, click Roles.
3. Click on public.
4. Under permissions, different collection types are listed. Click on Event, then check both find and findOne.
5. Next, click on Ticket.
6. Check create, find, and findOne.
7. Finally, click save.

We have successfully allowed public access to our content types; we can now make API calls appropriately.

Building the Vue.js App

Next, we will install and configure Vue.Js to work with our Strapi backend.

To install Vue.js using the @vue/CLI package, visit the Vue CLI docs or run one of these commands to get started.

1    npm install -g @vue/cli 
2    # OR
3    yarn global add @vue/cli

Run the following commands to create a Vue.js project once you have installed the Vue CLI on your local machine.

1    vue create my-project

Replace my-project with the name you wish to call your project.

The above command should start a command-line application that walks you through creating a Vue.js project. Select whatever options you like, but select Router, Vuex, and linter/formatter because the first two are essential in our application. The last thing is to format the code nicely.

After Vue CLI has finished creating your project, run the following command.

1    cd my-project
2    yarn serve //using yarn
3    npm serve //using npm

Finally, visit the following URL: [http://localhost:8080](http://localhost:8080/) to open your Vue.js application in your browser.

Setting up Tailwind CSS

We will use Tailwind CSS as our CSS framework. Let's see how we can integrate Tailwind CSS into our Vue.js Application.

1    npm install -D tailwindcss@npm:@tailwindcss/postcss7-compat postcss@^7 autoprefixer@^9
2    or
3    yarn add tailwindcss@npm:@tailwindcss/postcss7-compat postcss@^7 autoprefixer@^9

In the root of your Vue.js folder, create a postcss.config.js and write the following lines.

1    module.exports = {
2      plugins: {
3        tailwindcss: {},
4        autoprefixer: {},
5      }
6    }

Also, in the root of the Vue.js folder, create a tailwindcss.config.js and write the following lines.

1    module.exports = {
2      purge: ['./index.html', './src/**/*.{vue,js,ts,jsx,tsx}'],
3      darkMode: false, // or 'media' or 'class'
4      theme: {
5        extend: {},
6      },
7      variants: {
8        extend: {},
9      },
10      plugins: [],
11    }

We have extended the components of the font by adding some fonts which we will use. These fonts have to be installed on your local machine to work appropriately but feel free to use whatever fonts you like.

Finally, create an index.css file in your src folder and add the following lines.

1    /* ./src/main.css */
2    @tailwind base;
3    @tailwind components;
4    @tailwind utilities;

Installing Axios for API Calls

We need a package for to make API calls to our Strapi backend, and we'll be using the Axios package for that purpose.

Run the following command to install Axios on your machine.

1    npm install --save axios
2    or
3    yarn add axios

Building Components

In this section, we’ll build the components that make up our vue.js application.

To Build the “EventList” Component:

Create an EventList.vue file located in the src/components folder, and add the following lines of code to the file.

1    <template>
2      <div class="list">
3        <div v-for="(event, i) in events" :key="i" class="mb-3">
4          <figure
5            class="md:flex bg-gray-100 rounded-xl p-8 md:p-0 dark:bg-gray-800"
6          >
7            <img
8              class="w-24 h-24 md:w-48 md:h-auto md:rounded-none rounded-full mx-auto"
9              :src="`http://localhost:1337${event.attributes.image.data.attributes.formats.large.url}`"
10              alt=""
11              width="384"
12              height="512"
13            />
14            <div class="pt-6 md:p-8 text-center md:text-left space-y-4">
15              <blockquote>
16                <h1 class="text-xl md:text-2xl mb-3 font-bold uppercase">
17                  {{ event.attributes.name }}
18                </h1>
19                <p class="text-sm md:text-lg font-medium">
20                  Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur, adipisicing elit. Debitis
21                  dolore dignissimos exercitationem, optio corrupti nihil veniam
22                  quod unde reprehenderit cum accusantium quaerat nostrum placeat,
23                  sapiente tempore perspiciatis maiores iure esse?
24                </p>
25              </blockquote>
26              <figcaption class="font-medium">
27                <div class="text-gray-700 dark:text-gray-500">
28                  tickets available: {{ event.attributes.tickets_available == 0 ? 'sold out' : event.attributes.tickets_available }}
29                </div>
30                <div class="text-gray-700 dark:text-gray-500">
31                  {{ formatDate(event.attributes.date) }}
32                </div>
33              </figcaption>
34              <!-- <router-link to="/about"> -->
35              <button :disabled=" event.attributes.tickets_available == 0 " @click="getDetail(event.id)" class="bg-black text-white p-3">
36                Get tickets
37              </button>
38              <!-- </router-link> -->
39            </div>
40          </figure>
41        </div>
42      </div>
43    </template>
44    <script>
45    import axios from "axios";
46    export default {
47      data() {
48        return {
49          events: [],
50        };
51      },
52      methods: {
53        getDetail(id) {
54          console.log("btn clicked");
55          this.$router.push(`/event/${id}`);
56        },
57        formatDate(date) {
58          const timeArr = new Date(date).toLocaleTimeString().split(":");
59          const DorN = timeArr.pop().split(" ")[1];
60          return `${new Date(date).toDateString()} ${timeArr.join(":")} ${DorN}`;
61        },
62      },
63      async created() {
64        const res = await axios.get("http://localhost:1337/api/events?populate=*");
65        this.events = res.data.data;
66      },
67    };
68    </script>
69    <style scoped></style>

