Guesty / hostaway / hospitable?? Help!

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Guesty / hostaway / hospitable?? Help!

Phil Wrigley
Property Manager · Chicago, IL · Member since 2018 · 37 posts · 9 votes

Hi everyone,

On the back of my last question on here I now have another! I’m sure this is one that’s been asked many times before so please don’t yell at me for asking it again. I did troll the forums and it’s really hard to get a definitive answer because it seems to be based a lot on personal preference.

In your honest opinions, what is the most intuitive property management software solution to use for someone that is just starting the journey in self management? Up until now we have been using Evolve vacation rental to “manage” our properties and to cut a long story short, we are ready to take it on ourselves in order to scale our business.

I have narrowed it down to three different brands - Guesty / hostaway / hospitable. A lot of people have said it doesn’t matter too much just to pick one and then change when it doesn’t work out but I kind of wanna get it right first time if I can! In terms of my background, we have four properties all in the same vacation rental market and we most commonly book through VRBO. We have an excellent team of cleaners handyman and other local professionals and been in the business for five years.

What are the costs vs benefits of each platform? Which would work best for integration with VRBO? I had a demo call with Guesty and it looked good but I hear bad reviews about customer service and compatibility with VRBO. Help! :)

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Allen Wright
Realtor · Indianapolis, IN · Member since 2020 · 20 posts · 16 votes
3y

I would definitely say go with Hospitable. I'm not sure what your main goal is or how big you want to scale but you probably won't have any type of set back up until you get passed 35-40 units or so. I will say Hospitable does not have any type of accounting, if that's something that you feel your PMS needs. 

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  • Sarah KensingerPro Member
    Real Estate Consultant · OH · Member since 2023 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    3y

    Guesty can be a nightmare...especially lately....not to mention they are expensive! All the time I hear.... if your new use Hospitable and then later once your accustomed to managing a STR you can change to another PMS that's more in-depth. So, I'll just drop that here and you can decide if that would be a good option for you.

    [email protected]330-557-3021
    2Reply
  • Allen Wright
    Realtor · Indianapolis, IN · Member since 2020 · 20 posts · 16 votes
    3y

    I would definitely say go with Hospitable. I'm not sure what your main goal is or how big you want to scale but you probably won't have any type of set back up until you get passed 35-40 units or so. I will say Hospitable does not have any type of accounting, if that's something that you feel your PMS needs. 

    4Reply
  • Joel Lazar
    Investor · Kissimmee, FL · Member since 2020 · 120 posts · 35 votes
    2y

    What did you end up doing?  I am on the Hospitable trial period. 

    0Reply
  • Chris GottshallPro Member
    Rental Property Investor · Portland, OR · Member since 2019 · 11 posts · 5 votes
    2y

    @Phil Wrigley We are just getting started trying out Hostaway. I’d be happy to connect and compare notes on how your experience compares. I’m starting with just 1 listing but plan to recruit neighbors in my beach market to list on my custom website tailored to our community / market so I hope to be at 10+ listings soon even though I only own & operate 1 right now.

    Guesty’s pricing did not appear to be competitive and for someone starting with fewer than 4 units but planning to scale up behind that, Guesty does not offer a migration path from their “for hosts” product to their “for pros” version - it would have been a complete redo on setting everything up. That was a major turn off for us.

    1Reply
  • Jason Tarabokija
    Real Estate Agent · NJ · Member since 2015 · 24 posts · 15 votes
    2y

    I started using hospitable for my personal STR due to the price point. I am accustomed to the platform and implemented it in my newly started STR property management company at the Jersey Shore. I have onbaoarded a few properties so far and it continues to work seamlessly.

    3Reply
  • Yiwei Cheng
    Investor · Cincinnati, OH · Member since 2023 · 139 posts · 81 votes
    2y

    How many properties do you have and what functionality are important to you?

    I have used both Guesty & Hostaway so I can help answer any questions with those.  

