Hostaway Review: Features, Integrations, and Pricing

Hostaway is a vacation rental management solution. Think of property management but on a rental scale. Statistics show that as of 2023, there were over six million listings on Airbnb, with about four million hosts. This means that, on average, half of the hosts have more than one property listed. While Airbnb is a fantastic option for getting more visibility on your properties, there lies a more significant concern: how do you manage them?

Of course, as a property owner or vacation rental manager, several tools are available to you. You could deploy one each for property management, communication, accounting, marketing, etc. However, a more appealing option would be consolidating all these tools into one software for easier access. Hostaway provides the solutions you need while integrating with the ones you already use. Read on as we delve into a comprehensive review of Hostaway and its benefits. 

Hostaway Overview 

Hostaway is a multisolution vacation rental management platform. Its solutions help property managers who want to get more bookings with less hassle. Its primary use case is the streamlining and automating of management tasks. Some of these include booking, invoicing, communicating, and more. By industry standards, Hostaway is what you would call an all-in-one software.

An all-in-one software consolidates several point solutions into one. It reduces the number of separate tools and integrations you rely on for your business. Other benefits of all-in-one solutions like Hostaway include centralized support, removal of integration issues, data integrity, the addition of pricing tools, etc. As a vacation rental software, Hostaway is suitable for ensuring transparency in finance, regular maintenance, and increasing revenue potential.

Hostaway launched in 2015 and has onboarded several vacation rental property managers and partners. Some of their partners include Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking.com, Expedia, and Marriott. Its founders, Marcus Rader, Mikko Nurminen, and Saber Kordestanchi, have experiences in marketing, investing, and engineering, respectively.

The company’s last funding round closed on May 31st, 2023, after generating a whopping $175 million. It was led by PSG, a private equity firm, and invested in by several VCs. We attribute this to its value proposition, which, although familiar in the industry, scales better than its competitors.

• Established: 2015
• Founders: Marcus Rader, Mikko Nurminen, and Saber Kordestanchi
• Office: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Core Features of Hostaway

Expert Opinion

Rating: 4.8/5

Hostaway is an all-in-one vacation rental software for property managers to maintain properties while streamlining operations.

Hostaway’s value proposition is simple- give property managers everything they need to make their jobs easier. However, behind this simple proposition are several interwoven operations. The software contains varying solutions for varying use cases. Of all these, its channel manager is our most beloved feature. While exploring the platform, we realized why it is its core. The channel manager allows property managers to link all channels where their properties are listed.

Interestingly, it has a multi-calendar solution to avoid double bookings. We were especially attracted to this for its ripple effect, as removing double bookings meant reducing the number of canceled bookings. In other words, you can reject guests without it affecting your ranking. We also found Hostaway impressive for its integrations. For us, integrations are an essential part of any SaaS tool, and Hostaway has lots of them. Its marketplace is open to software that enhances hospitality. 

However, the Hostaway platform has a learning curve due to its numerous use cases. Although typical of all SaaS solutions, Hostaway takes more time to grasp fully. The company has a help center to decrease the learning curve, which also helped us understand how to use the platform. Still, the software has room to become more user-friendly.

Another factor that adds value to the platform is its automation capabilities. We were particularly impressed that its automation was language-inclusive. It automates communication based on the language the guest applied from the property rental sites. However, we would’ve loved to see some improvements in its settings for international markets—for instance, the addition of taxes.

Overall, onboarding with Hostaway is easy, and we’d recommend choosing Hostaway to property managers for its versatility.

Notable Features

Hostaway is a multifaceted solution with several tools. Each of these tools has different functions, as we’ll examine below. 

1. Property Management

Hostaway offers vacation rental property managers a property management system (PMS). This PMS helps property managers keep track of actions like reservations, rental performance, customer relationship management, and lead conversion. Although it’s an all-in-one property management solution, users can customize it to suit a particular need.

With its reservation manager, you can monitor all your reservation data from one place. You can manage your inquiries, upsell to visitors, and monitor check-ins and checkouts. The Hostaway mobile app also has a performance dashboard with an overview of your key performance indicators (KPIs). 

2. Channel Manager

Hostaway’s Channel Manager is its highest-rated tool, thanks to its numerous functionalities. A channel manager encourages multichannel distribution so vacation rental hosts can list their properties on multiple sites. Without a channel manager, you would need to hop around these travel agency sites to see how your properties are fairing. On the other hand, if you do link your listings together, you can quickly get exposure. Subsequently, you can improve your average occupancy and onboarding.

The channel manager has a multi-calendar that allows you to sync your calendars on travel agency sites together. This calendar sync guarantees your bookings with less hassle. In other words, you won’t have to cancel reservations, as they can harm your ranking on travel sites. 

3. Communication

If you intend to list your vacation rental property on several travel agency sites, it is essential to have an efficient communication system in place. Hostaway allows hosts to have a unified inbox that links all their channels’ messages. Vacation rental property managers can set triggers for the automation of some inquiries. They can also set upsells and offers based on specific events. For instance, they can easily send notice of availability to guests who formerly inquired about their properties.

Hostaway also provides easy-to-use owner and guest portals for messaging. The owners of the houses can see what you let them see through the owner portal. On the other hand, guests can access all the critical information they need during their stay. The SMS and WhatsApp text options are another communication feature embedded in the tool. It means you can send automated or tailored messages through both media. 