To Build the “EventView” Component:

Create an EventView.vue file located in the src/components folder, and add the following lines of code to the file.

1    <template>
2      <div class="">
3        <!-- showcase -->
4        <div
5          :style="{
6            backgroundImage: `url(${img})`,
7            backgroundColor: `rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8)`,
8            backgroundBlendMode: `multiply`,
9            backgroundRepeat: `no-repeat`,
10            backgroundSize: `cover`,
11            height: `70vh`,
12          }"
13          class="w-screen flex items-center relative"
14          ref="showcase"
15        >
16          <div class="w-1/2 p-5">
17            <h1 class="text-2xl md:text-6xl text-white mb-3 uppercase font-bold my-auto">
18              {{ event.attributes.name }}
19            </h1>
20            <p class="leading-normal md:text-lg mb-3 font-thin text-white">
21              Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipisicing elit. Velit natus
22              illum cupiditate qui, asperiores quod sapiente. A exercitationem
23              quidem cupiditate repudiandae, odio sequi quae nam ipsam obcaecati
24              itaque, suscipit dolores.
25            </p>
26            <p class="text-white"><span class="font-bold">Tickets available:</span> {{ event.attributes.tickets_available }} </p>
27            <p class="text-white"><span class="font-bold">Airing Date:</span> {{ formatDate(event.attributes.date) }}</p>
28          </div>
29        </div>
30        <div class="text-center flex justify-center items-center">
31          <div class="mt-3 mb-3">
32            <h3 class="text-4xl mt-5 mb-5">Get Tickets</h3>
33            <table class="table-auto w-screen">
34              <thead>
35                <tr>
36                  <th class="w-1/2">Options</th>
37                  <th>Price</th>
38                  <th>Quantity</th>
39                  <th>Total</th>
40                </tr>
41              </thead>
42              <tbody>
43                <tr class="p-3">
44                  <td class="p-3">Seats without popcorn and drinks</td>
45                  <td class="p-3">${{ formatCurrency(price_of_seats_without) }}</td>
46                  <td class="p-3">
47                    <select class="p-3" id="" v-model="no_of_seats_without">
48                      <option
49                        class="p-3 bg-dark"
50                        v-for="(num, i) of quantityModel"
51                        :key="i"
52                        :value="`${num}`"
53                      >
54                        {{ num }}
55                      </option>
56                    </select>
57                  </td>
58                  <td>${{ formatCurrency(calcWithoutTotal) }}</td>
59                </tr>
60                <tr class="p-3">
61                  <td class="p-3">Seats with popcorn and drinks</td>
62                  <td class="p-3">${{ formatCurrency(price_of_seats_with) }}</td>
63                  <td class="p-3">
64                    <select class="p-3" id="" v-model="no_of_seats_with">
65                      <option
66                        class="p-3 bg-black"
67                        v-for="(num, i) of quantityModel"
68                        :key="i"
69                        :value="`${num}`"
70                      >
71                        {{ num }}
72                      </option>
73                    </select>
74                  </td>
75                  <td>${{ formatCurrency(calcWithTotal) }}</td>
76                </tr>
77              </tbody>
78            </table>
79            <div class="m-3">
80              <p class="mb-3">Ticket Total: ${{ formatCurrency(calcTotal) }}</p>
81              <button
82                @click="bookTicket"
83                :disabled="calcTotal == 0"
84                class="bg-black text-white p-3"
85              >
86                Book Now
87              </button>
88            </div>
89          </div>
90        </div>
91        <ticket
92          :data="res"
93          class="mx-auto h-full z-10 absolute top-0"
94          v-if="booked == true"
95        />
96      </div>
97    </template>
98    <script>
99    import axios from "axios";
100    import randomstring from "randomstring";
101    import ticket from "../components/Ticket.vue";
102    export default {
103      data() {
104        return {
105          quantityModel: [0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10],
106          no_of_seats_without: 0,
107          price_of_seats_without: 3,
108          no_of_seats_with: 0,
109          price_of_seats_with: 4,
110          id: "",
111          event: {},
112          img: "",
113          booked: false,
114        };
115      },
116      components: {
117        ticket,
118      },
119      methods: {
120        getDetail() {
121          console.log("btn clicked");
122          this.$router.push("/");
123        },
124        assignValue(num) {
125          console.log(num);
126          this.no_of_seats_without = num;
127        },
128        async bookTicket() {
129          console.log("booking ticket");
130          console.log(this.booked, "booked");
131          try {
132            const res = await axios.post(`http://localhost:1337/api/tickets`, {
133              data: {
134                seats_with: this.no_of_seats_with,
135                seats_without: this.no_of_seats_without,
136                total_seats:
137                  parseInt(this.no_of_seats_without) +
138                  parseInt(this.no_of_seats_with),
139                total: this.calcTotal,
140                event: this.id,
141                reference_number: randomstring.generate(),
142              },
143            });
144            this.res = res.data;
145            this.res.event = this.event.attributes.name;
146            this.res.date = this.event.attributes.date;
147            this.booked = true;
148            this.no_of_seats_with = 0;
149            this.no_of_seats_without = 0;
150            
151          } catch (error) {
152            return alert(
153              "cannot book ticket as available tickets have been exceeded. Pick a number of ticket that is less than or equal to the available tickets"
154            );
155          }
156        },
157        formatCurrency(num) {
158          if (num.toString().indexOf(".") != -1) {
159            return num;
160          } else {
161            return `${num}.00`;
162          }
163        },
164        formatDate(date) {
165          const timeArr = new Date(date).toLocaleTimeString().split(":");
166          const DorN = timeArr.pop().split(" ")[1];
167          return `${new Date(date).toDateString()} ${timeArr.join(":")} ${DorN}`;
168        },
169      },
170      computed: {
171        calcWithoutTotal() {
172          return (
173            parseFloat(this.no_of_seats_without) *
174            parseFloat(this.price_of_seats_without)
175          );
176        },
177        calcWithTotal() {
178          return (
179            parseFloat(this.no_of_seats_with) * parseFloat(this.price_of_seats_with)
180          );
181        },
182        calcTotal() {
183          return this.calcWithoutTotal + this.calcWithTotal;
184        },
185      },
186      async created() {
187        this.id = this.$route.params.id;
188        try {
189          const res = await axios.get(
190            `http://localhost:1337/api/events/${this.$route.params.id}?populate=*`
191          );
192          this.event = res.data.data;
193          this.price_of_seats_without = res.data.data.attributes.price;
194          this.price_of_seats_with = res.data.data.attributes.price + 2;
195          const img =
196            res.data.data.attributes.image.data.attributes.formats.large.url;
197          this.img = `"http://localhost:1337${img}"`;
198          
199        } catch (error) {
200          return alert('An Error occurred, please try agian')
201        }
202        
203      },
204    };
205    </script>
206    <style scoped></style>