    1Reply
  • Robert Liddle
    Member since 2022 · 2 posts · 1 vote
    2y
    I love Hospitable for the messaging, best in the business,  they disconnect calendars a lot!  I have 25 listings, and probably have to reconnect calendars 2x a day,  IGMS is who is use for the calendaring,  and Hospitable for messaging,  strongly considering going to Ownerez.
    1Reply
  • Theresa Holl
    Investor · Minneapolis · Member since 2023 · 265 posts · 162 votes
    2y

    Make sure to pay attention to what else they can integrate with.  As far as the Tech Stack goes, a common mistake is not considering what future tech you want to use, then you're stuck with things that don't integrate (API out) to it, and you get really limited in future options.  Also, know that Guesty for Hosts isn't a simple upgrade into Pro, so don't think you can futureproof your business just by going with one company.  That upgrade is basically like starting over. :(  

    2Reply
  • Yiwei Cheng
    Investor · Cincinnati, OH · Member since 2023 · 139 posts · 81 votes
    2y
    Quote from @Robert Liddle:
    I love Hospitable for the messaging, best in the business,  they disconnect calendars a lot!  I have 25 listings, and probably have to reconnect calendars 2x a day,  IGMS is who is use for the calendaring,  and Hospitable for messaging,  strongly considering going to Ownerez.

     Sounds like a pain... 

    1Reply
  • Joel Lazar
    Investor · Kissimmee, FL · Member since 2020 · 120 posts · 35 votes
    2y

    I just signed on with Hospitable. But a bit nervous just hearing about this calendar issue Robert Liddle is talking about. Anyone else having this issue or his an isolated issue?

    1Reply
  • Zachary Cain Humphrey
    Investor · KY · Member since 2022 · 204 posts · 77 votes
    2y

    I use Hospitable. So far I have liked it. However when it comes to making word sets for my pre programmed messages I have noticed glitches several times. Dont know if this is just me or something to do with hospitable? Overall it is easy to learn and has made my messaging guests much much easier. 

    1Reply
  • Jeff E.
    Investor · Scottsdale, AZ · Member since 2020 · 38 posts · 23 votes
    2y

    I am just starting to onboard with Guesty pro. Not very impressed so far.   They run your credit report to start so I did not love that.  I have yet to onboard with them as they are backed up about 1.5 months after you sign up to just do the initial onboarding call, at this rate I am expecting onboarding to take 2-3 months from the time I signed up.  Their reps also appear to be from Europe so a big time variance in available times for calls with them.

    1Reply
  • Scott Yesner
    Rental Property Investor · Member since 2022 · 8 posts · 7 votes
    2y

    Hi @Jeff E. - sorry to hear about this. I've used both Guesty and Hostaway. Happy to chat about the pros and cons of each. 

    Overall, I have been impressed with Hostaway's response time and roll-out of new features, while making sure the basics are in good working order. 

    0Reply
  • Cameron Masters
    Property Manager · Roseville, CA · Member since 2023 · 16 posts · 8 votes
    2y

    They all have their benefits and their issues. I use Hospitable and I know plenty of other hosts who  use Guesty, OwnerRez, and Hostaway. You can always change in the future so I'd pick one try it out and see if it works for you. 

    0Reply
  • Cliff H.Pro Member
    Rental Property Investor · Nashua, NH · Member since 2014 · 587 posts · 477 votes
    2y

    Popular question and it ultimately comes down to what you're looking to solve for with a PMS. I've demo'd a bunch and found not a single one that's not either over-priced or saddled with an interface out of MS Word gone wild wet dream. 

    I've posted it before, but here's the comparison chart cover 15 different STR PMS solutions I built out to decide on the PMS Formerly Known as YourPorter (now Guesty for Hosts). I'm not bankrolling a large portfolio so the popular option to gouge smaller managers for a minimum $100/mo isn't a biz model I'm willing to support. Yes, what others have said about GfH's customer service is right: it's challenging, but I'm grandfathered into pricing that makes it a tough sell to switch and with (still) 98% of their solution's capability available right in their mobile app it's still a compelling option for smaller portfolios. Now if only their newer developers would remember their mobile-first origin story when rolling out new capabilities like smart pricing that only works on a desktop. 