4. Marketing

Hostaway integrates with several booking websites. However, its plugin also allows you to develop your direct booking website. You could also build using their partners’ plugins, depending on your needs. The software has widgets that you can utilize for WordPress, Squarespace, Wix, or other website builders. It means you can use its software while incorporating other marketing functionalities you’d like.

The vacation rental management software also lets you create enticing coupons for your marketing campaigns. Furthermore, you can monitor your metrics by integrating tracking tools to evaluate the performance of your cost-per-click (CPC) marketing.

5. Analytics and Reporting

As expected of vacation rental management software, Hostaway provides analytics features. Still, it takes it a step further by offering users customizable reports. Its analytics and reporting tools span areas like occupancy reporting, financial reporting, expense tracking, etc. Its occupancy reports show property managers their occupancy values stacked against different metrics. These values could be period, region, or property. 

Its financial reports provide detailed analysis of your spending, gross and net profits, etc. Like the occupancy reports, when using Hostaway, you can filter by whatever metrics you like. As a property manager, you can separate the reports by property, owner, or location and customize them for sending owner statements. One more functionality of Hostaway’s analytics is its custom formulas for breaking down spending into a granular view.

6. Automation

Hostaway provides automation tools to ease repetitive tasks. The first of which is automating reviews. The rental property management software automates your review gathering and answering. It scrapes out the process of reviewing guests individually. Apart from message automation, you can also automate tasks such as cleaning or maintenance, which sync with your business workflow. 

For instance, you can set a trigger for the cleaning task based on reservations. When visitors book a property, the app notifies the cleaner. Moreover, it also updates the cleaner if there are any booking changes. Lastly, you can automate payments. While most booking sites already have this, you’ll need advanced automation if you’re linking several travel sites.

7. Rental Operations

Rental operations include other features like guest invoicing, contract signatures, and smart lock activation. Hostaway has its inbuilt electronic signature solution. With this, you can sign contracts for short-term rentals. You can also collect other information before giving the guest access to the property.

Another way to manage access is through its smart lock offering. Hostaway integrates with smart lock providers. This way, guests only get the smart code to the property after the app confirms their payment. Furthermore, through its guest portals, you can generate smart invoices for your guests. This invoice naturally updates as the visitor’s expenses compound. 

Hostaway Integrations

Hostaway integrates payment software, communication, marketing, and analytics tools with numerous travel agency sites. Its marketplace hosts about 100 apps that you can choose from to streamline your hospitality workflow and give guests a hospitable experience. You can refer here for the list of tools it integrates with. However, below is an overview of some of the most popular ones.

Airbnb 

Airbnb is an online marketplace for hosts and guests. Hosts can list their properties on the site for guests interested in vacationing there. Its listings include mansions, sailboats, apartments, beach houses, etc., spread across 191 countries. Airbnb is just one of the many property rental software connected to Hostaway.

Booking.com

Booking.com is one of the leading travel agencies today. It connects tourists with multiple modes of transportation, lodging, and tourist attractions. Whether it’s a hotel, home, or a drive, it allows brands to list their services on its site.

Marriott

Homes and Villas by Marriott provides luxurious home management companies with hospitality services. Despite being launched in 2019, Marriott has become well-known for its impeccable service standards as a hospitality provider.

Stripe

Stripe has many use cases. However, it is mainly recognized for its payment gateways that small and large companies use. Hostaway integrates with Stripe to ease payments for guests and vacation rental managers. 

Plans and Pricing

Hostaway does not provide pricing information on its website. This is due to its pricing model being customizable. Interested property managers must fill out a form to schedule a demo with sales. After that, the company provides them with a quote. However, one thing to note is that the number of properties managed is an essential factor in its pricing. To begin your support and onboarding process, start from here. 

Terms and Policies

Hostaway’s terms and policies provide information on the rules guiding the company’s operations. Like other software solutions, the rental management software collects several types of user data. These include personal information, cookies, etc. 

The personal information it collects ranges from your personal and device data. Using the software requires that you accept its cookie policy to enable it to gather information on your usage of its site. Also, the company may disclose your data to third-party sites integrated with it. Although the company treats your data as confidential, it may release it upon request by law enforcement bodies.

Customer Support

Hostaway prioritizes communication with customers and prospects. If you’re part of the latter, you can contact the customer service team through their email at support@hostaway.com. You can also call the support team at +12892060011. If your reason for contact is to reach out to their sales team, you can fill out the pricing form as described in the “Plan and Pricing” section. You can also send an email to sales@hostaway.com or call them at +17868297337. 

Customers can also visit the company’s help center for quick answers before or after onboarding. The help center is easy to use and contains information on integration, managing channels, and guides. You can also join Hostaway’s webinars or read rental management articles on their blog.

Conclusion

If you’re in the vacation rental business, you’re likely responsible for more than one property. To take your business to the next level, you must satisfy the property owners and guests. Therefore, it is essential to have software that can streamline your management and operations. 

If you’ve been looking for one, try Hostaway. Apart from being an all-in-one platform, you can bring your management stack or create your rental management site. Click here to get started, or head to the Techwriteable blog to see other unique SaaS tools you might