Buildthe Ticket Collections

Create a Ticket.vue file located in the src/components folder, and add the following lines of code to the file.

1    <template>
2      <div
3        class="h-full w-full modal flex overflow-y-hidden justify-center items-center"
4      >
5        <div class="bg-white p-5">
6          <p class="m-2">
7            Show: <span class="uppercase">{{ data.event }}</span>
8          </p>
9          <p class="m-2">Date: {{ formatDate(data.date) }}</p>
10          <p class="m-2">TicketID: {{ data.reference_number }}</p>
11          <p class="m-2">
12            Seats without Pop corn and Drinks: {{ data.seats_without }} seats
13          </p>
14          <p class="m-2">
15            Seats with Pop corn and Drinks: {{ data.seats_with }} seats
16          </p>
17          <p class="m-2">
18            Total seats:
19            {{ parseInt(data.seats_without) + parseInt(data.seats_with) }} seats
20          </p>
21          <p class="m-2">Price total: ${{ data.total }}.00</p>
22          <router-link to="/">
23            <button class="m-2 p-3 text-white bg-black">Done</button>
24          </router-link>
25        </div>
26      </div>
27    </template>
28    <script>
29    export default {
30      name: "Ticket",
31      data() {
32        return {};
33      },
34      props: ["data"],
35      components: {},
36      methods: {
37        formatDate(date) {
38          const timeArr = new Date(date).toLocaleTimeString().split(":");
39          const DorN = timeArr.pop().split(" ")[1];
40          return `${new Date(date).toDateString()} ${timeArr.join(":")} ${DorN}`;
41        },
42      },
43    };
44    </script>
45    <style scoped>
46    .show_case {
47      /* background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5); */
48      /* background-blend-mode: multiply; */
49      background-repeat: no-repeat;
50      background-size: cover;
51    }
52    .show_img {
53      object-fit: cover;
54      opacity: 1;
55    }
56    ._img_background {
57      background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5);
58    }
59    .modal {
60      overflow: hidden;
61      background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5);
62    }
63    </style>

Building Views

In this section, we’ll use the components built in the last section to build out the pages on our frontend.

