Stagera vs Current RMS: Which Event Rental Software Is Better in 2026?
A detailed comparison of Stagera and Current RMS for AV rental and event production companies. Features, pricing, crew management, and which platform fits your workflow.
Current RMS, now sold by Klipboard as OnRent Events (formerly Current RMS), is one of the more established names in rental management, with customers in more than 2,000 cities. It covers a broad set of rental workflows: equipment tracking, quoting, invoicing, and crew and transport scheduling through a resource planner. For companies that have been in the industry for years, Current RMS is a familiar choice.
Stagera is purpose-built for AV and live event production companies. It combines equipment tracking, crew scheduling, quoting, invoicing, logistics, and an AI-powered operations assistant into a single platform, with every feature on every plan.
This comparison breaks down what each platform is built for, so you can decide which one fits your operation.
Quick Comparison
| Feature | Stagera | Current RMS |
|---|---|---|
| Equipment tracking with barcode scanning | Yes | Yes |
| Real-time availability & conflict detection | Yes | Yes |
| Crew scheduling | Built for live production | Resource planner (services) |
| AI | Sparky AI assistant, AI-drafted quotes | Klipboard AI announced for OnRent Events |
| QuickBooks integration | Yes | QuickBooks Online |
| Sub-rental tracking | Yes | Yes |
| Transport and logistics planning | Yes | Transport via resource planner |
| Pricing model | Every feature on every plan, by power user | Every feature, per user ($79 first user, $49 each additional) |
Equipment Management
Both platforms handle the fundamentals of equipment tracking well. Barcode scanning, real-time availability, and conflict detection are core features in each.
Where they diverge is depth. Current RMS has been building its equipment management features for years, and it shows in the configurability, custom fields, detailed item histories, and flexible categorization. If your primary need is deep equipment management with maximum configurability, Current RMS delivers.
Stagera matches the core equipment tracking capabilities and adds maintenance scheduling with automated alerts, sub-rental cost tracking that rolls into event-level financials, and multi-warehouse support with transit tracking. The focus is on making equipment data actionable, not just knowing where gear is, but automatically preventing conflicts, triggering maintenance, and feeding cost data into profitability reports.
Crew Management
This is the biggest differentiator between the two platforms.
Current RMS schedules crew as bookable services in its resource planner, with drag-and-drop planning, iCal feeds, unavailability periods, and freelancer costs. For call sheets and deeper crew logistics, it points customers to a third-party integration (TeamTrack).
Stagera was built with crew management as a first-class feature from day one. Every crew member gets a profile with skills, certifications (with expiration tracking), rate sheets, and availability. Scheduling uses skills-based filtering, need a DiGiCo operator with a current rigging cert who’s available next Friday? That’s a one-click filter. Freelancers and collaborators get free mobile access to view schedules, accept shifts, submit timesheets, and update availability.
For AV production companies where crew scheduling is a daily operational challenge, this difference is significant. When crew is as central to the job as gear, having crew scheduling built into the same system as your quotes and inventory saves real time.
Quoting and Invoicing
Current RMS provides solid quoting and invoicing with customizable templates, tax handling, and the ability to convert quotes to invoices. It integrates with accounting platforms including Xero and QuickBooks Online.
Stagera’s quoting pulls from live equipment availability and crew schedules simultaneously, so your quote reflects what’s actually available, gear and people, at the time you’re building it. The AI operations assistant can generate quote drafts from client requirements, auto-suggest crew based on event type and availability, and flag potential conflicts before you send the proposal.
Both platforms handle the quote-to-invoice conversion, but Stagera’s approach reduces the manual work involved in building accurate quotes by connecting all the data sources (equipment, crew, logistics) into a single quoting workflow.
Pricing
Current RMS publishes simple pricing: one plan with every feature, at $79/month for the first user and $49/month for each additional user, with a 30-day free trial.
Stagera also includes every feature on every plan. Plans differ only by the number of power users, and crew, warehouse staff, and clients are free. The 14-day free trial requires no credit card.
The practical difference is who you pay for: Current RMS charges for each user, while Stagera charges for power users (anyone who creates or edits quotes and invoices) and keeps crew, warehouse, and client logins free.
AI and Automation
Klipboard, which owns Current RMS, markets Klipboard AI for OnRent Events, and the platform also offers an open API and webhooks for teams that want to build their own automation. The difference is less about whether there is AI and more about what it works on: Stagera’s AI sits inside the same system as your crew schedule, quotes, and inventory.
Stagera’s AI operations assistant automates routine operational tasks: drafting quotes from client requirements, optimizing crew schedules based on skills and availability, flagging maintenance needs before they become show-day problems, and surfacing event profitability insights. This isn’t a chatbot bolted onto a rental platform, it’s operational AI that understands your equipment catalog, crew pool, and event schedule.
For companies processing dozens of quotes per month and scheduling crew across multiple simultaneous events, that automation takes real administrative work off the team.
Who Should Choose Current RMS
Current RMS is a strong choice if your primary need is deep equipment management with maximum configurability, you’re already on the platform and your workflows are built around it, crew management isn’t a major operational challenge for your business, or you operate primarily in the UK/European market where Current RMS has strong local support.
Who Should Choose Stagera
Stagera is the better fit if you need crew scheduling and equipment tracking in one platform, you want AI-powered automation for quoting and scheduling, you want every feature on every plan with free crew logins, you manage freelance crews who need free mobile access, or you want logistics planning and event-level financial reporting built in.
The Bottom Line
Current RMS is a proven platform with a long track record in rental management. For companies whose operations center on equipment rental with minimal crew scheduling needs, it’s a reliable choice.
Stagera is built for the reality of modern AV production, where managing crew is just as important as managing gear. The combination of built-in crew scheduling, AI-powered operations, and every feature on every plan makes it the more complete platform for production companies that need to manage the full event lifecycle, not just the equipment.
The best way to evaluate either platform is to test it with your actual workflows. Start a free Stagera trial and see how it handles your next event from quote through reconciliation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Current RMS or Stagera better for AV rental companies? It depends on your priorities. Current RMS excels at deep equipment management with high configurability. Stagera is better for companies that need crew scheduling, AI automation, and equipment tracking in one platform.
Can I migrate from Current RMS to Stagera? Yes. Stagera supports data import from competing platforms and spreadsheets. Equipment catalogs, contact lists, and pricing data can typically be migrated during your trial period. Contact Stagera’s team for migration support.
Does Current RMS have crew scheduling? Yes. Current RMS schedules crew as bookable services in its resource planner, with availability periods and freelancer costs, and integrates with TeamTrack for call sheets and deeper crew logistics.
How much does Current RMS cost compared to Stagera? Current RMS publishes per-user pricing: $79/month for the first user and $49/month for each additional user, with every feature included. Stagera includes every feature on every plan, priced by power user, with crew, warehouse staff, and clients free.
Ready to see the difference? Start your free Stagera trial →, 14 days, no credit card required. Or compare Stagera with other platforms.