Guesty vs Hospitable:
Which Is Best for Vacation Property Managers?
Choosing a property management system should not feel like a guessing game. As your portfolio expands, the differences between platforms become increasingly evident – gaps in automation, limited reporting capabilities, additional manual work, and rising costs from tools that fail to scale with your business.
Guesty and Hospitable are well-known options, particularly for hosts who start on Airbnb and gradually add more properties. However, many managers eventually require a solution that delivers stronger automation, a more robust direct-booking infrastructure, and pricing that remains transparent as they grow.
This guide outlines how each platform performs in day-to-day operations, detailing their strengths, their limitations, and which one provides the most reliable foundation for long-term efficiency and control.
What Is Holiday Rental Management Software?
Holiday rental management software centralises the core functions required to operate short-term rentals and property management businesses, including bookings, guest communication, payments, channel distribution, operations, and reporting.
The best platforms do far more than store reservations. They automate end-to-end workflows, maintain accurate synchronisation, eliminate repetitive tasks, and provide a reliable operational infrastructure that supports business growth without increasing your workload.
How to Choose Vacation Rental Software for Your Business?
Automation vs Website Focus
The first distinction to make is whether a platform is designed primarily as a website builder or as an operational engine. Some systems focus on website creation with only limited PMS functionality layered on, while others are built around automation and workflow reliability. Many property managers prefer platforms that deliver both robust website capabilities and strong operational automation, eliminating the need to manage two separate systems.
Pricing Model and Real Cost of Scale
Pricing should be evaluated beyond the monthly subscription alone. Booking fees, add-on bundles, and enterprise-style charges can escalate quickly if the platform does not meaningfully reduce manual work. The real question is whether the system genuinely saves you time or subtly introduces new tasks.
Feature Depth and Operational Capability
As your portfolio expands, you need technology capable of scaling with it. A robust platform provides reliable OTA synchronisation, automated payments, structured housekeeping workflows, accurate reporting, owner transparency, and rate automation that adjusts to demand without constant oversight. Without these components, operational stability can quickly become vulnerable.
Long-Term Growth and Scalability
Your software should continue to perform efficiently as your inventory expands or as you oversee multiple locations. The right system accommodates growth without necessitating a complete overhaul of your tools or processes.
Guesty vs Hostfully: Head-to-Head Comparison
Choose Hospitable if:
You are a small-scale landlord or property manager seeking a simple, user-friendly platform. It streamlines bookings, messaging, and pricing, though the direct-booking website and advanced features require a paid plan.
Choose Guesty if:
You’re looking for a powerful, scalable solution tailored to your business size. Guesty Lite is ideal for hosts managing up to three listings who need essential automation, while the full Guesty platform is designed for professional property management companies that require advanced tools to manage larger and more complex portfolios efficiently.
Guesty is an enterprise-level PMS designed to centralise operations with a unified inbox, automated workflows, and a robust channel manager connecting to major OTAs. It also offers payment processing, task management, owner reporting, and guest communication tools, enabling property managers to scale efficiently.
Hospitable targets smaller landlords or hosts, focusing on simplicity, guest communication, and automated workflows. Its direct-booking website and advanced features are available via paid plans, making it best for managing a few properties with minimal complexity.
Features
Free plan
All-in-one platform
Direct booking website
Automation & reliability
OTA integrations (Airbnb etc.)
Scalability
Reporting
See Why Smart Property Managers Choose Zeevou Over Guesty and Hospitable
Guesty: All-in-One Property Management Platform
Guesty positions itself as an all-in-one vacation rental software solution and is also one of the most well-known solutions in the space.
But it is not for everyone – it focuses on professional property managers with large portfolios and comprehensive enterprise-grade features and multi-unit management and some user reviews have concerns with high pricing and lack of cost transparency.
Their main features are:
- Direct-booking website builder (customisable templates, integrated booking engine, custom domains, and SEO tools).
- Channel manager that synchronises listings, rates, availability, and reservations across Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking.com, Expedia, and more.
- PMS operations: unified inbox, multi-calendar, mobile app, payment collection (via GuestyPay), owner statements, guest CRM, and accounting features (including Guesty Trust Accounting).
- Automation and AI: automated guest messaging, task management, owner communications, review management, and Guesty PriceOptimiser for dynamic pricing.
- Additional solutions: damage protection (Guesty Shield), revenue management, guest screening, API integrations, and financing options (Guesty Capital).
Pros:
- Comprehensive, enterprise-level feature set: built-in trust accounting, payments, and owner management tools.
- Strong automation suite and integrations help streamline operations for complex portfolios.
- Higher pricing compared to many competitors.
- Occasional support delays and learning curve cited in reviews.
Guesty Setup
Guesty does not offer a free trial for its Pro or Enterprise plans.
Most reviews praise the onboarding process and customer support, though some users find the AI-based assistance to be frustrating.
Guesty Pricing Tiers
Guesty offers three main plans designed for different portfolio sizes, each with its own pricing structure. Their costs vary based on the number of listings and the level of features you need.
- The Lite plan costs £12–£20/month per listing for 1–3 properties, with occasional limited-time discounts.
- Pro (4–199 listings) and Enterprise (200+ listings) plans have custom pricing that requires direct consultation.
- Additional fees may include 3–5% per reservation, cancellation charges, and separate costs for premium add-ons.
