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Travel · head to head

IDeaS vs Stayntouch

IDeaS logo

IDeaS

Travel

Enterprise revenue management for hotels and casinos, owned by SAS

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Stayntouch logo

Stayntouch

Travel

Cloud property management system for independent hotels

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: IDeaS nothing about pricing is published, and industry estimates put independent group deployments in the range of one and a half to three and a half thousand US dollars per month, so a buyer cannot even scope a budget without a sales cycle.; Stayntouch quote-only pricing scaled by rooms, with no published rates
  • They diverge on capability: IDeaS covers Segment-level forecasting, Stayntouch covers Mobile check-in.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which IDeaS and Stayntouch actually diverge.

Attributes where IDeaS and Stayntouch differ
AttributeIDeaSStayntouch
PlatformsWebWeb, iOS, Android, Cloud

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), 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 IDeaS

  • Segment-level forecasting
  • Group displacement analysis
  • Length of stay controls
  • Room type optimisation
  • Total revenue view
  • Two-way system integration
  • Portfolio management
  • Automated pricing decisions

Only in Stayntouch

  • Mobile check-in
  • Guest self-service
  • Cloud PMS
  • Open API
  • Housekeeping
  • Payments

What people use each for

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

IDeaS

  • A casino resort deciding whether a convention group displaces more transient revenue than it producesnot Stayntouch
  • A hotel group standardising forecasting method across dozens of propertiesnot Stayntouch
  • A city hotel with complex corporate, wholesale and transient segmentation that simple tools cannot separatenot Stayntouch
  • A resort optimising length-of-stay controls around peak arrival patterns rather than pricing flatnot Stayntouch

Stayntouch

  • Hotels wanting to check guests in away from a fixed desknot IDeaS
  • Properties reducing lobby queuing at peak arrivalnot IDeaS
  • Independents replacing an on-premise PMS with cloudnot IDeaS

Where each one falls short

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

IDeaS

  • Nothing about pricing is published, and industry estimates put independent group deployments in the range of one and a half to three and a half thousand US dollars per month, so a buyer cannot even scope a budget without a sales cycle.
  • Contracts are typically multi-year, which locks a property into the platform through a period when its own strategy or ownership may change.
  • Implementation is long and depends on clean historical segmented data; properties whose PMS has inconsistent segment coding spend months on data hygiene before the forecast is usable.
  • It expects a revenue manager to interpret and override it, so a property without that skill will either follow bad recommendations or stop looking at them.
  • The interface and workflow reflect enterprise heritage rather than modern design, and casual users find it dense compared with the simpler tools aimed at independents.

Stayntouch

  • Quote-only pricing scaled by rooms, with no published rates
  • Mobile-first depends on property-wide wireless coverage that many older hotels do not have
  • A smaller vendor than the major PMS providers, with a narrower integration ecosystem
  • Strongest in North America, with less coverage elsewhere

Pricing, plan by plan

IDeaS

On request
  • IDeaS G3 RMS$undefined/year
    • Quoted per property and per portfolio
    • No published rate card at any tier
    • Contracts commonly multi-year

Stayntouch

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the Stayntouch review.

Which should you pick?

Choose IDeaS if

  • You need segment-level forecasting.
  • You also want group displacement analysis.
IDeaS review

Choose Stayntouch if

  • You need mobile check-in.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android, Cloud.
  • You also want guest self-service.
Stayntouch review

Questions people ask

Is IDeaS or Stayntouch better?
Neither clearly leads. IDeaS starts at On request and Stayntouch at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, IDeaS or Stayntouch?
IDeaS starts at On request and Stayntouch at On request.
Does IDeaS or Stayntouch run on more platforms?
IDeaS runs on Web. Stayntouch runs on Web, iOS, Android, Cloud.
What is IDeaS best used for?
IDeaS is most often used for a casino resort deciding whether a convention group displaces more transient revenue than it produces, a hotel group standardising forecasting method across dozens of properties, a city hotel with complex corporate, wholesale and transient segmentation that simple tools cannot separate, a resort optimising length-of-stay controls around peak arrival patterns rather than pricing flat. Of those, a casino resort deciding whether a convention group displaces more transient revenue than it produces and a hotel group standardising forecasting method across dozens of properties are not what Stayntouch is typically brought in for.
What can IDeaS do that Stayntouch cannot?
IDeaS covers Segment-level forecasting, Group displacement analysis, Length of stay controls, Room type optimisation. Stayntouch covers Mobile check-in, Guest self-service, Cloud PMS, Open API.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

IDeaS: What does IDeaS cost?

It is not published. Independent group deployments are commonly discussed in the range of one and a half to three and a half thousand US dollars per property per month, but every deal is quoted.

Stayntouch: What does Stayntouch cost?

Quoted per property by room count; not published.

IDeaS: Who owns IDeaS?

SAS Institute. The forecasting engine draws directly on the parent company analytics platform, which is the substantive reason for the product depth.

Stayntouch: What does mobile-first actually change?

Check-in happens on a tablet anywhere in the property or on the guest's own phone, rather than at a fixed counter, which changes both queuing and front-desk staffing.

IDeaS: Is it suitable for a single independent hotel?

Rarely. Without a revenue manager and clean segmented history, a small property gets more from RoomPriceGenie or PriceLabs at a fraction of the cost and effort.

Stayntouch: What does it need to work well?

Reliable property-wide wireless. A mobile-first PMS is only as good as the network it runs on.

IDeaS: Does it handle group business?

Yes, group displacement analysis is one of its defining capabilities and a main reason casino and convention hotels choose it.

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