To Build the “Events” View

The Events page makes use of the EventsView.vue component, which we created in the previous section.

Create an Event.vue file located in the src/views folder, and edit the content of the file to the following:

1    <template>
2      <div class="about">
3        <event-view />
4      </div>
5    </template>
6    <script>
7    import EventView from "../components/EventView.vue";
8    export default {
9      name: "Event",
10      components: {
11        EventView,
12      },
13    };
14    </script>
15    <style scoped>
16    .show_case {
17      /* background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5); */
18      /* background-blend-mode: multiply; */
19      background-repeat: no-repeat;
20      background-size: cover;
21    }
22    .show_img {
23      object-fit: cover;
24      opacity: 1;
25    }
26    ._img_background {
27      background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5);
28    }
29    </style>

To Build the “Home” View:

The Home page makes use of the EventList.vue component, which we created in the previous section.

Create an Home.vue file located in the src/views folder, and edit the content of the file to the following:

1    <template>
2      <div class="home">
3        <h1 class="text-center text-xl mb-3 font-bold mt-4">Upcoming Events</h1>
4        <div class="flex self-center justify-center">
5          <event-list class="w-5/6" />
6        </div>
7      </div>
8    </template>
9    <script>
10    // @ is an alias to /src
11    import EventList from "../components/EventList.vue";
12    export default {
13      name: "Home",
14      components: {
15         EventList,
16      },
17    };
18    </script>

Updating the Vue Router

We created some new view files that we need to make accessible as routes. However, for that to happen, we need to update our router to reflect the changes made.

In order to make the changes to Vue router, follow the steps below:

• Open the index.js file located at src/router, and edit the content to the following:

1    import Vue from "vue";
2    import VueRouter from "vue-router";
3    import Home from "../views/Home.vue";
4    import Event from "../views/Event.vue";
5    Vue.use(VueRouter);
6    const routes = [
7      {
8        path: "/",
9        name: "Home",
10        component: Home,
11      },
12      {
13        path: "/event/:id",
14        name: "Event",
15        component: Event,
16      }
17    ];
18    const router = new VueRouter({
19      mode: "history",
20      base: process.env.BASE_URL,
21      routes,
22    });
23    export default router;

Editing the Strapi Backend Manually

One major advantage of Strapi is that it allows us to edit the controllers, services, and more.

In this section, we’re going to edit the ticket controller in our Strapi backend. We want to carry out some logic when creating a new ticket, such as:

1. Checking if the tickets available for an event are enough to cover the creation of new tickets.
2. Checking if the tickets available for an event have been exhausted.

Follow the steps below to edit the ticket controller:

• Open the strapi folder in your favorite code editor.
• Navigate to the src/api/ticket folder.
• Under the src/api/ticket folder, click the controllers.
• Open up ticket.js.
• Finally, update the content of ticket.js to contain the following code:

1    'use strict';
2    /**
3     *  ticket controller
4     */
5    const { createCoreController } = require('@strapi/strapi').factories;
6    module.exports = createCoreController('api::ticket.ticket', ({ strapi }) => ({
7        async create(ctx) {
8            const event_id = Number(ctx.request.body.data.event)
9            // some logic here
10            const event = await strapi.service('api::event.event').findOne(event_id, {
11                populate: "tickets"
12            })
13            if(ctx.request.body.data.total_seats > event.tickets_available) {
14                return ctx.badRequest('Cannot book ticket at the moment')
15            }
16            const response = await strapi.service('api::ticket.ticket').create(ctx.request.body)
17            await strapi.service('api::event.event').update(event_id, { data: {
18                tickets_available: event.tickets_available - ctx.request.body.data.total_seats
19            }})
20            return response;
21          }
22          
23    }));

Conclusion

I hope this tutorial has given you an insight into how to build a ticketing system with Strapi. There’s so much more you could add to this application, just think of this as a starting point.

• The frontend repo for this tutorial can be found here.
• The backend repo for this tutorial can be found here.