Reviews
G2
4.4
Capterra
4.2
Trustpilot
4.5
G2
4.9
Capterra
4.8
Trustpilot
3.9
Reviews
Review Platforms
G2
Capterra
Trustpilot
Hospitable: Automation-Focused Operations Platform Powered by AI
Hospitable positions itself as a short-term rental ‘super-app’ heavily focused on AI-powered guest-messaging automation and streamlined operations – particularly attractive for solo hosts or small portfolios. However, some users raise concerns about limitations in channel integrations, feature depth, and cost-effectiveness as portfolios grow.
Their main features are:
- AI-powered guest messaging and a unified inbox, supported by automations for team notifications, cleaning coordination, and review management.
- Comprehensive channel management with full calendar, rate, and reservation synchronisation, as well as built-in dynamic pricing.
- Direct-booking functionality, with an optional Premium package that includes AI-driven guest screening through Autohost and provides up to $5 million in damage protection.
- Integrated payment processing, with Hospitable serving as the Merchant of Record, while the Basic plan supports Stripe exclusively.
- Smart-home integrations, including support for connected locks, thermostats, and other compatible devices.
Pros:
- Highly regarded for its automated messaging capabilities.
- Delivers dependable, “set-and-forget” workflows once properly configured.
- Frequently praised by small and mid-sized hosts for its ease of use and overall reliability.
- Unreliable automation (messages or syncs sometimes fail).
- Poor or slow customer support.
- Unexpected changes to settings or pricing.
- Issues with calendar sync are leading to double bookings.
Hospitable Setup
Hospitable offers a 14-day free trial and optional onboarding support to help new users get started efficiently.
Hosts also gain access to a comprehensive library of training videos for guided setup, along with an active online community that includes town halls and Q&A sessions where they can learn, troubleshoot, and exchange insights with other hosts.
Hospitable Pricing Tiers
Hospitable offers three primary subscription plans, with pricing adjusted based on the number of properties and included features:
- Host (£25/month for 1 property), Professional (£49/month for 2 properties), and Mogul (£79/month for 3 properties).
- Additional active properties cost £9–£25 per month depending on the plan, and charges apply only when properties have check-ins.
- All plans include a 14-day free trial.
Where Do Guesty and Hospitable Fall Short?
Hospitable focuses on automation and AI-powered guest messaging, along with streamlined operations like cleaning task management and review automation, but its website-building capabilities and channel diversity are more limited. Meanwhile, Guesty delivers powerful, full-scale features but is often considered overwhelming for mid-sized operators and costly due to commission-based pricing and add-on fees.
Zeevou provides a balanced alternative with transparent tiered pricing (Spark, Glow, Blaze, Dazzle), a free plan, and no booking commissions – offering a practical middle ground between simplicity and power.
Zeevou: Setup and Pricing Overview
Zeevou makes it easy to get started with a free plan and a structured, portfolio-friendly pricing model. You can sign up instantly, explore the system, and upgrade only when you’re ready.
- Spark (Free): Core PMS features, a direct-booking website, automated workflows, guest messaging, and basic payments.
- Glow (~£14/unit): Adds a channel manager, unified inbox, mobile app, and more integrations.
- Blaze (~£26/unit): Includes dynamic pricing, automated owner reporting, housekeeping & maintenance workflows.
- Dazzle (~£42/unit): Adds AI-powered 24/7 guest messaging and advanced automation tools.
All paid plans offer up to 80% savings on annual subscriptions, include a 30-day money-back guarantee, and support custom pricing or bulk discounts for larger portfolios. (Some plans apply a 10% fee on Google Vacation Rentals.)
Zeevou’s onboarding is designed to support you at every stage – from live Q&A and 24/7 chat support to a dedicated Customer Success Manager on higher-tier plans to help with workflow setup, channel connections, and system optimisation.
Which Platform Matches Your Business Model?
The right choice depends on your portfolio size, budget, team expertise, and growth plans.
Enterprise-level operators:
Platforms like Guesty are ideal for large, established property managers who need advanced automation, deep integrations, and multi-unit management at scale.
Independent hosts and small teams:
Hospitable is ideal for those managing a few properties who value simplicity, strong guest communication tools, and easy automation. Its AI-powered messaging and streamlined task management help save time, though its website-building capabilities and channel support are more limited.
Growing or mid-sized businesses:
If you manage 10–200 properties, Zeevou offers a more scalable and cost-effective solution, designed to help you grow efficiently without the complexity or high costs of enterprise tools.
Zeevou Sells "Financial Independence", Not Just " Automation”.
Guesty vs Hospitable: Final Verdict
Guesty suits operators who are scaling quickly or already managing a larger, more professional portfolio. With 24/7 guest communication services, extensive automation, trust accounting, and a broad integration ecosystem, Guesty offers enterprise-level capabilities — but it also comes with higher pricing and a more complex setup.
Hospitable, on the other hand, is ideal for small to mid-sized hosts who want a simple, automation-focused system with strong AI guest messaging, a unified inbox, and effortless daily workflows. With built-in dynamic pricing, a direct-booking site, smart-device integrations, and optional guest vetting and damage protection, it’s a great choice for hosts who want powerful automation without the complexity of a full PMS.
However, if your business is rapidly growing and you’re looking for a more affordable, all-in-one alternative, Zeevou is worth considering. It offers automation, direct booking tools, and transparent pricing – without the steep learning curve or high enterprise costs.
The information presented in this comparison is based on publicly available data and our independent analysis as of July 2025. Features, pricing, and capabilities may change without notice.
