Travel · head to head
Stayntouch vs Hostaway
Stayntouch
Travel
Cloud property management system for independent hotels
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
Hostaway
Travel
Vacation rental management platform for professional operators
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Stayntouch quote-only pricing scaled by rooms, with no published rates; Hostaway quote-only pricing scaled by listing count, with an onboarding fee commonly reported, so entry cost is real
- They diverge on capability: Stayntouch covers Mobile check-in, Hostaway covers Multi-channel distribution.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Stayntouch and Hostaway actually diverge.
| Attribute | Stayntouch | Hostaway |
|---|
Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), platforms (Web, iOS, Android, Cloud), 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 Stayntouch
- Mobile check-in
- Guest self-service
- Cloud PMS
- Open API
- Housekeeping
- Payments
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.
Stayntouch
- Hotels wanting to check guests in away from a fixed desknot Hostaway
- Properties reducing lobby queuing at peak arrivalnot Hostaway
- Independents replacing an on-premise PMS with cloudnot Hostaway
Hostaway
- Managers running portfolios across several booking channelsnot Stayntouch
- Operators whose margin goes to manual guest messaging and turnover coordinationnot Stayntouch
- Companies producing owner statements for managed propertiesnot Stayntouch
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
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
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
Stayntouch
On requestNo published plan breakdown. See the Stayntouch review.
Hostaway
On requestNo published plan breakdown. See the Hostaway review.
Which should you pick?
Choose Stayntouch if
- You need mobile check-in.
- You work on Web, iOS, Android, Cloud.
- You also want guest self-service.
Choose Hostaway if
- You need multi-channel distribution.
- You work on Web, iOS, Android, Cloud.
- You also want unified inbox.
Questions people ask
- Is Stayntouch or Hostaway better?
- Neither clearly leads. Stayntouch starts at On request and Hostaway at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Stayntouch or Hostaway?
- Stayntouch starts at On request and Hostaway at On request.
- Does Stayntouch or Hostaway run on more platforms?
- Both run on Web, iOS, Android, Cloud, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
- What is Stayntouch best used for?
- Stayntouch is most often used for hotels wanting to check guests in away from a fixed desk, properties reducing lobby queuing at peak arrival, independents replacing an on-premise pms with cloud. Of those, hotels wanting to check guests in away from a fixed desk and properties reducing lobby queuing at peak arrival are not what Hostaway is typically brought in for.
- What can Stayntouch do that Hostaway cannot?
- Stayntouch covers Mobile check-in, Guest self-service, Cloud PMS, Open API. Hostaway covers Multi-channel distribution, Unified inbox, Automation, Owner statements.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Stayntouch: What does Stayntouch cost?
Quoted per property by room count; not published.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.