    2Reply
  • Yiwei Cheng
    Investor · Cincinnati, OH · Member since 2023 · 139 posts · 81 votes
    2y
    Quote from @Jeff E.:

    I am just starting to onboard with Guesty pro. Not very impressed so far.   They run your credit report to start so I did not love that.  I have yet to onboard with them as they are backed up about 1.5 months after you sign up to just do the initial onboarding call, at this rate I am expecting onboarding to take 2-3 months from the time I signed up.  Their reps also appear to be from Europe so a big time variance in available times for calls with them.


     I used to use Guesty but I did not like them.  They are too sales focused.   I am on Hostaway now.  No PMS is perfect so it's just what can you deal with... Hostaway isn't perfect either but it's good enough for me like I don't have that many complaints based on what I need.

    0Reply
  • Dj Hume
    Rental Property Investor · Cincinnati, OH · Member since 2019 · 55 posts · 49 votes
    2y


    Quote from @Phil Wrigley:

    Hi everyone,

    On the back of my last question on here I now have another! I’m sure this is one that’s been asked many times before so please don’t yell at me for asking it again. I did troll the forums and it’s really hard to get a definitive answer because it seems to be based a lot on personal preference.

    In your honest opinions, what is the most intuitive property management software solution to use for someone that is just starting the journey in self management? Up until now we have been using Evolve vacation rental to “manage” our properties and to cut a long story short, we are ready to take it on ourselves in order to scale our business.

    I have narrowed it down to three different brands - Guesty / hostaway / hospitable. A lot of people have said it doesn’t matter too much just to pick one and then change when it doesn’t work out but I kind of wanna get it right first time if I can! In terms of my background, we have four properties all in the same vacation rental market and we most commonly book through VRBO. We have an excellent team of cleaners handyman and other local professionals and been in the business for five years.

    What are the costs vs benefits of each platform? Which would work best for integration with VRBO? I had a demo call with Guesty and it looked good but I hear bad reviews about customer service and compatibility with VRBO. Help! :)


     I started with Lodgify, what a mistake!

    I’ve been with Hostaway for about a year now. I haven’t built it out much, but for what we use it for it’s great.


    What did you end up going with?

    0Reply
  • Paul Stewart
    Specialist · Atlantic City NJ · Member since 2018 · 114 posts · 50 votes
    2y

    Long time Hospitable user here..it's been a good software for me. My biggest issue is constant issues with VRBO connections. Apparently Hospitable uses a public API and is not a official partner with VRBO. We have 80 different properties so we considering moving to hostaway but the price point is triple the amount of what we pay for Hospitable

    1Reply
  • Jeremy Jareckyj
    Real Estate Agent · Salt Lake City, UT · Member since 2020 · 490 posts · 205 votes
    2y

    I use IGMS for calendar, cleaner notifications, and messaging and then wheelhouse for pricing. Been using them for year and they have improved ALOT and are still fairly affordable. I wish it had a little bit more connections with other listing platforms (Furnish Finder etc) but it does a good job. Shoot me a DM I'm happy to chat about my experience.

    0Reply
  • Amit Shukla
    Beaverton, OR · Member since 2017 · 37 posts · 21 votes
    2y
    Quote from @Cliff H.:

    Popular question and it ultimately comes down to what you're looking to solve for with a PMS. I've demo'd a bunch and found not a single one that's not either over-priced or saddled with an interface out of MS Word gone wild wet dream. 

