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Travel · head to head

Chekin vs Expedia

Chekin logo

Chekin

Travel

Guest check-in, identity verification and police registration for European rentals

From
€3.95/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Expedia logo

Expedia

Travel

Travel booking marketplace and package deal platform, part of Expedia Group, earning commission from hotels and margin on bundled packages

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Expedia has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Chekin there is a three unit minimum on the published plans, so a single-property host cannot buy the entry tier at the advertised rate.; Expedia package deal pricing is not transparent, since Expedia negotiates bundled rates with airlines and hotels and adds its own margin, making it difficult for a traveller to verify whether a bundle is actually cheaper than booking the same components separately.
  • They diverge on capability: Chekin covers Police and authority registration, Expedia covers Flight and hotel packages.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Chekin and Expedia actually diverge.

Attributes where Chekin and Expedia differ
AttributeChekinExpedia
Starting price€3.95/monthFree
Pricing modelPer property per monthFree for travellers, commission and package margin
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidiOS, Android, Web

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Travel).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Chekin

  • Police and authority registration
  • Identity verification
  • Tourist tax calculation
  • Self check-in and digital keys
  • Deposits and damage protection
  • Upsells and branded guest app

Only in Expedia

  • Flight and hotel packages
  • One Key rewards
  • Car rental and cruises
  • Price tracking
  • Vrbo integration
  • Trip planning tools

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Chekin

  • A manager with twenty apartments in Barcelona who must file guest data with the Ministry of the Interior for every arrival and cannot do it manually at scalenot Expedia
  • An Italian host needing Alloggiati Web submissions and city tourist tax collected from the guest rather than absorbednot Expedia
  • A property with no staffed reception issuing door codes only after identity documents have been verifiednot Expedia
  • An operator wanting damage deposits taken and released automatically instead of chasing bank transfersnot Expedia

Expedia

  • A traveller wanting to book a flight and hotel together as a single package transactionnot Chekin
  • Someone who books frequently across Expedia, Hotels.com and Vrbo and wants One Key rewards to accumulate across all threenot Chekin
  • A traveller wanting price tracking and alerts on a specific route before bookingnot Chekin
  • Someone comparing a bundled package price against booking the flight and hotel separately to check for genuine savingsnot Chekin

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Chekin

  • There is a three unit minimum on the published plans, so a single-property host cannot buy the entry tier at the advertised rate.
  • The compliance value is regional; outside Spain, Italy, Portugal and Greece there is often no authority integration to use and the product becomes an ordinary check-in form at a per property price.
  • Transaction fees sit on almost every money-handling feature, including 1.5% plus EUR 0.99 on payments and 10% on unified inbox transactions, so the effective cost is far above the subscription for anyone using them.
  • It is a layer on top of a PMS rather than a replacement, so you are paying a second per property subscription alongside your existing platform and reconciling two sources of guest data.
  • Identity verification and self check-in sit behind the Premium tier and Premium only includes one premium feature, so an operator wanting both verification and digital keys must move to Enterprise.

Expedia

  • Package deal pricing is not transparent, since Expedia negotiates bundled rates with airlines and hotels and adds its own margin, making it difficult for a traveller to verify whether a bundle is actually cheaper than booking the same components separately.
  • Hotel commission, typically in a 15 to 25 percent range similar to other online travel agencies, is built invisibly into displayed rates, so the same room can sometimes be found cheaper booking directly with the hotel.
  • Cancellation and change policies for package bookings can be more restrictive than booking each component separately, since changing one part of a bundle can affect the priced discount on the rest.
  • Customer service for package booking issues can require coordinating between Expedia and multiple underlying suppliers, airline and hotel, which adds complexity compared with a single-component booking.
  • One Key reward point value and redemption rules have changed as Expedia Group consolidated its previously separate loyalty programmes, so points earned under older programme structures required migration and are not always a like-for-like conversion.

Pricing, plan by plan

Chekin

€3.95/month
  • Basic$3.95/month
    • Minimum three units
    • Online check-in and legal compliance filing
    • Tourist taxes
  • Premium$5.95/month
    • Everything in Basic
    • One premium feature of your choice
    • Options: identity verification, self check-in and digital keys, branded guest app, digital guidebooks or e-invoicing
  • Enterprise$7.95/month
    • All premium features included
    • Identity verification, self check-in, branded app, guidebooks, e-invoicing
    • Custom pricing above volume thresholds

Expedia

Free
  • ExpediaFree
    • Free to search and book for travellers, no subscription or platform fee charged to the guest
    • Hotel commission typically in a 15 to 25 percent range, built invisibly into the displayed rate
    • Package deals add a further margin on top of negotiated bundled airline and hotel rates

Which should you pick?

Choose Chekin if

  • You need police and authority registration.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want identity verification.
Chekin review

Choose Expedia if

  • You need flight and hotel packages.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on iOS, Android, Web.
  • You also want one key rewards.
Expedia review

Questions people ask

Is Chekin or Expedia better?
Neither clearly leads. Chekin starts at €3.95/month and Expedia at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Chekin or Expedia?
Expedia has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at €3.95/month for Chekin and Free for Expedia.
Does Chekin or Expedia run on more platforms?
Chekin runs on Web, iOS, Android. Expedia runs on iOS, Android, Web.
Can I use Expedia for free?
Yes. Expedia has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Chekin starts at €3.95/month.
What is Chekin best used for?
Chekin is most often used for a manager with twenty apartments in barcelona who must file guest data with the ministry of the interior for every arrival and cannot do it manually at scale, an italian host needing alloggiati web submissions and city tourist tax collected from the guest rather than absorbed, a property with no staffed reception issuing door codes only after identity documents have been verified, an operator wanting damage deposits taken and released automatically instead of chasing bank transfers. Of those, a manager with twenty apartments in barcelona who must file guest data with the ministry of the interior for every arrival and cannot do it manually at scale and an italian host needing alloggiati web submissions and city tourist tax collected from the guest rather than absorbed are not what Expedia is typically brought in for.
What can Chekin do that Expedia cannot?
Chekin covers Police and authority registration, Identity verification, Tourist tax calculation, Self check-in and digital keys. Expedia covers Flight and hotel packages, One Key rewards, Car rental and cruises, Price tracking.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Chekin: Why would I buy this rather than use my PMS check-in form?

Because it files guest data with national police registration systems and calculates local tourist tax, which PMS check-in forms do not do.

Expedia: Is Expedia free to use?

Yes, for travellers there is no subscription or booking fee charged directly. Expedia earns money through hotel commission and margin built into package deals.

Chekin: What does it really cost?

From EUR 3.95 per property per month with a three unit minimum, plus 1.5% plus EUR 0.30 on deposits, 1.5% plus EUR 0.99 on payments, 1% on upsells and 10% on unified inbox transactions.

Expedia: Is a flight and hotel package actually cheaper than booking separately?

Sometimes, but not reliably, since package pricing includes a margin on top of negotiated bundled rates; a traveller who wants to verify needs to price both approaches independently.

Chekin: Does it work outside southern Europe?

The check-in, verification and key features do. The automated authority filing that justifies the price largely does not.

Expedia: What is One Key?

A loyalty rewards programme shared across Expedia, Hotels.com and Vrbo, allowing points earned on one brand to be used across the others.

Chekin: Can I get both identity verification and digital keys on Premium?

No. Premium includes one premium feature. Both requires Enterprise at EUR 7.95 per property per month.

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