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Travel · head to head

Expedia vs Hostaway

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
Hostaway logo

Hostaway

Travel

Vacation rental management platform for professional operators

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Expedia has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: 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.; Hostaway quote-only pricing scaled by listing count, with an onboarding fee commonly reported, so entry cost is real
  • They diverge on capability: Expedia covers Flight and hotel packages, Hostaway covers Multi-channel distribution.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Expedia and Hostaway actually diverge.

Attributes where Expedia and Hostaway differ
AttributeExpediaHostaway
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelFree for travellers, commission and package marginquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsiOS, Android, WebWeb, iOS, Android, Cloud

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 Expedia

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

Only in Hostaway

  • Multi-channel distribution
  • Unified inbox
  • Automation
  • Owner statements

What people use each for

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

Expedia

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

Hostaway

  • Managers running portfolios across several booking channelsnot Expedia
  • Operators whose margin goes to manual guest messaging and turnover coordinationnot Expedia
  • Companies producing owner statements for managed propertiesnot Expedia

Where each one falls short

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

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.

Hostaway

  • Quote-only pricing scaled by listing count, with an onboarding fee commonly reported, so entry cost is real
  • Built for professional operators; single-property hosts find the cost per unit hard to justify
  • Channel sync inherits the reliability of the booking platforms it connects to
  • Depth in individual modules is shallower than dedicated point tools

Pricing, plan by plan

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

Hostaway

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the Hostaway review.

Which should you pick?

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

Choose Hostaway if

  • You need multi-channel distribution.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android, Cloud.
  • You also want unified inbox.
Hostaway review

Questions people ask

Is Expedia or Hostaway better?
Neither clearly leads. Expedia starts at Free and Hostaway at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Expedia or Hostaway?
Expedia has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Expedia and On request for Hostaway.
Does Expedia or Hostaway run on more platforms?
Expedia runs on iOS, Android, Web. Hostaway runs on Web, iOS, Android, Cloud.
Can I use Expedia for free?
Yes. Expedia has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Hostaway starts at On request.
What is Expedia best used for?
Expedia is most often used for a traveller wanting to book a flight and hotel together as a single package transaction, someone who books frequently across expedia, hotels.com and vrbo and wants one key rewards to accumulate across all three, a traveller wanting price tracking and alerts on a specific route before booking, someone comparing a bundled package price against booking the flight and hotel separately to check for genuine savings. Of those, a traveller wanting to book a flight and hotel together as a single package transaction and someone who books frequently across expedia, hotels.com and vrbo and wants one key rewards to accumulate across all three are not what Hostaway is typically brought in for.
What can Expedia do that Hostaway cannot?
Expedia covers Flight and hotel packages, One Key rewards, Car rental and cruises, Price tracking. Hostaway covers Multi-channel distribution, Unified inbox, Automation, Owner statements.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

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.

Hostaway: What does Hostaway cost?

It quotes by listing count and modules and does not publish rates. An onboarding fee is commonly part of the arrangement.

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.

Hostaway: Hostaway or Guesty?

They compete for the same professional operator market with broadly similar feature sets. Differences usually come down to quoted price, onboarding and specific channel or PMS integrations.

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.

Hostaway: Is it worth it for one or two listings?

Generally not. It is built for portfolios, and the per-unit cost is hard to justify below a handful of properties.

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