    I've posted it before, but here's the comparison chart cover 15 different STR PMS solutions I built out to decide on the PMS Formerly Known as YourPorter (now Guesty for Hosts). I'm not bankrolling a large portfolio so the popular option to gouge smaller managers for a minimum $100/mo isn't a biz model I'm willing to support. Yes, what others have said about GfH's customer service is right: it's challenging, but I'm grandfathered into pricing that makes it a tough sell to switch and with (still) 98% of their solution's capability available right in their mobile app it's still a compelling option for smaller portfolios. Now if only their newer developers would remember their mobile-first origin story when rolling out new capabilities like smart pricing that only works on a desktop. 


     Cliff, great sheet. I love it. When you have time, can you add Hostaway to the list? 

    1Reply
  • Cliff H.Pro Member
    Rental Property Investor · Nashua, NH · Member since 2014 · 587 posts · 477 votes
    2y
    Hi Amit I intentionally chose to ignore vendors that were not transparent with their pricing, since those typically fall into enterprise grade solutions that were outside of the scope of this analysis. If you know of a publicly linkable page, where hostaway actually shows their pricing, I’m happy to add. Here’s what I found: https://www.hostaway.com/pricing

    Quote from @Amit Shukla:
    Quote from @Cliff H.:

    Popular question and it ultimately comes down to what you're looking to solve for with a PMS. I've demo'd a bunch and found not a single one that's not either over-priced or saddled with an interface out of MS Word gone wild wet dream. 

    I've posted it before, but here's the comparison chart cover 15 different STR PMS solutions I built out to decide on the PMS Formerly Known as YourPorter (now Guesty for Hosts). I'm not bankrolling a large portfolio so the popular option to gouge smaller managers for a minimum $100/mo isn't a biz model I'm willing to support. Yes, what others have said about GfH's customer service is right: it's challenging, but I'm grandfathered into pricing that makes it a tough sell to switch and with (still) 98% of their solution's capability available right in their mobile app it's still a compelling option for smaller portfolios. Now if only their newer developers would remember their mobile-first origin story when rolling out new capabilities like smart pricing that only works on a desktop. 


     Cliff, great sheet. I love it. When you have time, can you add Hostaway to the list? 


    0Reply
  • Dominic Battaglia
    San Salvador, Toronto ON · Member since 2019 · 19 posts · 5 votes
    1y

    @robert Liddle, why are you leveraging 2 solutions? Hostaway is the best in the game. I will be happy to show you what Hostaway does. I have been with them for 2 years

    0Reply
  • Dominic Battaglia
    San Salvador, Toronto ON · Member since 2019 · 19 posts · 5 votes
    1y

    Hostaway is the best in the industry. 

    Although they are not the cheapest, they have the strongest OTA connections, the most customizable direct booking website, the largest variety of integrations, top tier customer support.

    Hospitable is okay for when you start out, but their calendars always drops. IGMS users always complain about double bookings, and Lodgify users face massive difficulties with VRBO connections.


    I've been in the channel management space and an investor for years. let me know if you have any questions

    1Reply
  • Zachary Cain Humphrey
    Investor · KY · Member since 2022 · 204 posts · 77 votes
    1y

    Hospitable for me has been the most intuitive PMS

    0Reply
  • Cliff H.Pro Member
    Rental Property Investor · Nashua, NH · Member since 2014 · 587 posts · 477 votes
    1y

    @Dominic Battaglia or @Amit Shukla what are you guys paying for Hostaway per property, per month? Hostaway's lack of transparency in their pricing makes them pretty hard to recommend to anyone since these types of "custom" pricing schemes are often used as a means of upcharging new customers. 

    As of 10/11/24, here's some quick compares of various service prices for providers I've checked into myself: 

    NamePricing
    Guesty for Hosts$39/month
    BookingAutomation$12/mo
    Beds24$20/mo
    Tokeet$15/mo
    Lodgify$50/mo
    Elina$100+/mo
    Rentlio$13/mo
    HostTools$32/mo
    Hostfully$119/mo
    Uplisting$100/mo
    Hospitable$29/mo
    Smoobu$28/mo
    iGMS$28/mo
    Lodgix$79/mo
    OwnerRez$40/mo
    1Reply
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